Linux Support

[duduche7]

After a success try of X4 Foundation base with Steam on Arch Linux, I just buy the full pack on GOG with all extensions.
I installed them manually but get stuck on black window, then I installed Heroic Game Launcher,(I like it) and try to run it but same result, a got a black window.
Here the log without Heroic Game Launcher:

Code: Select all

./start.sh
Running X4: Foundations

Here the log with Heroic Game Launcher:

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(22:47:36) [INFO]:    Launching "X4: Foundations" (gog)
(22:47:36) [INFO]:    Native? true
(22:47:36) [INFO]:    Installed in: /home/a/Games/Heroic/X4 Foundations 

(22:47:36) [INFO]:    System Info: 
CPU: 32x Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-14900KF
Memory: 134.89 GB (used: 15.47 GB)
GPUs:
  GPU 0:
    Name: NVIDIA Corporation GeForce RTX 3090 Founders Edition
    IDs: D=2204 V=10de SD=147d SV=10de
    Driver: nvidia
OS: EndeavourOS 6.18.1-arch1-2 (linux)

The current system is not a Steam Deck
We are not running inside a Flatpak container

Software Versions:
  Heroic: 2.18.1 "Waterfall Beard" Jorul
  Legendary: 0.20.37 Exit 17 (Heroic)
  gogdl: 1.1.2
  comet: comet 0.2.0
  Nile: 1.1.2 Will A. Zeppeli

(22:47:36) [INFO]:    Game Settings: {
  "preferSystemLibs": false,
  "nvidiaPrime": false,
  "enviromentOptions": [],
  "wrapperOptions": [],
  "useSteamRuntime": false,
  "language": "",
  "beforeLaunchScriptPath": "",
  "afterLaunchScriptPath": "",
  "verboseLogs": true,
  "disableUMU": false
} 

(22:47:36) [INFO]:    Launching X4: Foundations: HEROIC_APP_NAME=1588366064 HEROIC_APP_RUNNER=gog GAMEID=umu-0 HEROIC_APP_SOURCE=gog STORE=gog STEAM_COMPAT_INSTALL_PATH="/home/a/Games/Heroic/X4 Foundations" LD_PRELOAD= GOGDL_CONFIG_PATH=/home/a/.config/heroic/gogdlConfig /opt/Heroic/resources/app.asar.unpacked/build/bin/x64/linux/gogdl --auth-config-path /home/a/.config/heroic/gog_store/auth.json launch "/home/a/Games/Heroic/X4 Foundations" 1588366064 --platform linux 

(22:47:36) [INFO]:    Game Output:
Running X4: Foundations
============= End of log =============

I also checked :

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~ vulkaninfo --summary
==========
VULKANINFO
==========

Vulkan Instance Version: 1.4.335


Instance Extensions: count = 24
-------------------------------
VK_EXT_acquire_drm_display             : extension revision 1
VK_EXT_acquire_xlib_display            : extension revision 1
VK_EXT_debug_report                    : extension revision 10
VK_EXT_debug_utils                     : extension revision 2
VK_EXT_direct_mode_display             : extension revision 1
VK_EXT_display_surface_counter         : extension revision 1
VK_EXT_surface_maintenance1            : extension revision 1
VK_EXT_swapchain_colorspace            : extension revision 5
VK_KHR_device_group_creation           : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_display                         : extension revision 23
VK_KHR_external_fence_capabilities     : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_external_memory_capabilities    : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_external_semaphore_capabilities : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_get_display_properties2         : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_get_physical_device_properties2 : extension revision 2
VK_KHR_get_surface_capabilities2       : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_portability_enumeration         : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_surface                         : extension revision 25
VK_KHR_surface_protected_capabilities  : extension revision 1
VK_KHR_wayland_surface                 : extension revision 6
VK_KHR_xcb_surface                     : extension revision 6
VK_KHR_xlib_surface                    : extension revision 6
VK_LUNARG_direct_driver_loading        : extension revision 1
VK_NV_display_stereo                   : extension revision 1

