Microgaming Error Screenshots + possible solutions

[vinylweatherman]

Microgaming casinos seem to suffer problems each time they are updated. Not all players are affected, and there seems no pattern to the problems on a single computer. Some of my casinos work fine, other not so well.

To start with, Lucky Nugget have given me my moneys worth!!!!


(Can you spot the glitch?)

 

[esquirexx]

About 2 months ago,I had problems. But now everything is ok.

 

[venetian]

my main problem with MG is on bellerock (mostly Riverbelle) when you go to withdraw it hangs up and it won't let you submit. I have had no problems, however, with depositing. Hmmmm strange huh? Also I have noticed the 'jerkiness' is back on all MG sites. Not as bad as a few months ago but still it makes my eyes ache by the end of the evening.

 

[jonevegas]

I actually did notice on Spring Break the bonus spins are jerky, the regular gameplay is fine.

 

[caruso]

I had exactly the same problem with Riverbelle yesterday - upon withdrawal payment method submission, total hang. I had a fit on the phone to the poor CSR who had the displeasure of picking up my call, and her advice - to wait until possible "internet congestion" cleared - turned out to apparently work: submission went straight through 12 hours later.

 

[venetian]

you have more will power than me...after a dozen attempts I gave up and continued to play...and lose it.

 

[vinylweatherman]

Server Problems

This is another problem I keep getting. Sometimes it happens a dozen times in a single (attempted) session. This group (Casino Action) are particularly prone to this - it happens here considerably more than any other group. Ths shot was taken just now!

 

[vinylweatherman]

Jerky Games - Possible cause?

This happens to some of my portfolio, and leads to slow and jerky gameplay for 15 mins after logon (on broadband). My hard drive is also churning away like mad. Obvious cause is that the casino is downloading new games, but in this case it is never satisfied. It downloads pretty much the whole casino again each time I log on, it is unable to accept that it has the update from last time. I installed it from a full install module (100Mbyte) locally so it should not have to update much to start with!

I ran this casino under "Dependency Walker" and have verified that it repeatedly downloads the CAB update files each and every time a new session is started, ones it already has installed from the last session!

The screenshot barely shows the problem, but a clue is at the top right in the computer communication icon near the speaker icon. This flickers away during an update, but will disappear once updates are complete.
There is another problem I have with updates. Often the update will freeze, and when modules are selected for update the mouse click is ignored, and eventually is responded to with "cannot load requested module". Logging off and back on helps only if I have completely exited the software. I sometimes am able to load only one or 2 new games per session and it can take half an hour or more per casino just to obtain the less than half dozen new games for the update.

 

[Ivy29]

Problems

I see other people posting many different software problems on other boards today. So I don't think it's just your or my computer, which they tend to think. I also think Microgaming is going to have to look at it, I don't think the casinos know what to do.

My situation would be fixed if the casinos came with an option to download the full casino or modules that I want installed with the original installation file. No one seems to be able to send me a full install file, though.

I'm getting CD's soon from my two favorite MG's. If they have the full casino on them, which I was assured they do, I will be okay. I hope. Otherwise, I will just not be playing there.

I figured I wasn't alone with MG problems, because I've done all the troubleshooting and processes of elimination I can stand.

 

[vinylweatherman]

