FUCKING ROME TOTAL WAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Dominus Atheos]

I got Rome: Total War a while ago, and when I tried to play it, it didn't start up. It would just load some copyright screen, and then crash. I install patch 1.2, and it still doesn't work, so I uninstall the game, and reinstall it. I then try to reinstall patch 1.2, BUT IT SAYS IT WAS ALREADY INSTALLED. So I call up tech support, and they send me some instructions on editing my registry. That doesn't work, so I just think to myself “screw it.” So I install patch 1.1(which some how works ). It still doesn't get past the copyright screen. So I call up tech support, and they tell me to go disable every start up program, including none-Microsoft system ones, and update my video drivers(which were only one version out of date). I do that, it still doesn't work, so I call up tech support again. They tell me my processor isn't supported. I HAVE A FUCKING AMD SEMPRON!!!! Not exactly a rare processor, but they didn't build in support for it. Thankfully a friend gave me the game for free, so I'm not out any money, but I'm still PISSED AS FUCK about missing out on one of the best real-time strategy games ever. If anyone can help, I would appreciate it.

[Uraniun235]

Not exactly a rare processor, but they didn't build in support for it.

You might try calling tech support again; some phone jockeys have no idea what they're doing.

[Dominus Atheos]

And after I updated my video drivers, when I tried to start up the game, it gave me a message saying it couldn't find DX9 so that's when I called up tech support for the most recent time.

And now I just got an email from them. It reads:

Subject
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Error message comes up after launching game


Discussion Thread
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Response (Kenny Kerr) - 11/16/2005 03:32 PM
Thank you for contacting Activision customer support. Select start and pull up the start menu. Select run, and in the text field type 'dxdiag'. This will open up a diagnostic tool that will help me determine the problem your machine is having with the game. From the system tab, locate in the system information section the processor. Read the processor information, and all of the information below this. Now select the display tab. From here we can see what kind of graphics card you have, and if your drivers are currently out of date. From this section read the device name. Now read the device number. Okay, everything seems as if the game should function, although the make of your processor is not supported. This is why you are encountering the error message on launch. All I can recommend is installing the product on a PC that meets all of the minimum system requirements. Thank you for contacting Activision customer support. To view a list of the minimum system requirements refer to the list below:

(link removed)

Customer (Entered by Kenny Kerr) - 11/16/2005 03:32 PM
I am trying to launch my game. Everytime I do so, I get an error message regarding DX 9. How can I get my game running


Question Reference
---------------------------------------------------------------
Product Level 1: PC
Product Level 2: Rome: Total War
Date Created: 11/16/2005 03:32 PM
Last Updated: 11/16/2005 03:32 PM
Status: Waiting

[Soontir C'boath]

Note to self when buying an AMD computer in the future: "Do not buy Sempron."

From reading the minimum requirements from the box and reading the AMD site on Sempron's you should easily meet the min. requirement for 1GHZ.

What is your graphics card you have in your pc?

[Vendetta]

You know, when you contact us trained tech support monkeys with an error happening, it helps immensely if you include the fucking error message so we can google the fucker and find out what it means.

Activision's tech support are treating you like a muppet because you expect them to be psychic and solve a DirectX issue with absolutely no information about what the error is.

They can't read your mind, they can't see your screen, and your support request is the kind that is usually sent by the kind of person who has trouble telling a right click from a left click. If you want help from these people, you have to give them enough information to help you.

[Dominus Atheos]

I did, dumbass. That's why they sent me an email mentioning it.

Customer (Entered by Kenny Kerr) - 11/16/2005 03:32 PM
I am trying to launch my game. Everytime I do so, I get an error message regarding DX 9. How can I get my game running

See? Right there, dipshit, in the fucking email they sent me that I posted.

[Kamakazie Sith]

I did, dumbass. That's why they sent me an email mentioning it.

Customer (Entered by Kenny Kerr) - 11/16/2005 03:32 PM
I am trying to launch my game. Everytime I do so, I get an error message regarding DX 9. How can I get my game running

See? Right there, dipshit, in the fucking email they sent me that I posted.

Really? All I see is something about DirectX. What does the message say about DirectX?

Example - "cannot initialize DirectX"

If your error message was really "Error regarding DirectX" then I'd be fucking shocked.

[darthdavid]

YOU ... DUMB ... SACK ... OF ... SHIT! THERE IS MORE THAN ONE DX 9 ERROR YOU STUPID CUM RESEVOIR. IF YOU WANT ANYONE TO KNOW WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG INCLUDE THE ERROR. Please jump off a bridge now shitstain.

[Soontir C'boath]

Most if not all cases when an error occurs, there is an option to which you can click that shows the code to the problem. The code that you can then send to tech support...