Instance Layers: count = 6
--------------------------
VK_LAYER_NV_optimus               NVIDIA Optimus layer         1.4.312  version 1
VK_LAYER_NV_present               NVIDIA GR2608 layer          1.4.312  version 1
VK_LAYER_VALVE_steam_fossilize_32 Steam Pipeline Caching Layer 1.3.207  version 1
VK_LAYER_VALVE_steam_fossilize_64 Steam Pipeline Caching Layer 1.3.207  version 1
VK_LAYER_VALVE_steam_overlay_32   Steam Overlay Layer          1.3.207  version 1
VK_LAYER_VALVE_steam_overlay_64   Steam Overlay Layer          1.3.207  version 1

Devices:
========
GPU0:
        apiVersion         = 1.4.312
        driverVersion      = 580.119.2.0
        vendorID           = 0x10de
        deviceID           = 0x2204
        deviceType         = PHYSICAL_DEVICE_TYPE_DISCRETE_GPU
        deviceName         = NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090
        driverID           = DRIVER_ID_NVIDIA_PROPRIETARY
        driverName         = NVIDIA
        driverInfo         = 580.119.02
        conformanceVersion = 1.4.1.3
        deviceUUID         = 4ed71e80-7a0e-0ae0-c99e-383d1fd23419
        driverUUID         = ac5a2e80-4f42-5a50-be6f-f001ee857b2a

and

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ldd /home/a/Games/Heroic/X4 Foundations/game/X4
        linux-vdso.so.1 (0x00007f4401fd7000)
        librt.so.1 => /usr/lib/librt.so.1 (0x00007f4401f96000)
        libstdc++.so.6 => /usr/lib/libstdc++.so.6 (0x00007f4401c00000)
        libdl.so.2 => /usr/lib/libdl.so.2 (0x00007f4401f91000)
        libpthread.so.0 => /usr/lib/libpthread.so.0 (0x00007f4401f8c000)
        libluajit-5.1.so.2 => lib/libluajit-5.1.so.2 (0x00007f4401800000)
        libavformat.so.55 => lib/libavformat.so.55 (0x00007f4401400000)
        libavcodec.so.55 => lib/libavcodec.so.55 (0x00007f4400600000)
        libswscale.so.2 => lib/libswscale.so.2 (0x00007f4400200000)
        libswresample.so.0 => lib/libswresample.so.0 (0x00007f43ffe00000)
        libavutil.so.52 => lib/libavutil.so.52 (0x00007f43ffa00000)
        libopenal.so.1 => lib/libopenal.so.1 (0x00007f43ff600000)
        libogg.so.0 => lib/libogg.so.0 (0x00007f43ff200000)
        libvorbis.so.0 => lib/libvorbis.so.0 (0x00007f43fee00000)
        libvorbisfile.so.3 => lib/libvorbisfile.so.3 (0x00007f43fea00000)
        libSDL2-2.0.so.0 => lib/libSDL2-2.0.so.0 (0x00007f43fe600000)
        libvulkan.so.1 => /usr/lib/libvulkan.so.1 (0x00007f4401ef2000)
        libX11-xcb.so.1 => /usr/lib/libX11-xcb.so.1 (0x00007f4401eed000)
        libuuid.so.1 => /usr/lib/libuuid.so.1 (0x00007f4401ee3000)
        libm.so.6 => /usr/lib/libm.so.6 (0x00007f4401af2000)
        libz.so.1 => lib/libz.so.1 (0x00007f43fe200000)
        libgcc_s.so.1 => /usr/lib/libgcc_s.so.1 (0x00007f4401eb6000)
        libc.so.6 => /usr/lib/libc.so.6 (0x00007f43fde00000)
        /lib64/ld-linux-x86-64.so.2 => /usr/lib64/ld-linux-x86-64.so.2 (0x00007f4401fd9000)
        libbz2.so.1.0 => /home/a/GOG Games/X4 Foundations/game/lib/libbz2.so.1.0 (0x00007f43fda00000)
        libatomic.so.1 => /usr/lib/libatomic.so.1 (0x00007f4401ea9000)

Everything look fine, please help me to solve it, THANKS

PS: I have a dual boot with PopOs also and checked but same result, black window. I also tried by renaming X4 of Steam (72.1Mb) to X4.orig and copy the X4 (72Mb) from GOG but when I try to run with Steam I got the same black window.

