Known issues and solutions - FAQ

[Michael Osmann]

I have the SIS one

Card name: SiS 651_661FX_741_760_760GX_M661FX_M661MX_M741_M760_M7 60GX

Manufacturer: SiS

Chip type: SiS 661FX Rev 01

DAC type: Internal

Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_1039&DEV_6330&SUBSYS_E0121631&REV_00

Display Memory: 64.0 MB

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but your graphics card is well below the minimum spec for the game.

We have had problems sourcing a SiS graphics card, so have done no testing on it at all as yet. We have some bids in for machines with it, so hope to have one in the studio soon, at which point we will see if there is any way to get the game up and running with that card. If we can work it out, we will release an update.

For now, it's highly unlikely you'll be able to get the game up and running because of this.

Has this problem regarding this type of graphic card ever been fixed?

[drhorrible]

Hi guys,

after many terrible months of not having a computer to play FM on, I'm finally ready to go. Ok, so I managed to get it working last night after downloading various bits and bobs, as suggested in this thread. I played it twice, a couple of hours each time, but tried to play just now and get a blue screen for a split second, before the computer restarts. The blue screen comes and goes too quickly to catch what it says.

Any idea what's gone on there?

Cheers.

[Neil Brock]

Hi guys,

after many terrible months of not having a computer to play FM on, I'm finally ready to go. Ok, so I managed to get it working last night after downloading various bits and bobs, as suggested in this thread. I played it twice, a couple of hours each time, but tried to play just now and get a blue screen for a split second, before the computer restarts. The blue screen comes and goes too quickly to catch what it says.

Any idea what's gone on there?

Cheers.

Definitely sounds like a system rather than a game error, could well be overheating. I would suggest running some of the programs found via this link to check for system stability:

http://www.sigames.com/sibase.php?type=view&id=142

Let me know how you get on. Thanks.

[Alberth]

This is getting me so stressed its untrue.

if anyone can help me please i would regard you as legend! haha.

Right....

I got FM09 when it first came out, played it regulary and had no problems at all until yesterday.

I went to steam, launched game and soft anchor came up asking for my product key, so i found it and entered like asked. It then said " unable to process your unlock request. To receive a new key, Please visit: http://www.sigames.com .

Error : [-821] "

So i Tried again a few more times then eventualy looked on forums and followed some steps for fixing the erorr -821. It said to delete the football manager certificate. But when i found were it was supposed to be it wasnt there so im just wondered what the hell im supposed to do!?

PLEASE HELP

kale

i have the same problem and no help at all. what are they doing to our data? did they just deleted our data for no reason and then we have to reactivate again? ive tried the fix solution and its not helping. why was it working with my current config before yesterday and its not working now? this is ridiculous

[RDXCougar8173]

I got the latest patch. I have a Mac I use tiger it works fine when i take off 3D and it got to Jan 1st and it says i need to put in an activation code. However, i installed the game for my mac and wrote in the code in the manual and it isnt working! Any suggestions?

P.S. when i put in my activation code it says INCORRECT LENGTH? I've also used the keychecker site

thanks

on MAC you DON`T need to activate the game ever but it might be asking you to activate now because you might have downloaded the wrong patch which if you have will be the pc patch and therefore might be why you are getting asked to activate

[RDXCougar8173]

Have you managed to look at my save game yet NBROCKY and if so have you any idea why it got to that date in game and keeps getting crash dump now as i have had to suspend my clan until i found out whether that game can be fixed or not

[Neil Brock]

Have you managed to look at my save game yet NBROCKY and if so have you any idea why it got to that date in game and keeps getting crash dump now as i have had to suspend my clan until i found out whether that game can be fixed or not

We've had a look and found the issue but I don't know if we'll be able to get it fixed for you for 09. I've re-enquired and will let you know either way ASAP. Thanks.

