MPQ won't install properly.

[bill.galloway]

When it is finished downloading, I click "play" and it only does step 1 of the first time playing process. It says it's installing DirectX and then the window closes itself. Any idea about what I can do?

[Nikolai]

eh, When steam usually asks me to install that stuff I just click no or deny access since I know that I already have it installed and configured.

What are your pc specs?

[bill.galloway]

It's a 3.1Ghz intel Core i5 cpu with 8GB of ram. It has a 128GB SSD drive, and I also tried to install the game files on a separate HDD drive with no luck. I get a notice from Windows asking if I want to let Steam alter the PC, but whether I say yes or no, the installation window appears and disappears without installing the game.

[Nikolai]

Originally posted by bill.galloway:

It's a 3.1Ghz intel Core i5 cpu with 8GB of ram. It has a 128GB SSD drive, and I also tried to install the game files on a separate HDD drive with no luck. I get a notice from Windows asking if I want to let Steam alter the PC, but whether I say yes or no, the installation window appears and disappears without installing the game.

hmm, Try validating your steam files. This can be done by going to your library, right clicking on your game. Selecting properties and clicking validate game files.

You can also try and run the game as an administrator afterwards(Or restart steam with opening it as administrator).

If that doesn't work you could always try and update your drivers and directX yourself.

[bill.galloway]

I appreciate your help! I've just tried validating, running as admin, restarting, and the Settings page tells me I have the most recent version of DirectX, so I don't know how to update any further. Still nothing works and I think I just won't get to play at all today or for who knows how long. On the one hand it sucks to keep missing the daily deadpool prizes, but on the other hand, I have more free time, my skin has cleared up, and I've lost a few pounds. ;)

[Nikolai]

Alright, when the administrator prompt pops up when your'e launching the game(Aka when steam wants to update directx and all) Have tried clicking no/deny?

You can also navigate to the mpq root folder and see if you can install vredist manually.
These installers can be found here : C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Marvel Puzzle Quest\_CommonRedist

If you then go to :
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Marvel Puzzle Quest\Binaries\PC\Ship
and rightclick on marvelpuzzlequest.exe and open it as an administrator. See if that works.

You can also try running it in a different compatability mode, this can be done by right clicking marvelpuzzlequest.exe>properties>compatability then select a compatability for windows 7 or 8.
Afterwards you should try running it as an admin.

If nothing works, it could be that the latest game update just doesn't configure right or something of that matter. You could either wait for a new update and try again, or try and reinstall MpQ al over again(I don't know if your save files will be synched so do this at your own risk)

[bill.galloway]

Thanks for the suggestions. I tried running vcredis_x64.exe from the folder you mentioned, and it ran and seemed to repair something. When I tried running mpq.exe as an administrator, it failed and the error message told me that two files were missing: d3dx9_43.dll and XINPUT1_3.dll. That makes me think that DirectX isn't installing properly, even though the dxdiag program is telling me that I have DirectX 12 already installed. When I try to run the DX installer in the MPQ folder, I get these errors in the DXerror.log file in C:/Windows:

[06/22/17 09:36:59] module: dxupdate(Mar 30 2011), file: dxupdate.cpp, line: 6124, function: CFusion::CFusion

Failed API: LoadLibraryShim()
Error: (0x80131700)

--------------------
[06/22/17 09:36:59] module: dxupdate(Mar 30 2011), file: dxupdate.cpp, line: 2969, function: IsMDXInUse

Unable to initialize MDXCheck.

--------------------
[06/22/17 09:36:59] module: dsetup32(Mar 30 2011), file: dxupdate.cpp, line: 280, function: CSetup::InstallPlugIn

DirectXUpdateInstallPlugIn() failed.


So I think it's a problem with this PC and not MPQ. I'll try installing again with the next laptop I buy.

[Nikolai]

Originally posted by bill.galloway:

Thanks for the suggestions. I tried running vcredis_x64.exe from the folder you mentioned, and it ran and seemed to repair something. When I tried running mpq.exe as an administrator, it failed and the error message told me that two files were missing: d3dx9_43.dll and XINPUT1_3.dll. That makes me think that DirectX isn't installing properly, even though the dxdiag program is telling me that I have DirectX 12 already installed. When I try to run the DX installer in the MPQ folder, I get these errors in the DXerror.log file in C:/Windows:

[06/22/17 09:36:59] module: dxupdate(Mar 30 2011), file: dxupdate.cpp, line: 6124, function: CFusion::CFusion

Failed API: LoadLibraryShim()
Error: (0x80131700)

--------------------
[06/22/17 09:36:59] module: dxupdate(Mar 30 2011), file: dxupdate.cpp, line: 2969, function: IsMDXInUse

Unable to initialize MDXCheck.

--------------------
[06/22/17 09:36:59] module: dsetup32(Mar 30 2011), file: dxupdate.cpp, line: 280, function: CSetup::InstallPlugIn

DirectXUpdateInstallPlugIn() failed.


So I think it's a problem with this PC and not MPQ. I'll try installing again with the next laptop I buy.

What you could do, is send these to the MPQ helpdesk. They might be able to look even further into it since they probably get these directX related issue's more often.

It could also mean that your computer isn't compatible with the lasest versions of directx, which would be weird.

[RiO]

Originally posted by Zetarad:

It could also mean that your computer isn't compatible with the lasest versions of directx, which would be weird.

Not the latest version of DirectX 11 or 12 (exact version depends on Windows OS), but the legacy DirectX 9, which lives side by side with it.

Originally posted by Zetarad:

eh, When steam usually asks me to install that stuff I just click no or deny access since I know that I already have it installed and configured.

Not a good idea.

DirectX 9 is modular. A redistributable DirectX installer can be tailored to have optional add-on parts packed in or left out. The original design goal there was probably to slim down the installer payload for download over bad connections; limiting it only to the most-used core of DirectX 9 as a baseline.

Those parts really do need to be installated and registered correctly for software that uses them to work as expected. Luckily most games don't use obscure optional parts that wouldn't already have been installed with the first Dx9 redistributable you install, but if you come across one which does, you're likely to get a few unexplainable crashes down the road.

For Steam you would probably (hopefully?) get those type of Dx9 redistributable installations from a game-specific Redist folder, instead of from the shared CommonRedist folder.

Originally posted by bill.galloway:

[06/22/17 09:36:59] module: dxupdate(Mar 30 2011), file: dxupdate.cpp, line: 6124, function: CFusion::CFusion

Failed API: LoadLibraryShim()
Error: (0x80131700)

Errors with LoadLibraryShim and CFusion usually means there are orphaned files from removed installations left behind in the WinSxS folder that are messing up the updater. Did you by any chance do any kind of over-the-top repair installation on this machine? Or an over-the-top Windows upgrade?

[bill.galloway]

Did you by any chance do any kind of over-the-top repair installation on this machine? Or an over-the-top Windows upgrade?
This computer is a refurbished tower that I bought just a couple of days ago. All I've done is let Windows 10 connect to the internet and it updated itself. So I don't know its history. I'll look for the MPQ helpdesk and see what they say about my error log.

Thanks guys for your help. Narrowing it down to a DirectX problem was very useful.