preferences.empire_script.txt not being created/saved

**@Lantis** · April 30, 2009, 05:12 AM

Hi all!

Just let STEAM finish updating my game, and I deleted all things related to mods (pack-files and user.empire_script.txt) and also the preferences.empire_script.txt file, and started the game. It shows version 1.20 in the bottom left of the main screen. Then I went into the 'Options' menu, changed some small things like sound and music volume, pressed 'OK' or rather the checkmark button, and exited the game.

I then get a Windows warning 'Empire has caused a problem...bla...bla...', and there now is NO preferences.empire_script.txt file in the appropriate folder where it was before.

I had already set 'read-only' properties for the folder to 'off' because I have had this problem before, but the game won't create a new preferences.empire_script.txt file.

Anyone else have this problem? I read in various posts that there are new settings saved to this file, so I can not use the old file I have backed up anymore.

Thanks for any info/solution,

Atlantis

**vonDuus** · April 30, 2009, 08:28 AM

Did you change the battle time limit? Then try to set it back to 60 minutes. I used to delete everything CA in my documents map, saved games and all, but I read this in another post (I can't find it now, but the credit goes to him/her, not me), and it works (for me at least). You set the time limit not in the front options, but in the in-game options console, so press Continue campaign, and then when you are in, press escape, press options and find the battle time buttons and set them to 60 minutes. Then you can open a new campaign.

I hope this solves your problem.

vonduus

PS The credit goes to alpaca:

HTML Code:

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=255448

**@Lantis** · April 30, 2009, 03:52 PM

I tried what you suggested, but I hadn't changed any setting before starting the game 'post-patch' for the first time, with all files/documents AND saves deleted. So, my install was as 'clean' as it could get without a real re-install (in STEAM I checked the game-file fragmentation, this was 0%, which figures, since I use a completely separate Harddrive partition for Empire.) I then only changed sound volume and texture detail ingame, applied the new settings (which took about 10 seconds) and exited the game. Then came the on-screen warning, and there was no file saved with my preferences in the appropriate folder.

To be clear, I do not have any 'alternative' user accounts on my WinXP SP3 install, full 'privileges' as i am the admin, I set the folder to 'read and write' access.

But Empire does not save a preferences file. I'm stumped

**@Lantis** · May 03, 2009, 06:32 AM

Well, I can use the old file from before (which is a file from the very first Empire install I had). I changed some settings by hand which were not being saved through the game itself. With the settings in that file I can play fine, but with new patches I fear that the old file will at some time become obsolete. Besides that, I still think it's odd that the file does not get created by the game itself.

**BadBlood** · May 05, 2009, 03:48 AM

Does your game crash on exit? Mine always does - patches have not fixed the problem. This is what prevents the file from being created / updated.

**Dogmeat** · May 05, 2009, 05:35 AM

You could Delete the whole CA folder (prefrences, saved games etc) then get Steam to check game files and it will update and write em again.

**Brusilov** · May 05, 2009, 05:54 AM

Part of the problem may be that you let Steam update your install and then deleted the mods. I'd suggest deleting all traces of mods in your install and then reinstalling ETW. At least then you know that you are 'clean'.

**@Lantis** · May 05, 2009, 07:47 AM

Thanks Brusilov, I did what you suggested, after the option given by Dogmeat didn't help, unfortunately. (deleting the The Creative Assembly folder, checking game files integrity).

So, I uninstalled Empire from STEAM, then through the Windows settings I removed STEAM, then formatted the harddrive, and checked that there were no registry entries for STEAM or Empire. I then restarted the computer, installed Empire from disk (which also of course installed STEAM again, from the bottom up

, ), and I then started the game without a trace of the previous install. Ingame, i changed settings for sound and graphics, played one battle to confirm these settings, and exited the game. Again, the message 'problem with empire.exe...' came up, and NO preferences.empire_script.txt file was saved.

**Brusilov** · May 05, 2009, 08:38 AM

OK, if you are running Vista what have you done with UAC (User Acccess Control). I've toggled mine off using a product called Tweak UAC. For information about using Vista have a read of the first and last links in the first post in the following thread: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=167821

With the account that you are using what levels of authority does it have? It's almost as if you simply don't have the rights to output the file to the folder.

I've been able to play ETW on my Vista 64 rig (unfortunately due to overheating it's in the process of going back to the seller) and my XP rig.

So, let us know what OS you are using and what type of account you are running.

**@Lantis** · May 05, 2009, 04:24 PM

Yep, I thought about that too, but I still use good old WinXP, and I do not have any user accounts except the admin account, which is of course mine. I also looked around for possible problems with read-only folders/hidden folders etc. but after extensive testing with the 'attrib' command through a dos window (attrib -r /s for all subfolders of The Creative Assembly) I can say that this should not be a problem.

As Badblood said, I have the error message EVERY time I exit the game, so the game probably does not even reach the stage at which it writes the prefs file. It has made no difference that the install is completely fresh.

**Brusilov** · May 05, 2009, 09:00 PM

I can't offer any more suggestions. There must be something that's preventing this. What happens to your save games and battle replays? Do you have the same problem?

**@Lantis** · May 06, 2009, 01:26 AM

Haven't saved any battle replays, but my savegames are all perfectly saved in the appropriate folder, which was created (along with all other folders, and also the custom_keys.empire_keys.xml file in the \Empire folder) without problem after the first run with the newly installed game. The problem lies solely with the preferences file.

I appreciate all your efforts and suggestions, in the meantime I use my 'old' preferences file (which is backup'ed (spelling

) almost everywhere), which I edited by hand with the appropriate settings. This allowes me to play without problems while I hope this odd problem wil disappear with a next patch.

**Brusilov** · May 06, 2009, 07:01 AM

No problems. I hate the unexplained. It's usually easier to work them out on your own PC rather than asking someone else questions.....

Save a battle replay and then have a look at the folder and the saves folder and look at the permissions on them. If you couldn't see either of them it would be understandable (in that it's something to do with the permissions on the file). There must be something different between the saves and the preferences folder.

Have a look on the permissions on the 'The Creative Assembly' and then the 'Empire' folders.

Replays have an extension of 'empire_replays', saves have an extension of 'empire_saves' and the preferences has an extension of 'txt' (although they look like 'emprire_script.txt'). Could it be something to do with 'txt' files?

**@Lantis** · May 06, 2009, 03:06 PM

I tried as you suggested, played a battle in my current Maratha campaign (unmodded of course) and saved the battle replay, which saved perfectly. This was the first replay I had saved, so the folder 'replays' was newly created in the The Creative Assembly folder. I then tried again to have the game create a prefs file (maybe the presence of he 'replay' folder would alter the result?), I deleted the file which I had copied over from my backup, started the game again, changed settings, exited.

No preferences file

**Brusilov** · May 06, 2009, 04:02 PM

Well, there's just something very strange about the preferences file or the folder that it's in.....

**BadBlood** · May 10, 2009, 08:05 AM

Originally Posted by Brusilov

Well, there's just something very strange about the preferences file or the folder that it's in.....

Not sure if that is it either because Mod Manager has no problems saving user and profile.txt files to the Scripts Folder, and the preferences file I use is a modified version of the one you posted for me.

I have no problems with Savegames or Battle Replays.

The game always crashes on exit and I have no idea why.

I will be happy when CA start receiving the report files; I thought that Microsoft would have automatically forwarded such files to the author of any culprit program, but it would appear that this is not the case and will not happen until next patch.