[darkside1314]

i have the same problem and no help at all. what are they doing to our data? did they just deleted our data for no reason and then we have to reactivate again? ive tried the fix solution and its not helping. why was it working with my current config before yesterday and its not working now? this is ridiculous

same problem here, how long does sega take to get back to you normally i created a ticket at 1310 bst still no response

[Neil Brock]

same problem here, how long does sega take to get back to you normally i created a ticket at 1310 bst still no response

I don't know Sega's response times but I would certainly give them 24 hours to get back to you.

[darkside1314]

i have the same problem and no help at all. what are they doing to our data? did they just deleted our data for no reason and then we have to reactivate again? ive tried the fix solution and its not helping. why was it working with my current config before yesterday and its not working now? this is ridiculous

I don't know Sega's response times but I would certainly give them 24 hours to get back to you.

cheers for the response, any idea why this has happened?

[drhorrible]

Definitely sounds like a system rather than a game error, could well be overheating. I would suggest running some of the programs found via this link to check for system stability:

http://www.sigames.com/sibase.php?type=view&id=142

Let me know how you get on. Thanks.

Cheers, I gave a couple of those a try and everything seemed ok. I have managed to get the game running again by setting hardware acceleration to 'none', but with a bit slower performance. I'll see how that goes for now. Thanks again.

[darkside1314]

cheers for the response, any idea why this has happened?

got it fixed by using this http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=65715

[teddy77]

Hi,

having read through pages and pages of this, patched, updated everything I can and been through everything, i'm still not able to even open the game.

fm.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close.

Error report:

AppName: fm.exe AppVer: 9.2.0.30301 ModName: fm.exe

ModVer: 9.2.0.30301 Offset: 00fffe49

not running through steam.

Anyone able to give me any advice?

Thanks.

[Neil Brock]

Hi,

having read through pages and pages of this, patched, updated everything I can and been through everything, i'm still not able to even open the game.

fm.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close.

Error report:

AppName: fm.exe AppVer: 9.2.0.30301 ModName: fm.exe

ModVer: 9.2.0.30301 Offset: 00fffe49

not running through steam.

Anyone able to give me any advice?

Thanks.

First of all download and install the 9.3 patch, looking at that you are only running 9.2. The latest patch can be found via links in this thread - http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=106355

Try that and see how you get on. If you're still struggling you may need to delete your cache files, this can be done by following these instructions:

First of all you need to turn on hidden files and folders. Go to My Computer and at the top select 'Tools' the 'Folder Options'. The go to the 'View' tab and select 'Show hidden files and folders'

Windows XP:

1. Open “My Computer”

2. Navigate to : “Documents and Settings\<Username>\Application Data\

3. Go into the “Sports Interactive” Folder.

4. Go to the “Football Manager 2009” Folder.

5. Delete the 'cache' Folder found inside here.

Wndows Vista:

1. Click “Start”

2. Click your username on the start Menu

3. Click on “AppData” and then “Roaming”

4. Go into the “Sports Interactive” Folder

5. Go to the “Football Manager 2009” Folder.

6. Delete the 'cache' Folder found inside here.

[shota1]

All,

Having a few problems getting FM09 up and running.

It was working fine at first, but now i'm getting 'XML parsing error - not well-formed (invalid token) at line 1 of profile 2.xml'.

I have tried this fix with the shortcut, adding ' - - reset_preferences' to the end of fm.exe in the target box without an joy.

Any ideas?

Thanks

[mark27]

ive just brought fm 2009 it lets me play the game until i select my team then submit then it wont go to match does anybody know what the problem is thanx

[DeanMcafee]

I have the visual floating error too, any idea how to fix it, re installing only lets me play once, then when i re load it does the same thing, any help ?