CD

I am having just as many problems with full installs as with the usual "lite" downloads available. The "lite" was designed for dial-up users and was intended to download the rest while they played. The update process was not supposed to interfere with game performance - but it does, slows them right down. Worse still, some MG casinos get into a state where they do not register that they have got the update, and start all over again each and every time the software is started. I have been putting these problems to the casinos, they have referred the matters to Microgaming, they respond once or twice but then lose interest when the usual solutions fail to work. They seem to hope the next upgrade will sort it out, but upgrades just bring different problems.
I have looked at the underlying file structure, and it is not just games that get upgraded, the Viper Core also gets upgraded (VCORE.DLL), this seems to lead to problems, and I have had to resort to full reinstallation a number of times. They now update once or twice a month, so we hardly get a chance to have fun before the next round of troubleshooting. At least we spend LESS MONEY IN THE CASINO (please note MG & Reps), as more time troubleshooting means less time to play!
It would be worth while making MG aware of all threads relating to problems, the screenshots should help, seems better than trying to describe it to CS who then have to describe it to MG.
MG could make the software manual available to the more competent players, as this might enable us to help ourselves. I have helped a few casinos with MG issues before they got the "official" solution from MG! This was when Playcheck & Cashcheck, and some Loyalty accounts could not be accessed for over a week. I was able to get into mine with my own patch while the official line was "still looking into this". If anyone is still having trouble with Playcheck etc I will post my solution in full.

 

[Ivy29]

And...

I have been putting these problems to the casinos, they have referred the matters to Microgaming, they respond once or twice but then lose interest when the usual solutions fail to work. They seem to hope the next upgrade will sort it out, but upgrades just bring different problems.

I'm evidently not a big enough fish to be worried about or followed up on. Mid-week before Labor Day, I had plenty of correspondence, more of the same redundant questioning in the hopes that it was just my computer and I was a dunce about such things. Promises of a "couriered CD" and a prompt follow-up which are both nearly a week overdue. They've indeed lost interest, because they don't have a clue or I'm just not anyone they want to waste anymore time with.

Meanwhile, I've moved on, but I'm still pissed that I have money in casinos I can't access. Maybe some day it will all be sorted out and I'll be able to play again, or I'll really receive those elusive full install CD's. Until then, I am still dying of curiosity over the new games, but evidently not worthy of seeing them.

ETA: and here's the kicker, thought I was getting that "follow up call" but it was a guy from their marketing department offering me some $5 bonus on $50 deposit for games I CAN'T FREAKIN' DOWNLOAD. The $5 on $50 with WR is bad enough by itself!

 

[vinylweatherman]

Garbage errors.

I frequently try to use the autoplay on the newer slots and this happens! (Pic 1). If I press start it will actually play, but look at the spin count!! (Pic 2).

The cause? PIC 3 The casino has dumped it's waste bin in my registry!!!!

It seems that occasionally the software will write this crap into the registry on launch, and once there it is not cleared until a new update is forced. It will often clear if the software is shut down, but not always. Editing the registry with the correct range of values, even with the casino still running (but not the game) will restore autoplay.

This begs the question Where else has rubbish been written to my registry during launch or update?, WHY?, Does the software check and correct or does the error remain until the operating system is reinstalled (uninstalling the casino leaves the registry keys behind, probably including any rubbish).

The corrupt data values in PIC 3 should NOT be updated by the software on launch in any case (except in the cae of a beand new game being downloaded), these are user parameters set in their previous autoplay session and should be conserved between sessions.

 

[spearmaster]

Jeez Louise, vinylweatherman! You leave your autoplay on 24/7?

The only problem I have encountered so far, other than the occasional boot, is that sometimes I press autoplay, the buttons gray out, and nothing happens. I've not experienced anything as funky as you have...

 

[vinylweatherman]

No way!

Not on that wager size! (I have done it on 1p a spin on Double Magic to test their wheel of cash. Strange how a whole day can pass without one, but wager big and lose a fair bit and they can come rolling in all day).
This was a test. As soon as I had captured the bug I stopped the autoplay and then captured the registry screenshot.
If I leave autoplay running for something like a tournament I use a large spincount BUT also set a stop loss and stop win using the "stop when credits fall/rise by". Unfortunately the newer slots lack this, you can only stop on a win over a given size, so I would limit spincounts to a lower amount and return. For the Munchkins tournament above there were 2 elements - wager for a prize and claim a prize for 5 drinking bears in a row. I had to watch for drinking bears while this was running, I would normally set stop on win equal to the drinking bears (300 coins or more).

