Steam games not working

Games that require DirectX 12 most likely won't work (Alone in the Dark 2024 is an exception that I found in that it does work, a bit slowly however). Games that require OpenGL newer than version 4.1 also do not work.

I try to check the requirements for Steam games prior to purchasing them. When I've bought one I can't make work Steam has been accommodating in giving me a refund.

I have recently started using CrossOver to play DirectX 12 requiring games. I have found a few games that it runs perfectly (Talos Principle 2, Alone in the Dark 2024, etc.), but there are many that I would expect it to run that I can't manage to get to work. Even many listed as supported I can't get to run.

Parallels would be nearly a perfect PC virtualizer if it supported DirectX12, but alas they have no timeline on when (if?) that will happen.

 

I hope this thread is being monitored. To the Parallels support folks, I am in my trial period and I also got tired of Crossovers and other Wine skins. This seemed perfect but having some problems in Steam. An example: Silent Hunter Wolves of the Pacific, an older game. All that happens when I hit play is it looks like it tries to run, no error messages, but the game never comes up. The system requirements for the game are:

Operating system Windows 10 (64-bit versions)
Processor AMD Athlon @ 3 GHz, Intel Pentium 4 @ 3 GHz, or better
RAM 2 GB
Video card ATI Radeon X1800 (256 MB), NVIDIA GeForce 7800 (256 MB), or better
Hard drive 6 GB available storage
DirectX version DirectX 9c

Thank you. Need help before I bite the bullet and pay (in my trial period.)

 

Even though Parallels 18 supports DirectX 12, it's still using a virtualized GPU, which can cause graphical glitches or incomplete support for some games--especially more demanding titles like Call of Duty: WW2. The black icons and failure to launch usually point to either limited GPU compatibility or missing Windows components (like .NET, Visual C++ Redistributables, or specific DirectX files).

 

Parallels only supports up to DirectX 11 (even the latest version). Any game requiring DirectX 12 is a no go without a workaround.

Steam is strange in that it seems to "assume" all the additional Windows files have already been installed by some other program. When there is no error message it's challenging to find what is needed. When this has happened to me I've searched the Steam forum for the game and my problem. Often someone else has already solved the issue.

When that does not work I launch the actual game.exe in the game's installation folder within Steam. Often this will show the error message which helps troubleshooting (often a .dll missing, which will help to know which VisualC++ you need to install in Windows).

If using an M series Mac the game file in compatibility mode will sometimes show the error, or it will get smart and install the missing file(s) for you. Often this works, and then you can usually set it back to the normal compatibility setting and it still runs.