OS X support thread

[rboerdijk]

OS X support thread

General information

Manuals can be downloaded from here
http://www.egosoft.com/download/x_rebirth/bonus_en.php

Our wiki can be found here:
https://www.egosoft.com:8444/confluence ... birth+Wiki

System and driver compatibility:

The port was developed on OS X 10.10 (and later 10.11) but it should run on 10.9.

The requirements state OpenGL 4.2, but it should run under OpenGL 4.0 and even 3.30.

The minimum hardware requirements state "Intel Iris Pro", but it should run with "Intel Iris" - we can't make any statement on performance on such a system though ( feedback is welcome ).

If unsure about whether it runs and at which performance, feel free to try the Steam-demo or the Appstore-free version.

Savegames:

Savegames between platforms should be compatible, if there are any issues please report a bug.

Cloud-sync between Windows, Linux and OS X is not supported.

Steam savegames are stored under /Users/<username>/Documents/EgoSoft/X Rebirth/save
Appstore savegames are stored under /Users/Library/Containers/com.egosoft.XRebirth/Data/Documents/EgoSoft/save

Joystick/Controller setup:

Controllers:
OSX does not come with controller drivers installed. You will have to install a 3rd party controller driver. Once that is installed - and if you have a relatively common xbox-like controller - the default-settings should work fine out-of-the-box.

Joysticks:
First go to Settings, Controls, Load Profile and select "Default - Joystick". Otherwise you are using the default controller setup, which will result in a weird setup ( for example moving the x-axis to fire ). After that you will need to setup button mappings (mainly in Controls, Space), as the default will most likely not fit your joystick.

If the default axis configuration is incorrect you can remap them the same way as buttons. To invert an axis search for "Invert Axes" in the Controls menu in the "Controller / Joystick" sub-section.

Known issues and missing features:

Generally features missing in the Linux version will also be missing on the Mac.
Current overview:

• Weapon overheating may sometimes stop/block temporarily
• Long game launch time (window/screen may be black during this so please give it some time)
• No muffling for outside sounds
• Transparency order issues for ice asteroids on amd-catalyst driver
• Performance issues in asteroid fields

Startup Issues


Bug Reporting

Bugtracker

We now have a proper Bug Tracker, so feel free to report issues in it.

Please prefix each comment in the bug tracker with "<forum_name>:" so I can tell who's who (you can use a fake name if you want, just keep using it, even between different bugs because they can be related). Please include system specs like operating-system-version/mac-model/cpu/graphics and ram. You can find this information by clicking the Apple-logo in the left-top and selecting "About this mac".

Please attach screenshots & savegames for almost any issue, it'll help a lot. In case you can't or don't want to include it in the forum post, my email address is: rog3r ( on ) egosoft.com, of course replace the 3 with an e and ( on ) with @ (hope not too many spam bots figure that out);p


If you notice anything "pink/blue/green" the best thing to do is give us a screenshot & savegame.
If you notice something looking ugly it would help a lot if you can verify it's OS X specific first, then give us a screenshot & savegame.

Fatal Errors

Fatal Errors will be logged in the "Console". To view these, run the console by entering "Console" in "Spotlight Search".

Build history
General Release patch notes

2016-02-25 15:30 UTC - 4.00 208311 Build 50:
- fixed envmap orientation and filtering
- updated to SDL 2.0.4
- fixed "steam screenshot breaks cockpit instruments"

2016-01-15 15:00 UTC - 4.00 Build 31 (205888) to try it please read instructions:
- fixed "subtitles don't progress"
- fixed "text input doesn't block shortcuts"
- fixed "joystick buttons map to POV hat (and have weird numbering)"
- implemented low/medium quality shaders
- improved glow performance
- graphical quality fixes/improvements
- improved fullscreen and resolution changing

2015-11-03 15:15 UTC - 3.61 Build 19 (202267):
- joystick/controller support (see Joystick/Controller setup section above)
- implemented sound effects
- improved sound distance attenuation
- improved intel-gpu driver compatibility

2015-10-19 10:45 UTC - 3.61 Build 18 (200382):
- implemented MSAA
- implemented FXAA (only high-quality)
- implemented post-effects: glow, ssao (only high-quality for now)
- implemented motion blur
- implemented build shader (station/ship building looks correct now)
- implemented particles shader (sparks/smoke on platforms)
- fixed and improved fill/outline rendering (station scan mode)
- fixed radar issues: white objects, missing highways
- fixed rectangles on new UI elements

2015-09-24 15:00 UTC - 3.61 Build 17 (final rc4, 200382):
- General beta patch notes

2015-09-18 14:45 UTC - 3.61 Build 16 (public beta rc3, 200202):
- General beta patch notes

2015-09-16 13:00 UTC - 3.61 Build 15 (public beta rc2, 200075):
- improved NPC performance (especially noticeable on stations)
- General beta patch notes

2015-07-29 11:00 UTC - 3.60 Build 14 (final rc2 198327):
- nothing osx specific

2015-07-27 11:30 UTC - 3.60 Build 13 (public beta rc1, 198294):
- nothing osx specific

2015-07-21 11:10 UTC - 3.60 Build 12 (public beta 4, 198196):
- partially fixed distortion effect

2015-07-10 14:00 UTC - 3.60 Build 11 (public beta 3, 197837):
- nothing osx specific

2015-07-02 14:00 UTC - 3.60 Build 10 (public beta 2, 197519):
- nothing osx specific

2015-06-25 14:00 UTC - 3.60 Build 9 (public beta 1, 197172):
- fixed "Error 0x10005: Memory could not be found [...]"

