"LOTR Battle for Middle Earth" setup problems

[PeteC]

I know nothing about games... but I'm trying to set up 'Lord of the Rings - Battle for Middle Earth' DVD version for my nephew to run on his PC.

It appears to install OK from DVD, but then when asked to play from the game's opening screen, the PC just locks up solid. There's what looks like a minimised dialog icon appearing on the task bar just before freezing - but it can't be accessed due to lockup. I've looked for help on the Electonic Arts site but can't seem to find my problem listed.

His PC is 2.8GHz Celeron, 256Mb RAM, 16x DVD-ROM , Geforce FX5200 128MB Graphics, XP SP2, Onboard C-Media Sound, DirectX 9.0c

which seems to meet their minimum hardware specs (see below). I've updated to the latest nVidia drivers for him - but still can't get it to even start playing. Any suggestions?


Should his hardware be up to playing it (even if not optimally)?


Hardware requirements for DVD-ROM version:

OS: Windows XP or 2000
CPU: 1.3 GHz or faster
RAM: 256 MB
DISC DRIVE: 8x or faster CD/DVD drive
HARD DRIVE: 4 GB or more free space
VIDEO: DirectX 9.0b compatible (see right)
SOUND: DirectX 9.0b compatible
INPUT: Keyboard and mouse
Video card with 32 MB or more memory and one of these chipsets is required: NVIDIA GeForce 2 GTS or greater ATI Radeon 7500 or greater.

One DVD per PC. 512 MB RAM needed for 3 or more Players. Network (2-8 Players); Internet (2 Players): 56 Kbps Internet connection, (3-8 Players): Cable, DSL, or a faster connection.

[Scoobs]

It could be SP2 causing the problem. Is it an old game ie before sp2 came out or just after, Have they got all the updates.

I had Tiger woods game and that didnt like sp2 but that was when it was beta

[PeteC]

FWIW - it appears to be post SP2, if this site's info is to be believed.

http://www.gamestracker.co.uk/pc/5173/

Genre: Strategy, Real-Time
Review Rating: No reviews (Average)
UK Release Date: 10 December 2004
US Release Date: 06 December 2004
AU Release Date: T.B.C.

Platform: PC
Also available for: None

Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: In-house

I tried searching for "SP2 LOTR Middle Earth problem" but nothing so far, Cheers for the suggestion. I don't think there's a game he's had that's played straight out of the box - they all seem to have their own quirks.

[prying eyes]

Either it's "celeron" problem or the graphics card.
try a new graphics card (Before buying, check the return policy of the shop) and see if it works.
If it doesn't, just return it.
Your nephew may need a more powerful "pentium" or AMD pc.