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This is the Overgrowth Alpha FAQ.
- This FAQ is intended for useful tips for new users as well as answer common bug-related questions.
- This FAQ NOT intended as a place for you to post bugs you might have found. If you want to report a bug email it to [email protected].
Please feel free to contribute to this FAQ, and the wiki as a whole!
Your email should contain the following:
- Symptoms that the bug might exhibit.
- Details about the bug.
- Links to forum topics where the issue mentioned has been discussed/resolved.
- Workarounds to help avoid this bug.
- Fixing instructions to help fix the bug if it occurs.
- Any other relevant information.
So, you just pre-ordered Overgrowth?
Awesome! By supporting Wolfire, you show your support to the developers, motivating them and guaranteeing an ever better game, and you get a weekly access to the alpha versions. Read this page to know what the deal is!
I just pre-ordered- what next?
By pre-ordering Overgrowth, you can do two things:
First of all, you need an account on the forum. If you don't have one already, register there. Then follow the link given in your pre-order email, and type your nickname to get access to the SPF.
In the SPF, you'll find a sticky named "Unofficial alpha XX, weekly build". You can check that post out to get the link to download the latest Overgrowth alpha.
The SPF is also a place where all the preorderers discuss about the alpha, speculate about Overgrowth and ask questions to the Wolfire team. Participate and join us in the discussions!
What is the alpha exactly, and what can I do with it?
The alpha is the game at a very early stage. As of now (November 2010), the Alpha includes the ability to play around as either Turner (the protagonist of Lugaru), two new Rabbits and as a Wolf. You're able to fight against another Rabbit, to test out some of the combat mechanics that have been added. Of course, this is all still in a very basic stage and will be heavily improved once the actual game is released. The alpha also includes a basic editor for Overgrowth, which is definitely worth playing around with.
But I just want to play the game!
Unfortunately, the game still has a while to go before its full release. Check out the blog regularly for updates on Overgrowth, and participate in the forums.
Creating content for Overgrowth
As said previously, Overgrowth also includes an editor. Even though you can't play the official game yet, you can still create content for Overgrowth! For more info about that, check out the related sections on the Portal:Overgrowth.
Once you're done with your piece of art, be sure to share it in the SPF or if you feel adventurous upload it to the wiki!
Something Won't Work!
First and foremost, Don't Panic.
Disclaimer: Be prepared for it to just not work at times. Overgrowth is still in its Alpha stage of development, and the team is focusing more on getting essential features in than working out bugs and compatibility issues. The team will get to them, and will try to occasionally fix very pressing bugs, but sadly sometimes it will just take a while. However that doesn't mean that there's nothing you can do!
Here's what you can do:
- Look at the rest of this FAQ to see if there are any that might fit your situation.
- Check the Secret Preorder Forum and use the lovely search feature. For example if on your Windows 7 PC, Overgrowth crashes when your character jumps, search for "Windows 7 Jump Crash".
- Ask on Wolfire's IRC channel. Many users are long time Alpha testers and will be happy to help you.
- Ask John on Meebo. Although John's time is a valuable, non-renewable resource, he will be happy to help you if you need to talk with someone on the team.
Note: if you decide to request help anywhere please include relevant information such as:
- Alpha Number
- If you're running windows, mac or linux
- what version your OS is
- Relevant system information such as what graphics card your computer has, how Much RAM you have, etc.
- Any Error messages that you see.
Overgrowth is running slow on my computer
The Overgrowth alpha is currently set to use the maximum graphics settings, even if this is grossly inappropriate for your computer. There is not currently any UI available to change this, so you will need to edit the config.txt file. On Windows, this is located in %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Wolfire\Overgrowth\Data where %USERPROFILE% is often C:\Users\YOUR_USERNAME and YOUR_USERNAME is your Windows account name. On Mac, you will need to right click the Overgrowth application and choose show package contents. It is then located in the Data folder found in the Contents/Mac OS folder.
Change the following values to these new ones:
screenwidth: 800
screenheight: 600
multisample: 4
anisotropy: 4
texture_reduce: 1
If it's still running slow, try this:
screenwidth: 640
screenheight: 480
multisample: 0
anisotropy: 0
texture_reduce: 2
I can't access all of the GUI. The window crops important parts of the screen.
