About a day ago my Oblivion game suddenly went streaky, with images blurring across the entire screen and growing until the whole screen was on big mass of streaky colours. I trying reinstalling the game, but still happens. Tried an older saved copy of the game, same thing. Anyone know how to handle this? I do not believe it is a mod, since the older saved copy worked fine (which is why I made a copy of it, about a month ago).

Help, or Oblivion shall pass into ... oblivion. Please and thanks.

have you the mod "streamline" and messed with the FOV feature?
Try the console command

SetFOV 75

if it straight things you know where seek the problem's source.

Tried out streamlined, both v2 and v3. No change. And the command setFOV 75 is not recognized by the console. Game getting worse, with streaks building before login, and upon login coming out of my character and filling the screen in seconds.

Any other ideas?

P.S. pretty sure it is not the vidoe card, since everything else running fine

my bad, the comand is just "FOV 75" without the quotes or it's long form "SetCameraFOV 75"

I didn't knew the word streak, searched and now I'm thinking you speaks about the big yellow polygons with exclamation marks... if so you have textures issues and need supply more details, like the mods you use and what you think those objects may be.

Yet I'm not sure about what you calls login, this "thing" happens even before you load the game?

Yes, I get lines and triangles of colours on the screen. They start small and grow, fast. It starts now when I am at the log in screen.

None of this happened until I reloaded the game entirely from scratch, to solve some lag problems (too many mods etc, I assume). I included the compilation omod beauty pack this time, with ren's, then overwrote with exnem. No idea why this should have an effect, since this mod says it now works with it.

Going to delete Oblivion completely (3rd time in 2 days) and retry with minimal mods?

Edit: oh, all those OMOD symbols when I reload in the data file (oblivion meshes, sounds, textures, voices, misc) ... do I need to load them up? The patch says fully installed.

Oh, could it be OMOD v10? I doubt that, since it says it is now stable.

Well, off to reload.

Okay, reloaded Oblivion. Without any mods, and only the 1.2 update, I am getting video problems (streaking, flickering, etc) on the oblivion screen (with load, new, etc options), as well as the character load screen, and of course in game. This covers everything, erasing text and all video within seconds.

When I load the game, it says no video card is recognized, and gives me a default setting. but my video card (SAPPHIRE RadeonX1550 series) is listed in the options window).

Pretty close to giving up, for at least today. Thanks for you help

Hello, I'm about to bombard you with questions. I'm sorry if I sound very unclear, I'm not in the most awake frame of mind.

1. Does it seem like objects are having one point render miles form the rest?
2. Do you live in an area where the temperature outside gets into the 90s?
3. Can you run other 3-D applications? If so what?
4. What video card do you have?

Reason I'm bugging you is because my comp started doing this recently. Turned out the video card was in fact overheating. What I advise you to do is open your case and try running oblivion to see if there is any effect. If you see the streaks disappear, awesome.

Now if you are adverse to having your case open while playing, try moving it away form the wall a bit. My computer was pumping out the hot power supply air right where the intake for the cooling was. Moving the case about 5 inches has mostly fixed that problem for me.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

1. Video "distortion" starts as green rectangles all over the screen. This starts growing into lines across the screen. These then become triangles across the screen, until entire screen is covered with various colours. Text and pictures all get covered.

2. Live in Toronto Canada where temperatures not often above 90. Right now it is morning and cool temperatures, and problem remains.

3. Other 3D applications work fine. World of Warcraft, Ragnarok Online (although RO maybe not 3D), videos, etc. All work fine.

4. Using a SAPPHIRE Radeon X1550 Series video card. Problem started with old video driver (which had been working fine prior) and continues with new updated driver.

Hi Madeira,
Have you tried to deselect your mods one by one, from the last one you installed to the very first one?
I guess you should start by doing this.

Yes, and no change. Currently (3rd game re-install in 2 days) running oblivion with only the 1.2 patch (plus ommd and obse). No mods. Problem persists. Very strange that wow works, yet Oblivion does not.

Hmm. When reinstalling I have not deleted "User's Documents/My Games?Oblivion" folder. Could this be a problem? Also, I have no idea just exactly what my "ini" file is, as I cannot find it anywhere.

So it's not any mod issue
Two more questions:
Where is your oblivion data directory installed: is it in Program File/Bethesda Softwork/Oblivion?
Have you updated you video card driver?
We'll fix this issue Oblivion has to prevail...

Oblivion Data directory is in the default path. Yes, "Program File/Bethesda Softwork/Oblivion". And I assume my "ini" file is the one named "Oblivion" in the "User's Documents/My Games/Oblivion" folder.

