Does that happen when your trying to get into the main menu, or does it happen when you try to actually play? If you can access the main menu, you can go under the Options menu and set your graphics mode to OpenGL. Thats what I did, considering that I like it better than DirectX.
If the came crashes right when you click on the icon, I would advise that you go to the website and look on the F.A.Q. or post something on the forums (I don't know if they are dead or not).