[Alan Phipps]

I don't know if this is important but your Heroic launcher doesn't seem to have a language selected and so X4 may not be loading language and text packs. If defaults are set up anyway then ignore this.

[duduche7]

7th of November 2025, X4 on GOG, Debian Trixie with an NVidia GTX1660 Ti. Also need to use "./X4 -logfile log.txt" for it to run otherwise I get a black screen slightly shifted away from the border???

This isn't easy to figure out either. I had just about given up and was kinda half arsed browsing through the this forum topic when my eye caught "./X4 -logfile log.txt". Then I thought it was about the Steam version because I couldn't find the X4 executable. I was looking at the start.sh script (which is what the game shortcut refers to) which is a directory higher??? I guess that's a GOG thing I'm not familiar with. "./start.sh -logfile log.txt" does not work b.t.w. This can't be fixed??? is a bit crazy.

I got the same issue and your way to lunch the game also work for me and solved my problem, even if when I exit the game I got an exception:

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game ./X4 -logfile log.txt
[1]    545666 segmentation fault (core dumped)  ./X4 -logfile log-gog.txt

and the file log.txt do exist in /home/duduche7/.config/EgoSoft/X4.

Question for the X4 developer team:
Why this parameter is required ? and if it is required and not provided, why just not exit immediately and give an error message for that required param.
Why if there are some parameters, the --help or -H does not work and give the same result as no param, that a black window with nothing append.
Please fix this major issue, it is an easy fix, Thanks

[xrogaan]

The segfault on exit is kind of known. But since it happen on exit, I wager that it isn't high on egosoft priority as it is not game breaking.

As for the logfile argument allowing you to play the game, they don't seem to know either.

[PGeyer-Ego]

Hello all!

After this came up again, I took a look at the GOG build and... I managed to reproduce the issue!

The good news is that we will be fixing this in future builds, so it should no longer be an issue going forwards.
In the meantime we cannot suggest any better solution for existing versions of the game, other than just doing what you're doing and enabling the logfiles.

Thanks to allpurposemat for help with this one!

- PG

[Ormaz]

Hi!

Edit:

Using the steam version on CachyOS, the splash screen is appearing whenever i open the map or interacting with it. It happens with the native or proton version
If launch it in gamescope (

Code: Select all

gamescope -W 2560 -H 1440 -b -r 144 --force-grab-cursor -- %command% -skipintro

), it works perfectly

[ulterno]

Hi!

Edit:

Using the steam version on CachyOS, the splash screen is appearing whenever i open the map or interacting with it. It happens with the native or proton version
If launch it in gamescope (

Code: Select all

gamescope -W 2560 -H 1440 -b -r 144 --force-grab-cursor -- %command% -skipintro

), it works perfectly

I have had the same problem. (my previous comments in the same thread)

If it matches, you should be getting the splash screen on map and menus open/close only when on foot and not when sitting in a ship's seat.

The problem seems related to KWin+Wayland. If your problem is occurring with X11, then it is a different problem.

Workaround that I use:
KDE System Settings -> Window Management -> Window Rules:
- Create a Window Rule for the X4 window and add the following Rules
- Ignore Requested Geometry - Force - Yes
- Size - Force - 1919 x 1080 [do it according to your screen size, so 2559 x 1440]
- Keep this Window Rules setting disabled and enable it after starting the game. Disable it every time after closing the game window and reenable after starting it again.

In my case, the monitor screen resolution is 1920x1080, so I just reduced 1 pixel length and made it 1919x1080. You can also do 1920x1079 or reduce it by more than 1 pixel lengths. Either one works.

Alternatively, if you have 2 GPUs, then you can set plasma to use the GPU that X4 is not using and that might fix this problem (it did for me until the other GPU stopped working (maybe it was just old, maybe something else)).

