Game will not start

[Mcoffey]

Like the title says, everytime I try to run the game I get the "Preparing to Launch" window, it fades out and nothing happens. I've verified the game cache, made sure it was cool with my firewall/antivirus software, and uninstalled and reinstalled it; nothing works.

Has anyone else had this problem and found a way to fix it? I've been dying to play this game for a while now.:(

[NWN DM]

What are your system specs? How are you trying to start it?

[Mcoffey]

I've been trying to start it through the tab in the steam games list, and I also tried to run the executable directly, but neither worked. Here are my system specs:

System
-----
Manufacturer HP-Pavilion
Model FK484AV-ABA m9400t
Total amount of system memory 4.00 GB RAM
System type 64-bit operating system
Number of processor cores 4

Storage
-----
Total size of hard disk(s) 298 GB
Disk partition (C: ) 118 GB Free (298 GB Total)
Media drive (D: ) CD/DVD

Graphics
-------------
Display adapter type NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GTX+
Total available graphics memory 2303 MB
Dedicated graphics memory 512 MB
Dedicated system memory 0 MB
Shared system memory 1791 MB
Display adapter driver version 8.17.12.6099
Primary monitor resolution 1280x1024
DirectX version DirectX 10

[NWN DM]

Well, I'm grasping a bit here but NWN2 I believe needs DirectX 9.0c... have you installed that?

Otheriwse I wonder about the "shared graphics" aspect of your video card. Is this a laptop? NWN2 really needs a dedicated video card.

[Mcoffey]

Nah, it's a desktop. And while i'm not very tech-savy I don't think that it's the graphics card since I can run Crysis and GTA IV pretty well. I will try reinstalling DX9 though, as i've seen that popping up in other topics.

[NWN DM]

You can get it here (http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=143ef8c6-cff7-4af0-8209-1cdf49c58bc0).

[Mcoffey]

Just installed it, no luck. Still not getting any signs of life from the game.

[dunniteowl]

I would consider redownloading the game files. It's very possible that it didn't quite download properly.

Other than that, it's possible it's a .net issue as well.

dunniteowl

[NWN DM]

Ah, was forgetting .net 2.0 is needed as well.

[Mcoffey]

Well I tried reinstalling it again and installing .net 2.0 and DirectX 9.0, and I still cannot start the game.

[NWN DM]

Perhaps your best best would be submitting a Steam help ticket.

From the sound of everything, all the back end stuff should be in place and it should just start up.

[eydeeb]

It may sound too easy but have you tried restarting the computer?
I would try launching nwn2.exe manually a few more times as well, after the reboot. There are so many executables there. This is the one you should be trying.

[Mcoffey]

I just rebooted and hit the exe but still no luck. I'm going to try the Steam Help next. Thanks for all the help guys!

[Bonecrusher]

this is really a hateful problem.

many nwn2 owners have this problem but there is not a "solid" answer.

people suggest same old stupid things:
1- update directx
2- update graphics driver
3- verify files
4- reboot the pc

yeah, they are very obvious things, but they are not "answer" for this problem.

i did this 4 steps 20 times.
i also did plenty of other things to solve it.
but no help...

i am struggling with it 2 days.
aaargh.
stupid.

these are the things I did:
I rebooted the PC.
I updated DirectX.
I restarted Steam.
I verified the files on Steam.
I updated the graphic card drivers.
I updated Windows.
I rebooted the PC.
I deleted the files on the redist folder.
I tried compatibility mode on the NWN exe files.
I uninstalled and then reinstalled the NWN2 game.
I uninstalled and then reinstalled VC and dotNetFx files.
I can launch and play other games with this PC.
I have a PC that can play every new PC games of 2010 and 2011.
I tried closing my antivirus software while installing the game.
I rebooted the PC.

[Mcoffey]

Yeah, no one in the Official Steam Support has an answer for this problem. I traded a couple emails with them and then they basically said they had no solution and linked me to Atari Support, which wasn't useful in any way either.

I eventually just got the game from a different source. Shockingly, the game works fine so it's still a steam problem. They just have no idea what it is and don't seem to be of the mindset to try to fix it. :/

[NWN DM]

people suggest same old stupid things:
1- update directx
2- update graphics driver
3- verify files
4- reboot the pc

yeah, they are very obvious things, but they are not "answer" for this problem.

i did this 4 steps 20 times.
i also did plenty of other things to solve it.
but no help...

i am struggling with it 2 days.
aaargh.
stupid.
Good attitude. Is it one of the things you're struggling with as well?

What was suggested invariably works most of the time based on 4+ years of experience with the game.

[xenoguy]

having the same issue, cant get it to start at all.

[alison22000]

OK, first of all, those who are asking for help, that state they have the same problem, please provide your computer specs, so we can offer more help, only 1 or 2 people have done so.

Secondly, many people think that Steam forms is a major tech forum, we are mostly other players trying to help other players, but you do need to try out what we advise you to, no matter how important you think it is.

From my personal exp, I had an issue playing a game about 1 year ago, and I never listened when people said to update my graphics card, because I could play other games that had the same spec requirements i thought it was fine, but it wasn't. When I found a update for my NVidia GeForce Graphics Card, that wasn't listed in the common updates, I was told which update to try and it fixed the issue.

My story is stating that make sure you do have the latest updates installed for all requirements, and even do a google search to make sure you have the latest update, with NVidia they have 2 different types of updates for many of thier graphics cards, so do double check what you might think is minor. I wish you all luck and i will do all I can to help you all out as well, so I will join the support team on this one.

