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MzR360

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Nov 5, 2020
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Hi there! I just downloaded and repatched the game after the release of the newest update but my game hasn't been able to start since. I've tried un and reinstalling it twice now with no success and my drives are fully up to date so I'm stumped. I can launch the game launcher but not the game itself.

Edit: just relaunched the launcher and now there's a little red triangle with an exclamation point that says 'game executable is invalid'
 
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That sounds like a corrupted installation or incompatibility with your Windows version. Can you say if that error is displayed by Windows, Steam, or the game?

If you run a Steam Verify operation against the game, does that find anything to fix?


If not Could you send us your output log and settings file? They can be found in:

%USERPROFILE%\AppData\LocalLow\Iceflake Studios\Surviving the Aftermath\player.log

Documents\Paradox Interactive\Surviving the Aftermath\settings.ini


AND DXDIAG is a program you run from a command prompt or the Windows start menu 'run' dialog box (or 'search programs' in Windows 7 or later). After running it will open a window and start collecting info with a progress bar in the lower-left corner. When it completes click the 'save all information' button and save it to a file then attach that file here.
 
Hmmm, I wasn't able to find the player.log and the settings.ini, but I've attached the dxdiag file that I saved down below!
 

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  • DxDiag.txt
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To see the AppData folder you'll need to enable View Hidden Items in File Explorer.

Is this the Steam or EPic edition please? Does aftermath64.exe exist on your machine?
 
Ooooh, that makes sense thanks for telling me - I was able to find the player.log file you mentioned! There was also a file called player-prev.log but I wasn't sure if I should add it in or not. I'm still unable to find the settings.ini file you mentioned unfortunately.

Aftermath64.exe exists on my machine and the game is the Steam edition. When I launch the game on steam it goes into a separate paradox launcher where i can then select a red 'play' button. Sometimes the button is greyed out and when I validate my game files on steam it becomes red again but the game still won't launch. Also, when I try to launch the game directly from the folder, it keeps crashing.
 

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  • Player.log
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Delete aftermath64.exe then run a Steam Verify operation against the game, to bring down a new copy.

Then exit the Steam app entirely and run aftermath64.exe directly from Windows Installer - what happens?
 
MzR360 said:
'game executable is invalid'
Click to expand...

Not gonna lie, sounds like an anti-piracy measure. Then again, you got an Early Access Steam version, so for all I know you accidentally pirated the game or something.

I stress the word "accidentally" because I am certain you bought it legitimately. Could mean the anti-piracy code semi-ironically failed.
 
AndrewT said:
Delete aftermath64.exe then run a Steam Verify operation against the game, to bring down a new copy.

Then exit the Steam app entirely and run aftermath64.exe directly from Windows Installer - what happens?
Click to expand...
Okay, so, the first time I opened the file it seemed to run smoothly, however - when I pressed new game or load, the game crashed. I tried opening it again and it keeps crashing.

Ps2nic said:
Not gonna lie, sounds like an anti-piracy measure. Then again, you got an Early Access Steam version, so for all I know you accidentally pirated the game or something.

I stress the word "accidentally" because I am certain you bought it legitimately. Could mean the anti-piracy code semi-ironically failed.
Click to expand...

I did get the game as a gift via steam from my sibling, so maybe that messed it up a bit? idk, I've managed to play a couple times and this was the first time this happened
 
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That's a problem alright. Hope the devs have a way to check the piracy flag.

The programming one, not one you can make in a mod.

Also, check your buddy got the game legitimately just in case, might help. Bet they could reset the flag, even.
 
What antivirus app do you use? Make sure Aftermath64.exe is allowed through it.
 
We now have 2 reports of this, both using Avast. I will bet it is the problem here!

Can I ask you to contact them on this?
 
Sorry for the late reply! I'll try to contact them and see what they can do about all of this.

Also small update: I tried verifying the game files on steam again just in case, and now Aftermath.exe is completely gone from my game folders so I have no clue what's happening anymore. I also just tried uninstalling and reinstalling the game, which brought the file back, but when i tried to open it it showed the paradox forum for a second, crashed and deleted itself.

At this point I'm just tempted to get a refund and buy it when it comes out.
 
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MzR360 said:
now Aftermath.exe is completely gone from my game folders
Click to expand...
The file is in fact aftermath64.exe . If that too is missing then it can only have been quarantined by an AV app as a false positive.
 
Guys, Avast is free.

This means it probably is not the best quality.

It's handy in a pinch, but if you are the lucky recipient of a false positive, you may want to invest in something better. Your wallet will get hit, but there is a reason quality matters.

So, @MzR360 , just uninstall Aftermath, kill Avast, get something better (because investment), reinstall Aftermath, and have fun. Easy as that.

Me, I found a gaming browser that appears to hold up, but time will tell if it sticks.
 
If you do decide to remove Avast you should run the free utility Revo Uninstaller to make sure it is completely gone - AV apps are deliberately made hard to remove completely.
 
Ps2nic said:
While we are here talking about antivirus software, is there a package you would recommend @AndrewT ?
Click to expand...
Personally I only use Windows Defender, but I don't visit risky sites on my Windows machine, have no email on it, and can rebuild it without loss if I need to.

I hear good things about Malwarebytes but I'm simply not up with that world. I'd not recommend Kaspersky for ... other reasons.
 
Alright, so I'm back and this is what I've figured out:

It did seem to be an issue with Avast and when I tried contacting them about it they tried to sell me a subscription which... I was already beginning to get tired of Avast because it's been on my computer from the start and hasn't exactly been the best when it comes to game access. So I uninstalled it and a day later the game seemed to work.

Like a dumbass, I figured 'great, let's get a different antivirus software now', and got AVGantivirus but that also caused issues with the game again. So I double-checked by uninstalling antivirus and just activated windows defender properly instead. However, the game still wasn't working, so I dug deeper and I found that for some reason I had a program named seguro (seguaro?) on my computer as well and removed it.

That seems to have done the trick because the game is now fully downloaded, installed, isn't missing any important files and can be loaded if I open it from my desktop game files. I haven't tried loading it on Steam, but my steam client is open so it seems to be working fine now!
 
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