Epic addressing Gears of War PC calamity

By Robert Purchese Published 30 January, 2009

Mild panic as Windows certificate expires.

Epic Games is working to fix a bug that has suddenly made Gears of War PC unplayable.

The problem is caused by the expiration of the Windows digital certificate for the game. When trying to load Gears of War PC, players are halted by a pop-up message: "You cannot run the game with modified executable code. Please reinstall the game."

"We have been notified of the issue and are working with Microsoft to get it resolved. Sorry for any problems related to this. I'll post more once we have a resolution," said "joeGraf", Epic Games programmer, on the Gears of War PC forum.

"Yes, this was a surprise to us too. We aren't casting blame or chewing anyone out. We're trying to figure out how and why it happened so we can get it fixed."

Meanwhile, the internet has found a temporary solution: as the certificate expires on 29th January 2009, simply set the Windows system clock back to a date prior to that.

Gears of War PC launched at the end of 2007, complete with extra content not seen in the Xbox 360 original, such the fight with the Brumak. We said 9/10.

Unfortunately, however, Epic has decided not to port the sequel, leaving Xbox 360 as the exclusive platform.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (50) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • macima #1 3 years ago

    doh

  • DFawkes #2 3 years ago

    The definition of DRM - "Something used to ensure a product is rendered less functional than it's pirated counter-part, and is therfore far less enjoyable."

    I'm not saying piracy is okay, but when you make the legally purchased product of a lower quality than the illegal one, I think pirates have got a leg to stand on for one. If I was wanting Gears for PC now, I'd have to pirate - sure, I'd buy the boxed game, but that borked code isn't going in my machine.

  • Doctor_What #3 3 years ago

    Games For Windoze?

  • thesombrerokid #4 3 years ago

    the best solution - use a crack, then you can still use your pc clock for telling the time and applications like Messenger wont shit themeselves

    EDIT: the question is who was still playing GoW to notice this :o
    Edited by 1 at 30/01/09 @ 08:51

  • hello_fi #5 3 years ago

    the other question is why haven't PC gamers realised that PC gaming is shit and moved onto consoles, where they can pick up GoW2?

  • SixFootHalfling #6 3 years ago

    The final question is why would you move to GOW2 which has a fundementally broken online multiplayer, especially when the PC version will have probably 100 maps, compared to GOW2's 10 or so?

  • DFawkes #7 3 years ago

    How is it fundamentally broke? Fine for me, and the other people I've played with.

  • Eraysor #8 3 years ago

    You can't play Dawn of War 2 on consoles, and it's totally awesome.

  • Katsumoto #9 3 years ago

    "the other question is why haven't console gamers realised that console gaming is shit and moved onto PC, where they can pick up Stalker?"

    A valid question.


    ;)
    Edited by 1 at 30/01/09 @ 09:23

  • penhalion #10 3 years ago

    This is exactly what I said would happen with DRM products and then some muppets claimed that companies would simply release a non DRM patch if they ever went out of business or something like that. Seriously folks how would an out of business company produce a patch to fix a drm issue?

    We are only lucky that this happened to a game by Epic, who will be around for many years to come.

  • thesombrerokid #11 3 years ago

    @penhalion
    don't be daft there's been a 'community' fix for this since the day GoW was released as with 99% of DRM

  • Darren #12 3 years ago

    Hehehe... I loaded Gears of War up last night and got the error about running a modified executable and that I would have to reinstall the game. Googling the error message revealed the real reason for it happening but the ironic thing is that I *am* running a modified executable, a NoDVD hack no less! I do own the original anyway, I mean it only cost me a tenner but I find swapping discs tedious and unnecessary on the PC especially as the entire game is installed to the HDD anyway so I prefer to use NoDVD hacks when I can.

    I just rolled the date back a year and everything was okey-dokey. Very silly bug though...

  • Darren #13 3 years ago

    @penhalion - What you say is very true and normally I'd say thank goodness for the people that make these NoDVD hacks that means you don't need the disc in the drive or have to endure painful DRM like SecuROM for example but, in this particular case, that hack does not work as it still prevents the game from loading. That means that we really are at the mercy of the game publishers as to how long we can play these games. Worrying really.

  • makeamazing #14 3 years ago

    @hello_fi because PC gaming is just as fun as Consoles maybe, and there are some types of games that are never going to translate onto the consoles that well. Crikey, every single news topic has some muppet claiming their console is the best, or PC is best or a conker with a peice of string is best..... theres a reason why people play other types of game devices, live with it.