2015-06-24 12:15 UTC - 3.60 Build 8 (public beta 1, 197172):
- removed incorrect outlines around objects in certain foggy sectors
- hotfixed "fails to start on some distros" at 15:00 UTC

2015-05-08 12:00 UTC - Build 7
- And thus it begins

[donzi]

Ugg. I happen to have some 2011 + macs at my disposal. 10.6.x is primary for the iMac yet do have "Lion" on it and the others.

Typically I bootcamp to run Windows 7 on them. Because of that, and even moreso prefer 10.6 most of all and thus have only Lion on the two since that is their stock version.

I am extremely hesitant to escalate versions of them because of some expensive software I have on them is supporting what I have. I'm not interested in jepardizing it's functionality for sake of following apples revisions which mainly offer nothing of interest to me.

I guess the question would be, is there any chance Snow Leopard or Lion would run this OSX branch?

If not I'd rather just install a linux distro on them and work with that branch instead.

[rboerdijk]

Main problem with older osx'es is going to be the openGL version.

At the very least we require openGL 3.3, and from what I know that's not supported by the older versions - see https://developer.apple.com/opengl/capa ... index.html

Furthermore we compile with 10.9 as a target. Admitted, I could change it to something lower, but that doesn't make sense if openGL support isn't there anyway.

[donzi]

Ah yes.

I may opt-in on the OSX branch yet so long as the basic OS revision numbers don't stop me trying. Might be that despite apple, I can meet the OpenGL specs.

[ladirection]

Hello,

When I start the game and check the graphic settings, I see that the game is locked in 1920X1200 (my screen's native resolution).
My Macbook plays many games fine at lower res but at 1920x1200 I get very low fps, this is even worst with X Rebirth its it is not yet completely optimized. Is there any way I can lower the resolution? Right now the option i "greyed out".

Thanks

[rboerdijk]

Are you playing fullscreen ? Maybe try windowed ( or borderless ) - and then switching modes. I did try switching resolutions on the iMac, at least in windowed mode - and that worked.

Alternatively, you can edit the config.xml by hand, you can find it under Documents\EgoSoft\X Rebirth\<steamid>\config.xml

[ladirection]

Thanks a lot for answering so fast, it's really appreciated!

Going into the menus, I found that by default the game is in "Borderless windowed mode". I switched it to "Fullscreen" and while there's no visible difference the resolution option became available. I tried to change it to 1152x720 and it auto reverts to 1920x1200 after I accept the change. I tried 1024x768 and got the same.

I ended up changing the xml file you mentioned manually to 1152x720. It worked perfectly. Of note, I never had the long black screen at 1920x1200 but it's now there for a few minutes when I launch the game.

I'm pleasantly surprised at how well the game looks and performs at that resolution on my Macbook pro 17" (10.10, NVIDIA 330M).

Two issues. First, more a comment, the first person view in space stations or on the ship is way too fast. It feels like I'm ghosting and flying through a map. It's very hard to control and annoying.

Second, I docked at a mining station. I had to search crates for gear. I did maybe half of them and then climbed back on my ship to see what would happened. When I entered the bridge and sat down, the girl tell me "I don't think he's quite finished fixing the ship yet". So I go back into the ship's quarters to climb back down but find that the ramp is now closed. Is this a bug? Shouldn't I be able to walk back down and continue exploring the crates until I decide to take off?

Thanks

[rboerdijk]

Concerning resolution, I'll have to try on some more machines, see if I can reproduce it.

Ghosting: haven't seen this before, but then again I only briefly tested platforms, will try it.

Docking: Hmm... as far as I know we didn't explicitly block any ramps in that part of the plot. Do you still have a savegame before you tried to leave, in which it's reproducible ?

[ladirection]

I stopped playing at that point so I guess so. Which file should I send you and where?

[UniTrader]

Second, I docked at a mining station. I had to search crates for gear. I did maybe half of them and then climbed back on my ship to see what would happened. When I entered the bridge and sat down, the girl tell me "I don't think he's quite finished fixing the ship yet". So I go back into the ship's quarters to climb back down but find that the ramp is now closed. Is this a bug? Shouldn't I be able to walk back down and continue exploring the crates until I decide to take off?

did you enter the back room or did you dock again? because entering the CP is the same as undocking

[ladirection]

I didn't try to dock through the menus but on the bridge I could see I was still docked and the girl was telling me we shouldn't leave because the work on our ship wasn't finished so I went back and saw that the ramp was closed.