[Dominus Atheos]

YOU ... DUMB ... SACK ... OF ... SHIT! THERE IS MORE THAN ONE DX 9 ERROR YOU STUPID CUM RESEVOIR. IF YOU WANT ANYONE TO KNOW WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG INCLUDE THE ERROR. Please jump off a bridge now shitstain.

The email was a summery of a conversation I had over the phone with a tech support person, written by the tech support person, asshole. Kenny Kerr is the name of the tech support representative I talked to, over the phone, and who wrote the email.

I bolded the important parts so you will have a better chance of understanding them.

Just to clear up any confusion, I read the exact error message to Kenny, or whatever the hell his name was, over the phone, as I was sitting in front of my computer, and he was guiding me through this, verbally.

Is that enough information for you? Do you understand completely now? If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask.

[Uraniun235]

Call tech support again. Get a different person on the line. This guy must be some joker who thinks that a Sempron is some weird esoteric processor, because there are other people who run Total War on Sempron processors just fine.

[Dominus Atheos]

A lot of video stuff isn't working on my computer since I installed the latest drivers for my ATI 9800 SE video card, so I will also need to call up ATI's tech support tomorrow, since it's too late to call either tonight.

My processor is a AMD Sempron 2800+, I have 512 DDR PC-3200 ram, and a Radeon 9800 SE video card, so I'm pretty sure I meet the Min Reqs.

[Darth Wong]

If you're having numerous video-related problems on your machine, it's pretty obvious that it's not just Rome Total War, and perhaps you should be looking at an OS reinstall.

[Admiral Valdemar]

I'd reinstall DirectX and try that first before bothering with an OS reinstall or reformat. Usually, installing a new game or piece of hardware can end in DX being a bitch, at least it used to with pre-version 8 setups.

[Zac Naloen]

Not just reinstall direct x, Uninstall your current direct x install and THEN reinstall. writing over previous versions does not always fix the error and it carries over.

[Arrow]

Not just reinstall direct x, Uninstall your current direct x install and THEN reinstall. writing over previous versions does not always fix the error and it carries over.

And if that doesn't work, try a Windows Repair before doing a complete reinstall.

[Admiral Valdemar]

If that doesn't work, I'd say it was hardware not being signed for use with DX, but I'm sure your stuff checks out anyway. It's probably a corrupt file.

[Faram]

Dude chill.

Do this for us will you?

Click Start->Run and type "dxdiag.exe"

And do all the tests, post any errors here.

[Dominus Atheos]

You will notice, I say one of the steps I took to get the game working was updated my video drivers, because they were one version out of date.

So I call up tech support, and they tell me to go disable every start up program, including none-Microsoft system ones, and update my video drivers(which were only one version out of date). I do that, it still doesn't work, so I call up tech support again.

and then I said

A lot of video stuff isn't working on my computer since I installed the latest drivers for my ATI 9800 SE video card, so I will also need to call up ATI's tech support tomorrow, since it's too late to call either tonight.

All I had to do was reinstall my previous, one-version-out-of-date, drivers, and now everything works. (except RTW, of course)

Jesus Christ on a pogo stick people, it's a good thing I know what I'm doing with computers, or else I might be in the middle of an OS reinstall right now!

[Dominus Atheos]

I just called fucking tech support again.

They said that AMD Semprons are NOT supported processors, so they absolutely refuse to help me. The only supported proccesors are PIII, P4, and Athlon. Even if the problem is not processor-related, they will not help me, under any circumstances, as long as I am running a Sempron, Opteron, Barton, or even Celeron.

You know what? Fuck you, Rome: Total War. Fuck you, Activision. Fuck you all.

[Admiral Valdemar]

Firstly, you picked the PC, so no one else can be blamed for the processor choice. Secondly, Activision don't publish The Creative Assembly's titles anymore, Sega do, so bug them.

[Ace Pace]

To be correct, a Sempron is mostly a fucking rebranded Athlon XP(for Socket A) or cut down Athlon 64's(socket 754).

Someone kill that tech support.

[InnocentBystander]

Just as a note, I can play rome Total war "okay" on my socket A 1600+ (Ath XP I believe)....

[Crayz9000]

You should be able to play any modern game on a modern CPU that supports the most common x86 extensions (MMX, SSE, SSE2, et al) and has a decent speed.

Something like a Cyrix I could see people having problems with, but a Sempron is just a cut-down Athlon (like the Celery-- er, I mean Celeron is to the Pentium III and Pentium IV).

[Kamakazie Sith]

To be correct, a Sempron is mostly a fucking rebranded Athlon XP(for Socket A) or cut down Athlon 64's(socket 754).

Someone kill that tech support.

Tech support? Why is tech support at fault here? If the company says "We don't support this processor" then how can you hold tech support responsible.

Obviously, mostly doesn't cut it.