Bug Reports - Ver. 1.2

Matrix Games Forums

Forums Register Login Photo Gallery Member List Search Calendars FAQ

My Profile Inbox Address Book My Subscription My Forums Log Out

Bug Reports - Ver. 1.2

View related threads: (in this forum | in all forums)

Logged in as: Guest

Users viewing this topic: none

Printable Version

All Forums >> [Current Games From Matrix.] >> [Science Fiction] >> Starships Unlimited v3 >> Bug Reports - Ver. 1.2

Page: [1]

Message

<< Older Topic Newer Topic >>

Bug Reports - Ver. 1.2 - 5/20/2002 10:12:23 AM

Kahn

Posts: 30
Joined: 5/11/2002
From: Abingdon, MD
Status: offline

Hi Andrew,

You or one of the moderators should probably make this thread sticky, as it would be a good place to file all the bug reports under.

Well, I finally got my copy (Despite UPS stating 5 days delivery time and it actually taking 8, and for nearly 1/4 the cost of the game. Any wonder why I say brown looks like the skid marks in my shorts! But I digress.), as I have played it for three days now, these are the software bugs I have discovered so far. After each bug description, in brackets, is the severity of the problem (how much it interfears with the playability of the game), and the repeatability of the problem. All of the following bugs apply to version 1.2 of the program.:
[list]

"Update-SUDG.exe" attempts to connect twice each time it is run. Fails to connect on both attempts and spits out error dialog after second failure. [Minor, Always]

Downloaded update will install itself into the wrong directory("{drive}:\Matrix Games\Starships Unlimited Divided Galaxies" vs. "{drive}:\MatrixGames\Starships Unlimited Divided Galaxies"). Corrupted installs can be corrected by ether forcing the install directory into the update install's dialog, or by copying the incorrectly installed update files into the proper directory (just make certain that you don't overwrite the "data" folder). [Minor, Always]

Music/FX/Master/etc. volumes will adjust when set, but all return back to full volume once a new music track is loaded, though the settings remain unchanged. Volume readjusts back to setting when mouse is left clicked over bar under "Options" menu. [Minor, Always]

Starships in the process of being outfitted in drydock have the annoying habit of resetting the component screen when you try to Right Click (activating the ingame help dialog) on a component to study what it does. [Minor, Always]

The change deal option in negotiations works only in very few instances. In most types of negotiations it fails to work. [Moderate, Always]

Crash to desktop. Thank God for the autosave! Game continues normally after resuming from autosaved game. [Moderate, Random/Very Rare]
[/list]

All in all, not bad for a one man show! You've done some good work Andrew. No Major bugs!

Though I doubt from the symptoms exibited by the aforementioned bugs that they are in any way OS or hardware related, I am running a PII, 300 MHz with 256 Megs of RAM under Win 2k Pro OS. Video is NVIDIA RIVA TNT2 Ultra (a Guillemont MaxiGamer Xentor 32), and the sound is a Sound Blaster AWE64.

------------------------------------------------------------

The only other advise I have does not concern the program at all, but rather decisions made by the publisher, Matrix Games.

[list=1]

Ditch UPS! From my 22 years of experience in industry they are the worst in the shipping business. Unless you like receiving complaints from your customers, go with FedEx or Airborne (Never had ether of them dispute that I had dropped of a package with them, unlike UPS, even with a signed and stamped receipt!) Heck, even a ma & pa trucking company can beat UPS for completed deliveries, least loss due to damage in transit, and delivery time!

If your going keep using the oversized CD container, please put a small slab of styrofoam in the container with the CD. When I received my CD it was loose in the container and had suffered some minor scratches from banging around during transit (thank God it still worked, or I'd really would have been miffed).

I realize profit margins are everything, but you folks get poor marks for the lack of a written manual. Most consumers are not going to burn up a $40 ink jet cartridge and have the printer chug away for the better part of 3 hours just to print a 140 page manual! For under $2 a game (assuming a run of 50k) you could place the manual in a larger box with the CD, and reduce the probability of CD breakage to boot. I'm sure the added costs (manual printing and packaging) would be more than mitagated by the reduction in breakage/loss replacement shipments and the reduction of time spent on customer complaints.
[/list=1]

----------------------------------------------------

Well, that's my list so far. I will post any additional bugs I find under this headding and invite others to do the same. I just ask those who choose to add to this post to please read the bugs already posted so as to reduce the developer's load in debugging the game. Thanks!

