Intermittent Graphical Issues

[DukeOfValois1]

I posted something akin to this problem before in bug reports, but that issue now seems to be a technical graphical problem rather than a bug. When I load up the game, the UI either seems to be missing text (usually the Government in the Law Screen or Event Titles) or UI boxes and buttons become invisible but still clickable (start game button and most UI information boxes). Once in a while sea graphics will go haywire on me and look like a bad static movie. Examples from both vanilla and CK2+ (this has also happened in HIP and the After The End Fan Fork) are below in screen grabs.

Its an intermittent problem that's across both vanilla and multiple mods and is temporarily dealt with by restarting the game, sometimes more than once. I've verified the integrity of the game files and reinstalled it. I just installed Nvidia's new graphics driver today. The problem still persists. I was also having a similar problem with EU4 (no UI problems but definitely weird ocean and river graphics, but since the new patch it hasn't done it.

 

[AndrewT]

We cannot help with modded games here at all, so we need to concentrate on the issue as seen in unmodded games.

If you see missing text there, as a start you must do a full **clean** re-install:

- move any valued save games elsewhere
- "uninstall" in Steam-CK2
- manually delete both the Steam/SteamApps/common/CK2 AND Documents/Paradox/CK2 folders
- re-install game in Steam, run a Steam Verify when done.
- start the game with no mods active and test

In particular make sure there are no files or folders left under either the Steam CK2 or Documents CK2 locations, before installing again.


IF that doesn't help, DXDIAG is a program you run from a command prompt or the Windows start menu 'run' dialog box (or 'search programs' in Windows 7 or later). After running it will open a window and start collecting info with a progress bar in the lower-left corner. When it completes click the 'save all information' button and save it to a file then attach that file here.

Please attach your Documents/Paradox/CK2/settings.txt.
From your Documents/Paradox/CK2/logs/ folder, attach system.log .

 

[DukeOfValois1]

Yes, it seems to be acting up again. Same problems. Here's another batch of those files you asked for. It seems now that I know there will be a problem when the game boots up. When the loading bar reaches "Creating Map" or "Processing Flags" the Windows 10 loading circle thing will appear instead of CK2's rotating hourglass.

 

[Aardvark Bellay]

Yes, it seems..

Just asking to have it covered and make life easier for both of you..
did you actualy manually delete the folders as mentioned by AndrewT above when reinstallling ?
Not doing it is one mistake often done while relying on automatic uninstalling and thus especially mentioned.
Remaining files then corrupt the new installation.

---

I wonder if the game might use the HD Graphics 530 later in game after load,
but the system.log mentiones the Nvidia 1060, so that's probaly not it...hmm...

Disclaimer: I'm not tech suport. Just another forum member.

 

[DukeOfValois1]

Just asking to have it covered and make life easier for both of you..
did you actualy manually delete the folders as mentioned by AndrewT above when reinstallling ?
Not doing it is one mistake often done while relying on automatic uninstalling and thus especially mentioned.
Remaining files then corrupt the new installation.

---

I wonder if the game might use the HD Graphics 530 later in game after load,
but the system.log mentiones the Nvidia 1060, so that's probaly not it...hmm...

Disclaimer: I'm not tech suport. Just another forum member.

Yep. I followed every instruction to the letter and reinstalled yesterday, and didn't have any issues until loading up steam and launching it today.

 

[Aardvark Bellay]

Yep. I followed every instruction to the letter and reinstalled yesterday, and didn't have any issues until loading up steam and launching it today.

Good, well good to know.

My last question, what was/is the issue in your pictures No2 and 3 ?
I might be blind/accidently ignorant, but i just don't see the problem in these two (The options in the Law screen being all grey could simply be that the requirements are not fullfilled).
Well tell me, please. Curious.

 

[DukeOfValois1]

Good, well good to know.

My last question, what was/is the issue in your pictures No2 and 3 ?
I might be blind/accidently ignorant, but i just don't see the problem in these two (The options in the Law screen being all grey could simply be that the requirements are not fullfilled).
Well tell me, please. Curious.

This is minor compared to the digital oceans in pic 1, but the Event Titles and Government Names are blank invisible/missing.

 

[Aardvark Bellay]

This is minor compared to the digital oceans in pic 1, but the Event Titles and Government Names are blank invisible/missing.

Oh...that looks like a local issue indeed to me, but what do i know....

@AndrewT for the rescue

 

[AndrewT]

Edit that settings.txt as follows:

refreshRate=60
fullScreen=yes
borderless=no

I don't see anything else to explain wha you are seeing, especially its intermittency.

What antivirus app do you use? Add steam.exe and ck2game.exe to its Exceptions list.

 

[DukeOfValois1]

I fixed the settings and the steam.exe and ck2game.exe are already on my Windows Defender exceptions list as well as Malwarebytes. I haven't had any problems yet. I'll keep watch for anything else weird. Thanks for the help so far, though.

 

[AndrewT]

I've had some negative reports on that video driver you have of 22 March, try their latest one
http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us

 

[DukeOfValois1]

I think this might also be a problem with one of the Windows Updates. The issue abated for a couple of weeks until some update got installed on my laptop, and now I've got to relaunch the game (as well as EU4) a few times to keep it from happening. Odd thing is that the missing text issue has stopped, but now it is jarring graphical bugs, usually with the oceans. Often most of the screen will turn into what looks like static. This (screenshot) happened today with Vanilla. The ocean turned black only after alt-tabbing.

 

[AndrewT]

Fom that screenshot I'm pretty sure you have a hardware problem actually. You did update that video driver?

If this only happens after playing for a while, it's likely overheating. Please report the temperatures of your CPU and video (GPU)
1/ before starting the game up and
2/ after say 30 minutes' play.
If your PC's vendor has given you no way of reading temperatures, install
SPEEDFAN http://www.almico.com/sfdownload.php

If it happens immediately on loading the game up though, it's probably a faulty GPU card I'm afraid! Try re-seating it at least.

 

[DukeOfValois1]

Fom that screenshot I'm pretty sure you have a hardware problem actually. You did update that video driver?

If this only happens after playing for a while, it's likely overheating. Please report the temperatures of your CPU and video (GPU)
1/ before starting the game up and
2/ after say 30 minutes' play.
If your PC's vendor has given you no way of reading temperatures, install
SPEEDFAN http://www.almico.com/sfdownload.php

If it happens immediately on loading the game up though, it's probably a faulty GPU card I'm afraid! Try re-seating it at least.

Odd. No its immediately upon loading the game. I've got the GTX 1060, as well as MSI's dragon center. It's not overheating. As for the faulty GPU, wouldn't this problem be shown in other games as well? This issue is only occurring in CK2 and EU4 (actually hasn't happened recently), but Stellaris, Total War: Atilla and Total War: Rome 2 work perfectly at ultra settings (not your game, I know, but they're good examples).

I'm not all that well versed in these sorts of technical matters, so sorry about that.

 

[AndrewT]

These games push the video card harder than almost any other of their era. Not because of detailed graphics or high resolutions, but because they offload as much work as possible onto the video processor, to free up the main CPU to deal with the vast amount of data the games use to model history. And because the GPU is better suited to certain classes of data manipulation than CPUs are.

It's not uncommon for our games to be the first to have problems when hardware starts to fail.

That aside, if it's not the GPU then what is it? There's not much else that can have the effect you are seeing in that last screenshot; conceivably system memory or CPU I guess, but that's about it.

 

[DukeOfValois1]

My drivers are up to date, and that seems to be the problem. I cleaned off the 391.35 and rolled back to 388.71. CK2 is working without issue so far.