SimCity 3000 in Windows 7

[zheka62 2]

Hello all,

So it seems that I am like so many on here and decided to finally satisfy a long-standing itch by trying to fire up my old SimCity 3000 Unlimited CD on a modern (or semi-modern) computer.  Actually, I looked into it a couple of years ago, but a passing search revealed just too many issues, so I put it off.   However, some recent travels and city experiences (Hong Kong, Singapore, Barcelona, etc) refired the desire.  I will also add that I'm aware that I can shortcut a lot of pain by buying the updated version of the game from GOG or Steam, but since I already have the CD, why not use the challenge as a learning opportunity?

So, here we go, I decided to use my 9-year old Sony Vaio with Intel i3 processor, 8GB RAM, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit updated with everything up till the end-of-support in Jan 2020. I occasionally fire it up for work as we use some custom Excel add-ins that need Excel 2010.  The machine held up remarkably considering I dragged it all over the globe, with the biggest current issue of not being able to work on battery.  And I also keep it disconnected from the internet.

With Googling and finding this forum and others, I was able to resolve the following installation issues:

1) My CD was not not in its native case, thus no serial number.  Quick Google search took care of that.

2) Upon installation, I got the CTL3D32.DLL missing message.  Google didn't produce anything helpful, but resolution turned out to be simple - copy the file from from SysWow64 to System32 in the Windows folder.

3) After installation, the game wouldn't launch.  Found out about the DRM block introduced with a 2015 update, and enabled service to the relevant driver.

4) Game launches but exits with an error regarding "UV.DLL".  Again, Google wasn't helpful. but on a hunch I searched the CD, and found the file that for some reason or other didn't copy.  Placing it in the game folder took care of tge problem.

So, now, the game launches, intro audio track plays (but the clip doesn't).  As soon as either the intro ends or I spacebar to end it, and the game title screen appears, the application closes.  Trying to run it as either admin or in various compatibility modes does not help.

What am I missing????   It feels like I'm so close!!!

 

[catty-cb 4,381]

Am guessing as I had a similar issue that't it's a conflict between the game resolution (monitor) settings and your computers settings .... the GOG version of SC3 comes with extra resolution settings.

On phone so can't look up my settings, but if you do a google search you should find some topics on it

[zheka62 2]

I tried running this fix:

https://community.pcgamingwiki.com/files/file/699-SimCity-3000-compatibility-fixes/

It didn't do anything.  Are there any tips to use this??

So I went into my graphics options and switched to 16-bit color and 1024*768 resolution.  Same result.  Game exits as soon as it gets past the intro video.

[catty-cb 4,381]

Sorry I meant to come back last night but got side-tracked ..... that link unfortunately doesn't have anything to do with monitor resolution.

Have a read of this topic here on Simtropolis .... especially the last post as this fix is still available on the GOG site.

Hope that help

[zheka62 2]

1 hour ago, catty-cb said:

Sorry I meant to come back last night but got side-tracked ..... that link unfortunately doesn't have anything to do with monitor resolution.

Have a read of this topic here on Simtropolis .... especially the last post as this fix is still available on the GOG site.

Thank you for that!!  I took a look, and it's very interesting.    I want to try the Hex Edit method first (since I'm already in the "tech groove"), but do have the whole CD copied to HDD in case I need to use the GOG method.

 

[rsc204 21,804]

19 hours ago, zheka62 said:

2) Upon installation, I got the CTL3D32.DLL missing message.  Google didn't produce anything helpful, but resolution turned out to be simple - copy the file from from SysWow64 to System32 in the Windows folder...

...4) Game launches but exits with an error regarding "UV.DLL".  Again, Google wasn't helpful. but on a hunch I searched the CD, and found the file that for some reason or other didn't copy.  Placing it in the game folder took care of tge problem.

Although you've sorted the issues, I can only assume the files were copied (somewhere), the issue is that Windows is not linking to the containing folders as a system folder or the age of the game means they get put somewhere the application isn't expecting. The whole point of dll files, is that no matter how many applications share such a library, only one copy of a given .dll needs to exist on your machine. But for this to work, the location they are in, must be flagged as such in the registry, otherwise applications can't see them.

Huge underlying changes in this regard took place when 64-bit versions of Windows became a thing and later with Vista, which has remained the template to this day. Wouldn't surprise me with the age of the game, if that explains the hiccup. As you've done, just having a copy of them in the install folder is sufficient as a work-around.

[zheka62 2]

11 minutes ago, rsc204 said:

Although you've sorted the issues, I can only assume the files were copied (somewhere), the issue is that Windows is not linking to the containing folders as a system folder or the age of the game means they get put somewhere the application isn't expecting. The whole point of dll files, is that no matter how many applications share such a library, only one copy of a given .dll needs to exist on your machine. But for this to work, the location they are in, must be flagged as such in the registry, otherwise applications can't see them.

Regarding the CTL....dll, I actually noticed the file on my main Windows 10 machine (not used for this endeavour) in the sysWOW64 folder, so I figured Windows 7 should also have it.

As for UV.DLL, I ran a search on the HDD for it, nothing.  Then I checked the Apps folder on the CD, and voila!  I did notice after that my CD was a little dirty (and the habit of checking CD undersides has long passed).

[rsc204 21,804]

14 minutes ago, zheka62 said:

I did notice after that my CD was a little dirty (and the habit of checking CD undersides has long passed).

Whilst that might be the case, any installer worth it's weight would never simply "skip" a sector of data, like perhaps a music or dvd player might. So if you didn't get an error, then perhaps the installer simply didn't even try for whatever reason? Either way, it seems this one is unique to SC 3000, rather than a generic library.

I know my SC4 disks are a bit crap, but work fine if the laser in the optical drive is in good condition. I've some very old optical drives, useless because they are IDE not SATA, which never failed me. But I find more modern ones tend to crap out after a few years, a typical symptom of this is struggling to read imperfect or copied disks. The other great thing about CDs/Optical media, provided any damage is not too bad, like very deep scratches, especially for factory-pressed disks, you can usually repair them. Kit's exist for minimal cost, although I guess they'll be harder to find in shops these days. Not to mention, when the sales come around, a digital copy of a game is probably cheaper, assuming it's just one disk/game you're having problems with. Better still, GoG quite uniquely take steps no other digital re-seller I know of, to ensure the easiest experience playing older games on newer machines. SC4 for example needs a command to prevent constant CTDs, which GoG have long-since included by default, due to customer feedback. No such change ever happened on Steam and this issue comes up again and again on their support forums.