Windows 7 Questions

[Kazumi]

I'm getting a new PC in a couple of days, and it comes with Windows 7 Home Premium. I've recently found out that XP Mode isn't compatible/unobtainable with just the Home Premium edition. I'm curious if XP Mode is something that is really important, and if I should consider upgrading to the Professional Edition. I am already at the top of my budget for a computer, so I really don't want to update unless it's necessary.

Basically I want to know if I can play games like Civilization IV, Age of Empires III, Fallout 3, and other games that were released after Windows 7 came out. Can I play those without XP Mode, because they were originally designed when XP/Vista was out, and I'm worried about compatibility.

So can someone who has Windows 7 inform me on this?

 

[Vanessa28]

What you should do is check out if there are patches available. I know if games are compatible with windows XP and earlier it might give conflicts. So before you install anything check the site(s) to see if there are any updates you can get.

 

[The Hylian Hero]

Well, I don't have Win 7 installed (Gotta finish up some things on XP Pro before attempting a dual-boot on Ubuntu!), but games for Windows are very generic. Microsoft thrives off of gamers too, so if they made an OS that would not let older games work, they would really be hurting. The OS folders are pretty much the same as XP, just tweaked a bit for data storage (i.e. - pictures, music, etc.).
In short: Your games should work just fine on 7, which is pretty much XP with a Vista interface. They call it "XP mode" mainly for marketing purposes to get more people to buy the more expensive stuff.

 

[DeletedUser9]

(I don't have 7, but I did a lot of research on this subject when I was shopping for my laptop.)

I'm almost certain you will not have compatibility problems with Vista programs or games. You might want to double-check it, but I'm fairly sure. 7 should work fine with those from what I understand. Like Bigelover said, if the games have patches for Vista or 7, you should be good.

As for unpatched, XP made programs, that's where you might start having some trouble. I'd recommend and see if the games were made strictly for XP, and reading up online on forums or websites by doing Google searches to see if people have trouble running them on 7 without XP Mode. It's really a case by case thing; it'll be hard to get a solid answer. There will be programs and games that won't work without XP Mode, though, so it might be worth getting if you just want broad compatibility, not just a few specific games you'd like to still be able to play.

I bought a computer with XP since I couldn't find one that came with a version of 7 that had XP Mode.

 

[Juxtor]

Ok. With XP mode. All it is, is just a simple virtual operating system where you can run certain programs which do not run on Windows 7. I am currently running Windows 7 Ultimate, 64-bit edition and tbh i don't really use XP mode that much because 7 is pretty much compatible with A LOT of programs which were released with Vista/XP.
The thing about Windows 7 was during the Release Candidate which I did use was that certain programs didn't run properly and they actually listened to the testers and made just as or even more compatible to XP. There are a few tiny glitches but thats to expected with such a young OS. XP was A LOT more glitchy around this time of its release.
There are a few patches that Microsoft have released to increase the compatibility which are quite handy for those certain programs. Worth a look into if you are having a few problems but it really depends on what you are running.

In terms of games, I am running all the games that you said here perfectly on 7, there are a few tiny tiny glitches but you wont even notice it. As long as you update your graphics card drivers to Windows 7, you should be fine!!!

Hope that gives you some insight into windows 7.

 

[nguinn97]

I have windows 7 and I have had no problems installing games that were made for xp/vista. They run just as good as they did on my xp machine.

 

[Kazumi]

I should have said this earlier, but I got my new computer about a month and a half ago (or something like that) and all of my games are working just fine. So I suppose that this can be locked. Unless anyone else has questions about Windows 7.