Now ... Should I try another full reinstall, and delete all of Program File/Bethesda Softwork/Oblivion AND User's Documents/My games?Oblivion folders? Seems like that is my next step. (after backing up, of course ).
My driver is brand new from Windows Update yesterday. But the problem started 3 days ago, and persists with the new driver.

The video problem (hope I am describing correctly) repeated ... starts and green rectangles on char load screen, with the number increasing over time. When I log in, there are grey lines emanating out of my character plus pink on the bottom. These "lines" are actually triangles, spreading out from the centre of the screen both directions, with the triangle apexes at the centre of screen.

Three other questions
1) Do you have the latest driver for your video card? this is crucial...
2) What are you video setting: antialiasing on/off? HRD on/off?. What is your screen resolution? Have you tried lower resolution? and lower video setting?
3) What is the temperature of your video card when playing Oblivion? Have you measured it?

Please answer in order for me to understand the source of the problem.

EDIT: ok you've answered the first question so don't bother with this one. Try to anser the other two if you can. You've already re-installed the game and it still does not work so don't re-install until we've got a clear shot of what is happening

And sorry for the double post.

1) Answered
2) Antialiasing 6. Have tried this on all settings from 1 to 6, no change. HDR always off because it causes way too much "bloom" effect when on. Bloom off, for same reason. Screen resolution 1024x768. Have tried higher and lower (including default settings), but no change. *
3) No idea what video card temperature is, but it is quite cool out this morning and window open. WoW runs just fine all throughout this problem.

* prior to this problem my best (and prefered) video settings were "Ultra High" and then turn off HDR and bloom, then set antialiasing to 6. Have played around all over that screen now, to no effect

Ok thanks so just to summarize
1) you've already re-installed the game => no change
2) you've already unchecked all mods => no change
3) you've installed the latest driver for you video card => no change
4) you've got the latest patch installed which is 1.2.416 => no change
5) you've played arround with the video setting => no change

Ok I need a screenshot...post a screenshot. I need to see exactly what you are talking about...

Your problem sounds just like a video board heat problem. I am not familiar with your card, but if it has a fan, make sure the fan is running and is not clogged up with dust before proceding.

When Oblivion is uninstalled, it leaves behind quite a bit of stuff that will be picked up by the new installation, such as saves, mods and some hard to get rid of entries in the registry. I haven't seen any problems related to the left over registry entries, and I do not recommend editing your registry unless you know what you are doing. I have a help file on uninstalling and reinstalling. Here is the text from that.

When you uninstall Oblivion it doesn't really uninstall everything. Then when you start adding mods before you have started the game, some things may not get initialized properly. Here is my recommended procedure for uninstalling and reinstalling.

It does not remove your mods, save games or Oblivion.ini. It also does not remove helper programs such as OBSE, OBMM, Wrye Bash, The construction set or any other programs you have installed in the \Oblivion folder or the save game folder. I recommend that you go ahead and delete them, then re download and install the newest versions of them again later.

I would appreciate any feedback on this as it is something I expect to post often and I hate to give bogus or useless information.

Uninstalling Oblivion

My instructions assume you are using Windows XP and have installed Oblivion into the default location. If you are using Vista or Linux, the file locations may be different, however, the procedure will be thae same.

For a full reinstall, first you can try to preserve your mods and save games. I recomend that you save them in a new folder with a new name. Create the new folder in C:\Program files\Bethesda Softewrks. Name it Old Files. So it will be C:\Program Files\Bethesda softworks\Old files.

Then copy the data folder where your mods are to the new folder - do not erase them, copy them. And in the new folder, rename the \data folder to \olddata. Then copy and rename the folder that has your saved games and Oblivion.ini, C:\documents and settings\your user name\my documents\My Games\oblivion to something like \My games\Old Oblivion - this saves your saved games and the oblivion.ini file.

Then, using the original CD, NOT the Launcher on your Hard drive. Select uninstall.

After it completes the uninstall, reboot your computer - this is important as it allows Windows to remove some references to the original Oblivion.

This would be the time to erase all of the helper programs you have in the \Oblivion folder. Such as OBMM, OBSE and some others. The simplest way is to erase the folder completely. The new install will re create the folder for you along with a fresh oblivion.ini and when you start the game and make a save, a new save folder and new \data folder.

This would also be a good time to do a file clean up and defragment your hard drive.

If you are worried about the registry entries that were left behind. There are several good programs for removing left behind entries. The one I use is ccleaner. Be sure to reboot before using it, and again after. It is available here: http://majorgeeks.com/download4191.html


Now to Reinstall.

Again using the original CD, install Oblivion.

Before adding any mods, patches, helper programs, Shivering Isles or anything else, start the game and make a save. This initializes some stuff that needs to be initialized.

If you are using the Game of the Year version of Oblivion you should not need any patches, skip the patching part.

