Getting W:A to work on Windows 8

(Up to Troubleshooting FAQ)

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This page describes getting W:A 3.6.31.0 working on Windows 8.

For 3.7.0.0 and higher, a simple solution is to either enable Direct3D 9 from the Advanced Settings screen as the graphics renderer or to set a compatibility flag for DirectDraw (not recommended).

It worked on Windows 7! Why doesn't it work properly on Windows 8?

Windows 8 no longer supports screen resolutions with colour depths other than "true colour" (24-bit depth or 16,777,216 colours). 8-bit and 16-bit screen resolutions are emulated in software, and the DirectDraw used in Windows 8 results in unusual behaviour or poor performance in certain older games, including Worms Armageddon.

Solution

There are currently some known methods which should address the issue.

Method 1

• Open Notepad, and copy and paste the following:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\Layers]
"C:\\Team17\\Worms Armageddon\\WA.exe"="$ DWM8And16BitMitigation Layer_ForceDirectDrawEmulation"

• If you installed W:A in a location different from C:\Team17\Worms Armageddon\, correct the path on the last line. Remember to use double backslashes instead of single ones.
• Click File → Save to open the save dialog.
• In the Save as type drop-down, select All files.
• Enter FixWA.reg in the File name field, and save the file.
• Locate the file using Explorer, and double-click it. Confirm Registry Editor's warning.
• If you're running W:A 3.6.31.0, navigate to the folder in which you installed W:A, open the "Tweaks" directory and import SlowFrontendWorkaround_Off.reg. Note that you won't be able to maximize properly in-game on 3.6.31.0, so you may want to use the 2nd method if this bugs you.

Method 2

1. If you haven't yet, install WormKit or WormKitDS at your choice. A working WormKit setup will be required for the following steps.
2. Download this WormKit module and extract it to the W:A installation directory. The frontend's white fields should be fixed, however it does not affect in-game or frontend performance. If the game or frontend is too slow, proceed to the next step.
3. Delete the wkFrontendFix.dll installed previously, and download the windowed mode libraries. Put them all into your W:A installation directory and launch the game. The libraries will emulate the graphics APIs used by W:A using modern APIs. Please check the included readme file, as it's not a bug-free solution. If everything in-game is fine for you, you may stop here. Otherwise, proceed to the next step.
4. Only for W:A 3.6.31.0: Download and install Project X. Follow the instructions on the site. Assuming you have an average modern PC, there should be no problems during the game for you (the system requirements in Project X are higher than the default ones). Project X replaces W:A's in-game graphics code with a modern (DirectX 9) true color graphics API, which does not interfere with Windows 8's compatibility layers. Combined with the windowed mode libraries mentioned above, it should result in the best performance.

For the moment, these are the known methods which resolve performance and frontend issues on Windows 8, except emulating W:A. If you have anything to add, feel free to discuss on the talk page.

The error "Unable to set desired video mode" pops up when attempting to start the game

For some reason, Windows 8 identified W:A as an application targeting Windows 8, which forbids using non-24-bit screen modes.

See the fix method #1 to correct the problem.

Note: if your system doesn't support the 640x480 resolution, you will need windowed mode (see above).

Another way to set this manifest is by enabling 256-colour mode in WA.exe properties' Compatibility tab, launching the game, and then removing the 256-color mode checkbox. (The system doesn't become 256-coloured because of what is said above).

There are no resolutions listed in the drop-down on the WA's settings screen

See the previous paragraph.

External links

Has anyone gotten Worms Armageddon to work on Windows 8? - Team17 forum