[Artan]

Hi,

Same problem.
In the last post in this thread (viewtopic.php?t=473271), I mentioned what works for me :

Workaround :

Create window rules on kde plasma for X4 :

1. Size force to 2560x1439 (1 pixel less than your resolution)
2. Fullscreen force to yes

(No need to disable it before launching the game for me. The rule is permanently active.)

X4 native linux version :
Borderless in game options.
Positive points : alt tab ok, vrr ok
Tradeoff : not the same perfornance level as the proton version

X4 proton version :
Fullscreen in game options.
Positive points : best performances, vrr ok
Tradeoff : In borderless mode, alt tab is broken/unusable. In fullscreen, when alt tab, the game is minimized.

[ulterno]

(No need to disable it before launching the game for me. The rule is permanently active.)

How does that work? In my case, if the rule is active before launching the game, it ends up not applying (maybe dual monitors has something to do here?) and then I have to disable and re-enable it while running.
I am still using HF3 (GoG) though, so maybe something about that.

X4 proton version :
Fullscreen in game options.
Positive points : best performances, vrr ok

Interesting.
Perhaps I should try out the windows version. Maybe it also doesn't have the VRAM filling problem.
Though honestly, I would really like to keep using and support the Linux Native version for every game that has one.

[lelevup]

Hello everyone. I apologise for my English, I am using an automatic translator so as not to make too much of a fool of myself...

I am a brand new user of CachyOS (KDE Plasma) and GNU/Linux in general, and I have encountered both the random appearance of the splash screen during gameplay and the inability to use the gamepad (Xbox Series-type) as a mouse, e.g. on the map. In the latter case, the cursor is visible but remains stationary. It should be noted that when I try to move the cursor on the map, the options are highlighted as if the cursor itself were placed there.

I tried using the string

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gamescope -W 2560 -H 1440 -b -r 144 --force-grab-cursor -- %command% -skipintro

as suggested in the latest posts in this thread but I only solved the problem with the start-up screen, which now no longer appears randomly.

Thanks in advance for your help. I'd really hate to have to go back to Windows just to play X4.

[Rastuasi]

Hello everyone. I apologise for my English, I am using an automatic translator so as not to make too much of a fool of myself...

I am a brand new user of CachyOS (KDE Plasma) and GNU/Linux in general, and I have encountered both the random appearance of the splash screen during gameplay and the inability to use the gamepad (Xbox Series-type) as a mouse, e.g. on the map. In the latter case, the cursor is visible but remains stationary. It should be noted that when I try to move the cursor on the map, the options are highlighted as if the cursor itself were placed there.

I tried using the string

Code: Select all

gamescope -W 2560 -H 1440 -b -r 144 --force-grab-cursor -- %command% -skipintro

as suggested in the latest posts in this thread but I only solved the problem with the start-up screen, which now no longer appears randomly.

Thanks in advance for your help. I'd really hate to have to go back to Windows just to play X4.

That string is purely a workaround to Wayland bugs and the system calling redraw of the game screen. You can always switch to X11 for proper compatibility until Wayland gets proper updates in another few years. The controller issue is unrelated, we need the necessary attachments to help further.

[lelevup]

That string is purely a workaround to Wayland bugs and the system calling redraw of the game screen. You can always switch to X11 for proper compatibility until Wayland gets proper updates in another few years. The controller issue is unrelated, we need the necessary attachments to help further.

I removed the string (leaving -skipintro) and switched from Wayland to X11, and now everything seems to be working including the cursor, which now also moves via gamepad.

I apologize for asking a newbie question, but I'm really just getting started with Linux.

[Rastuasi]

No worries at all! I wasn't meaning any discount towards you being a newbie, we all were at one time! I just wanted to give you a quick rundown on the issues. Your issue with controller may be similar to me on wayland that i see with joysticks. It sees my joystick fine on steam and other games use it fine, but X4 seems to ignore the axis assignment or simply dont see them. Buttons work, just not the axises. My guess is that Wayland is trying to sandbox applications, but has regressions after 15 years on basic user devices and passing them into said sandbox.

[sirprosik]

Game is already running!

