VOGONS

Common searches


Win9x games that don't work on XP

Topic actions

  • This topic is locked. You cannot reply or edit posts.

First post, by mr_bigmouth_502

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

Someone has probably already posted something like this here, but I'd like to make a list of these games, just for referential purposes.

So far, off the top of my head I can think of the following:
- MechWarrior 2 Win95 version
- Command and Conquer: Red Alert Win95 version

Does anyone else here know of any?

Reply 1 of 46, by vetz

User metadata
Rank l33t
Rank
l33t
mr_bigmouth_502 wrote:

- MechWarrior 2 Win95 version

Do you mean games that can't be run no matter what, or just won't work out of the box? Mechwarrior 2 Win95 version runs on both WinXP and Windows 7 64bit if you install it with MechVM.

3D Accelerated Games List (Proprietary APIs - No 3DFX/Direct3D)
3D Acceleration Comparison Episodes

Reply 2 of 46, by Gamecollector

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

By the way, C&C: Red Alert is working in WinXp after official C&C Gold Xp patch from Westwood.

Some games from my glideAPI list: Andretti Racing, Asghan, Barrage, Cybergladiators, Le Mans 24 Hours, Nascar 2000, Nascar Revolution, S.C.A.R.S., The Tainted, Time Warriors. Gulf War: Operation Desert Hammer - not sure, the config tool ctd even in WinME for me... Actia Tennis, SWIV 3d - there are unofficial patches for Xp.

Reply 3 of 46, by Jorpho

User metadata
Rank l33t++
Rank
l33t++
vetz wrote:

Do you mean games that can't be run no matter what, or just won't work out of the box?

This is a very important distinction. Fanmade patches are becoming increasingly abundant.

Games: when do you stop using Windows 98, and start using Windows XP? is apropos. Doonesbury: The Election Game and SimCity 2000 Network Edition still qualify, I think.

Reply 5 of 46, by Gamecollector

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

"Out of the box"... Too wide.
As the example - there are many games not working in Xp w/o ACT fixes.
Or the game is working, but the installer isn't and you may simply copy game files manually.

Asus P4P800 SE/Pentium4 3.2E/2 Gb DDR400B,
Radeon HD3850 Agp (Sapphire), Catalyst 14.4 (XpProSp3).
Voodoo2 12 MB SLI, Win2k drivers 1.02.00 (XpProSp3).

Reply 6 of 46, by collector

User metadata
Rank l33t
Rank
l33t

Any such list should also list the issue(s) and any solutions, if any, other than having to resort to a VM. And why limit it to just XP? In my mind, a Win9x game is broken these days if it uses any 16-bit executables.

Then again, are any such lists that much different than DosFreak's compatibility list?

The Sierra Help Pages -- New Sierra Game Installers -- Sierra Game Patches -- New Non-Sierra Game Installers

Reply 7 of 46, by SKARDAVNELNATE

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

Here's list of game I tested. Some of them had graphics issues that may have been caused by modern video drivers.

9: The Last Resort
Fails if a system has more than 32MB RAM.

AMBER: Journeys Beyond
There's a section in the game where a password is found and needs to be entered with the keyboard but it doesn't respond.

Devil's Island Pinball
Game insists on using DirectX 7.

Codename Outbreak
Graphics.

Dark Side Of The Moon
The font doesn't display so all dialog options appear blank.

Dead Reckoning
Graphics were garbled.

The Divide: Enemies Within
Crashes.

Final Conflict
Can be played but movies appear squashed.

Forsaken
Graphics.

Malkari
Crashes.

Messiah
Crashes.

Myst
No display.

Riven: The Sequel To Myst
Complains that QuickTime is missing or out of date.

Necronomicon: The Gateway To Beyond
Can be played but sound loops and crackles.

The New Adventures Of The Time Machine
Crashes.

Nocturne
Can be played but runs too slow to be enjoyed.

Revenant
Graphics.

The Sacred Amulet
Crashes.

Shockwave Assault
Wasn't able to install.

Spiderman: Separation Anxiety
Complains that it does not support Windows NT.

Tellurian Defense
Graphics.

Tex Murphy: Overseer
Graphics.

Space Hulk: Vengeance Of The Blood Angels
Complains that Entry Point Not Found.

Final Liberation
Crashes.

Chaos Gate
Crashes.

X-COM: Apocalypse
Wasn't able to install.