Now, If you DO NOT use Shivering Isles, patch the game using ONLY the latest Oblivion patch. All of the stuff from the earlier patches is included.

Be sure you use the proper language patch. If you use the wrong one it may work, but with a strange mixture of languages. (Germanglish?) Or it may crash.

NOTE: there are two English Patches UK & US and they are different. (Some people actually think we speak the same language) Use the one that matches your original disk.

If you use Shivering Isles, Install it now. DO NOT install the Oblivion patch. Install Shivering Isles, then ONLY the latest Shivering Isles patch. All of the updates for Oblivion are included. There is only one Shivering Isles patch for both US & UK English

Now, again start the game and make a save. Test to be sure everything is working right (No purple objects or yellow blocks)

Before adding any mods, back up both your \data folder and the save game folder. Copy them, don't move or rename them, to a different folder - such as \Bethesda\Clean Oblivion\data and \Bethesda\clean Oblivion\saves. Note that this is a different folder than the one used for your old data and saves.

Note, Your Oblivion.ini file is in the same folder, but separate from, the save game folder.

Now, if you want to try to run with your old mods, first rename the original folders. The \data folder to \newdata and the \oldata back to \data. this restores all of your mods. You should now have 2 data folders \data, and \newdata in your \oblivion folder

To restore your original saves and ini file, rename the new My Games\Oblivion to something like \New Oblivion. and the \Old oblivion to \oblivion - this restores all of your saved games and your original Oblivion.ini file.

DO NOT erase the files you renamed. These are your backup files in case the original mods do not work or give you the same problem.

If you have the same problem, it is most likely caused by a mod. However, you now have a clean install to fall back on. You can rename the files back to what they were and be back to your clean install without having to reinstall again.

Sounds like lots of work, but you will have a clean install and a back up clean install when you are finished.

Post your comments here: http://s1.zetaboards.com/TheStormRavenLibrary/forum/236320/

How do I take a screen shot? Where is it saved?

Colour me stupid, but I cannot get a screenshot. I changed bAllowScreenShot from =0 to =1 in both Oblivion ini and Oblivion_default ini files. It either does not work or I cannot find.

P.S. Have gone this far, and backed up everything, very tempted to do a clean install after uninstall and deleting the entire oblivion file and my games/oblivion file. I have not changed anything in the games/oblivion file since the problem began (unless reinstalling does that automatically)

If your antialiasing is on, screenshot will not work...so tick it off...then press the print screen key...the screen should be save in a bmp format in your Oblivion/data folder.

As far as reinstall is concerned the procedure from bben46 is the most pristine I have ever read...So when you do re-install I strongly suggest you follow his procedure.
Also I fear as bben46 it's a video card problem (over heating probably) so check for the dust on the video card Fan.
In any case I need to see the screenshot to make sure I have not overlook anything simple.

Have screen shots now, but file too big by far, even compressed. Suggestion(s)?

ARRRRRRRRRRRRgHHHHHHHH!!!!
Ok just save the bmp file as a jpeg and everything should be fine...

EDIT: also lower the screen resolution when taking this "infamous" screenshot so the weight of the file should go down as well...

Sorry, proceeding with reinstall. Shall post ASAP when done. Should be back up and running in about half an hour. Deleting files takes longer than the reinstall.

Your choice...however if I may...I strongly suggest you check the dust from your video card fan before everything else...(it's not because it's working with WOW that the video card is not at stake) which I believe it is...

my 2 cents and good luck to you...

Computer running nice and cool. However, you guys are the experts and I shall check the fan as soon as the file deletions finish. Thanks for the help and encouragement. I am pretty amazed at how helpful people are. Sorry if I am being dumb, but I am trying.

Edit: I assume a disc defrag would be time consuming, and can be done at a later date?

how long since the last defrag??? if it's 2 years I suggest you go with the defrag if it's 2 month you can do it at a later state...

as per the questions: there are no DUMB questions...I am helpful because people were helpful with me so I try my best to help as well...plus I encounters pretty much every single problem with Oblivion so I know a little how to tame the beast...

Computer about a year old, never been defragged.

ok you can wait...just do a clean re-install...the defrag is not what will make the difference for now...
still I suggest you try a defrag every 3 to 6 months...depending on how you use your computer.

EDIT: I personally defrag once a month (once every two month at the very least)...

Computer video fan was fine as best I could tell. However, cleaned out the dust INSIDE the computer box <cough, cough>. Proceeding with install in a few moments. Need a 10 minute break after crawling around under desk, moving computer (very bad heart).

Installing soon

Take your time...I am going back home and will not be able to help you out before at the very least 2 hours from now...Friends are coming home and we might go to the restaurant for diner...(sorry for displaying my personal Life)

Screen shot attached. Low rez and archived with 7z at ultra resolution. Pretty washed out. Hope it helps.