I have also had the error with nothing happening when pressing start on autoplay. Strange how MG, who actually wrote the software, have got nowhere near this far in sorting out such issues. The poll on this thread shows a significant number of players having some problems, as well as some who have none. I wonder if this is something to do with operating systems, browsers, or ISP. It is because I am having these problems, and having no luck in getting a fix from MG and the casinos, that I have run these tests to see what the problems might be, and if these are solutions. The best advice I tend to get from the casinos is to turn off the firewall I don't have, and stop running the virus program I am not running - and open the ports. I don't have software to close ports, so cannot see that I can open them myself - I believe this is what a firewall will allow - specifying which ports a particular program may/may not use. I am beginning to think that the casino will work if I install and run a firewall, provided I configure it properly.

I have a few more test planned, using the notoriously troublesome UK Casino Club and Riverbelle casinos (I can no longer download, install from CD, or run Riverbelle - the only access I have is the Flash version).

 

[retlaw]

Royal Flush

I have a problem with the Royal Flush light flashing in Single line VP in cases where ther is no RF at all.
For a new player it must be very confusing.
It happens with all SLVP's I have played, and on different MG casino's.
The problem has already been mentioned before, but it seems MG is not interested to fix it.
I always wonder why it happens.Anyone an idea?

 

[wobble33]

guys

have problem once with ladbrokes, the first reel just kept holding and the rest spinning on thinderstruck. so obviously i was holding a lot of unwanted garbage on autoplay

 

[KasinoKing]

Cards are not wrong. ;(

Dice are sometimes incorrect & balls are often bouncing...

Nice bit of grave-digging!

 

[Slotster!]

guys

have problem once with ladbrokes, the first reel just kept holding and the rest spinning on thinderstruck. so obviously i was holding a lot of unwanted garbage on autoplay

Hold on; this is a joke right?

 

[Mousey]

I had to uninstall Villento as the last 3 or 4 upgrades (it didn't even have the Frankenstein game yet-- whatever it's called) would not 'take' and I could not play without them. Casino would just sit there after clicking 'go to lobby'. I uninstalled and reinstalled. Made sure Flash, directX, and video drivers were up to date. I deleted the mupinfo or whatever that file is, did another reinstall and still no better. I gave up. (And this was before the latest Tombraider release.) Only casino (so far) that the problem has been this persistent. Lucky Nugget went 2 upgrades before it would finally update, now all seems ok.

P.S. ... Standard casino CS repsonse to these problems is 'uninstall and reinstall'. If you persist, after blaming my computer, DSL connection, and antivirus, they say they will 'forward the problem to MG'.

 

[vinylweatherman]

Problem with Winning Wizards. Close program automatically, shouldn't restart. Reinstall Royal Vegas. Some tags couldn't be added for the following reason(s): * You do not have permission to create tags. You may only use existing tags. Changes that did not cause errors have been applied.

Not quite sure what you mean here, but maybe you are referring to when the program asks for you to download an update, and then to restart the casino, whereupon it briefly fires up & vanishes, and can never be launched again.

cause = the new lobby

solution = for once, CS are right, uninstall and reinstall.

This happened to me a number of times when the new (and WORSE) lobby design was rolled out. I also had this problem first with Royal Vegas, where they were SUPPOSEDLY beta testing the lobby before releasing it generally (they also beta tested MPV at RV, and also tested the new lobby at All Slots)

guys

have problem once with ladbrokes, the first reel just kept holding and the rest spinning on thinderstruck. so obviously i was holding a lot of unwanted garbage on autoplay

No,

Cause = bug in autoplay stop_on_win_greater_than parameter during free spins. Where the result of a free spin brings the total win so far bayond your autoplay stop setting, the free spins will change mode and "dump" the quickspin parameter. Free spins will then run much slower, and show all winlines each time. Occasionally, this sudden jump of state messes with the FLASH graphics, and it runs the following free spin BEFORE the display has a chance to complete the current one, and this results in reels one and two jumping forward (you see the jerk if you are watching closely), and reels 3-5 just spinning endlessly. If this happens on the last spin, the free spin count will read "-1", which makes the bug much more obvious.

