Troubleshooting Game Problems

If anything is going to test the capabilities of your system, it's going to be a game. Systems that work perfectly with every other type of application will show their weaknesses when tested with the latest, most demanding PC games. In other words, if you want to try to break your system, you need to play some games!

Compatibility Issues

Every time Microsoft issues a new operating system, the same question gets asked which games won't work on it?

Given the poor track record Windows 2000 had with playing games, I fully expected a boatload of compatibility issues with Windows XP. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Windows XP was as strong a game platform as Windows 98 and perhaps even stronger.

This application robustness is due primarily to the efforts of Microsoft's Application Compatibility Experience (ACE) group. ACE was formed at about the same time Windows XP went into development, with the goal of making as many applications as possible run as smoothly as possible under the new operating system.

The ACE group did its job. Not only does Windows XP run every Windows 2000-compatible application, it also runs the majority of Windows 9X/Me applications, and an amazing number of older DOS-based applications.

There are several factors behind this high level of compatibility with older games and applications. First off, Microsoft added SoundBlaster-compatible sound support to Windows XP, as well as high-resolution VESA video support, which are necessary for some older games to run.

Second, XP includes a new compatibility mode, which can trick games and other applications into thinking that they're running on an older operating system. So if a game is designed to run only on Windows 95, you can rev up the compatibility mode and make the game think that Windows XP is really Windows 95. You'd be surprised at how effective this is!

If you're having trouble running an older game, here's what you should do:

1.	From within My Computer, create a shortcut to the problematic program. (Or, if a shortcut to the program already exists in the Programs menu, navigate to that shortcut.)
2.	Right-click on the shortcut icon and select Properties from the pop-up menu.
3.	When the Properties dialog box appears, select the Compatibility tab (shown in Figure 19.2). Figure 19.2. If you're having trouble running an older game, configure it to run in compatibility mode.
4.	Check the Run This Program in Compatibility Mode for option, then pull down the list and select which operating system you want to emulate. (You can choose to emulate Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT4, or Windows 2000.)
5.	If you need to run the program at a lesser color depth or lower screen resolution, check the Run in 256 Colors and/or Run in 640 x 480 Screen Resolution options.
6.	Click OK.

If this doesn't get that old game up and running, all hope isn't lost yet. You should search the Microsoft Knowledge Base (support.microsoft.com/directory/) to see if there has been a reported issue with your particular game, and if so, what kinds of fixes are available.

You also can check with Microsoft's Compatibility Center to see if a particular game is compatible with your computer. You can connect to the Compatibility Center by opening XP's Help and Support Services and clicking the Compatible Hardware and Software Link. (You'll need to open an Internet connection to check this database.)

Another good place to check for compatibility issues is at the NT Compatible Web site (www.ntcompatible.com/). This site lists hundreds of different games, and whether they're compatible with various versions of Windows.

My experience is that if you're running newer games on newer hardware, you probably won't run into any problems. For that matter, older games in and of themselves don't seem to cause a lot of problems.

Any problems you encounter are more likely to be related to older or more obscure hardware installations. If you have an old, out-of-date sound card from a defunct manufacturer, for example, you might have trouble playing some older games under Windows XP. Replace the sound card with a newer model and your problems will probably go away.

In other words, when you're playing games, hardware compatibility will probably be a bigger issue than software compatibility. Even if you think it's a game problem, it very well could be a hardware problem.

This is just one more reason why Microsoft says that Windows XP is really intended for new installations, and not to upgrade older PCs.

Hardware Issues

Speaking of hardware problems, Windows XP includes some good built-in troubleshooters to help you track down any problems that may develop with your game hardware:

• If you have game controller problems, you should run the Windows XP Hardware Troubleshooter. (From the Help and Support Services window, click the Fixing a Problem link, then click Hardware and System Device Problems, then Hardware Troubleshooter.)

• If you're having more general problems getting a game to run properly, you should run the Multimedia and Games Troubleshooter. (From the Help and Support Services window, click the Fixing a Problem link, then click Games, Sound, and Video Problems, then Games and Multimedia Troubleshooter.)

• If you're having DirectX-related problems, you should run the DirectX Diagnostic Tool. (From the Help and Support Services window, click the Fixing a Problem link, then click Games, Sound, and Video Problems, then Troubleshooting DirectX.)

You also should check out Microsoft's Compatibility Center, as discussed previously, to see if there might be a compatibility issue with a particular audio, video, or controller device on your system.