So brand new game installed with a new character as per the guide. At this point I have an oblivion game without any patches, mods or addons. Problem with video remains

Another screenshot as a closeup, with most of screen deleted. Hope this give a better idea of the colours emanating out.

Edit: Day 3 of no Oblivion. Withdrawal symptoms getting worse. Fortunately, the "doctors" are helping. Thanks again.

Hello again. MasterAub seems to have you taken care of, but I'm throwing in my 2 cents anyway.

Your screen shots look just like my overheating problem. I saw you could run WoW which is good, but WoW is not as mean to video cards as Oblivion is. You still should see some streaks in WoW though. My Oblivion streaks never got that bad, but I still had my gnomes beard flying everywhere in WoW.

Try running the game with the case open. It might help, it might not. but it shouldn't hurt anything.


Listen to MasterAub before me though. It sounds like he has a better handle on this than I do.

Tried running Oblivion with case side off, problem remains. This is getting scary; is my video card dying? If so, then I am hooped. Not new card in my future for a long, long time. Not sure whether to sigh, cry or just throw the box out. Patience grasshopper.

NOOOO. Same problem now in WoW, as of right now.

I called the computer place where I purchased my computer, 1 or 1 1/2 years ago. Run time 10-12 hours per day. The video problems occur in both Oblivion and WoW, but not outside the game.

The manager originally said to bring the computer in, etc, but after I gave him the above info said the card is probably fried. He is recommending a Radeon 3600 series with the 512 memory. I was very happy with the 1550 and apparently this is a small upgrade.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

ok Madeira,

I am back online...Thanks for the screenies that helped a lot...we should have started by that.

This is indeed a video card problem...

rhs88 has a point run the game case open but this is only tempory.
if you know what your doing I would take off the video card clean the dust of it carefuly and place it back sometimes it's enough to do the trick
if you don't know anything about this kind of hardware...dont bother as it is kind of fragile.
if you get an exchange for free go for it especially if it is a Radeon 3600 the card supports DirectX 10.1 and the PCI Express 2.0 so that's pretty much what you're looking for. The performance will be great and nice with Olivion and an improvement vs your 1550. Also I would personally recommend a Radeon HD 3850 (so if you've got room for negotiation I'll go for this one instead)...

My 2 cents,

Hope it helps

Let us know

Thanks MasterAub.Off to try and get a video card now. Not free replacement though. And I think the 3800 may cost $200 more, will check when I get there.

Signing off til problably tomorrow, off to the computer store.

Thank you very much to all for your help. I feel a lot better having confirmation and advice from you.

Good luck to you. the radeon 3850 should cost you arround 150 to 200 euros not much more than that...

cheers it's midnight over here...I am going to bed...

take care

and have a good RP...whenever you back on playing

Bravo I say.

Not only to the helpfulness of people as you already pointed out but to your own patience. Computer problems can get very ugly, very fast. I too have been impressed and encouraged with our community here and I hope it all works out well.

The dust advice was terrific, btw. heh. I've worked in IT for years and there are so many people who don't realize how damaging dust can be since it acts as a conductor.

So my tips are always, never have your PC directly on the ground, even lifted a few inches will help. Always try to keep some space around the PC, especially at the back where the heat exhausts are.

Oh and the one we should all know by know, always have and maintain your virus / spyware protection. heh

Good luck!

CLOSURE:

It turns out that the problem was indeed my video card, on it's last dying legs. I think it is the 3650 I got, for several recommended reasons. It is slightly better than my last card, which was great til it died. It is known for its durability and heat resistance ... no fan, just the largest heat sink I have ever seen on a video card (takes up 2 card slots, heat sink about the width and length of the card, and half inch thick, but most of the sink is raised away from the card itself.

Anyhow, the help and encouragement of people on the forum kept me going, and resulted in me going out to replace the video card with confidence that it was necessary. The computer store I deal with has been great, and now the video card is their problem (totally) for another year.

Thanks again to all.

P.S. please never underestimate the value of your encouragement to people, or your advice. Your "attitudes" and "expertise" make a big difference, even when it seems otherwise.

Madeira,

I'm so glad it worked out for you. I've already given a kudo to your main PC Doctor there, hehe but I think you deserve one too for your wonderful sentiments.

Madeira,

I'm so glad it worked out for you. I've already given a kudo to your main PC Doctor there, hehe but I think you deserve one too for your wonderful sentiments.

Now let's hope the only streaking you see is the NPCs after you add in the new body mods!

Good news indeed,

I am glad you're back on role playing with Oblivion...

Now imagine you are playing the Game for the very first time...Cyrodiil awaits you...an immense world ful of Danger and Glory...

See you arround and as I always say good RP...

that sounds a lot like overheating..