egosoft.com

I recently switched OSes from Windows 10 to Linux and was at ease knowing X3:AP has a Linux version as well. Small catch, for us GOG users: the Linux version is still on 3.1a, while the Windows version is on 3.3. My Windows savegames are unfortunately not recognized in Linux. Had about 3 weeks worth of actual game time in those saves...

While I wait for Egosoft to update their Linux version on GOG at some point, if ever... https://imgflip.com/i/3x1880

Is there any way I can revert/force revert the save files back to version 3.1a so that I can play them on Linux?

There are a couple of issues to overcome:

1. GoG + Linux cannot use GOG Galaxy to manage and get game updates and beta versions.
2. GOG doesn't sell X3AP separately, rather it sells the Terran War Pack released 16 October 2008 and that version pack included X3AP 3.1a.

The problem lies between what the loading and running application expects (in the Windows case that would be the X3AP or No-Steam exe) and the format/identifiers of the saves it finds.

Alan Phipps wrote: ↑

Fri, 17. Apr 20, 18:05

1. GoG + Linux cannot use GOG Galaxy to manage and get game updates and beta versions.

True. But I never used Galaxy, just the offline installers.

Alan Phipps wrote: ↑

Fri, 17. Apr 20, 18:05

2. GOG doesn't sell X3AP separately, rather it sells the Terran War Pack released 16 October 2008 and that version pack included X3AP 3.1a.

Not sure what you mean by this... GOG's version of Mac & Windows X3:AP is on 3.3, not on 3.1a. The Linux version is the only one stuck on 3.1a.

Alan Phipps wrote: ↑

Fri, 17. Apr 20, 18:05

The problem lies between what the loading and running application expects (in the Windows case that would be the X3AP or No-Steam exe) and the format/identifiers of the saves it finds.

So... can it be done or not? I've copied Windows saves over to Linux in the past with the same installer version and never had an issue, so they are compatible in theory as long as the same version is used.

One more thing: X4 seems to be in sync on GOG across Windows & Linux, so for the life of me I can't understand why this hasn't been the case with X3 - Terran War Pack in years now...

Perhaps what I said wasn't very clear but, as I understand it, GOG are selling a dated Linux bundle or pack and within that pack is X3AP v 3.1a. GOG are not supplying or supporting updates for that pack as they have no live Linux means to distribute and install updates (Galaxy not being available). GOG just sell the pack it as is and this is what you have observed. Whether that may change in the future is unknown to me but that might involve somebody doing a whole new Linux build and distribution for what is now an old game.

Those other OS X3AP versions you mentioned were most likely supplied to GOG at v 3.3 build or, even if not, probably could be updated using Galaxy whenever an update was made available to GOG.

This is also why GOG LInux users could not have the X4 public beta versions.

I'm sure CBJ could explain this better than I can.

Alan Phipps wrote: ↑

Fri, 17. Apr 20, 22:36

Perhaps what I said wasn't very clear but, as I understand it, GOG are selling a dated Linux bundle or pack and within that pack is X3AP v 3.1a.

Oh, ok. Got it now.

Alan Phipps wrote: ↑

Fri, 17. Apr 20, 22:36

GOG are not supplying or supporting updates for that pack as they have no live Linux means to distribute and install updates (Galaxy not being available). GOG just sell the pack it as is and this is what you have observed. Whether that may change in the future is unknown to me but that might involve somebody doing a whole new Linux build and distribution for what is now an old game.

As I mentioned before, X4 has an offline (non-Galaxy) Linux installer available on GOG which is kept up to date and in sync with the Windows installer. Yes, we're talking non-beta builds here. So the issue is not that it's impossible to get an updated version to GOG, it's just that nobody's bothering to do it, because, as you said, it's an old game by now. That's my take on it at least.

Still, I hope you can understand why, as a paying customer and big fan of the game, I am irked by this. It's my favourite game after all, and I've been unable to continue playing it ever since I switched to Linux...

WinterSnowfall wrote: ↑

Fri, 17. Apr 20, 17:20

I recently switched OSes from Windows 10 to Linux and was at ease knowing X3:AP has a Linux version as well. Small catch, for us GOG users: the Linux version is still on 3.1a, while the Windows version is on 3.3. My Windows savegames are unfortunately not recognized in Linux. Had about 3 weeks worth of actual game time in those saves...

Thanks for the report. We will look into updating the Linux version of X3AP on GOG, but I cannot promise anything yet about how soon this is going to happen.

KlausM wrote: ↑

Tue, 21. Apr 20, 15:19

Thanks for the report. We will look into updating the Linux version of X3AP on GOG, but I cannot promise anything yet about how soon this is going to happen.

Thank you! Fair enough, I guess. I'm just happy that you guys are now aware of the situation at least. As Alan mentioned, GOG actually packs both X3:TC and X3:AP under X3 - Terran War Pack , with a single installer for both. Both games are currently outdated on Linux.

I've managed to painstakingly get the Windows version running in Wine in the meantime, but I'd really appreciate up to date native binaries.

I would like to add a +1 to this request,

as a returning X3'er (was X2 then X3R on linux, by LGP, which I couldn't get running after all those years)
I bought X3 TWP on GoG last week (yes, I'm still not jumping on the X4 bandwagon)

And I would also like to get the latest fixes.

I hope you care
Thanks

KlausM wrote: ↑

Tue, 21. Apr 20, 15:19

Thanks for the report. We will look into updating the Linux version of X3AP on GOG, but I cannot promise anything yet about how soon this is going to happen.

Hello again. As we're fast approaching the one year anniversary of my report (and I think about 3 years since the GOG Linux installer is outdated), I'd just like to take this opportunity to remind you this is still a problem. And wish us all a happy birthday in advance, I guess...

I've given up purchasing games on GOG because of this terrible support -- it's not just the X games, it's all the linux games over there. I have been told by another developer that GOG's back-end support for updating linux games is even worse than the front-end user experience for linux users, and that GOG is slow to respond to developer requests.

So, while it is still imperative that Egosoft should get this done somehow, I just wanted to share that information because it's likely not entirely their fault.

Good news: On GOG Linux, there's now an update that brings X3TC and X3AP to the latest version, and also adds X3: Farnham's Legacy.

It took us a long time, but we could finally solve this issue. Sorry for the inconvenience. The reason was a compatibility problem on Linux that we could not solve at the time. Also, the process of providing updates on GOG is now much better than it was a few years ago.

KlausM wrote: ↑

Fri, 9. Jul 21, 13:18

Good news: On GOG Linux, there's now an update that brings X3TC and X3AP to the latest version, and also adds X3: Farnham's Legacy.

It took us a long time, but we could finally solve this issue. Sorry for the inconvenience. The reason was a compatibility problem on Linux that we could not solve at the time. Also, the process of providing updates on GOG is now much better than it was a few years ago.

Just saw it (could not believe my eyes for a moment) and dropped by here to send my regards . I hope you are aiming to keep things reasonably updated going forward - and please do not forget about the Mac version on GOG either, if possible.