Running on Windows 7

[BlackMilk]

Very general question to windows 7 users. Do you recommend buying this game on Steam?

I loved Pharaoh from long ago and a year or two ago I bought the gold edition from eBay which included the Cleopatra expansion. I installed both from disc in order a few days ago but I can't get it to work properly. Problem is something with kernel32.dll and when I don't get THAT error I either can't skip the intro (game crashes and sound stutters until .exe is stopped) or I do get to the title screen but there's a HUGE delay on the mouse actions and it's basically unplayable.

So basically I want to know from windows 7 users: do you have any issues running this from Steam? Many posters online in forum threads across the internet from over 10 years ago say only Cleopatra has the issue and not the base game, so one thing I'm considering is simply missing out on Cleopatra and reinstalling ONLY Pharaoh itself. The other option is getting it on Steam but that would basically mean having to buy the game again. Either way it's a depressing issue for someone like me who isn't technically proficient. Love the game, would like to play.

EDIT: In the best case scenario that it does work beautifully on Steam, I read that there was a patch for Cleopatra which fixed some stuff like animations and whatnot. Would that be required here?

[ForestDragon]

I have the retail version too, its running for me on Win 7, if I set the compatibility to win 2000/NT.
The Steam version runs without any problem!

[BlackMilk]

Originally posted by ForestDragon:

I have the retail version too, its running for me on Win 7, if I set the compatibility to win 2000/NT.
The Steam version runs without any problem!

Well it will run, but there's some kind of long delay on mouse actions that is not normal for the programme. Does the steam version have the same problem or does it not take ten seconds for a button to activate after clicking it?

[gamer1024]

the last time i have installed it on my new comp windows 10 the screen was not right.
the first time i have downloaded pharaoh from my hp pc it was perfect.

[Telariust]

Updated
You need to install DirectX 9.0c on the system
DirectX 9.0 with Runtime Pack (June 2010)
https://www.microsoft.com/en-au/download/details.aspx?id=8109

Regular freezes/crashes of the game are associated with a bug in the playback of sounds.
Especially strong when "Compatibility WindowsXP(sp2/sp3)"
Use "Compatibility Windows95/98"
Or update mss32.dll+Mp3dec.asi (from Zeus+Poseidon v2.1)
CRC32:9BD81E9D mss32.dll (Version:6.0m)
CRC32:FA4BC870 Mp3dec.asi
https://wdfiles.ru/e11658

If the problem is still not fixed, then

Looping audio problem
When you have more than 2 speakers (2.1 or 5.1 or 7.1 sound)
Older games don't know what surround sound is.
Also, modern sound cards can work in surround sound emulation mode.
Download, unpack and copy-paste with replace to game folder.
www.indirectsound.com/downloads.html
Try v12 (EAX=ON) or v14 (EAX=OFF) or v15 (noX3DAudio)
This dsound.dll replaces the native one from DirectX, like a wrapper, reconciles the old with the new.

More
https://steamcommunity.com/app/564530/discussions/0/3185737486660609902/#c3185737486660612737