[StaRR]

After reading 53 pages and doing EVERYTHING you said from the beggining: re-instaling FM, installing 9.1 patch (didnt work), re-instaling FM, 9.2 patch (didnt work), re-instaling FM, installing 9.3 patch (didnt work), re-instaling FM, installing Microsoft DirectX SDK (http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/d...displaylang=en) (althought some errors poped up since i have a newer version)(didnt work), updated Microsoft .NET framework (http://community.sigames.com/showpos...postcount=3758)(didnt work), re-installed graphic card(didnt work), updated graphic card(didnt work), downgraded graphic card (didnt work) i still cant play FM09 because of error fm.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close! There is still no solution for this? After something like 7 months?

And please note: i was able to play sometime ago but i had to do a system recovery and FM never worked again.

when i uninstalled my graphic card, i tried to run FM to see if the message was the same, and something like "No graphic card detected" (obviously) showed up, but no "fm.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close.." -> EDIT: i tried again with no video card driver

but the "fm.exe has has encountered..." showed up again.

System info:

GeForce 9800 GT, 512MB

DirectX 9.0c

MS WinXP, 32-bit SP3

Intel Quad Core @ 3,00 GHz

3GB RAM

edit:

and yes, i did a Manual Uninstall, removed Cache files and Deleted Registry Files

[James Ferguson]

Hi, after downloading the game (from the cd), and fixing the 'failed to set up graphics' problem the game installed properly but when I try to run it, it takes ages to load on a black screen (although occasionly you can see the kick out rascism etc. really faintly) , getting as far as a black screen with an L in the bottom corner?

Help me please.

[DeanMcafee]

Runtime error

r6002

floating point support is not loaded

how do I fix this ?

Ive had the game 8 months and this only just started happening, when I uninstall then reinstall the game works once until i switch it off, then i will get the same error next time

Ive looked all over the internet and havent seen a sugeestion yet, someone above has the same problem

[Neil Brock]

All,

Having a few problems getting FM09 up and running.

It was working fine at first, but now i'm getting 'XML parsing error - not well-formed (invalid token) at line 1 of profile 2.xml'.

I have tried this fix with the shortcut, adding ' - - reset_preferences' to the end of fm.exe in the target box without an joy.

Any ideas?

Thanks

Whenever I load or attempt to start a game. I get this message:

'not well informed (invalid token) at line 1 of profile. '

It means one of your 'Profiles' has been corrupted. Shut down FM, delete the cache files and this should solve this issue (but you'll also lose stored profiles that are selectable from the drop down menu when you start a new game).

First of all you need to turn on hidden files and folders. Go to My Computer and at the top select 'Tools' the 'Folder Options'. The go to the 'View' tab and select 'Show hidden files and folders'

Windows XP:

1. Open “My Computer”

2. Navigate to : “Documents and Settings\<Username>\Application Data\

3. Go into the “Sports Interactive” Folder.

4. Go to the “Football Manager 2009” Folder.

5. Delete the 'cache' Folder found inside here.

Wndows Vista:

1. Click “Start”

2. Click your username on the start Menu

3. Click on “AppData” and then “Roaming”

4. Go into the “Sports Interactive” Folder

5. Go to the “Football Manager 2009” Folder.

6. Delete the 'cache' Folder found inside here.

[Neil Brock]

ive just brought fm 2009 it lets me play the game until i select my team then submit then it wont go to match does anybody know what the problem is thanx

You need to install the 9.3 patch, this can be downloaded from links found in this thread - http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=106355

Let us know how you get on. Thanks.

[Neil Brock]

Hi, after downloading the game (from the cd), and fixing the 'failed to set up graphics' problem the game installed properly but when I try to run it, it takes ages to load on a black screen (although occasionly you can see the kick out rascism etc. really faintly) , getting as far as a black screen with an L in the bottom corner?

Help me please.