_____________________________

"The one you have to watch out for is the one you don't see comming!"
[B]Kahn[/B]

Post #: 1

- 5/20/2002 8:55:17 PM

Andrew Ewanchyna

Posts: 229
Joined: 8/24/2001
Status: offline

Okay, thanks Kahn.

I'll only address the points related to me.

If you ever get a game that consistantly bombs out, then send me the autosave.sav game as an email attachment (to [email]support@apezone.com[/email]) and I'll take a look.

I thought that I'd fixed point 4, maybe it was for the shareware version only? :confused:

I'll check them out.

_____________________________

Developer of Starships Unlimited

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 2

- 5/20/2002 10:30:17 PM

dthrsh

Posts: 6
Joined: 5/19/2002
Status: offline

Amen, I havent recieved the game yet, - i ordered it this weekend- , but I do too work in conjunction with ups. Not only are they slow as hell, but their pricing is out ragious!

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 3

- 5/21/2002 10:03:39 AM

Kahn

Posts: 30
Joined: 5/11/2002
From: Abingdon, MD
Status: offline

Thanks Andrew,

I'm in the process of checking out another bug. This one involves Colonies that have been destroyed, but the star system is still shown as being controlled by the former player (In this case, one whose systems I've already conquered).

The diplomacy display has changed to reflect my capture of the computer controlled player's worlds (Now I'm an empire rather than a federation. Nice touch Andrew! :) ), but the earlier destroyed colony's star system did not revert to my control once I conquered the player who originally owned it. I still need to attempt to see if I can somehow regain control of this last star system through some other means (program will not let me raid, nor capture the star system. Maybe if I try to colonize it again, now that I control the former owner?). If I still fail to eliminate the former owner's possesion, I'll forward the saved game on to you.

_____________________________

"The one you have to watch out for is the one you don't see comming!"
[B]Kahn[/B]

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 4

More bugs. - 5/24/2002 9:59:55 AM

Kahn

Posts: 30
Joined: 5/11/2002
From: Abingdon, MD
Status: offline

Well Andrew, I have finished my investigation to some persistant items during the last game I've played and have concluded that they are indeed bugs (including one that I had previously classified as a pitfall). They are listed here using the same classification system I used earlier, and are present in version 1.2:

[list]

In some instances it is possible to destroy a colony and not have the system go into turmoil. This seems to be related to a problem of the program appearing to "forget" to update the status of some systems during the course of play (note the "attack warning" and "shared system" bugs below). In this particular instance, the colony had no trade routes before I destroyed it. Menu options will not allow the system to be attacked, establish a trade route, nor colonized. Subsequent attempts to duplicate the bug have failed so far. [Moderate, Rare]

Related to the aforementioned bug. Spies discovered an impending attack against one of my systems. I launched a pre-emptive attack on the system I suspect the attack is coming from and destroy the majority of ships there before withdrawing. One ship subsequently attacked the system and was quickly dispatched by the defending armada, but the attack warning (under the important mission's menu) and associated pictograph remained for the entire game. [Moderate, Rare]

Probably related to the first bug mentioned above. A system changed hands between two of the computer players (I did not get the chance to note whether it was by choice or not), and while the owner's color was present on the star system, the former owner still had a Freighter Route line extending to the system. I can definately confirm that this route was not one that mearly passed under the system but indeed terminated in it. [Moderate, Rare]

Damaged ships towed back to a world for repair that do not posses at least one drive and generator will become stuck in an endless loop of repair until manually fixed. Manual fixing of onboard systems cannot be done until all present systems have been fixed. No notification dialog of this will appear as the ship cannot be released from drydock (which is when the notification dialog normally appears). [Minor, Repeatable]

Converse to the aformentioned bug, you will sometimes get the notice that one of your ships does not posses a drive (never told me which one), but on subsequent inspection no ship could be found that met this condition. All drydocks were empty, and all ships were accounted for and operational. [Minor, Rare/Random]
[/list]

I will attempt to attach a file of the game that I saved that illistrates the first three bugs, though I don't know if it will work as I notice "Attach file: Maximum size: 0 bytes" at the bottom of this post. If this fails, I will attempt to mail it to you.

