Just a tip if you are experiencing rundll32.exe issues in 64bit windowsOS

[Cyber Nyran]

When i was trying to play Offline using Windows 8 i kept getting this in the processes

Windows host process (Rundll32) (32bit)

Plus the game also was in the processes, and never launching

I found it quite difficult to find an answer for this, but i found one it seems to work. It especially had issues with Eidos and a few Ubisoft games offline. Offline the games wouldnt launch, but online it launched without issue. It was flat out annoying for offline gaming. Sometimes you had to double click the .exe file just to get the game to start, then alt-tab out and turn the Windows host process (Rundll32) (32bit) off and go back in game because it take 50% of your CPU.

So anyway, go to c:/windows/sysWOW64

and look for gameux.dll, now get permissions to change the dll extension and leave the file blank with no extension and just delete the dll from it. It wont connect to the sysWOW64 gameux.dll file anymore, which i think it was trying to do or it was trying to do it instead of the system32 gameux.dll file, which is the one the 32bit applications were looking for.

After deleting the .dll from the file, you dont need to delete the file, just incase you want to replace it and put the .dll extension back as a file extension for later use, just leave it in the folder is fine.

I had massive issue swith this trying to play just cause and Hitman and Heroes V offline. Now its sweet, it doesnt even come up in the processes anymore , just the game application does, as it should :)

[username]

This works for me. You will probably need to take ownership of the file from TrustedInstaller and add modify permissions for yourself. You can find instructions here[helpdeskgeek.com].

[Azrael]

This worked for me too!

I was also having the rundll32.exe problem with games like Oblivion, Hitman, and others, trying to connect to the internet during launch when I wanted to play those games, usually the first time after the first launch post-install, or always (like in Hitman: Codename 47).

Although I compressed the gameux.dll file into a RAR file and deleted the original after changing ownership and permissions. I usually compress files as a backup in the same folders before doing a modification, this way I save space and it's easy for me to spot the changes and backups I made. If I need the original file or files, I extract them again.

Very good tip for this annoying problem, thanks!

[Hatchling13]

Just passing by to tell that this thread helped me run some games in windows 7 64 bits, including GTA Vice City and Max Payne I and II

Civilization IV probably has the same problem, but i cant tell if it solves it, since i no longer have it to test.

[jackaho]

Bumping this up. Should be stickied.

[dstedman2000]

This worked like a dream.
Are you seriously telling me Microsoft couldn't do this in one of their updates?
It never worked. And this took 2 minutes to fix. And yet they are soon going to ask us to pay for win7 updates.

[ColoradoRick]

I was about to give up on finally getting to play this game, thanks!

[Q. Marc]

Never had these issues until reinstalling my (64bit)OS a few months ago, thanks!
(Also for Hitman game: Hitman: Contracts)

[🎮Nλmeless ⁧⁧🎮Bλttle]

Me pasó hace 2 actualizaciones de steam, ejecutaba Half-life y no se abría tenia que finalizar rundll32.exe para que el juego se habra, le saqué la extensión al gameux.dll y ahora abra correctamente. Gracias

[Poppi !!]

Thanks for sharing man. Props 👍

[GrO]

Thanks for the solution - messing with "gameux.dll" fixed the issue and for another time the community rescues valve and their lame software out of a deep and smelly dung. Through all those years "steam" was never stable - it's a permanent beta software.........

[xarvn]

Originally posted by GrO:

Thanks for the solution - messing with "gameux.dll" fixed the issue and for another time the community rescues valve and their lame software out of a deep and smelly dung. Through all those years "steam" was never stable - it's a permanent beta software.........

Not to defend Steam, but the problem with gameux.dll is that it is another half-baked feature long since abandoned and left rotting by Microsoft. See this discussion if you are interested:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_other-gaming/windows-7-game-explorer-interfering-with-game/efd39c74-cfab-4c2c-b6c5-834b8849a1b3

[GrO]

Originally posted by xarvn:

Originally posted by GrO:

Thanks for the solution - messing with "gameux.dll" fixed the issue and for another time the community rescues valve and their lame software out of a deep and smelly dung. Through all those years "steam" was never stable - it's a permanent beta software.........

Not to defend Steam, but the problem with gameux.dll is that it is another half-baked feature long since abandoned and left rotting by Microsoft. See this discussion if you are interested:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_other-gaming/windows-7-game-explorer-interfering-with-game/efd39c74-cfab-4c2c-b6c5-834b8849a1b3

Thanks for the info.

Anyway "valve" could make more just to inform about the problem after massive user reports about games not running and make some guide or entry at support section.

I know this corporation for many years now (even before I started to use "steam") and my previous post shows my concluded opinion - You can even read my profile description to find more "valve" facts like the one they sell broken unplayable game titled "hl: source" or read peoples comments about issues with "steam" client updates.

We should remember that "valve" is corporation and corporations are concerned by profit only, that's why "steam" support is so lousy.