I'll go see if I have an option to "re-dock" even though I'm still physically docked.

[ladirection]

Well, looks like I won't be able to find out right away because I can't continue my previous game!

When asked if I could send you my save game, I checked for a .sav file like those in X3 but couldn't find any. I now find that no game was saved.

I only played 1 sitting. I have autosave set to ON in the game's settings. But bothe the load game and continue game menu are greyed out.

Edit: I just checked the config.xml, it says <autosave>true</autosave>

[rboerdijk]

When you approach Badlands for the first time, you click the "wrench"-icon and select "dock". Then the discussion between Yisha and the Engineer triggers. If at that point you walk up the ramp and click "Use" on the door, you undock and are back in the cockpit view ( autosaves are created at certain 'events' like leaving a station - at this point, for me, it created an autosave ).

If now you select "enter crew quarters" (from the sidebar) it moves you to the back of the ship, but the docking bay is closed (as intended, since you are not docked anymore). You have to go back into the cockpit ('use' on the door'), Ren sits in his chair, at which you look at bit down towards the station, so you see the wrench-icon again. Then you can re-dock and continue looking for the items.

Concerning savegame, could you try and manually save the game - and then check if there are any *.xml files under Users/<username>/Documents/EgoSoft/X Rebirth/<steamid>/save ?

[YorrickVander]

I've seen this bug in the windows version too, with needing to undock/redock to collect the parts but it doesn't always happen playing through the start again.

[fannt76]

I have a problem on the episode with the first fight - with drones. Every time the ship targets a drone - happens something strange - an OS window swipes right to another desktop, when I swipe back to game - it works fine, until it targets a drome again an swipes from the game to the desktop again. So there is no way to play(

If there is some workaround - please help me, I wonna to continue the game)

Also a minor bug - if you plugged out a monitor from hdmi the sound suddenly stops.

Also there some troubles with light sometimes - in the cockpit or at the station - faces and figures almost black but the eyes are white. Sometimes it's alright. I've got MBP 13 Retina, with a intel Iris graphics (i think)

[rboerdijk]

@fannt76 - I played the campaign to the point where you arrive at Ren's freighter for the first time. Two drones attacked me and I could target them and shoot them ( without my desktop being swiped to the side ). I was playing in windowed mode on desktop 1.

Were you playing fullscreen or borderless?
Does anyone else experience this issue ?

I doubt it's game-specific, but if you send me your savegame (shortly before meeting the drones), I can give it a try anyway, see if I can reproduce it here.

For the broken graphics - do you have a screenshot? You can check which video-card you have by clicking on the apple-symbol (left-top), then "about this mac" and then "system report". Then select "Graphics/Displays" and you should see which card you have.

[Santi]

@fannt76 - I played the campaign to the point where you arrive at Ren's freighter for the first time. Two drones attacked me and I could target them and shoot them ( without my desktop being swiped to the side ). I was playing in windowed mode on desktop 1.

Were you playing fullscreen or borderless?
Does anyone else experience this issue ?

I doubt it's game-specific, but if you send me your savegame (shortly before meeting the drones), I can give it a try anyway, see if I can reproduce it here.

For the broken graphics - do you have a screenshot? You can check which video-card you have by clicking on the apple-symbol (left-top), then "about this mac" and then "system report". Then select "Graphics/Displays" and you should see which card you have.

Seems the issue was resolved, same username so I presume is the same user, from Steam forums:

http://steamcommunity.com/app/2870/disc ... 673805368/

[Eriru Drourojj]

Hi,

Not really knowing anything about game development or programming, and probably some training involved but does apple's announcement at wwdc about making "Swift/Metal" open source change anything?

[ladirection]

I wanted to ask the same thing. I love this game so far but it's very taxing on my system. Do you plan on releasing a future update built on the Metal for OS X API?

[ladirection]

{post merged from a thread about freezes in the Windows version - CBJ}

I'm getting this exact same issue with the Mac OS X version of the game. I'm plying for about 15-20 minutes when the game starts lagging very bad and then it freezes completely for about 30-60 seconds.

Since I started playing, I try to play in short sessions just for that reason

My specs are :

Hardware Overview:

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro6,1
Processor Name: Intel Core i7
Processor Speed: 2.66 GHz
Number of Processors: 1
Total Number of Cores: 2
L2 Cache (per Core): 256 KB
L3 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 8 GB
Processor Interconnect Speed: 4.8 GT/s
Boot ROM Version: MBP61.0057.B0F
SMC Version (system): 1.57f18
Sudden Motion Sensor:
State: Enabled
NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M:

Chipset Model: NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M
Type: GPU
Bus: PCIe
PCIe Lane Width: x16
VRAM (Total): 512 MB
Vendor: NVIDIA (0x10de)
Device ID: 0x0a29
Revision ID: 0x00a2
ROM Revision: 3560
gMux Version: 1.9.22