SOW Gettysburg and Win 8 ??

[JohnVW]

ok...just (almost) finished a 2-player online game (played about 2 hrs out of a 3hr game), no mods at all...I DID NOT get booted (for once), but my brother maybe did? not sure, either that or he just got killed...I attached our log file here (as a .doc, because I highlighted the end where i'm confused)...was he "booted off", or simply killed? (if you can tell from this)...

not sure what this means:

09:53:24 <MULTI> disconnect notification.
09:53:24 <MULTI> connection lost.
09:53:24 <SYSTEM> DaveVW left the field.

killed, or dropped? thanks, john

[JohnVW]

yeah, and switching back isn't an option for me...I enjoy the game so much that when I got my new PC, I gave my brother the older one (win 7)(he has a new apple), bought him SOW, and he came down (VA to SC) and picked it up...and we've only been able to play maybe 2 games (out of maybe 12-15 tries)...and neither of them complete...he now has his own game, and I re-purchased the same Anniv edition myself...and now we we're just not able to figure out why i'm having issues all of a sudden...

I would think norbsoft will be looking into this; esp since it won't be long before everyone is on Win 8...

[JohnVW]

happened again...played about 45 min (of a "no mod" game), then got the old "windows has stopped working"...I've probably played 75+ online games with this same guy, and before I went to Win 8.1 we'd never had a problem...I've attached the log file here just in case it helps...john

[Little Powell]

I read a post in another forum that went something like "Windows 8 is like an alien to computer games".

If you have the means, I highly recommend setting up a Win7/Win8 dual boot, or even going back to Windows 7 completely. Windows 8 has some pretty cool features, but it is just not PC game friendly (no matter how much Microsoft tries to pretend it is), especially for games that are a few years old.

It is the seemingly never-ending pattern of Good OS/Bad OS that has plagued Microsoft since the early days.

Windows 98 - Great
Windows ME - Terrible
Windows 2K/WinXp - Great
Windows Vista - Terrible
Windows 7 - Great
Windows 8 - Terrible

[JohnVW]

well, going back isn't an option...and it won't be long before everyone is on Win 8 anyhow...so i'd rather try and figure out what the problem is...I believe the problem(s) involve Win 8 and the server, because:

- I can play solo on my Win 8 all day, no issues
- I can even create scenarios, use all my MODS, and play solo with no problems...so Win 8 obv isn't having any problems just running the game'
- BUT, when I connect through the lobby, and attempt multi-player games with players using Win 7 (players that I've played online with for years, and never had a problem) I have problems...I keep getting "windows has stopped working" (which means i'm "booted")
- I played two (2) online games with my brother (Win 7) yesterday
- game 1 I hosted and we turned on 3 Mods, and I was booted after about 7 min
- game 2 I had him host, and we turned all MODS off...and we played all 3 hours without any issues

so...was it just the MODS? or somehow does Win 8 work better with the server if i'm not hosting? (I know nothing about the interaction, just throwing it out there?)...ANY THOUGHTS?

Keeping in mind I've tried 4-5 times to play 3-player games, me on Win 8 and both of them on Win 7, with either one of them hosting and all MODS off, and still get booted!

[Garnier]

@LP, Hopefully you can find someone with this windows 8 problem to test Waterloo before it's released, and maybe find the crash. It's understandable that SOWGB has a problem on windows 8 since the game was released two years before the OS. But when Waterloo is released, I wouldn't be surprised if 10% to 20% of people who buy it are on windows 8. Of GCM users in the last 5 months (who own the game, not just website visitors), 15% were on windows 8. (4% XP, 5% Vista, 75% Win7, total 270 people -- you guys might have better stats, I don't know.) These are people who got windows 8 before they knew about the issue.

Windows 8 does work for games in general -- as far as I know most games work the same on windows 8 as on 7. I still advise anyone buying a computer to get 7 instead of 8, but it's more expensive and not always an option if you're buying a pre-built computer, and most gamers don't know about this problem if they're not part of the community. Once they learn about the crash, few are willing to spend $100 and reinstall windows on their computer just to play SOW.

I'm not for emotional arguments, I just want to present that this could be a problem. I'm still trying to collect data about the crash. Granted, you can't devote all your attention to fixing this problem -- but I think it would make sense to try to find someone with the problem to test Waterloo. If I had a windows 8 laptop that would demonstrate the problem I'd mail it to you.

[Little Powell]

Good points Garnier, and the Win 8 issue was brought up in a recent meeting. We will definitely have a tester or two running it when SOWWL gets closer to Beta.

I wish we could track down the exact cause of this rogue Win 8 MP problem, but it's simply a matter of resource availability. We have one game coder, and that is Norb. And his plate is already over-filled with SOWWL development.

[JohnVW]

hi guys...

- i'd be happy to test anything you have on Win 8 (would love to get this solved)
- I've found that Win 7 really isn't an option anymore for anyone buying a new PC retail
- I've not had any other problems with other games on Win 8 (most all games run in "compatibility mode" anyhow, and that seems to work)
- but again, I can play SOW all day on Win 8 and no problems...it's only when playing via the lobby/server
- and, I haven't tried a game (Mods or no-Mods) with another Win 8 owner because I don't know any; everyone I know is still on Win 7 (or older)

[Garnier]

For what it's worth, one of our windows-8 crashers has had the problem for at least 6 months and is playing singleplayer only. Sometimes he can go 3-5 games without a crash, and then it happens again. This crashing only started after getting windows 8, so I'm betting on it being the same crash. Maybe whatever triggers it happens more in MP though, I don't know.

[JohnVW]

do you know if he (your Win8 crasher) uses Mods at all? and if so, does he crash with and/or without Mods on?