    Back to the point, this is one of the occasions where DRM has really failed. I normally am on the side of stop complaining about DRM, but for the game to just stop working and people need to find cracks to get it fixed is not very good at all.

  • Darren #15 3 years ago

    @penhalion - Probably because in 95% of cases the PC version of a multiformat game is better (hardware permitting obviously but even a three year PC leaves the consoles for dead technically IMO), the games are half the price or cheaper and they don't have to endure hardware with a poor reliability record for one (e.g. the Xbox 360!).

    Yes, the PC is expensive if you want a top-end system but unlike a console a PC can be used for many other useful things besides games. The kind of issue that Gears of War is suffering from are not exactly restricted to the PC anyway, the 360 and PS3 have both have their fair share of game related issues over the past few years that have required patches to fix them. Remember 360 Call of Duty 2's or Saint's Row's appalling online modes or MotoGP 06's Friends list bug that crashed the game? Because of the nature of consoles, patches tend to take a lot longer to arrive than the PC because of the strict certification, and even then it's no guarantee that it will fix the game completely anyway. I remember BioShock being patched on my old 360 and actually running *worst* that it did pre-patch!!! It took another two updates before it was working properly and by that time the game had been out months.

    Basically, the consoles have their own set of problems just as the PC does. There is no such thing as a perfect gaming system in that respect because they're made by people and people make mistakes. Simple as.

  • miiiguel #16 3 years ago

    "The final question is why would you move to GOW2 which has a fundementally broken online multiplayer, especially when the PC version will have probably 100 maps, compared to GOW2's 10 or so? "

    People to play with?

  • Darren #17 3 years ago

    @Eraysor - You can't play Crysis or Crysis Warhead on the Xbox 360 either and that's one of the finest first-person shooters I've played in years, although it's taken me until now to appreciate that. They both make Halo 3 and Resistance 2 look like relics from the original Xbox and PS2 IMO and I'm not just talking about graphics either - it goes without saying that they're stunning - but A.I., physics, environmental interaction, atmosphere, the works... there simply isn't a better first-person game out there, period.

  • thesombrerokid #18 3 years ago

    whoops sorry guy i was under the impression from another article on this that the noCD hacks worked as a workaround

  • Darren #19 3 years ago

    @miiguel - PC games tend to have much longer online life-spans that the consoles where users tend to abandon less popular titles as soon as something new and "big" comes along. For example, you can still find lots of PC owners playing golden oldies like the original Call of Duty and Unreal Tournament 2004. Even games like Warcraft III are still played online. All are over five years old. Apart from Halo 2, name me one other old Xbox game that is still played online from 2003?

  • miiiguel #20 3 years ago

    @Darren : yes, I know *they* are stuck in time, we've talked about this. The thing is, I don't like to hang out with the piracy crew. And yes, I know you don't do it. You and some other 2 guys.
    w, the most important thing to me is "press on, and play" and 360 seems the only one which can give that.

  • Katsumoto #21 3 years ago

    True that, on Xfire alone 113,541 minutes of CoD2 were played today, and 55k minutes of Warcraft 3!

  • UncleLou #22 3 years ago

    the other question is why haven't PC gamers realised that PC gaming is shit and moved onto consoles, where they can pick up GoW2?


    Not everyone is happy with the second best.

  • Darren #23 3 years ago

    @thesombrerokid - Well I was already using a NoDVD hack before now but this bug prevented me from playing Gears of War last night until I changed the date to an earlier one. There are several different hacks by different people though so perhaps there is another one that isn't affected by this? I may try a few of the others tonight but I have the original game anyway and the original Startup.exe files renamed as Startup.bak.exe so if a patch comes all I have to do is reinstate the original file, update then copy the hacked file back. If that doesn't work well, I'll just have to use the disc, not that I particularly want to.

  • Darren #24 3 years ago

    @miiiguel - Why are PC gamers who play old games "stuck in time"?

    As a PC gamer myself I play a mixture of old and new games, something the platform allows because generally it isn't tied to this backward compatibility thing that consoles have (where not all games will run properly). Those "ancient" games tend to scale well with better hardware, offering improved visual fidelity and faster framerates for example, whereas they might have been pushing the hardware to its limits at the time of its release. I remember the first Far Cry really taxing my PC but now it runs fantastically well and looks far better than it did before, thanks to numerous graphical tweaks. It's still a very good game too, much better even than the 360 travesty that was Far Cry Predator Instinct!

