[Brains]

I've just spent a while browing these forums and unfortunately I'm left rather confused.

The original Freespace was the only reason I added my first Windows machine to my all-Mac home network in '98 -- no other space sim had grabbed me by the pants the way Freespace did (the closest I've seen elsewhere was the Playstation title 'Colony Wars: Red Sun'). I bought 'Silent Threat' upon release, and I bought Freespace 2 on release.

I played the campaigns several times, and whenever I had to rebuild Windows or upgrade my machine, the three Freespace titles always went back onto the machine, up until three years ago.

Now, through circuitous means, I've only just found out about SCP, and I'm anxious to relive the glory of the original Freespace campaigns with the enhanced graphics and whatnot on my recently revamped XP machine ... the thing is, I can't figure out how!

What I'm after is a simple, step-by-step how-to that will give me all three original titles (FS1, Silent Threat and FS2) with all audio and all cut-scenes and whatever extras are needed to run the games with the enhanced graphics.


Brains

[Jeff Vader]

If you have FS2 somewhere, install it. Then get Turey's FSO Installer (link in my sig), run it over your FS2 install and choose to download everything. If all goes smoothly (and why wouldn't it), the Installer will detect your FS2 installation and only download everything else.

If you don't have FS2 anymore, just run the Installer and once again choose to download everything. FS1 main campaign and Silent Threat can then be played by using FSPort as a mod with the funky mod option in the Launcher.

And while you're at it, chech out Karajorma's FreeSpace FAQ (link in my sig) and, after installing FSO succesfully, download a fixed adv. training mission to the FS1 main campaign from the Useful stuff for FSO link in my sig. Just punch it into \freespace\FSPort\data\missions. Also, get a few HTL ships that don't come with the mediavps, also from the Useful stuff link.

If problems occur, search the forums. Almost everything has happened before and has been solved.

[Polpolion]

Did you miss this?

[Jeff Vader]

Blimey. I was just thinking about saying something about the Walkthrough to him.

[Polpolion]

Sorry, I didn't read your previous post. Seeing as he can't find any of the walkthroughs, I think it would be more helpful to provide a link, too.

[Jeff Vader]

Providing a link is indeed a good thing to do, since I've repeatedly got some feedback about being an incomprehensible person. Anyways, let's hope that Mr. Brains can get everything working.

[Turey]

Here's a guide to my Installer.

[Brains]

Thanks for the help, lads -- I had a look at Turey's guide and I think I can make sense of it ... it seems to want to download an awfull amount though, so I'll have to wait a couple of weeks for our monthly download limit to be re-set before I give it a go. I'll let you know how I went


Brains

[jr2]

Be sure to copy both the FS2 and FS1 cutscenes (if possible) as mentioned in the link Turey provided... that will also cut your bandwidth.

[Brains]

If you have FS2 somewhere, install it. Then get Turey's FSO Installer (link in my sig), run it over your FS2 install and choose to download everything.

Done that. It still wanted to pull down almost 2 GB. Ouch. The instructions for using Turey's installer I was linked to before are a bit convoluted (I'm a Mac user and about as un-geek as you can possibly get and not be Amish ), but I think I did everything right. I didn't see any notes at the end of the Installer run, though, did something go wrong?

Do I need to follow the instructions from kalfireth as well? What about WMcoolmon's posting here?

... download a fixed adv. training mission to the FS1 main campaign from the Useful stuff for FSO link in my sig. Just punch it into \freespace\FSPort\data\missions.

That folder doesn't appear to exist. Now what?

Also, get a few HTL ships that don't come with the mediavps

So I grabbed that odd 7zip program and got those HTL files, they're now sitting on my desktop. Where do they go?

And do I need the rest of the stuff in that Useful Stuff folder? If so, what do I do with them?

What about my Silent Threat CD, how do I install that?


Brains

[Mustang19]

Done that. It still wanted to pull down almost 2 GB. Ouch. The instructions for using Turey's installer I was linked to before are a bit convoluted (I'm a Mac user and about as un-geek as you can possibly get and not be Amish ), but I think I did everything right. I didn't see any notes at the end of the Installer run, though, did something go wrong?

It should have downloaded properly. As long as you have the game on your hard drive, you're fine.

The fsport/data/missions folder doesn't appear to exist. Now what?

You will need to create it yourself. It isn't there automatically. Has to do with the FreeSpace data structure, which you will learn in time.

So I grabbed that odd 7zip program and got those HTL files, they're now sitting on my desktop. Where do they go?

And do I need the rest of the stuff in that Useful Stuff folder? If so, what do I do with them?

Place the HTL models in the FreeSpace/data/models folder (replacing FreeSpace with whatever your FreeSpace Open directory is called). As for the Useful Stuff folder, I don't know what you're talking about. However, the HTL stuff is in no way necessary to run the game, it just makes things a bit prettier. The MediaVPs handle almost all of the media enhancements.

What about my Silent Threat CD, how do I install that?

You don't. That comes with FSPort.

[Jeff Vader]

Done that. It still wanted to pull down almost 2 GB. Ouch.

