Half-life 2 won't launch! HELP

[kbsuperstar]

Hey,

Last year I had bought Half-Life 2 and CS:S from eBay, and I really enjoyed playing the games. After a while, I lost my will to game, but now I feel like I really want to play HL-2 again. I'm still using the same system to play, but for some reason, when I try to launch HL-2 from Steam, I get one of those Microsoft errors "hl2.exe has experienced a problem and has to quit..." This is really ticking me off, and I've been trying everything. I've updated my videocard drivers, verified the game cache, updated HL-2 with steam, and I've tried re-installing Steam and HL-2 a few times.

Does anyone know what the problem could be? I really need help!

My system stats:
20 GB internal HD
100 GB external HD
768 MB RAM
2.2 GHz processor
nVidia graphics card -- GeForce MX 4000 -- 128 MB DDR

 

[NeptuneUK]

smells like a software, not hardware issue

 

[kbsuperstar]

That's what I would think, too. Do you have any suggestions about how to go about fixing it?

 

[Azner]

Check youre video settings is one. The other is erm.. Reinstall and erm tjhis might sound real bad but Defragment youre hard drive. Or simply really try your best to delete all half life 2 files. no traces. Better still get a new hard drive and install it there, should work. Last one is give it to someone for christmas like ME!!!

 

[kbsuperstar]

I'll try uninstalling and defragging, thanks.

 

[kbsuperstar]

Ok, I uninstalled HL-2 from Steam, removed the files in C:\ manually, and took HL-2 out of the registry (regedit), then re-installed, but no luck. This is really angering me! Anyone have any more ideas of what the problem could be or how to fix it?

 

[kbsuperstar]

;(

 

[Mracle325i]

I'm getting an error message when I try to launch HL2. The error is: Steam.exe(main exception): Unable to load library Steam.dll Can anyone help me out with this?

 

[AJ Rimmer]

I'm getting an error message when I try to launch HL2. The error is: Steam.exe(main exception): Unable to load library Steam.dll Can anyone help me out with this?

*cough* I'm assuming Steam is working, so try validating your files.

 

[Beerdude26]

kbsuperstar: Use the Steam Diagnostic Tool to see if your computer has anything that may interfere with Steam or your games.

Mracle325i: Follow this URL: link. While this is not exactly your problem, it should share the same solution as yours.

 

[Azner]

Don't tripple post, use the edit button.

 

[kbsuperstar]

Ok, I tried launching HL2.exe directly from the Steamapps folder, and this is the error message I get:

"This application has failed to start because d3d9.dll was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem."

Well, obviously re-installing hasn't helped. What do I do to get d3d9.dll and where do I put it?

The steam diagnostic tool gives this:

"DirectX: Failed
Your version of DirectX does not meet the minimum requirements
For the latest version of DirectX, click here
Required version: 4.9.00.0904
Severity: Very High"

I'm trying to download a DirectX plug-in ...

 

[Beerdude26]

Get the latest version of DirectX here: Link

 

[Jintor]

Don't forget to googlesearch the .dll file; I've managed to fix a couple of games that way (Hitman: Blood Money, which I eventually figured out I couldn't run anyway)

 

[Login_Here]

Moved to the Valve Games Help forums.

 

[Mracle325i]

kbsuperstar: Use the Steam Diagnostic Tool to see if your computer has anything that may interfere with Steam or your games.

Mracle325i: Follow this URL: link. While this is not exactly your problem, it should share the same solution as yours.

I followed the link instructions. I reinstalled Steam.exe. Now when I try to open half life2, I get the message, " Windows is searching for Steam.exe. I know I loaded it on my computer, but now I need to put it in the correct place. Looking for some help, please.