This turned up, when the default resolution was lowered from 1024x768 to 800x600. You can resolve this issue by changing the settings, either to a higher resolution or to full screen mode. Changing display settings is done in the 'config.txt'-file.
You can find it on computer with Windows system at:
C:\Documents and Settings\Username\My Documents\Wolfire\Overgrowth\Data\config.txt
or a computer with Mac system at:
/Users/Username/Library/Application Support/Lugaru 2/Data/config.txt
The first lines of the default config file should look like this:
screenwidth: 800
screenheight: 600
fullscreen: false
You can change the resolution by changing the values for screenwidth/screenheight and go to fullscreen mode by changing the 'false' to 'true'.
When I try to load a Model it won't work
You need to make sure that you're not loading the model file, but the object file.
- A Model file is a 3d mesh saved as a *.obj file. this file contains no textures or shader data and so cannot be loaded by itself.
- An Object file is an XML that stores the filepaths for all the relevant data of an object, including the Model file as well as the textures and shader.
For example if you are trying to load a file located in Data/Models/example.obj you should really be opening Data/Objects/example.xml
My Custom Map Won't Load in the main menu
- Make sure that you typed the name correctly, including the *.xml ending
- Make sure that it exists in Data/Levels/
- Recently (as at alpha 65) there have been some issues with loading custom maps from the main menu. to make sure this isn't the case:
- Back up the map 'DesertFort_IGF.xml' (for example add "backup" to the name)
- Rename your map as 'DesertFort_IGF.xml'
- Attempt to load it by clicking the Desert map in the main menu.
Windows
I get the following error on startup on Windows
The application has failed to start because its side-by-side configuration is incorrect. Please see the application event
log or use the command-line sxstrace.exe tool for more detail.
Please install the Visual Studio 2005 C++ runtime. You can get it from this URL:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=200b2fd9-ae1a-4a14-984d-389c36f85647&displaylang=en
Error: cannot create the C:\program files\Overgrowth\Data\config.txt file. ...
This error applies to both Lugaru and Overgrowth.
Symptom: When attempting to edit the config.txt file the following error message is displayed:
cannot create the C:\program files\Overgrowth\Data\config.txt file. Make sure the path and file name are correct.
Explanation: Windows Vista & 7 like to save the config file in a different location to the actual directory. As discussed in a thread on the forums[1], The file is actually stored in: C:\Users\USERNAME\Application Data\Local Virtual Store\Program Files/Overgrowth/config.txt
Mac
I can't find the Data folder
With the Mac version of Overgrowth, the Data folder is located within the application package.
You can access it by right clicking the "Overgrowth" application and choosing 'Show Contents", and then browsing to Contents/MacOS/Data
- Note - For some users, "Show Package Contents" may not appear in the right-click menu. A workaround should be posted as soon as a more Mac-savvy user edits this entry.
To make future access easier right click 'Data' and choose 'Make Alias'. Now drag this alias out of the application, somewhere easy to find, on your Desktop for example.
Then, next time you need to open a file from within the Overgrowth package, simply navigate to the alias and you should have access to the Contents of the Data folder.
It says on the forums/blog that you can right click with command+click, but it won't work!
Unfortunately in recent alphas this functionality has been broken.
Right clicking is possible with an external mouse, or on a trackpad with enabled two-finger right click.
Since alpha 67 you can set a keyboard button equivalent to right click. To do so find the "config.txt" file in the Data folder, and add a line for "key[rclick]" if it doesn't exist already. then set that equal to whatever button you want to act as right click.
I want to see live console output, but the console doesn't show it until after the program closes
If you want to see the console output live you will need to run Overgrowth from the Terminal.
To do so right click the Overgrowth alpha, choose 'Show Package Contents', then navigate to /Contents/MacOS/ and double click 'lugaru2'. This will open Overgrowth along with a new terminal window that displays all the data written to the console but in real time.
To make accessing this file easier in the future right click the 'lugaru 2' file, choose 'Make Alias' and drag the resulting file to a more convenient location.
Linux
Running Overgrowth on Linux
Overgrowth's Linux port was introduced in Alpha Build 180. For installation instructions, see the Linux page.
Editting Settings
Overgrowth does not support changing your settings in game as of yet, so if you wish to do this you need to edit default configuration files.
For more information, visit the Modify Configurations page.
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Work in Progress: Comments & Edits Welcome