May be worth deleting your cache file and seeing if this helps:

First of all you need to turn on hidden files and folders. Go to My Computer and at the top select 'Tools' the 'Folder Options'. The go to the 'View' tab and select 'Show hidden files and folders'

Windows XP:

1. Open “My Computer”

2. Navigate to : “Documents and Settings\<Username>\Application Data\

3. Go into the “Sports Interactive” Folder.

4. Go to the “Football Manager 2009” Folder.

5. Delete the 'cache' Folder found inside here.

Wndows Vista:

1. Click “Start”

2. Click your username on the start Menu

3. Click on “AppData” and then “Roaming”

4. Go into the “Sports Interactive” Folder

5. Go to the “Football Manager 2009” Folder.

6. Delete the 'cache' Folder found inside here.

Let is know how you get on. Thanks.

[Neil Brock]

Runtime error

r6002

floating point support is not loaded

how do I fix this ?

Ive had the game 8 months and this only just started happening, when I uninstall then reinstall the game works once until i switch it off, then i will get the same error next time

Ive looked all over the internet and havent seen a sugeestion yet, someone above has the same problem

This is an error we've encountered a few times, a user has had success fixing it, details in this thread - http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=115491&highlight=R6002

Let us know how you get on. Thanks.

[smaja]

can xou help me with this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not well formed (invalid token) at line1 of Profile0.XML

[J D]

I don't know whether this has or has not been explained during the last 53 pages.

I am using a Mac with OS X 10.5.7 (meeting the game requirements), I have downloaded patch 9.3.0 but for some reason when I try to start a match it appears on the screen

--------------------

Setting up match

Please wait...

--------------------

and it freezes every time I try it

Any suggestions as to why this is happening?

N.B. This was actually said to have been resolved in Patch 9.1.1 so why is it still happening?

[jwrangers]

i have made some changes to the game using data after making changes i saved when i go to start a new game and click on the name that i saved it on data editor the actual saved name that i used isnt there anyone know what is wrong the game is working fine just data editor

[smaja]

can you help me with this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not well formed (invalid token) at line1 of Profile0.XML

THANKS

[smaja]

can you help me with this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not well formed (invalid token) at line1 of Profile0.XML

THANKS

[Boyler23]

I NEED HELP!!

I have installed fm2009 but when i try to launch the game, i get a message saying

'fm.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close'

Can anybody help me or has anybody had this problem aswell?

[FootyMan90]

So I download this ( http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=65715? ) but this time it refuses to make up the script needed. It throws up this error:

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb143/Shaun_2005/Image1.jpg

I assume the fact I've just installed a new copy of Windows Vista (64bit) might have something to do with it. Any ideas?

[ohitstrue!]

fix:

1) open ie and go to: https://fm2009.sa01.softanchorinsight.com

2) here if you are using ie7 it will prompt you – “there is a problem with this website’s security certificate.”

3) next, click – “continue to this website (not recommended)”. However – this is okay, it is safe.

4) look up top at your ie address bar – you will see “certificate error”. Click this box, then click “view certificates”.

5) press, “install certificate…”

6) select the “place all certificates in the following store”.

7) press “browse”

8) select “trusted root certificate authorities”. Not this will install the go daddy (a reputable) certificate into your trusted root certificate authorities if it is not there.

9) press ok

10) press next

11) press finish

close ie, then reopen it and to go to https://fm2009.sa01.softanchorinsight.com. Note: On this visit, you will be allowed without trouble.

from here –

1) reopen your fm2009 game

2) enter your key into the activation dialog

3) select the “online” activation

4) press next

you game should activate immediately.

please note: you will require your system clock to be set correctly, failure to do so will cause an error with https. Please therefore ensure your system time and date are set correctly.

this does not work. As i already have the go daddy cert and i still get the not connected to the internet messsage when enter my code???????????????????????????????

[iTry]

I'm using 9.0.3

My game simply won't load. I've no idea what the problem is. I don't get an error message or anything, I simply click on fm.exe (I know the shortcut works etc) and nothing happens.

I did a complete restart and I still had the same problem.

I've completely reinstalled - same problem.

I've deleted all FM09 related folders:

C:\Documents and Settings\Ham\My Documents\Sports Interactive\
C:\Program Files\Sports Interactive
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Sports Interactive

There are no known issues with the game not loading but not displaying an error message. I've also deleted the HKEY registry and I'm still getting no joy. Thanks and I hope you respond hastily .