The steam version has been run and closed along with Steam itself.
Then the Gog release fails to start?!?

2 completely separate installs one in .steam and one in /home/user/X4
Common folder in .config however Steam uses the <steamid> folder right?

Logout and re-logon does not fix this but a full reboot so far has.

While you look into 'fixing' the GoG starting of the game please fix this as well.

[CBJ]

You're going to need to be quite a lot clearer about what you think the problem is before we can even look into fixing anything.

[sirprosik]

Error message "Game is already running!" occurs when trying to run the GoG version of the game after running the Steam version. Not trying to run both at the same time just one after the other. Both are installed in different directories. Some file is being read when starting the game that says the game is running when it isn't. Even though they are 2 unique copies.
Only way thus far I have found to run either after running one is to reboot the system. A logout and re-logon is not sufficient to clear the error message.

Other issue is starting the GoG version only works through the CLI which is a known issue messages above say it is being looked into.

[CBJ]

When you exit the Steam version, how long do you wait before starting the GoG version? The cloud sync process that runs when you exit the Steam version can take some time because of the large size of the save files. It will exit eventually but it could take several minutes, or even longer with a slow internet connection.

[chew-ie]

Other issue is starting the GoG version only works through the CLI which is a known issue messages above say it is being looked into.

What known issue are you refering to?

I play the native X4 version from GOG on Fedora 43 with KDE Plasma / Wayland by using Lutris and have zero issues with that - and I don't need any additional "console tricks". So it might be very well a matter of the linux distribution in question and (more likely) the driver / software setup. (Fedora is kind of a bleeding-edge which might explain why my Wayland setup doesn't have the same issues as "CachyOS" as Rastuasi pointed out)

[sirprosik]

Steam cloud is disabled globally.
After closing the Gog version I get the same error attempting to run the Steam version.
Can only clear the popup error by rebooting the computer.
I looked in the Log file but nothing shows which would be related to this.
Game has to start to append to log file? Various NPC's without bodies etc. Consistent message is:

[General] 3254857.33 ========
Commander() called on object ARG Gas Miner Sunder (Gas) Vanguard [364762] which is not commanderable
[=ERROR=] 3254857.33 Commander() called on object ARG Gas Miner Sunder (Gas) Vanguard [364762] which is not commanderable


Big bad Terraforming current event.
Terraforming error trying to Reintroduce Native Fauna to Samsara all plankton in PHQ storage vanished
[General] 3254811.12 ========
Error while executing onEvent script for event: newWareReservation.
Errormessage: P:\SVN\temp\menu_terraforming.lua attempt to index local 'node' (a nil value)
[=ERROR=] 3254811.12 Error while executing onEvent script for event: newWareReservation.
Errormessage: P:\SVN\temp\menu_terraforming.lua attempt to index local 'node' (a nil value)



Other issue scroll up

[chew-ie]

Steam cloud is disabled globally.
After closing the Gog version I get the same error attempting to run the Steam version.
Can only clear the popup error by rebooting the computer.
I looked in the Log file but nothing shows which would be related to this.
Game has to start to append to log file? Various NPC's without bodies etc. Consistent message is:

[General] 3254857.33 ========
Commander() called on object ARG Gas Miner Sunder (Gas) Vanguard [364762] which is not commanderable
[=ERROR=] 3254857.33 Commander() called on object ARG Gas Miner Sunder (Gas) Vanguard [364762] which is not commanderable


Big bad Terraforming current event.
Terraforming error trying to Reintroduce Native Fauna to Samsara all plankton in PHQ storage vanished
[General] 3254811.12 ========
Error while executing onEvent script for event: newWareReservation.
Errormessage: P:\SVN\temp\menu_terraforming.lua attempt to index local 'node' (a nil value)
[=ERROR=] 3254811.12 Error while executing onEvent script for event: newWareReservation.
Errormessage: P:\SVN\temp\menu_terraforming.lua attempt to index local 'node' (a nil value)



Other issue scroll up

Okay, thanks for clearing that up - you are having a problem in the combination of a particular savegame & the linux version of the game.

I thought it was about a general issue with the linux version of the game.