A I read in previous post, we don't need to say that Win8 handles less games than Win7.
It's a matter of knowing the OS and what tweaks we can apply to get something going, if possible or not.
All games work here, even the very old ones.
That all depends on which old games and not all old games you are running. Some will while some won't unless DX9 is present while some others will simply run into OpenGL issues. With each new version you have to plan on losing some titles right off the bat.
As I said,
very old ones and they don't need dx9 and opengl: DOS-things run in DosBox but aside from those, something like Dune 2000 for example runs excellent on Win8. You don't need any directx because it runs on built in modules in compatibility mode (game needs dx5 or up to 8) and it runs with only stock dx10 and dx11.
If you try Command and Conquer (sorry I'm a fan of these here) Generals, it need s dx8.
So for this one and the rest you can install the well-known dx9 (I need it for MPC Homecinema Player as well).
Opengl issues? Must be rare,
depends what we consider old: older titles use older opengl and that can be understandable with newer cards where version 4.3 rules... are there any titles yet that make usage of Opengl 4.3...
With 7 something a little more unique was seen there that lacked in Vista namely the 32bit 7 would run a title like Metal of Honor:Allied Assault that wouldn't even install on the 32bit Vista having been written for XP. I have to wonder if that would also go on and run on the 32bit 8? The 32bit 7 could also a number of old XP device drivers for old 128mb AGP cards, Realtek onboard sound on some boards, etc.
Yes that's something 32bit 7 handles pretty well... I didn't tried the 32bit 8 to see. A big challenge is to get that on 64bit going.
We need full support for the installers on syswow64 (32bit part on 64bit OS).
The important thing is that I never mentioned installs here in my posts: all games RUN, PLAY but they probably DON'T install.
The installers will be the first ones to have issues during OS changes. The good advice I have here is:
Install the game somewhere it was meant for (XP, even older OS) in a virtual machine for example to ease things out.
You then zip all the game's folder, extract the whole game's registry entries when needed and get all files out of the VM in your Win8 test/gaming machine. If all is placed where needed, the game will run even if the installer didn't liked the OS in the first place! I installed it alright, but in XP.
What I also experienced in general is older (in particular 32bit) software confusing Program Files with Program Files (x86) so in that case you need to manually specify the right folder yourself before going through the next->next routine. The second issue is more severe, be it the installer confusing system32: this one has 64bit files on x64 so: what you need to do is get all added dlls, exes and what it added (very advanced stuff but it works when needed) out to syswow64 folder and your problem is solved.
With pc games it depends a great deal on the coding since generally more games are cross version platform type. Some old games will or won't run on the 64bit Windows regardless of which version it is. Note that is trying them while using the compatibility mode as well as right clicking on the installer's executable to run as admin and still not seeing them install. Others you would think would never go on the latest go right on without any problem.
Look just above about the syswow64 stuff I said, sometimes it applies here. The cross-platform types run mostly fine. From what I see, C++ is very solid, Dune 2000 was made in C++ back in 97/98 and it still runs like in the old days: I know it needs compatibility mode to... 16 bit color resolution but that's all: it runs on Win8 compatibility. Again, forget the installers and Admin mode use the install in XP move to 8 thing I mentioned in this case. There are titles like Red Alert 2 and YURI... that need one time elevation: run as admin one to initiate string manager... but I've installed it in XP and I don't even know it it installs on Win8. Go thing I got my backups packed.
The compatibility mode confuses most users: they don't really know how to use it, honestly. You can try and switch the OS type but some programs, in this case games, will not run. I demonstrated a while back that the programs able to detect OS version are the BEST candidates to running in compatibility mode on their designed OS: example is Moto Racer 1997, runs in Win98/ME compatibility, 16 bit color mode only. That game has an option menu where the OS gets detected, that's why it will feel good when Win98 is shown instead of an unknown NT 6.2.
See this compatibility mode test:
http://www.eightforums.com/gaming/1...rrectly-after-being-minimized.html#post170677
If you got one of those older games that detects OS, feel free to try the compatibility mode.
Generally with each new version it will be a trial and error process overall when you are looking at several titles. The initial problem encountered here was with games that mandate DX9 with some having their own DX9 installer included in the game's own installer since it is required. The 2007 full stand alone installer for DX9c for example ran into the "not compatible with this version of Windows" error on the CP and RP builds while the 2010 SDK went right onto the RP VM still running for the time that has left.
I agree with the trial and error. The dx9 from june 2010 runs fine on the RTM here and you should replace the one from 2007 because all needed files are included. The own installer from game... cancel those steps because you got the full dx package just mentioned.
Your VM test was correct.
The next try to resolve that one will be on the 90day Enterprise trial obviously being much closer to the retail 8 as well as a direct install to a physical hard drive. As a rule however pc games always seem to fare better with each new version to come out then seen with desktop apps where you need a newer version of same if not a replacement app. Games are written to be run on multiple versions in order to see them sell with companies knowing not everyone is running the exact same version all at once.
True. But unfortunately older releases don't detect the newer OSes and here again the compatibility mode war needs to be fought.
The installers... so in cases they don't work, I run them in XP VM. Think of the installer as an extractor of files, it copies files to needed locations. If you imitate what it does, correctly, you can get your game running on Win8. I've made backups of my working titles and some need registry entries as well to work, since I respect the copyright rules I don't share copies online, I use them on my PC and if something doesn't run on the OS due to installer/compatibility problems, I try to make it run with what I know.