Age of Empires 2 Issues...(Some things never die...)

I recently purchased an Inspiron Dell 1520 with a 2.00 ghz Intel Core 2 duo and an 8600 M gt graphics card. Naturally, at first I tried out Oblivion and such to see what this new laptop could do. After being impressed with all these modern day games; however, I longed for the classics enjoyed for hours on end.
I proceeded to install Age of Empires II and the Conquerors expansion. I then began playing, and after two or five rousing minutes in skirmish mode, the computer suddenly froze and a repeating beep sequence played over the speakers. I tried to ctrl-alt-del and get out of the program, but the computer was completely locked up. This has been puzzling me for several days, and after many google searches that lead me to no answer, I decided to come here and bask in the advice of others. I tried downloading a processor display of temperature to see if the computer wasn't over heating, but after retrying to play the game and stopping half was through establishing my civilization the temperature appeared normal. Can anyone tell me what is going on, and why it can play games that are cutting edge, but why it freezes up and I must restart the computer?
All answers are greatly appreciated.
Clayton

 

Are you running the game in Compatibility mode? Chances are AoE2 is so old that its incompatible with your OS, causing it to crash.

 

It's odd though, cuz on my old desktop that was running windows xp as well(forgot to mention my laptop was running xp). I'm thinking maybe some of the software on the laptop is interfering?.... BTW...I'm not a computer master by any means, but not a complete noob...more so middle...so try to use simplistic language if you could...lol.

 

Perhaps the problems are caused by SP2, which your old desktop might not have had installed. Anyway, try the game in Compatibility mode. Right click on the AoE2 execution file (the .exe file which you click on to start the game), go to Properties, click on the Compatibility tab, and check the Run this program in compatibility mode box. Choose any older OS, and then click Apply and OK. See if it still crashes.

 

it should work alright in xp. have you patched it to 1.0c?

 

Ok, so I tried to run it in compatibility mode for all the different versions of windows. I then tried it with a 1.0E patch...and still it does this to me...have I not been loyal to you after all these years Age of Empires? lol. I really don't know how something can play Doom 3 and Oblivion but not Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion. I'm about ready to just give up on the whole thing and play the newer games. I dunno, unless anybody else comes up with anymore suggestions I'm completely out of reasons why this is happening and fixes to solve the issue. Thanks though for all the effort to try and help me get this damn thing running guys.

 

i have no clue. i play it in windows and vista ultimate with no problems so i don't know what the go is.

anyway, good luck, its an awesome game.

 

I have exactly the same problem with, oddly enough, the same system. However, a buddy of mine also has the same thing. He is able to run the program with any problems whatsoever. I've tried just about everything I can possibly think of, and had already done everything mentioned on this page.

 

same problem here.. I have the Vostro 1500 with same settings

I noticed when I run it on battery it doesnt crash

 

Try updating your drivers. That may be the reason other people don't have the problem with the same system.

(FROM CHAZ'S THREAD)

Uninstall old Nvidia drivers first, from add/remove programs.

Link to 175.16 drivers, others might recommend other versions, such as 169.25.

Quote:
1. Click on the driver version (ex: 175.16) to download the drivers.

2. Once finished, double-click the .exe file and extract all drivers (default location is your desktop). A folder will appear with the name of the version of the driver (ex: 175.16). The installation process will not start yet (you don't want it to anyway).

3. Still on the LaptopVideo2Go website, right click the .INF and hit "Save Link As...". Put it somewhere.

4. Now, take that .INF file, and drag it into the extracted drivers folder. Overwrite when prompted.

5. Now you will be able to install the drivers (you needed to replace the .INF file to do that).

6. Open the extracted drivers folder.

7. Double-click Setup.exe, follow the instructions

 

Well, after many months of "sleeping on it," so to speak, I found a solution to my problem, as unorthodox as it may be. It seems that if you go in start>control panel>display>settings>advanced>adapter>properties>general>(and then under device usage click "do not use this device (disable)" and then apply the settings by undergoing a restart your graphics card will become disabled. It seems that it's an issue with the 8600 nvidia graphics card that causes the game to lock up. So, I played 1 solid game for two hours last night (no freeze ups, heck, it didn't even do the thing where it will make all the green turn red) and I was pumped after defeating my enemies. Then I realized I was probably going to want to use the graphics card I payed an extra $200 for...lol. So, I went back to where I'd set the graphics card to the alternative settings to discover that the whole thing was gone. Of course it was two in the morning at this point, so I figured "to hell with it" and just did a system restore and everything came back peachy fine. So, I guess I resolved my own issue (after some online reading and research taking their ideas and forming my own). Thanks for all the help guys, but it seems the issue is within the graphics card itself, and the simplest way to play ago2 is to merely disable the card and then system restore to have it back. Happy gaming, and I hope I've helped at least one other person with this issue.