Few gaming experiences are as frustrating as anticipation turned into disappointment. You’ve secured a copy of the cult classic strategy game Hooligans: Storm Over Europe , installed it, maybe even navigated the tricky compatibility settings, only to be greeted by a void of darkness. The game launches, the cursor might change, but the screen remains obstinately black.
Check and set it to Application . Update Video Codecs
Check the box for and select 16-bit color . Check Run this program as an administrator . Hit Apply and try launching. Adjust Resolution via Config Files
Windows 10 and 11 have a feature called "Fullscreen Optimizations" that frequently breaks older titles. Right-click the game executable. Go to > Compatibility . Check the box Disable fullscreen optimizations . Click Change high DPI settings .
Try pressing , Space , or Enter repeatedly as soon as the screen goes black to skip the movies.
Before we fix it, you need to understand the new triggers. Unlike the old 2010s-era bugs (which usually involved missing DLL files), the 2025/2026 black screen stems from three modern conflicts:
Right-click Hooligans.exe → Properties → Compatibility tab:
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