EDIT: fm.exe doesn't even show up as a process never mind an application in Task Manager.

EDIT2: fm.exe does show up in task manager occasionally if I try about times but this is only for a few seconds. If I hold enter down on the shortcut, I get errors telling me that 'Football Manager is already running' and these show up as fm.exe in task manager. however, when I close all of these error messages by clicking ok, the process disappears from task manager .

EDIT3: Activator is doing exactly the same thing as fm.exe. The data editor and resource archiver work fine though. Reinstalled again without updating to 9.0.3 - same problem.

[iTry]

Gave in and formatted PC.

[alslammerzredux]

Just decided on a whim to grab WSM09 since I had 06 or so back in the day and have started following the game again recently.

So I download Steam, then buy the game.

Install #1-

Steam tells me to remember or write down the Activation code or hit copy to clipboard. I go with the copy to clipboard option and hit next.

The soft anchor comes up- hit paste and then next for the Online Activation. That code is already in use.

So I come to the forums. And I see the problem on page 1 of this thread and its solution. So I uninstall the game. I delete the files it tells me to delete. Heck, I delete all the SI folders. I reinstall. Results of Install #2- That code is already in use.

Grr. So I uninstall. I delete everything again. I reboot the computer (as I skipped that step the last time.) I reinstall. Results of Install #3- That code is already in use.

Double Grr. So without uninstalling, I delete that SI folder that the first page says to delete, the FM Certificate one, again. I hit the WSM icon on my desktop. I put the activation code in and look at that it works.

Except for the fact that no screen actually comes up. Windows says WSM.exe is running though, despite the evidence to the contrary. This was the point where I gave up.

I plan on making Install #4 the last install one way or the other. Please help. I have a new computer and I've been sorely tempted to take my frustrations out on it when I know it's not its fault. Running XP if that matters so it's not even a dreaded Vista problem. I'd love to play this game but after 6 hours of downloading a game that hasn't run yet, I'm a little weary on the idea.

I also sent a ticket into Sega but I figured might as well go direct to the source. And since Steam's forum is useless, that was SI. And I verified the code (and copied it directly from Steam's little applet no less) so it's not a O=0 or I=1 problem or anything of that sort.

What am I missing?

[alimac]

I've done a search but can't find a solution:

All my player photos have suddenly dissapeared. They were all pre-loaded and not add-on pictures and I've never had any problems until now they have all gone. The strange thing is that all the other teams photos are still there - both add-on and pre loaded, it's just MY teams pictures that have all gone!

Please haelp as it loses all the appeal when the pics have gone.

[Coombser]

OK - having fixed the last problem I had I'm now getting a new message telling me that I have an XML parsing error - have copied and pasted in the recommended fix thus:

"C:\Program Files\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2009\fm.exe" --reset_preferences

but am then told that the address I've just put in the target field is not valid....

Any answers on a postcard please. I'm getting increasingly frustrated with the continual problems.

[Neil Brock]

Just decided on a whim to grab WSM09 since I had 06 or so back in the day and have started following the game again recently.

So I download Steam, then buy the game.

Install #1-

Steam tells me to remember or write down the Activation code or hit copy to clipboard. I go with the copy to clipboard option and hit next.

The soft anchor comes up- hit paste and then next for the Online Activation. That code is already in use.

So I come to the forums. And I see the problem on page 1 of this thread and its solution. So I uninstall the game. I delete the files it tells me to delete. Heck, I delete all the SI folders. I reinstall. Results of Install #2- That code is already in use.

Grr. So I uninstall. I delete everything again. I reboot the computer (as I skipped that step the last time.) I reinstall. Results of Install #3- That code is already in use.

Double Grr. So without uninstalling, I delete that SI folder that the first page says to delete, the FM Certificate one, again. I hit the WSM icon on my desktop. I put the activation code in and look at that it works.

