My poor laptop is too new.

[MadameSkylark]

Which is a very weird dilema, believe me. This thing is a clunker.

However, I do have a question that someone here might know the answer to.

I recently bought a very old computer game (it was released in 95, which isn't THAT old, but old enough that it was still cool to have real people stand in front of a blue screen instead of actually making graphics) and the laptop just refused to play it. Different versions of Video for Windows.

I'm wondering if there is some program I can download (perhaps an emulator or something) that would allow me to play the game. It's called Science Sluthes, vol 1 if that helps at all (I doubt it, as the game wasn't wildly popular.) Anything you can give me would be appreciated. Please and thank you!

 

[Nathan H]

I'm assuming your on Vista if youv got a REALLY new laptop, try turning on compatibility, or (I'v found this helps but leave your computer more vulnerable to virii etc) disable UAC, the latter is unrecommended by just about everyone but no program ever doesnt work because of vista when its turned off. again i recommend disabling your internet while UAC is off if your gonna use it.

 

[MadameSkylark]

You assume wrong. I'm on windows XP...it's not THAT new, it's just too new for the game.

 

[JasonCrawford]

I'm not sure, but I think way too many games were DOS based in those days, try DOSBox and that may be able to help you.

 

[Livewire]

I'm not sure, but I think way too many games were DOS based in those days, try DOSBox and that may be able to help you.

They were, but this particular one doesn't seem that it needs DOS.


I did find the system requirements though, and about all I have to say on that is "DAYUMN thats old!"

Windows®
Windows® 3.x or higher
386SX/25mhz processor or higher
1MB free hard disk space
4MB RAM
2x CD-ROM drive or faster
SVGA 256 colors
Windows® compatible Sound Card


I kid you not. Windows 3.x or higher. 25mhz processor. A hard drive with as much free space as a floppy disk.

Try setting XP compatibility for the program down to as low as it goes (95 or 98 for sure), see if that works.

If that doesn't work, you might end up wanting to try dual booting a really old OS like windows 98se or 95 if you knew it ran on one of those; xp and vista compatibility don't always work, particularly on something THAT old.



Oh, and source:
http://support.learningco.com/fix.asp?isid=2297&prog=472&printer=1

Surprised anyone still had the system requirements up for it Couldn't find anyone that had tested it on XP though, so no idea if it is even possible to get it to work or not



Edit: Woah, forgot the obvious. Find someone who hasn't been upgrading their pc since 1995 and buy it for like $10, least then it's got the right hardware and can only handle the right OS

 

[MadameSkylark]

I told you it was an old game...but it's actually a lot of fun. I'll try some of those suggestions...and if all else fails, I guess I can always just wander in to an Amish settlement and ask to borrow their computer.

 

[Sharky]

Installing something like win 95 in a virtual machine might be just the ticket. Only problem is that it might try to run hopelessly fast, so you'll need something to take up ~99% of your CPU to let the game run with the other 1%... Good luck!

 

[arbitershadow]

Installing something like win 95 in a virtual machine might be just the ticket. Only problem is that it might try to run hopelessly fast, so you'll need something to take up ~99% of your CPU to let the game run with the other 1%... Good luck!

You can counteract that effect with a program called CPUKiller. http://www.cpukiller.com/

 

[matza2000]

There is also an old game that i had trouble playing with. It was called creatures 2 if you remember it. It was designed for windows 98, and i got around the fact it wasnt working by typing in 'windows 98 emulator' into google. It took time to find but after about 5 pages i found it.

 

[Smith6612]

If it's a DOS game, that may be why it's not able to run. All of my Windows 95/98 games still run perfectly fine on Windows Vista.

 

[Archkronos]

If it's a DOS game, that may be why it's not able to run. All of my Windows 95/98 games still run perfectly fine on Windows Vista.

Not so.

Command and Conquor '95 doesn't work on Vista or XP without patching.

 

[jenya]

have you tried:
right clicking on the game
properties
compatibility

?

 

[Smith6612]

Not so.

Command and Conquor '95 doesn't work on Vista or XP without patching.

My first ever PC game was SimTheme Park. The game runs perfectly fine in Vista, and it's the original file as well, no patches, no nothing. The patches make the game crash out on all of my computers if I install the patches. I also have a few old Windows 95 Star Wars games as well when Star Wars: Episode 4 came out. They run fine in Vista as well. Yeah, while you may have to patch it, there's no problem not doing that.