    Just because a game is over three years old, it doesn't mean it shouldn't be played. For example, Warcraft III is a superb RTS and can be picked up dirt cheap these days (under a £5). And if you like playing games online then there's a very good chance that other people are still playing those games too.
    Edited by 1 at 30/01/09 @ 10:29

  • Darren #25 3 years ago

    @miiiguel - Oh and not all PC owners are "pirates" but even if they are, why would it make a difference to *your* enjoyment of a game?

    As long as I'm not the one pirating games then I couldn't care less what anyone else gets up to. And if I did, what can I do about it? All I can do is do "my bit" by purchasing games instead of pirating them and that's exactly what I *do*. I only use NoDVD hacks to bypass the need for putting a disc in the tray but, obviously, you only have my word for that.
    Edited by 1 at 30/01/09 @ 10:33

  • UncleLou #26 3 years ago

    I like miiguel's idea that the amount of piracy on a platform has anything to do with the moral attitude of the respective group of gamers, rather than technical difficulties. So, let's see: PS3 gamers: absolute saints. 360 gamers: morally corrupt already, getting worse every day. Handheld and PC gamers: devils! :)

  • Katsumoto #27 3 years ago

    Couldn't resist logging out to see some of the drivel

    "the most important thing to me is "press on, and play""

    Weirdly, I just turned on my PC by pressing a button. I then moved my mouse to the Dawn of War 2 icon and double clicked. I then played Dawn of War 2. I don't understand. Maybe I have a 360 after all?!
    Edited by 1 at 30/01/09 @ 10:39

  • miiiguel #28 3 years ago

    @Katsumoto,
    nah.. it's just that I'm crap at computers :D
    Btw, I was just expressing my preference. I dig the whole chaise-long and stuff, and realy hate desks. I abolished them in my house.
    Then there are the keys, and the ancient mouse thing..., don't like it, that's it, as a ludic object I think it's crap.
    But I don't judge, I just discuss ;)

  • miiiguel #29 3 years ago

    "As long as I'm not the one pirating games then I couldn't care less what anyone else gets up to. "
    You right about that Darren, I just can't stand to get mixed with that crowd. And yes, now I'm judging :}

  • bivith #30 3 years ago

    "Weirdly, I just turned on my PC by pressing a button. I then moved my mouse to the Dawn of War 2 icon and double clicked. I then played Dawn of War 2. I don't understand. Maybe I have a 360 after all?! "

    Weirdly, I turned on my PC, installed Viva Pinata, and double-clicked the icon, and after two seconds the black window that had popped up disappeared, and a troubleshooting page appeared directing me to a web page with about 20 things I should try to get it working. I gave up after an hour, remembering why I stopped playing games on the PC in the first place.
    Edited by 1 at 30/01/09 @ 11:47

  • Katsumoto #31 3 years ago

    edit: meh. Just like everyone says on the xbox forums, "I don't care if yours isn't working, mine works fine and i'm loving it!". Consoles go wrong too.
    Edited by 1 at 30/01/09 @ 11:54

  • PearOfAnguish #32 3 years ago

    PEBKAC.

  • IneptPercy #33 3 years ago

    Overall Pc is now the better platform for performance and it is rather affordable for a decent spec now.

    There is several misconceptions, I will agree PC still hasn't fot that true plug and play natue of the consoles but it is much better. Personally my PC is plugged into my TV and I play with a 360 pad, the only real difference is the output. I do sometimes download 360 demos of games i am playing on my PC, 2 which really come to mind are tomb raider underworld and GRID which in both cases where worlds apart as far a graphics go. This is partly down to having a 1080p TV so the difference between 720p upscaled vs true 1080p + 8x AA is amazing.

    As it is I do a lot of video editing so built a powerful(ish) PC so the extra investment of a decent graphics card was a no brainer.

    As for the problem with gears of war, who actaully cares, there is a work around and it will get sorted.

  • smoison #34 3 years ago

    Games for Windows Live, Can you make software more crappy?

  • Nithron #35 3 years ago

    Yeah, see, proof. DRM is wank, and it affects paying customers.

    Can people stop arguing for it now?

    The other great example is the MSN music store, which shut down last year or so, taking all their customer's purchases with it. And no, Microsoft didn't de-DRM their music somehow. Or even compensate anyone. They didn't care.