Solution = None so far, despite being reported to MG several YEARS ago.

I have a problem with the Royal Flush light flashing in Single line VP in cases where ther is no RF at all.
For a new player it must be very confusing.
It happens with all SLVP's I have played, and on different MG casino's.
The problem has already been mentioned before, but it seems MG is not interested to fix it.
I always wonder why it happens.Anyone an idea?

I have seen this often, cause unknown, solution unknown, MG don't give a ****.

Damn right it's confusing, playing fast, and thinking you were dealt a pat RF and autohold ditched it

I had to uninstall Villento as the last 3 or 4 upgrades (it didn't even have the Frankenstein game yet-- whatever it's called) would not 'take' and I could not play without them. Casino would just sit there after clicking 'go to lobby'. I uninstalled and reinstalled. Made sure Flash, directX, and video drivers were up to date. I deleted the mupinfo or whatever that file is, did another reinstall and still no better. I gave up. (And this was before the latest Tombraider release.) Only casino (so far) that the problem has been this persistent. Lucky Nugget went 2 upgrades before it would finally update, now all seems ok.

P.S. ... Standard casino CS repsonse to these problems is 'uninstall and reinstall'. If you persist, after blaming my computer, DSL connection, and antivirus, they say they will 'forward the problem to MG'.

Uninstall and reinstall is probably the best option here again. This is probably a result of MG not including a PROPER self repair module in the software, which is what we are SUPPOSED to have according to them, but what turns out to simply be a game updater driven solely by instructions from the update server. The problem probably stems from the sudden load placed on the update servers, and their inability to cope with the sudden load of players wanting the update. MG THINK they fixed this by adding the option for players to refuse the update and continue playing, but it DON'T EFFIN WORK, you HAVE to take the update IMMEDIATELY, or NO game will work, not even the OLD ONES, so there is STILL a huge load on the update servers.


Bug in Treasure Ireland, well, that lot at MG are clearly WAY too busy, so I'll tell them later when some of us have made some moolah

 

[anniemac]

I am having the jerky games problem with Villento also. Has been doing it for some time. Thought it was just my dialup connection but have changed to DSL and it still happens. Sometimes the win money is not added to my balance until after the next spin which is way strange.

Yesterday I had a strange thing happen but couldn't catch it to get a screen shot. I got the free spins on the "Beer" game. I was doing something else at the time so I was just glancing at the screen but I was counting up the money and I thought "I will have over $50 when this is over". Next time I looked at the screen there was an error message that connection to the server had been lost and I only had $46 balance.

I really don't think that they added the win to my balance but have no way of proving it so I just let it go. After that I watched more carefully.

 

[GaryWatson]

I find their software extremely poor. Ive noticed they leave things when I try to uninstall. Im currently pissed off because I have a major bug on my PC. Im not blaming microgaming for that but I have been getting rid of some of their stuff that should have been long gone.

Im sure they could improve immensly, but for now, a major

 

[Nicole50]

Iam playing at Villento but I prefer the Flash version. You dont get any problems.Concerning your problem of error screen, I think they can send you a copy of your history game,The casino can check it spin by spin. If there were an error, then they must correct it.

 

[catrina m]

The only error I get is my balance always seem to wind up at zero, lol

 

[KasinoKing]

I was wondering who dug up this oldie, and discovered it's the same person who exhumed it in March!

Some long gone names on page 1, most notably Caruso!

Anyway, the only problem I have with MG now is the ludicrous time it takes to start up a casino (anything from 2 to 5 minutes ), and once running the crazy time it takes to 'load' a slot (1-2 minutes ).

What I can't understand is if you have the game already downloaded on your PC, why the hell does it take so long to start up??? Other softwares are way quicker.

Anyone else have these problems, or is it just me?

KK