[SOLVED (probably)]Tech help: all GOG.com games black screen

[Winter_Wolf]

Okay,first system specs:
Notebook, Asus K53SD
OS: Windows 7 x64 Professional
CPU: Intel i5 quad core at 2.5GHz
GPU: (dual) Intel PoS/Dedicated NVidia GeForce 610M
Screen Resolution: "native" at 1366x768. I want to kill the person who thought this was a good screen resolution. It sucks.
RAM: 6GB

Every game I've gotten through GOG.com has had this problem: my screen turns black, and I can't get out of it at all without a hard power down and reboot the computer. I've tried alt+f4, tried ctrl-alt-del, tried alt+tab, even tried the ol' Ctrl+shift+esc (it was a Vista thing, even though I'm running Win 7x64; nothing else worked, so why not try?).

It's quite irritating because the same games gotten through other sources have all run quite well on this computer. "Use a different computer" is not an option. I certainly blame the freaking idiotic 1366x768 screen resolution for MANY of my computing problems (and generally the way the GPUs are set up), but I can't help but be pretty upset with GOG.com that whatever they're doing is making their versions of these games not run correctly on screens that force us to use the screwed up screen resolution.

Looking for some help and fixes here. Specifically a new install of SMAC plus Alien Crossfire from GOG.com. Frankly I'm thinking that GOG isn't looking like it's going to be getting anymore of my money if I can't play any of the games I get through them. The whole point in paying them money was to support getting the games I want to play. If I can't play what I'm paying for, how's that better than say "borrowing a copy from a friend"?

[Grinner]

It sounds like the games might not be starting up fully before they hang, so neither the OS nor the program is processing keyboard input.

Have you tried changing the resolution to something a little more regular?

Edit: Oh, and of course, it would be advisable to talk to GOG, if you haven't already.

[Castaras]

I feel for you with regards teh resolution. It's a horrible maximum resolution to have, and I have it on this here laptop.

Have you tried setting your graphics card to do black bars so that you have a 1024x768 resolution in the middle of your screen? see if that does anything? All my gog games work fine despite the 1366x768 resolution.

Did you download the gog games through its downloader or manually? Try downloading using the other method and reinstalling?

[Winter_Wolf]

I feel for you with regards teh resolution. It's a horrible maximum resolution to have, and I have it on this here laptop.

Have you tried setting your graphics card to do black bars so that you have a 1024x768 resolution in the middle of your screen? see if that does anything? All my gog games work fine despite the 1366x768 resolution.

Did you download the gog games through its downloader or manually? Try downloading using the other method and reinstalling?

Video 1024x768 works perfectly on my other copy of SMAC/X. Shoot, even changing my screen to 1360x768 allows me to DirectDraw=0 (now, I don't think it worked before). Again, this is my non-GOG copy.
My force aspect ratio 4:3 is in effect, but not working with the GOG.games. I wanted to get away from the 4:3 1024x768 resolution because my screen would intermittently start flashing white for fractions of seconds, and I'm concerned about damaging it. Plus it's irritating. :smallwink:

I guess I'll try the manual DL, though I'm not sure if that's really the problem, since other GOG games with manual DL and install also black screen-hang until system BSODs. One time I did let a game stay in the black and after more than a half hour but less than full hour, the comp actually BSODed.

@ Grinner: If I have to change my screen to anything less than 1360x768 every time I want to play a GOG game, I'm pretty sure I'm going to say hell with GOG.com and all those old games. I've been scouring their support and community boards to see if this has been addressed by anyone else; a little longer and I'm going to just make my own thread.

[Grinner]

@ Grinner: If I have to change my screen to anything less than 1360x768 every time I want to play a GOG game, I'm pretty sure I'm going to say hell with GOG.com and all those old games. I've been scouring their support and community boards to see if this has been addressed by anyone else; a little longer and I'm going to just make my own thread.

I had suggested that as a way of isolating the problem. If it will work at, say, a 4:3 resolution, then you will have found the problem.

[Winter_Wolf]

I had suggested that as a way of isolating the problem. If it will work at, say, a 4:3 resolution, then you will have found the problem.

I was just being tetchy. I've had a zillion (slight exaggeration) other people suggesting changing my desktop resolution. The problem always being that I'd end up with a 1024 resolution that stretched out to 1366. Because the makers of my laptop/Intel GPU suck.

As it happens, I've found that 1360x768 and turning off UAC :smallannoyed: have let me actually run the GOG version, and at "native" 1360 resolution without crashing. I know UAC generally sucks, but it HAS saved my bacon a few times in Win7 so I'm kind of loathe to turn it off. But "maybe it'll be okay". I'd still be happy for a solution that lets me keep it on, though. I'll eventually test my other GOG games to see if they're better off, and try really hard to remember all the shortcuts that had a custom resolution of 1366 and change 'em to1360.

So maybe I'll call this one "solved with duct tape".

[Ravens_cry]

Are you using DOSBox? Or are the games been run too new for that?

[Winter_Wolf]

Are you using DOSBox? Or are the games been run too new for that?

They've all been native to Windows so far, no DOS games as yet. We'll see what happens when I try to play the old Might & Magic games, though. Eventually. Adjusting the monitor to 1360x768 and turning off UAC seem to have taken care of most of my problems. It's just that, not using UAC is like--in a SFW kind of way--playing in the rain without a raincoat. Eventually my comp is probably going to catch something nasty.

[factotum]

It's a bit awkward, maybe, but does turning UAC on and then right-clicking and selecting "Run as administrator" work? If so, I have a couple of suggestions:

a) Check to ensure you have to do this more than once--e.g. the game might be having to do some sort of one-time setup when it runs first time.

b) Try installing the game somewhere other than Program Files (e.g. create a C:\GOG or C:\Games location). Program Files is pretty tightly locked down on Vista and W7.

[Jimorian]

Also, going back to the basics that probably doesn't apply here, but always worth checking just the same: is your graphic driver up to date?

[lesser_minion]

Have you installed the June 2010 DirectX runtime package? It's mentioned as one of the "read this first" troubleshooting hints for Windows 7 (it also applies to Windows 8).

Basically, Microsoft dropped some of the components you need to run older games and put them in an optional download.

Installing the game under program files shouldn't really break things -- if a program does try to read or write there, it will just get directed elsewhere. That said, "shouldn't" is not the same thing as "doesn't".

[Winter_Wolf]

I never install games into the Program Files or the Program Files (x86) locations. It's always the D:\ or the E:\ drive.

I haven't tried turning back on the UAC, I might give it a try when I'm feeling more inclined to wrassle with the hard reboot, if it happens.

I just updated my NVidia drivers, but I was having the black screen problem both before and after doing that. Intel didn't have updated drivers when I checked (I'm current). Double checked my DirectX, I'd done the June 2010 fix for another issue I'd been having, but I redid it again for good measure.

Probably time to install everything I plan to install then try turning UAC back on to check if it freaks out on me. All my old games are set to "run as admin" and I've tried the right-click "Run as Admin" to start 'em. I'm guessing it's just Microsoft being Microsoft and trying to protect me from playing the games of my youth.

Edit/Update: Apparently I have to turn off UAC, run the program, then it seems okay to turn UAC back on and I don't get the black screen on GOG-bought games starting up (on what I've tested so far). Great one, Microsoft. Good ideas and bad implementation. I'm thinking the Alpha Centauri appcrash was a 1366x resolution problem, and I can live with 3 less pixels on either side of my display.