BleepingComputer.com: Call of Duty 4 and WaW Crashing

I recently upgraded my computer and have decided to reinstall my copies of Call of Duty 4 and Call of Duty: World at War.

Unfortunately, after a clean install, I go to start the games, and as the resolution of my screen is changing to allow the intro video to play, my entire system locks up (cannot even move the mouse or use Ctrl-Alt-Del) forcing me to do a hard reboot.

The same problem occurs with both programs.

My system specs are as follows:
Windows XP Home Edition, SP3
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Processor, 3.00Ghz Quad-Core
4.00GB of RAM
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 Ultra Video Card with latest drivers
NVIDIA HDMI Audio with latest drivers.
Running two monitors: 1)17" at 1440x900 Resolution (Primary) and 2)15" at 1280x1094 Resolution

If I missed anything, please let me know. I really miss playing these two excellent titles and hate having problems with my computer. Thanks in advance.

Try uninstalling both games, and completely go through and weed out every file related to the games. If you feel confident in your abilities, see if you can delete registry entries from the game. Be warned though, deleting a wrong file in the registry could corrupt your operating system. Then try reinstalling.

By the way, nice system

Would using a system like CCleaner work to clean out any left-overs on the registry?

I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling them, and it does not work. The problem occurs when the screen resolution is changing up during the game load.

I wouldn't recommend a registry cleaner. They usually create more problems than fix.

Can you try the game on a different screen with a different resolution?

I once hooked my computer up to my tv which had a smaller resolution than my computer monitor. I played some games and changed their resolution to 720P on my tv. Once I hooked my computer back up to my monitor, the games wouldn't display anything because my monitor didn't support that resolution. I had to hook my computer back up to the tv to change them.

It could work, I'll give it a try later. It seems like it is definitely a video card issue.

Which is odd, considering that the video card was the only thing I kept from my old PC. CoD would always work before with the twin monitors and the 8800 Ultra.

What seems odder, is that the 8800 is always touted for its ability to play CoD 4 at full graphics

Could it be a settings issue?

Do you also have the latest version of directx? Just updated March 23rd http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details...;displaylang=en . It's most likely a settings issue.

EDIT: You said you upgraded your computer. What components did you keep? Was the motherboard one of those? Did you reinstall windows?

Thanks for this, I will have to wait til later to get my copy back from a friend.

The only parts that were kept was the graphics card and the power supply. Yes Windows was reinstalled.

Would something as simple as a DirectX update be causing this problem? To me it seems like something more.

Although what bugs me is that I can play both Rainbow Six Vegas', Armed Assault, and other high-demand graphic games.

Well, if all of those other games are alright, then directx probably isn't the problem.

Hmm, there are probably some patches out for the games, perhaps they could help.

I've also heard of sound drivers causing issues with certain games. I know you said you used the same monitors and same graphics card in your previous system, but maybe you should try running the games without the hdmi audio enabled.

How would I go ahead and do that? While I have dealt with video drivers/cards before I have never dealt with audio drivers. With the audio driver, I am saying that it is the latest because I can't upgrade it any more through Windows.

WRT the patches, they didn't help either.

No luck on the reinstall with the updated Direct X.

Here is a photo of what happens right after the splash screen as it is changing resolution to enter the game:
CoD 4 Crash

My next attempt will be to try with just one monitor plugged in.

EDIT: No luck with just one monitor.

Any more ideas?

Thanks,

CC

Did you try running it with your smaller monitor by itself too? The bigger one may not support the resolution the game is trying to display.

The next thing I can think of is a background program causing problems. Try closing all background processes that aren't essential to running the system. I know some audio, instant messenging (including xfire), game services (such as steam), and even if you're using nvidia control panel or other software to assist with graphic settings can all cause problems.

Not sure if its related, but for some reason custom emoticons are not showing up in Windows Live Messenger 2009. Doubt it is, but it may need the same solution

Would you believe it if I told you that I uninstalled my firewall program and both games now work

I would believe you !

If you want to keep your firewall running, there's usually a list you can setup of allowable programs.