  • Golgo #36 3 years ago

    Fabulous news. Just the excuse I needed finally to uninstall the bloody thing, seeing as it continues periodically to delete save files despite the patch. All I need now is to pop it in a jiffy bag along with the terminally crash-to-desktop UT3 and address it 'Mark Rein's Arsehole, Epic Games, USA'.

  • sneetch #37 3 years ago

    @hello_fi
    the other question is why haven't PC gamers realised that PC gaming is shit and moved onto consoles, where they can pick up GoW2?

    Your definition of shit being "something I don't like or can't afford", of course.

    @SixFootHalfling
    The final question is why would you move to GOW2 which has a fundementally broken online multiplayer, especially when the PC version will have probably 100 maps, compared to GOW2's 10 or so?

    Are there custom maps on the PC version of GoW? I've been tempted to pick it up on PC as I suck colossally whenever using the Xbox controller in FPS/TPSs.

  • Darren #38 3 years ago

    I really don't understand why games even have an expiry date in the first place... it was a bloody stupid idea, especially to have one that does so only a year after the game's release! I paid for this game and I should be able to play it for years if I damn-well want to.

    I've never really been that bothered about DRM but as a paying customer I'm starting to get pissed off about it and understand why everyone else hates it so much...

  • sneetch #39 3 years ago

    @Golgo
    All I need now is to pop it in a jiffy bag along with the terminally crash-to-desktop UT3 and address it 'Mark Rein's Arsehole, Epic Games, USA'.

    LOL, make sure you register it, I'd hate to see that get lost in the post. :)

  • Mr_Dodger #40 3 years ago

    I turned on my PC to play DoW 2 last week and had to update Steam (haven't used it for a while). The I had to update my graphics card drivers and directX (also, not done for a while).

    Then I launched and had sound but no picture (the game was incompatible with my monitor resolution). I changed the desktop rez, relaunched and set the res in game to match. Exited, reset desktop rez, relaunched.

    Now I can play.

    But for me messing with the PC is half the fun. But for some people it's not, and they enjoy the console simplicity.

  • sneetch #41 3 years ago

    @miiiguel
    @Darren : yes, I know *they* are stuck in time, we've talked about this. The thing is, I don't like to hang out with the piracy crew. And yes, I know you don't do it. You and some other 2 guys.
    w, the most important thing to me is "press on, and play" and 360 seems the only one which can give that.

    Yeah, the 360 is the only one or, of course, the Wii, DS, PS3, Cube, GBA, Dreamcast, SNES, Colecovision, or you know, just about any console ever made (PS3 games which require installation aside, of course).

    Or most PCs, provided of course that you haven't installed some bullshit firewall or AV software that messes up games.

  • dirk_aircool #42 3 years ago

    Pc Gaming . OOOH YEAH . I used to love it but its just a PAIN IN THE BUTT . Xbox costs less than yearly graphix card instalation and amazingly EVERYTHING WORKS OUT OF THE BOX .can you imagine your spare time just playing games and EASYLY TALKING TO YOUR MATES ( for less than 80p a week xbox live ).

  • skillian #43 3 years ago

    can you imagine your spare time just playing games and EASYLY TALKING TO YOUR MATES ( for less than 80p a week xbox live ).

    Playing games and talking to my friends? For 80p a week? My God, who could imagine such a utopia?

  • roz123 #44 3 years ago

    Come on ppl think of some new arguments like no touch screen and the benefits of the amazing wii remote.... oh wait the only chumps who start these arguments are x-box and ps3 fanboys.

  • Nill #45 3 years ago

    Haha, I'm loving this thread!

    Especially dirk_aircool needs to post more. Go on.

  • hiddenranbir #46 3 years ago

    Who cares about Gears?

  • Feanor #47 3 years ago

    Where are the wankers who usually pop up and tell us DRM only affects pirates?

  • dirk_aircool #48 3 years ago

    No . Someone mentiond DRM so I am now sulking about all my iPod purchases ( over £200-00 ) which I found out that I dont actually own . damn those clever EULA writters.

  • Nithron #49 3 years ago

    @Feanor: My thoughts exactly. They seem to be mysteriously absent now that they've been more or less proven entirely wrong.

    Dunno about you, but personally, i'm incredibly shocked at this completely unforeseen turn of events.

  • IneptPercy #50 3 years ago

    I don't want to point out this isn't a DRM problem, this could happen to a DRM free game...