Bought Grand Theft Auto IV for Windows but seem to be short memory

B

Betsy Og

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It appears that it takes a colossal amount of memory to run it - I bought PC games before and they worked, but I think I'm short on spec for this one. I'll get the spec of game and machine and post it tomorrow but anyone know a way around this issue?? I gather its operating memory rather than storage is the problem, so I dont think an external hard drive would be any help.

Can I play Grand Theft Auto IV "lite" ??- as you can tell I'm not really a gamer and bought it out of curiosity mainly, so if I can run a bare version of the game that didnt soak memory I'd be happy with that.

Think it would be cheaper get a console and console version of the game than go upgrading the laptop.

Any thoughts? (other than I was an eejit to buy without knowing the problem)
 
exact same problem- loaded up fine but slow as molasses when running, I'm selling off my copy.

buy a console, that's my plan too.
 
Here are the systems specs required & suggested to run it - it all depends on where your system is show, if its just RAM you could get additional ram but if its also graphics cards then it may be cheaper to buy a console and game or a whole new laptop ?

Minimum System Requirements
  • OS: Windows Vista - Service Pack 1 / XP - Service Pack 3
  • Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo 1.8Ghz, AMD Athlon X2 64 2.4Ghz
  • Memory: 1.5GB, 16GB Free Hard Drive Space
  • Video Card: 256MB NVIDIA 7900 / 256MB ATI X1900
Here are the recommended system specs to run it

Processor: Dual core processor (Intel Pentium D or better)
RAM: 2GB
Hard Drive: 18GB free hard disk space
Video Card: 512MB Direct3D 10 compatible video card or Direct3D 9 card compatible with Shader
Drive: DVD-ROM dual-layer drive
 
With laptops you usually cannot replace the graphics card without replacing the full motherboard as it is usually integrated into that.

You can try shutting down unnecessary services on your laptop which would free up RAM\CPU that might help.

I bought a PS3 for the small amount of gaming I do, it was always a hassle with the PC\Laptop as new games always seem to push the boundaries of the laptop. The lifespan of the PS3 is expected to be up to 7-10 years (probably 5 in reality) but you haven't a hope of running new games on a 5 year old laptop.
 
also, a lot of laptops graphics cards share the main memory, making them a lot less capable to handle 'real' 3d games..
 
GTVIV on the PC appears to be very CPU intensive - I have a fairly high-end graphics card (Radeon 4870) on a gaming desktop but still get a relatively low number of frames (30+, so still very playable). Compared to most PC games these days, it requires a high-end machine (most games these days are multi-platform and hence not so intensive, GTAIV is an exception).

Don't forget, have you tried turning the settings all the way down? When you're playing GTAIV on a console, what you're seeing is the PC equivalent on low settings.

Still a fantastic game though. Yeah, it's probably not worth upgrading/buying a laptop for _one_ game, especially as gaming laptops are very expensive. A high-end desktop is much better value. Since there's a huge price difference between PC and console games (easily €20 in some cases), depending on how many games you play a year, it may be justified to have a high-end desktop anyway.
 
PC gaming = more hassle than it's worth.

I have given up on it & intend to do all gaming on console, just plug & play- no bull.
 
Horatio said:
PC gaming = more hassle than it's worth.

I have given up on it & intend to do all gaming on console, just plug & play- no bull.
Click to expand...

There are many good reasons to prefer a gaming over consoles. And I speak as someone with a gaming PC, laptop, XBox, Wii and DS but does 90% of their gaming on PC.
 
fair play to the retailer, they gave me credit to the value of the game so got 3 for €15 and €10 on a card for another day. All lower spec games including Grand Theft Auto III which should all run well.

I may end up upgrading the laptop at some stage but in no rush. I gather you can download PC games easily as well (& legally I presume). Any good recommendations for that??

Would like a good car/track game and maybe an older FIFA game. The 2 car ones they had require too much spec.
 
Bought Flatout from GOG but it wouldnt bleedin launch :( Posting on the forum there or contacting Support didnt work either. If I can muster the energy I might hound them again - annoying though.....
 
Hi Betsy,

Saw your posting on the forum. Have you tried double-clicking on the executable file itself? That is, navigate to where the actual file is - say, C:/Program Files/GOG/Flatout or whatever - and double click on the EXE file (for example, flatout.exe).

Very odd error alright to have nothing happen.

I can check your spec if you do the following:


1. Select Start==>Run

2. In the "Run" box, enter the into the "Open" field:

msinfo32.exe

3. Click OK

A "System Information" dialog will display.

4. Select File==>Save

5. Specify a file name - for example, myspecs

6. Click Save

You should now have a file called myspecs.nfo in your "My Documents folder". Email me this and I can make sure your laptop has the correct specs for the game.

Oops, my email is canicemcavoy at gmail.com
 
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