The absolutely full installation would download over 3 gigs, so it does actually take note of your FS2 installation.

That folder doesn't appear to exist. Now what?

Create it.

So I grabbed that odd 7zip program and got those HTL files, they're now sitting on my desktop. Where do they go?

The Apollo_HTL.vp goes into your mediavps and fsport folders. The other ships aren't in vps but I've arranged them into folders, so you just have to put each of the files into their appropriate subfolders in \mediavps\data\ and \fsport\data\, like they are in the archives you downloaded (once again, if the folders don't exist, create them).

What about my Silent Threat CD, how do I install that?

Leave it alone. The Silent Threat campaign is included in the FSPort.

Edit:

As for the Useful Stuff folder, I don't know what you're talking about.

He's referring to the Useful stuff link in my sig, where I originally pointed him to. And no, Brains, at the moment I don't think you'll need anything else from there. That is, of course, unless you want to try Bobboau's phunk33 beams. They be pretty and I definitely recommend them.

So I grabbed that odd 7zip program

7-Zip isn't odd. It's a good open source archive handling program.

[Brains]

Well, so far so good, it seems to work!

The ships look more detailed, but where have those fantabulous glowing starclouds of nebulous space-dust in the backgrounds got to?


B.

[Jeff Vader]

Um... you woudln't perchange be referring to the background images of different nebulae? They should be there. Unless there would be a funky situation, in which you've got a campaign vp that takes all the pleasureit can get from LightSpeed's Nebulae, but you'd lack the actual nebulae. In that case, you can d/l LightSpeed's Nebulae (and actually also the campaign file that uses them properly) from the Useful stuff link. Again. Punch it/them into the mediavps folder. Oh, and remember to select the mediavps folder as your mod from the Launcher.

If you meant some other problem, please clarify.

[colecampbell666]

Where do I put the Lightspeed nebulae?

[Mustang19]

In your root FS directory.

If that doesn't work for whatever reason: In FreeSpace/Data/Effects.

[jr2]

Hmm... did you play with your command line options?  As detailed in the Walkthrough Turey mentioned?  At the end of the first post... these options will turn lots of the extra jazz on/off.

PS I do recommend that you play through the FSPort mod first (select "The FreeSpace Main Campaign" in the game's Campaign Room after first selecting the FSPort mod in the Launcher).  Then play the FSPort's Silent Threat Campaign (if you want), then play FS2 (select "mediavps" as the mod in the Launcher).  Just to avoid plot spoilers caused by playing FS2 first.    For a list of the campaigns' chronological order, see here.

My "Features" tab in the Launcher looks like this:

(All enabled, unless specified disabled):

List type:

Graphics:

Enable specular
Enable glowmaps
Enable environment maps
Enable jpg/tga textures
Enable mipmapping
Disable motion debris
Stops fog intersect hull
(not selected - disabled) Disable scale-to-window for movies
Apply Lighting to Missiles (you may or may not want this, check and see if it affects your performance.. turn it on, if you have issues, turn it off.)

HUD:

Another pair of scanning lines
Enable info next to target
Enables 3d radar
Enable Rearm/Repair Completion Timer
Enable the analog ballistic ammo gauge

Gameplay:

Use models for ship selection
Enable 3d warp
Enable flash upon warp
(disable next two, Babylon & Wing Commander...)

Added to "Custom flags":

-ambient_factor 0 -no_emissive_light -fov 0.55 -spec_exp 16.7 -spec_point 0.6 -spec_static 0.9 -spec_tube 1

For tech info, start off by reading karajorma's FreeSpace FAQ.  Then check out the FSWiki.

[Brains]

Thanks for the help guys, so far so good.

First, I don't understand what you mean by 'command line options', I'm a point and click kinda guy.

Second, I've just completed Basic Training Stage 4 but for some reason the cruiser never fired any missiles at me, it just cruised in, sat there, and the misson just ticked away and then the cruiser departed. Glitch?


B.

[Wanderer]

In your root FS directory.

Please don't guide people to install anything into their root directory. Either use separate mod directory for them or place them into for example mediavps directory. Multimod feature is not that difficult to use so that might actually be the best way to do it.

[jr2]

IIRC, the only things that are supposed to go in the root dir are the multi-missions; perhaps LS Neb is another?  Or no?  I don't have LS Neb installed...

Anywho... "command line options" are switches.  eg:

C:\Games\FreeSpace2\fs2_open_3_6_9.exe -spec -glow -env -mipmap -nomotiondebris -2d_poof -missile_lighting -dualscanlines -targetinfo -orbradar -rearm_timer -ballistic_gauge -ship_choice_3d -3dwarp -warp_flash -snd_preload  -ambient_factor 0 -no_emissive_light -fov 0.55 -spec_exp 16.7 -spec_point 0.6 -spec_static 0.9 -spec_tube 1 -cap_object_update 0

everything with a "-whatever" is a "switch" or "flag"

These can be turned on via the handy "Features" section Flag list... not sure how the Mac Launcher looks, so I can only show you how the Windows one looks if you want.