A side note, I just got NWN 2 a month ago, and it installed great, no issues at all my specs are

Windows 7 Home premium
NVidia GeForce GT 240
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU 2.93 GHz
10 GB RAM (Recently Installed)

[LL8]

to launch nwn2 PE from Steam
I switch off Avast6
I Launch NWN2
I switch on Avast6

[NWN DM]

to launch nwn2 PE from Steam
I switch off Avast6
I Launch NWN2
I switch on Avast6
In this instance, you really should report this to your AV provider as the heuristics are (apparently) showing a false positive.

[ThoreauBot]

I'm having the same problem as Mcoffey: the "Prepare to launch" window pops up very briefly then disappears and nothing happens. Here are my specs:
Processor: Intel Pentium 4 (2.2GHz)
OS: Windows XP (32 bit)
Video card: NVIDIA GeForce 9800GT
Sound card: Creative SB Audigy LS
RAM: 3070 MB

[NWN DM]

Your answer is right in post 19.

[ThoreauBot]

I'm running AVG, so I disabled the resident shield and tried to launch it. Nothing. I updated directX, installed Windows updates then rebooted and tried to launch again (from Steam as well as from the .exe in the game folder) with the resident shield disabled, still nothing.

[tda-danny]

I'm having the same problem as Mcoffey: the "Prepare to launch" window pops up very briefly then disappears and nothing happens. Here are my specs:
Processor: Intel Pentium 4 (2.2GHz)
OS: Windows XP (32 bit)
Video card: NVIDIA GeForce 9800GT
Sound card: Creative SB Audigy LS
RAM: 3070 MB

For starters, your processor does not meet the minimum requirements.

I have this game (steam version) installed on my gaming PC, HTPC and two laptops (all with different specs, obviously) and not one has an issue running the game.

Can you try to install the game on different computer, or a buddies computer? This will let you isolate your computer...

[tda-danny]

I've been trying to start it through the tab in the steam games list, and I also tried to run the executable directly, but neither worked. Here are my system specs:

System
-----
Manufacturer HP-Pavilion
Model FK484AV-ABA m9400t
Total amount of system memory 4.00 GB RAM
System type 64-bit operating system
Number of processor cores 4

Storage
-----
Total size of hard disk(s) 298 GB
Disk partition (C: ) 118 GB Free (298 GB Total)
Media drive (D: ) CD/DVD

Graphics
-------------
Display adapter type NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GTX+
Total available graphics memory 2303 MB
Dedicated graphics memory 512 MB
Dedicated system memory 0 MB
Shared system memory 1791 MB
Display adapter driver version 8.17.12.6099
Primary monitor resolution 1280x1024
DirectX version DirectX 10

Maybe a dumb question, but do you have a dedicated sound card? Maybe try updating the drivers if there is a revision, or try uninstalling it (remove the drivers completely) to see if that works.

[TheNamelessOne]

Hi guys! I've been suffering the same problem as Mcoffey and had jarateed me off a couple of days, but i had an advantage, i have the retail version of NWN2 so it gave me the path to the solution. The retail version worked sweetly, so my rig was not the problem. I started to think about the reason why the retail version worked and the Steam version not. And the reason is the unit letter you're using on your computer. If the hard disk is using C: there's no problem, but if you're using another letter for your HDD unit, you have a problem, because NWN2 refuses to run properly. In my case i was using letter D: and every other game worked perfectly, but not this one. Changed to letter F: and still no luck. It only seems to run and work doing it from a unit labeled as C:

What i did it's to use a program to relocate all the archives that Steam uses.

-Installed Steam on C: and downloaded NWN2 Platinum. It worked perfectly.

-To avoid filling up the drive C: (main windows unit) i must use this program: http://www.traynier.com/software/steammover to move all other games except NWN2. Note that this program only works on NTFS units. It won't work on FAT32 ones.

- Now i download the game i want to play on C: , the Steam unit, and using this program i move all its archives to F:

-Steam still works like if nothing has been changed.

I hope this helps or at least gives the clue to Steam to fix the problem.

[tda-danny]

Hi guys! I've been suffering the same problem as Mcoffey and had jarateed me off a couple of days, but i had an advantage, i have the retail version of NWN2 so it gave me the path to the solution. The retail version worked sweetly, so my rig was not the problem. I started to think about the reason why the retail version worked and the Steam version not. And the reason is the unit letter you're using on your computer. If the hard disk is using C: there's no problem, but if you're using another letter for your HDD unit, you have a problem, because NWN2 refuses to run properly. In my case i was using letter D: and every other game worked perfectly, but not this one. Changed to letter F: and still no luck. It only seems to run and work doing it from a unit labeled as C:

What i did it's to use a program to relocate all the archives that Steam uses.

-Installed Steam on C: and downloaded NWN2 Platinum. It worked perfectly.

-To avoid filling up the drive C: (main windows unit) i must use this program: http://www.traynier.com/software/steammover to move all other games except NWN2. Note that this program only works on NTFS units. It won't work on FAT32 ones.

- Now i download the game i want to play on C: , the Steam unit, and using this program i move all its archives to F:

-Steam still works like if nothing has been changed.

I hope this helps or at least gives the clue to Steam to fix the problem.

Not sure if this is 100% correct, as I have Steam (and NWN2) installed on a second HDD (D:/). I'm glad it worked for you though. Hope you enjoy the game.

One thing to note, is that I have my 'My Documents' folder moved to my D:/ drive as well (which is where NWN2 saves everything). Maybe if these are on the same drive, it will work?

[zippythezip]

I have steam installed on my "E" drive, and the save files etc go to "my documents" in my "C" drive.
I start via "my library"
Game runs flawless

I have game on disc and the steam version is so much better as far as patching.
win7 32 bit