"Display Driver Stopped Responding"

[Limbless]

Edit: Okay, it seems we've found a solution. It means your video card's having a bit of trouble coping, and this problem can be easily stopped by simply turning down shadows (turning off environment shadows helps a lot and doesn't make the game look much worse), and maybe some other settings if the need arises. Simple as that!



When I start the game, everything works fine - no error messages, no random crashes, everything's cool. But when the game actually starts, (eg gets to the 3D map after restoring a game), there's that Windows "ding" sound, and this error message pops up on the desktop:

The game keeps working for a little while, if I ignore the message and keep going, but then crashes and the computer locks up, leaves me with a big black screen, and I have to press the power button and start it up again to make it work. CTRL + ALT + DEL does nothing when it freezes up. Not even the capslock light lights up!

My graphics card is a Radeon X1600 PRO (latest drivers, updated them an hour or so ago), and I think the problem is in the drivers clashing with one of the game's files, somehow, but I'm no computer tech so I don't really know.

If it makes any difference, the rest of my specs are (to the best of my knowledge): 2.6 Ghz processor, 1.5 gigs of RAM, and that's all I know, really. Sorry.

Oh, and it doesn't give me a chance to send the error report to Microshaft. I mean... Microsoft.

 

[Zay]

I have this same problem, it's awful!   M&B isn't very fun anymore cause of this.

 

[Archonsod]

Try tweaking the graphics down a notch and see if it helps.

 

[rageshrub]

by latest do you mean latest stable or latest beta? if your using one try the other. also see if you can find a version of  the catlyst drivers that works with m&b

 

[Limbless]

by latest do you mean latest stable or latest beta? if your using one try the other. also see if you can find a version of  the catlyst drivers that works with m&b

I don't know for the your first suggestion, I just used the one their site directed me to. I would assume they're the latest stable.

And I tried using some older drivers with M&B, but that makes little difference... I just don't get the "ding" sound.

And as for turning down the graphics a notch, I'll try that and see if it helps.

Thanks, everyone, for the replies.

 

[Limbless]

Okay, I hate double-posting and I'm sorry for doing it (not really ), but I just wanted to make sure people knew I had something else to say, yadda yadda yadda..

Well, I tried turning the settings waaaay down, about less than 50% of possible height-y-ness, but that didn't help. Well, it did make a slight difference - it just cut straight to the black screen o' doom right in the middle of a town. But I don't think that's really a solution or even a change to the problem.

I'm still thinking it's ATI and B&M not getting along. Has anyone else who's noticed this problem got an ATI card (or more specifically an x1600 series)?

It does make it extremely difficult to enjoy this great game when it's crashing every few minutes.

 

[Limbless]

Okay, triple post.

Strangest thing just happened - the exact same problem I've got with M&B just happened with Medieval II: Total War.

Along with how Company of Heroes was doing the same spaz-out trick last summer, this gives me sufficient evidence to believe I have a little problem of computer over-heating, helped along by our great Australian almost-summer temperatures.

I'm not making any definite finger-points at a problem yet, but I'm going to turn on my über-powered fan heater on "cool" and stick it pointing straight at my video card, and see what happens.

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k142/Timblesink/Stuff.jpg

^^^ That's what it looks like, for anyone who wants to know. (img tags left out in case of forum img-size rules)

I'll update if it happens again or if it glides along.

 

[miclee1]

You are able to edit posts.

 

[Zay]

I turned 'Realistic shadows on plants' off and played for over an hour without any problems, so maybe that's the problem.

And by the way, my video card is an ATI radeon x1950pro.

 

[Chup]

Are u using a AGP card or PCI-E?

I have a Ati X1950 pro working without problems. 

Perhaps those who have this issue can try the latest omega-drivers instead of the official ATI drivers.

 

[Limbless]

Are u using a AGP card or PCI-E?

I have a Ati X1950 pro working without problems. 

Perhaps those who have this issue can try the latest omega-drivers instead of the official ATI drivers.

AGP. I'm installing the Omega-Drivers now, let's hope it works.

Oh, and putting the fan on it worked for a little while... But then it black screened me. Let's just hope the Omega-Drivers work. *fingers crossed*

 

[Chup]

Are u using a AGP card or PCI-E?

I have a Ati X1950 pro working without problems. 

Perhaps those who have this issue can try the latest omega-drivers instead of the official ATI drivers.

AGP. I'm installing the Omega-Drivers now, let's hope it works.

Oh, and putting the fan on it worked for a little while... But then it black screened me. Let's just hope the Omega-Drivers work. *fingers crossed*

Just make sure you got rid of the old drivers first! (Remove the ati driver first, before installing the omega drivers and to be sure you could use a program like driver sweeper (its free))

 

[Limbless]

Are u using a AGP card or PCI-E?

I have a Ati X1950 pro working without problems. 

Perhaps those who have this issue can try the latest omega-drivers instead of the official ATI drivers.

AGP. I'm installing the Omega-Drivers now, let's hope it works.

Oh, and putting the fan on it worked for a little while... But then it black screened me. Let's just hope the Omega-Drivers work. *fingers crossed*

Just make sure you got rid of the old drivers first! (Remove the ati driver first, before installing the omega drivers and to be sure you could use a program like driver sweeper (its free))

Yeah, I made sure they were all gone, first, but thanks.

I think I noticed a bit of a performance increase with these new drivers, and they definitely don't not work, but... The problem remains. I've got the über-fan on at maximum blast and everything. I'm really at a loss as to what's happening. I thought it might be overheating, but this fan solved that last time. I thought it might be driver issues, but none of them seem to work, even ones that work for others. I thought it might be graphic handling incapability, but this machine should be able to run M&B, and even with the settings turned way down it seems to make little difference.

Basically, I'm stumped.

I think it might happening with other graphics-intense games too, like Medieval II: Total War (as I mentioned before), which has never done it before. I'll try a different game this time and see what happens... But this is getting really, really annoying.

 

[Archonsod]

putting the fan on it worked for a little while... But then it black screened me

So, if we assume the problem is heat, would this not argue that the extra cooling delays the problem, but is still insufficient to entirely prevent the overheating?

 

[Limbless]

putting the fan on it worked for a little while... But then it black screened me

So, if we assume the problem is heat, would this not argue that the extra cooling delays the problem, but is still insufficient to entirely prevent the overheating?

Yep, it would seem so. I turned most of the shadows off, and most settings a good way down, and now it appears to run fine. Shorter loading times, too. I'll put this solution at the top of the top post for future people with this problem, as few people read all the way through.

Thanks for all your help, guys.