Reply 8 of 46, by SKARDAVNELNATE

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie
mr_bigmouth_502 wrote:

- Command and Conquer: Red Alert Win95 version

I tested the freeware download and found that Compatibility Mode needs to be used with SETUP.EXE and RA95.EXE.
Windows 95
Disable visual themes
Turn off advanced text services for this program

Reply 11 of 46, by Gamecollector

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

Riven is using Quicktime32 for Windows (2.1.2.59). So - just install this version before the game, version 2 is independent and can be installed with any Quicktime 4+.
Working with EmulateSlowCPU ACT fix.

Asus P4P800 SE/Pentium4 3.2E/2 Gb DDR400B,
Radeon HD3850 Agp (Sapphire), Catalyst 14.4 (XpProSp3).
Voodoo2 12 MB SLI, Win2k drivers 1.02.00 (XpProSp3).

Reply 13 of 46, by mr_bigmouth_502

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

According to my dad, "Warlords III: Reign of Heroes" doesn't work on XP, but its standalone expansion "Warlords III: Darklords Rising" does, strangely enough. I'll have to try it once I get home from school. 🤣 (yay for spare blocks!)

As well, I've noticed that even with the fan patches required to run under XP, Microprose's "Magic: The Gathering" (not to be confused with the newer MtG PC games) has rather erratic user interface behavior, rendering it a pain in the ass to play. 😜 I know, I could just play the actual card game (I own hundreds of cards for it in fact 🤣), but I just like the idea of being able to shoot a quick game against a computer opponent, as well as being able to use all these awesomely overpowered oldschool cards! 😁

Reply 14 of 46, by Jorpho

User metadata
Rank l33t++
Rank
l33t++

A lot of people still prefer the original Microprose MtG. I understand some of the bugs may have originated in the program itself rather than with some interaction with the operating system. (There are so many patches and whatnot floating around for that one that it is hard to keep them all straight.)

Reply 15 of 46, by Joey_sw

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

Some games use Miles Audio/Sound System to access Mixed CD for musics,
those practice were popular within win9x era (before the MP3 being popular that is).

However, some version of said MSS use the similar technique as win9x CD-Player to directly command the CD-ROM to play specific music tracks, and of course it wont works on NT5/6.

Game example: Metal Fatique.
Out of box, the game wont play any musics.

There user made patches,
but it requires WinAmp to play the music,
so theres some delay on when the music should be played.

I've asked the Miles if they could provide alternate version of their MSS*.DLL that compatible to the game & NT5/6, but theres still no reply.

-fffuuu

Reply 16 of 46, by VirtuaIceMan

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

Pro Rally 2001 and S.C.A.R.S. off the top of my head. There are some more that I run in Win98SE VirtualPC, but can't remember which right now.

My PC spec: Win10 64bit, i7-4970K (not overclocked), KFA2 GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER, Creative Soundblaster ZXr, 16GB RAM, Asus Z97-A motherboard, NZXT 410 case, ROG Swift GSYNC monitor

Reply 17 of 46, by Gamecollector

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

S.C.A.R.S. - there is the Xp patch from Zeus at the nGlide homepage. For the glide version only. But technically - yes, this game is Win9x only.
Pro Rally 2001 - the trouble isn't WinXp related, this game is freezing on my P4 3.00E/Radeon 8500/WinME in the same place (loading screen). Looks like the standard Ubisoft's "we don't know about the new hardware" trouble.

Asus P4P800 SE/Pentium4 3.2E/2 Gb DDR400B,
Radeon HD3850 Agp (Sapphire), Catalyst 14.4 (XpProSp3).
Voodoo2 12 MB SLI, Win2k drivers 1.02.00 (XpProSp3).

Reply 18 of 46, by filipetolhuizen

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie

Spiderman: Separation Anxiety
Complains that it does not support Windows NT.

Easily fixed with MS ACT 5.x or 6.0.

The South Park game (not SP Rally) I was not able to run under WinXP or 7 at all.

Reply 19 of 46, by Gamecollector

User metadata
Rank Oldbie
Rank
Oldbie
Joey_sw wrote:

I've asked the Miles if they could provide alternate version of their MSS*.DLL that compatible to the game & NT5/6, but theres still no reply.

If I remember correctly - the trouble isn't MSS related. It's winmm.dll related, Xp version of this dll isn't supporting MCI fully. Win7 isn't supporting MCI at all, by the way. Another examples of this: Boss Rally, Frogger, Hardcore 4x4, Ian Livingstone's Deathtrap Dungeon, Sentinel Returns, Turok 2: Seeds of Evil.
And the original version of Half-Life - can't pass the cd protection.