Sincerely,

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

"The one you have to watch out for is the one you don't see comming!"
[B]Kahn[/B]

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 5

- 6/1/2002 2:46:28 AM

tromper

Posts: 3
Joined: 5/15/2002
From: Portland, OR
Status: offline

I agree about the loose cd in the package problem! The tines that grip the cd were broken and the cd was slightly scratched when I first opened the package. It's irritating to have a game cd-rom that I can't store in the original packaging. I recommend that future releases (and I hope there are some coming down the pike) use the traditional jewel case...or even in envelopes, as the discounted, recently purchased Wizardry 8 did.:cool:

I'm curious what Andrew will be putting out next, SU is by far the best single-developer game I've played since the eighties.

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 6

- 6/1/2002 9:40:22 AM

madmax88

Posts: 143
Joined: 1/14/2002
From: Montreal, Canada
Status: offline

Andrew is thinking of Starships Unlimited 2... :D

A crossover between massively multiplayer 'Merchant empires' and 'Sudg'.

...maybe! ;)

_____________________________

- -mAdMAx

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 7

Two New Bugs! - 6/13/2002 10:14:36 AM

Kahn

Posts: 30
Joined: 5/11/2002
From: Abingdon, MD
Status: offline

Hi Andrew,

Found the first new bug resulting from a unique situation. Events leading up to the bug's discovery were as follows:

Accidentally sent a corvette to a destination who's path sent it through one of the computer opponent's home system. The opponent's home world took some potshots at the passing ship (which was not equipped with assult pods), prompting the ship to stop and retaiate. Fearing that said corvette was no match for the planet's defences, I sent a nearby crusier (via a jump gate) to assist, hoping to draw enough fire from the first ship that I could get it to follow orders and break combat before it was destroyed. Instead, the corvette kicked the crap out of the home world's defences, killing it off just as the crusier materialized. The crusier (equipped with an assult pod) apparently tried to assult now dead planet in the same impulse (month) that it was destroyed. The result was that while my corvette was now free to resume it's normal course, the crusier is stuck at full stop over the planet and fails to obey any and all commands (even fleet and cancel orders commands) to leave the planet!

All systems onboard (including generators, computer, and drive) are at 100% effectiveness and charge, but trying every slight of hand way to get the ship to move has failed. [Major, Rare]

The second bug is that I have on several occasions found derelict enemy or pirate ships in some of my systems. I can find no way of forcing my ships to travel outside their straight-line, patrol paths to go after these ships. I have noticed though that if the ship is a pirate ship, leaving the system for a while will result in the pirate ship disingrating (you find debris on your return to the system once the "explore" option becomes enabled). Unfortunately, if the ship has no crew or weapons (in addition to lack of a drive or generator), and is not a pirate or one of your own ships, it becomes very difficult rid a system of these derelicts. Since they don't pose a threat in the program's eyes, it wouln't let you attack them, leaving only the option of tractoring them to the nearest inhabited system that you own. For some reason it is difficult to get the GUI to recognize that you wish to "rescue" the ship, and once you do manage to "rescue" the ship and tow it back to a starbase, it sits for several years over the planet before repairs begin on it. The GUI should let you have the option to move to where you place the white dot in a consistant manner, as well as giving one the option of ether destroying a derelict ship, or boarding a derelict ship (using assult pods) and transfering artifacts from your ship to the newly captured derelict that would enable repairs (best drive, best generator, repair crew, etc.). [Moderate, Common]

Any word on a new patch?

_____________________________

"The one you have to watch out for is the one you don't see comming!"
[B]Kahn[/B]

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 8

- 7/26/2002 9:40:42 PM

Mitchel

Posts: 1
Joined: 7/26/2002
Status: offline

[QUOTE]Originally posted by tromper
[B]I agree about the loose cd in the package problem! The tines that grip the cd were broken and the cd was slightly scratched when I first opened the package.

This is the way my cd came to me also... Even more..The darn box has this darn sticky junk on it (after you open the seal). Well guess where i put my new CD? Right on the darn sticky junk, I then had a cd with sticky junk all over the data side! (Good thing I backed it up with cdclone.) (why use copyprotection?) Good thing also work has a high speed printer to print the book.:p
Im still a newbee at the game, but it seems more fun then WarcraftIII, (with feels like starcraft to me). :D

(in reply to Kahn)

Post #: 9