»» THE CLAW RECLUSE -- largest fansite for Monolith Productions' Captain Claw -- Technical Support

CLAW.EXE reported as malware
Performance or launch issues
Error 0xc0000022 on startup
Jump and movement problems
Very slow elevators
Lost game progress
No background music
Taking screenshots
Adding cutscenes
WASD controls
Playing unmodded Claw
Looking for version 1.0
Issues with the old versions
Linux and Mac support

CLAW.EXE reported as malware

Problem: My antivirus scanner has detected malware in the modded version of Claw downloaded from your website. VirusTotal shows multiple aggregated reports, too!

Solution: Rest assured there are no viruses, trojans or other threats in the CrazyHook mod. Unfortunately, it is sometimes incorrectly flagged as such because of how it works: by using DLL injection. In short, that means new code (usually a DLL library such as CrazyHook.dll) is "injected" into the game's memory while its process is already running. Yes, it is true that this technique is often used for malicious purposes, but it has legitimate uses like debugging or modding. Like any tool, it is not nefarious in itself. However, antivirus software makes no distinction; it works by detecting the pattern of code injection, not what this code actually does. Ideally, all of the modifications would have instead been implemented directly in Claw's source code. Because it is not publicly available (and might never be after Monolith was shut down in 2025), CrazyHook relies on DLL injection, risking false positive detection results.

Of course, one can always say that this proves nothing. At the end of the day, CrazyHook is a fan-made mod and you can either trust the people who made it, or choose not to. All we can do is point to everyone in the community already using it, from custom level designers to speedrunners -- people who dedicated thousands of hours to Claw. There are now over sixty levels made specifically for the modded version, some of them masterpieces that took years to build, like City in the Depth. All of the speedrun records of the past decade or so were also achieved on the very same version, as you can easily attest by watching them on YouTube (highly recommended). Last but not least, there is a GitHub repository with the source code of CrazyHook, whose main part is written in Lua and the DLL hook in C++. Its developers (Zax37, cubuspl42, TSxD) are also on our Discord if you have any questions.

Still unconvinced? We continue to provide legacy downloads including the RealArcade rip and full DVD torrent, both with an unmodified Claw executable. Maybe you own the original CD, or found a reasonably priced one on eBay. Either way, you should be able to play all of these official versions on modern PCs too, see here. We recommend CrazyHook -- because it enables support for new graphics, music, game logics, and adds quality of life changes like text search in the custom levels menu -- but are not forcing anyone to use it, or restricting access to older releases without the mod.

Performance or launch issues

Problem: The game either does not start at all (without any error message), or it is basically unplayable due to low frame rate and poor performance.

Solution: First and foremost, get the v1.4.5.4 package if you are using a different one. Apart from the CrazyHook mod, this version also includes a tool called cnc-ddraw, which improves compatibility for Claw and many other classic games.

Installation is not required, so all you need to do is unpack the archive into a folder of your choice. If double-clicking CLAW.EXE does not work, the Run as administrator option (found in the right-click context menu) should help.

Error 0xc0000022 on startup

Problem: The game fails to launch and displays error 0xc0000022, or a message that says DirectPlay is missing, on startup.

Solution: Claw requires DirectPlay, which is no longer installed by default on Windows, but can still be added manually. To do so, select Control Panel, then Programs and Features, and click Turn Windows features on or off. DirectPlay can be found under Legacy Components.

Jump and movement problems

Problem: Claw jumps far too low, barely gets off the ground, and his movement is unnaturally fast, making the game unplayable.

Solution: Your frame rate is too high. It can be limited through cnc-ddraw config.exe, located in your Claw folder (assuming you have the v1.4.5.4 package from our website). To keep gameplay smooth and consistent with other players, run the game at 60 fps.

Very slow elevators

Problem: Some elevators, such as the one in La Roca just after save point 2, are very slow and barely seem to move.

