Spring RTS Engine

I've downloaded this free game, Evolution RTS, from Steam and what a surprise - it's based on Spring!
I've been playing TA:Spring for years when I was on Windows -now I'm on Linux.

Evolution RTS works just fine, but I'd like to try Balanced TA or Tech Annihilation and neither work. The game starts, but seems to bug when I'm supposed to choose my starting position and no commander appear. Neither I nor the computer has any unit and yet the game doesn't even stop. All I have is a blank map and nothing to do.

I've tried searching the board but couldn't find anything similar. I've read that the AI choice could be an issue, but even with NullAI the problem happens.
I've uploaded 2 logs on pastbin, in hope this could help:

http://paste.springfiles.com/view/926ade02
http://paste.springfiles.com/view/75cd8d93

I would be very grateful for any hint, I really would like to play TA again!

Most likely a wrong engine version

The lobby you downloaded with evorts should be able to download another engine version though.

Thanks for your answer PicassoCT,

I thought Steam would update the engine itself but I'm willing to give it a try.
I've just found a "manual download" option in the lobby and it requires an engine file name.
I've tried typing spring_100.0_minimal-portable-linux64-static.7z but nothing seems to happen, did I get it wrong?

Try with typing just "spring 100.0" or maybe "100.0" even...

[f=0000000] Using game: Balanced Annihilation V7.50

Your BA version is several years out of date. You can find a recent version (which should run with Spring 100.0) here: viewforum.php?f=44. Probably the same is true for TechA.

If your lobby is unable to download a recent engine, you can get it manually from https://springrts.com/wiki/Download, and it will also come with a lobby that can download recent stuff.

Thanks a lot for your answers!
I'm surprised and disappointed to learn that the Steam version is not up-to-date, but this must be the answer and I will try a manual install.

Thanks again for your help!

As far as I know what's happening is that the Steam version is up to date as far as Evo is concerned, but Evo isn't using the latest version of Spring, so this is making other things be out of date, and unfortunately that seems to break everything else for you.

Yes, this makes sense! Thanks for your answer Silentwings!
I've already deleted my Steam version and I'm about to try a manual install.

Well installing Springlobby 0.210-2 and Spring 98.0 from Synaptic was easy enough, but as I understand it I have no actual game so far, only the engine.
I've tried installing Balanced TA through the Download option in the lobby but it makes the lobby crash after displaying a "debug report".
I might have to find another way to add data...

Edit: Closing the debug report always makes the lobby crash, but if I don't close it the file is eventually downloaded anyway.
So far I've managed to download both Balanced TA & Tech Annihilation, as well as a random map, but none appear in my lists when I try to play a single-player game...

Does the lobby automatically install games after downloading them, or do I have to install them somehow manually?

Silentwings wrote:As far as I know what's happening is that the Steam version is up to date as far as Evo is concerned, but Evo isn't using the latest version of Spring, so this is making other things be out of date, and unfortunately that seems to break everything else for you.

Evo uses weblobby, weblobby can use any engine version without conflict. Evo uses 96.

The evo steam version could not possibly break anything else because all it is is a default spring install with evo stuff and 96 preloaded.

Please don't spread misinformation/outright bs.

Thanks for the precision Forboding Angel.
I want to stress out that Evo was perfectly working through Steam, right from the box, and I'm glad for this.

Anyway, I've tried downloading games and maps manually and placing them in the spring directory.
But even after clicking on "reload maps/games" my lists of maps and games remain empty...
I could as well open a new topic, could a mod be kind enough to close this one and flag it as "Solved" (kinda) ?
Thanks!

latest versions whould be 100.0 for engine and 0.215 for lobby

Oracle wrote:Thanks for the precision Forboding Angel.
I want to stress out that Evo was perfectly working through Steam, right from the box, and I'm glad for this.

Anyway, I've tried downloading games and maps manually and placing them in the spring directory.
But even after clicking on "reload maps/games" my lists of maps and games remain empty...
I could as well open a new topic, could a mod be kind enough to close this one and flag it as "Solved" (kinda) ?
Thanks!

Games and downloaded maps would go in your my documents/my games/spring/ <maps> or <games> folder.

Evo uses it's own datadirectory, but it still reads from the common folders.

Please don't spread misinformation/outright bs.

Well, I don't believe you, and I'm afraid if you can't even manage basic politeness, that's the last time I try to help someone struggling with your apparently not-fully-working installer.

Silentwings wrote:

Please don't spread misinformation/outright bs.

Well, I'm afraid if you can't even manage basic politeness, that's the last time I try to help someone struggling with your apparently not-fully-working installer.

What installer?

viewtopic.php?f=14&p=571988#p571988

Get your shit straight before talking out of your ass. Steam doesn't have installers. What steam does is the equivalent of downloading a giant zip file, and unzipping it in steam common. not even the equivalent... That's EXACTLY what it does.

An alternative explanation is not necessary. Weblobby will download games and maps automatically as well as different engine versions and use them appropriately. Period.

Afaics you are blindly insisting that your installer/unzipper/whatever must work, on a post where someone clearly says that it doesn't.

Oracle wrote:Thanks a lot for your answers!
I'm surprised and disappointed to learn that the Steam version is not up-to-date, but this must be the answer and I will try a manual install.

Thanks again for your help!

To clarify, the "steam version" is not out of date. If you were simply to join a game in the multiplayer tab, weblobby would have downloaded the engine, game, and map for you automatically.

What steam gives you is only updated once in a while, because all updates are handled through the lobby and independent of steam.

Silentwings wrote:Afaics you are blindly insisting that your installer/unzipper/whatever must work, on a post where someone clearly says that it doesn't.

Oracle wrote:I want to stress out that Evo was perfectly working through Steam, right from the box, and I'm glad for this.

Bitchpls. Weblobby works the same no matter where it is placed. Period. Moreover, steam sets EVERYTHING in common to writable for ANY USER so don't try to blame permissions or some crap.

You are simply flat wrong, admit it. You're spreading blatant BS, I have every right to be pissed off about it.

Fact is, whilst Evo may have worked, as Oracle says above, for him the rest of it didn't. Insist on blindly that it did if you like...

My explanation may well be wrong - it is prefixed with "as far as I know" and postfixed with "seems". Feel free to correct it, if you can.

If it worked then it is obviously reading the datadir. If An old as BA version that he had sitting on his comp showed up, then OBVIOUSLY reading the spring common folders worked.

The reason comms didn't spawn is because wrong engine version. It only coems with 96, but if you join a battle it will autodl whatever version you want. Instead he hit the single player tab, selected an old as BA version, it defaulted to 96 cause that's all he had. Everything about the steam install worked perfectly. Pull your head out of your ass and admit that you're full of shit.

User was warned for this and above posts - too many insults. Felony 1. (Silentwings)