Except for the fact that no screen actually comes up. Windows says WSM.exe is running though, despite the evidence to the contrary. This was the point where I gave up.

I plan on making Install #4 the last install one way or the other. Please help. I have a new computer and I've been sorely tempted to take my frustrations out on it when I know it's not its fault. Running XP if that matters so it's not even a dreaded Vista problem. I'd love to play this game but after 6 hours of downloading a game that hasn't run yet, I'm a little weary on the idea.

I also sent a ticket into Sega but I figured might as well go direct to the source. And since Steam's forum is useless, that was SI. And I verified the code (and copied it directly from Steam's little applet no less) so it's not a O=0 or I=1 problem or anything of that sort.

What am I missing?

De-activate your code using the following:

http://deactivation.fm2009.softanchorinsight.com/

Then try re-installing and activating again. Let us know how you get on, thanks.

[Neil Brock]

OK - having fixed the last problem I had I'm now getting a new message telling me that I have an XML parsing error - have copied and pasted in the recommended fix thus:

"C:\Program Files\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2009\fm.exe" --reset_preferences

but am then told that the address I've just put in the target field is not valid....

Any answers on a postcard please. I'm getting increasingly frustrated with the continual problems.

Delete the following folder:

First of all you need to turn on hidden files and folders. Go to My Computer and at the top select 'Tools' the 'Folder Options'. The go to the 'View' tab and select 'Show hidden files and folders'

XP: C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2009\settings

Vista: C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2009\settings

Let us know how you get on, thanks.

[Coombser]

Delete the following folder:

First of all you need to turn on hidden files and folders. Go to My Computer and at the top select 'Tools' the 'Folder Options'. The go to the 'View' tab and select 'Show hidden files and folders'

XP: C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2009\settings

Vista: C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2009\settings

Let us know how you get on, thanks.

OK - have deleted folder but now it's telling me that none of my save games can be loaded

[Neil Brock]

I'd uninstall the game, re-install and patch up. However there may have been XML errors within your save game which may have corrupted them:

The game says it cannot be loaded

This can sometimes be resolved it by defragmenting the hard drive.

Open and run Disk Defragmenter by doing the following:

Windows XP

1: Click “Start”

2: Click “My Computer”

3: Right Click the local Disk that contains the FM2009 installation.

4: Go to “Tools”

5: Click “Defragment Now”

6: Click “Anylise”

7: Click “Report” – Check to see if the saved game that is not loading is listed as having missing fragments.

If it does have missing fragments then move the save to an external source (USB Memory Key, External Hard Drive) and try loading the game fro there. If the game works from the external source then running a full Defrag on the Drive should allow you to load it again. If not then your game is probably corrupted.

Windows Vista

1: Click “Start”

2: Click “Computer”

3: Right Click the local Disk that contains the FM2009 installation.

4: Select “Preferences”

5: Select “Tools”

6: Select “Check Disk”

7: Select “Start”

If the Save Game was showing any missing fragments then try to load the game again as Check Disk would have attempted to fix the problem. If that does not work follow the steps from Windows XP. Copy the file to an external source and attempt to run it from there. If successful defrag the Hard Disk and then try again.

Let us know how you get on. Thanks.

[Coombser]

I'd uninstall the game, re-install and patch up. However there may have been XML errors within your save game which may have corrupted them:

The game says it cannot be loaded

This can sometimes be resolved it by defragmenting the hard drive.

Open and run Disk Defragmenter by doing the following:

Windows XP

1: Click “Start”

2: Click “My Computer”

3: Right Click the local Disk that contains the FM2009 installation.

4: Go to “Tools”

5: Click “Defragment Now”

6: Click “Anylise”

7: Click “Report” – Check to see if the saved game that is not loading is listed as having missing fragments.

If it does have missing fragments then move the save to an external source (USB Memory Key, External Hard Drive) and try loading the game fro there. If the game works from the external source then running a full Defrag on the Drive should allow you to load it again. If not then your game is probably corrupted.