Lost game progress

Problem: I am not using cheats, the game displays Your game has been saved after reaching a save point, but the next time Claw is launched, all my progress is lost.

Solution #1: Right-click the Claw executable and select Run as administrator to ensure it can access and modify the CLAW.USR file (where saved games are stored).

Solution #2: Move the game folder to a location fully accessible for non-administrators, such as your user account's Documents library.

Solution #3: Advanced users can manually set access rights to the Claw folder.

No background music

Problem: Despite all the audio settings being turned on, no in-game music can be heard. It appears that only Claw is affected by the problem.

Solution: Choose Start -> Run -> sndvol32 and look for MIDI Synth, SW Synth or a similar volume control for MIDI playback. Make sure it is not muted and turn it up if necessary.

Taking screenshots

Problem: The PrintScreen key does not work as expected. Screenshots are almost entirely black, with a few brighter pixels scattered here and there.

Solution: To take a screenshot, press Ctrl+D while playing. A bitmap file will automatically be saved in your Claw folder.

Adding cutscenes

Problem: I downloaded the recommended v1.4.5.4 package, but it does not include the animated cutscenes.

Solution: An extended one is available, combining v1.4.5.4 with DVD cutscenes. However, note that due to the larger file size (360 MB), it is hosted off-site.

WASD controls

Problem: There is no option in game settings to rebind Claw's movement to WASD, which I prefer to arrow keys.

Solution #1: As of 2025, the CrazyHook mod includes this feature directly in the game settings, so simply download the current v1.4.5.4 package.

Solution #2: If running an older version of CrazyHook, open CrazyHook.lua (found in your Claw folder) using any text editor, and add the following lines at the end of the file:

ffi.cast("char*", 0x432610)[3] = 0x41
ffi.cast("char*", 0x432617)[3] = 0x44
ffi.cast("char*", 0x43261E)[3] = 0x57
ffi.cast("char*", 0x432625)[3] = 0x53

Solution #3: Alternatively, you can use external software like AutoHotkey to configure keybindings to your liking, which also works without CrazyHook.

Playing unmodded Claw

Problem: I would rather play the original Claw, without CrazyHook or any other unofficial mods.

Solution: CrazyHook does not change anything about how the game plays, it remains the good, old Claw you know. There is no reason not to use the mod really -- and without it, you miss out on dozens of fan-made levels with custom graphics, sounds, and even game logics (and some quality-of-life features, like level search and new cheats). But fair enough, as long as you use cnc-ddraw (or a similar tool, like dgVoodoo or DirectX Windower), you should also be able to run your original, unmodded version on Windows 10/11, if you insist. Note that Claw's installer does not work on 64-bit systems, so just copy files over manually. You might also need a crack to play without the game asking for the CD/DVD.

Looking for version 1.0

Problem: I absolutely, positively, need to have version 1.0 of Claw in my collection. You know, the one with original boss difficulty, where Omar's second phase requires ten hits instead of four.

Solution: We have the original and cracked CLAW.EXE from version 1.0, but you will need to look elsewhere for the whole thing (note: replacing the CrazyHook executable with one of these will not work, since they store game resources differently).

Issues with the old versions

Problem: I am trying to play without CrazyHook and have encountered an issue with my old CD/DVD/RealArcade version of Claw.

Solution: Sorry, you have been warned: these releases are now several decades old, and not necessarily compatible with modern systems. Download the v1.4.5.4 package instead, optionally with DVD cutscenes, or try asking around on Discord, ye stubborn landlubber.

Linux and Mac support

Problem: Is it possible to run Claw (with CrazyHook) on my Linux distribution? What about support for the Mac?

Solution: First off, neither Linux nor Mac are officially supported. However, it should be possible to play Claw on both. Using the Lutris installer is the easiest option under Linux. Mac users can try Claw v1.4.4.4 'CrazyHook' App for macOS (courtesy of FunkyFr3sh), which works without external software like Parallels. Double-click to launch, Option+Return to enable windowed mode.

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