ParaWorld

How to Play

Windows 7 fix and NoDVD showed minor warnings on VirusTotal, files are safe to use, here's the report for fix and NoDVD

The game with patch 1.01 and Windows 7 fix has been tested on Windows 7 64-bit and Windows 10, works fine. The game supports widescreen. You may experience some small troubles when you play the game on modern systems, check our Guide and Notes for details

Install & play guide:

• Mount the disc image. You will need the utility for mounting disc image files, like WinCDEmu, UltraISO, Alcohol 52%/Alcohol 120% or Daemon Tools Lite
• Launch the installation (if autorun doesn't work - simply launch the installation from Setup.exe inside the disc)
• It is recommended to install the game NOT in default install path, but in some other folder, lik C:/Games/ParaWorld. The default path seems to cause issues
• Also it is recommended to install DirectX 9 (if you're using Windows 10 - enable DirectPlay, read this or this guide how to do it)
• Once you installed the game - install the patch 1.01
• If the patch cannot find the game directory - use the archive with extracted patch 1.01 (the instruction's inside the archive)
• After that run Windows 7 fix, that fix will allow to play the game on Windows 7 and newer systems
• Open the directory Paraworld/bin and find Paraworld.exe. Right click on Paraworld.exe - Properties - Compatibility - Set "Run this app in compatibility mode with Windows XP SP3" and "Run as administrator"
• Launch the game, enter serial key 2WQHW-5PSY4-YMVPW-75GCR-CZVNS-4A6J6-D345F-LQVPZ and play. If the game doesn't work in compatibility mode with Windows XP - try to launch it in compatibility mode with other version of Windows (98,2000 or Vista)

Additionally, you can install Booster Pack, which includes patch 1.05 and new content: 3 new missions, 2 heroes, additional buildings & units. That Booster Pack was the part of ParaWorld: Gold Edition that released only in Germany, but luckily fans made the translations for other languages. Visit Para-Welt for more information about Booster Pack mod

If you want to install it - first install the game, then Booster Pack (no need to install patches, it includes all patches already), then Windows 7 fix. If after the installation of that Booster Pack in-game fonts has disappeared or broken - download the archive with additional fonts and extract it in C:/Windows/Fonts folder. If you have troubles with Booster Pack mod - visit Para-Welt Discord server, it has big troubleshooting guide

Notes:

• If the installation doesn't start - try to launch Setup.exe in compatibility mode with old version of Windows (98, 2000 or XP)
• There's a strange bug when some serial keys work on one PC but doesn't work on another. We uploaded text-file with many serial keys, if serial key 2WQHW-5PSY4-YMVPW-75GCR-CZVNS-4A6J6-D345F-LQVPZ doesn't work - try others
• Windows 7 fix is required for the launch because the game is using old Tages DRM protection, which doesn't work correctly on modern systems. That fix "breaks" DRM protection and allows the game to work on modern systems
• As alternative to that fix - you can also use NoDVD for version 1.01 (simply copy files from the archive and put it into directory with installed game, agree to replace original files)
• If you want to skip the installation of Tages DRM drivers: during the installation you will see DirectX setup window - open Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del) and "kill" the process dxsetup.exe. After that the installer will start installing Tages DRM driver - "kill" process DrvSetup.exe and DrvSetup_x64.exe, to prevent the installation of Tages DRM
• Once you installed the game with patch and NoDVD - open Registry Editor (regedit.exe) and search for "tages" word, to find Tages DRM associated with ParaWorld launcher. When you find the value with "tages" and "ParaWorld" words - delete it, to prevent the installation of Tages DRM when you run the game
• The game works on DirectX 9, so if you're using Windows 8, 8.1, 10 or 11 - you need to enable DirectPlay: Go to Control Panel, and select 'Programs'. Select 'Turn Windows features on and off', click on 'Legacy Components' and check the box 'DirectPlay'. Select OK, once the installation is done, restart your computer
• It is recommended to install all versions of Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable for the correct work of the game
• Also it is recommended to install RAD Video Tools and K-Lite Codec Pack for the correct work of the game
• When you select widescreen resolution, the intro-videos will be displayed in left side of display, in 4:3 window. You can skip intro-videos by pressing Esc button
• For users of Windows 64-bit systems: if the game doesn't work after you launched it - open Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del by default) and check for processes Paraworld.exe and rundll32.exe. Close Paraworld.exe but don't touch rundll32.exe (it's a Windows app for running old apps from 32-bit operational systems, most old games running through rundll32.exe). Now try to launch the game again, it must work. Don't forget to close rundll32.exe process in Task Manager after finishing playing
• Check Para-Welt and their Discord server if you have troubles with the game or mods