Windows Vista

1: Click “Start”

2: Click “Computer”

3: Right Click the local Disk that contains the FM2009 installation.

4: Select “Preferences”

5: Select “Tools”

6: Select “Check Disk”

7: Select “Start”

If the Save Game was showing any missing fragments then try to load the game again as Check Disk would have attempted to fix the problem. If that does not work follow the steps from Windows XP. Copy the file to an external source and attempt to run it from there. If successful defrag the Hard Disk and then try again.

Let us know how you get on. Thanks.

There doesn't appear to be a 'Tools' option when I right-click - I think it's looking like a re-installation job though what difference that will make I'm unsure.

[Neil Brock]

Try 'properties' -> Tools

[Coombser]

Try 'properties' -> Tools

Nope - in properties there is 'General' 'Autoplay' 'Hardware' and 'Sharing'

[Neil Brock]

Are you running XP or Vista? Also do you have admin rights?

[alslammerzredux]

De-activate your code using the following:

http://deactivation.fm2009.softanchorinsight.com/

Then try re-installing and activating again. Let us know how you get on, thanks.

It says it was activated twice within minutes of one another (I've only tried this on one computer though) and when I hit deactivate it laughed at me and said it was unable to deactivate.

I tried deactivating them together, and each one individually to see if there was just one that was unable. Not so much, all three options gave me "unable to deactivate."

Do I need to uninstall (I kept installing/uninstalling despite telling myself I'd wait) and then deactivate?

Edit: Okay, tried uninstalling. One active running disappeared (the earlier of the two, so I'll assume that's the Steam authentication) but the other one is still "unable to deactivate."

Which I guess means delete the certificate (again)? Which brings me back to square one of I followed that path and got nothing for my troubles.

If it helps, to get the Soft Anchor to accept the download, I (on this install) did the phone activation, which seems to be the one that is un-deletable.

[RobJohanson]

I've just bought the game and the "Failed to set up graphics system" message came up, I have tried to use the links mentioned to download it but none of the links actually work. Does anyone have a different link? Before i throw my computer out the window...

[Chocolate_Leg]

Dear brains....

I have searched extensively for a solution but have hit a brick wall.

I recently had to reinstall my OS, so to get the game working again and get past the well-known "cannot run game: failed to set up graphics system" problem and the equally common "flashing 'L' in the bottom right corner problem", (hurdles I was able to get over last time), I've installed the latest driver for my graphics card, .Net framework and the DirectX Software Development kit.

However, and this is where I'm hoping one of you guys might be able to identify my problem, instead of the "flashing L" in the bottom right I simply have a "solid L" i.e. NOT flashing, and three or four dashes above the L in various shades of grey on a black screen.

If anyone could help me out and tell me what I'm missing I would be massively grateful.

Thanks in advance.

[Neil Brock]

I've just bought the game and the "Failed to set up graphics system" message came up, I have tried to use the links mentioned to download it but none of the links actually work. Does anyone have a different link? Before i throw my computer out the window...

Try this link:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=5493F76A-6D37-478D-BA17-28B1CCA4865A&displaylang=en

[Neil Brock]

Dear brains....

I have searched extensively for a solution but have hit a brick wall.

I recently had to reinstall my OS, so to get the game working again and get past the well-known "cannot run game: failed to set up graphics system" problem and the equally common "flashing 'L' in the bottom right corner problem", (hurdles I was able to get over last time), I've installed the latest driver for my graphics card, .Net framework and the DirectX Software Development kit.

However, and this is where I'm hoping one of you guys might be able to identify my problem, instead of the "flashing L" in the bottom right I simply have a "solid L" i.e. NOT flashing, and three or four dashes above the L in various shades of grey on a black screen.

If anyone could help me out and tell me what I'm missing I would be massively grateful.

Thanks in advance.

Are you running the game through Steam or straight from the disc?