Siege in Space!

Width = 400 meters.

By the way, does Space Siege promote any friendly extraterrestrial beings?
If they had mind-melting capability (like Vulcanians) they could help me to set my minds at the right place.

Space Siege now has the last sub-section complete with information about the enemies. Hope there are more than the few listed.

spotted this one tonight..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptpxr4DNfNo

- Oh dear, looks like it's time I upgraded my ancient rig..
- looks brilliant, though! :woot:

Yeah... not bad. I especially like the hints at melee combat. I just can't imagine a Siege engine game without it.

I can't help thinking that the combat action looks like it's geared for a console interface though...

Hmm this could actually be something worth getting after all. But then I have to upgrade my rig as well..

5 new screenshots:

http://www.worthplaying.com/article.php?sid=53313

I think the art style of this game is turning out pretty good. I still like DS because of the style of the games and I'm glad it looks like SS won't look like your average sci-fi game. Of course I'm a bit out of the loop so maybe it does.

more blurbs..
- this time, from gamespot

- hurry up! :woot:

I just spotted this...
http://www.worthplaying.com/article.php?sid=54091

Apparently there is a Space Siege demo due out tomorrow (Monday).

Has anybody else tried to find the demo? The site says to look for it Monday morning and it's still not there. :wacko:

You could always try to get it from here instead.
http://www.gamershell.com/download_30104.shtml

It wasn't actually up in the morning as the article implied... it's there now, and on FilePlanet / FileShack too:
http://www.fileplanet.com/189886/180000/fileinfo/Space-Siege---Demo
http://www.fileshack.com/file.x/12628/Space+Siege+Demo

Looks to be a fairly large download (935MB). Not as big as the DS2 beta, but still quite large. I'll probably download it next week sometime (when I might have some time to check it out).

FYI, I found these system requirements for the demo (posted by an unoficial source though):

I'm about 23% complete with the download as I write this. And you know there will be some screenies of actual gameplay coming. ^^

Edit: Well......crap.

This computer's setup does not support instancing. How can I tell what is installed, and is there any way up upgrade via internet?

Hi guys,

Played the demo twice. Once as strictly human, the 2nd as a modified character. While I think the demo is (quite) a bit on the short side, I was able to play enough to know that I'll be picking it up on release day.

The only thing missing (for me) is a Mini-Map that would help visualize the corridors and ship areas while exploring/questing...I can live apparently with loot solely used to modify weapons and armor. But a bit disappointed because i AM a loot hound and love Sets, Rares, Uniques and such heh

Hopefully there will be an option for a mini-map on the HUD in the Full game.

Regards & Good hunting!

Roland

I also tested out the demo and I agree..it was too short for a 900MB download.

Since I'm much more interested in the engine, I did some poking around...
It appears to be using a souped up DS2 engine and the .ssres files are the same format as Dungeon Siege tank files with a slightly different header. Gas and Skrit files are still in use, but things have been moved around quite a bit and renamed.

Looks like it could be interesting when the full version comes out.

Edit:
Oh, and welcome to SiegeTheDay there Roland.
:welcome:

Might be for sound, not video. See the system requirements in an earlier post.

At least it doesn't require DirectX 10, which is Vista-only!

Indeed, and if you get annoyed about that short demo version:

'Barrel Blast Extreme' Mod (11kB, for SS-Demo only, ReadMe)

But mainly for those who like to die - or able to keep distance.

Discovered why there has been no official posts/discussions at GasPoweredGarage.

All discussions for Space Siege are going on at the Sup Com forums.

Not surprising... they abandoned the GPGarage(Beta) a long time ago. And thanks for the heads up.

Edit: I just entered the contest for the nVidia hardware...
*Sharkull crosses his fingers*
:P

Took a first quick run through the demo last night on an old machine that doesn't meet the system requirements (works, but slowly with lots of lag). I hope my first impressions of the game are due to the performance issues because I was a bit disappointed... I found the interface awkward with a very restricted camera and uninspiring enemies.

I have to say that if my impressions remain the same, I will probably not be buying SS.

I thought it looked pretty good, myself..
though a lot will depend on the size and nature of the map/playing area..

- it could be fun to explore, if the map is 3D-oriented
- with all those walkways and staircases, it could develop quite interestingly..

- I noticed that you had to blow up things to get access to hidden items, which might add some intrigue..

- I'm pretty sure that a camera mod will be among the first to appear..
- it would definitely look better if the camera's view were moved down a bit closer to the action..

- I'll definitely get it, as soon as it's issued.. :woot:

To get at the hidden loot you can shoot up the crates... Shift+RightClick.

What happened to the mini-map?

The demo is now available for ~2 weeks but there is still no official announcement about the demo or even the retail version, and this although according to Amazon Seth will come to your house these days - however at the moment as rather expensive space-vermin-exterminator maybe...

To help him a bit with his hard and godless (GPGless?) work you could download the following unofficial tools, to open or to pack SS tanks.
They are generally based on DS1/2 tools and actually were made for the demo only but they should work with the retail version too. However keep in mind that with DS2 adding further game tanks or exchaning them could invaliate your savegames unless you used All*Saves to start the game - and SS is probably not better in this point!?

And well, primarily these tools are not to promote cheat-mods - hopefully people do something more reasonable and creative with it. Maybe someone could make something like a hoover board (as in Back to the Future) since having such robot-legs must be terribly tiring.

Thanks for the time putting together these tools.

I uninstalled the demo because I couldn't play it. Now I have to download it again so I can check out the files.

Sorry for inconvenience, but actually i have waited some time intentionally before putting these tools online because i really have expected that GPG would make an announcement about the demo or the game and maybe even release an official toolkit (because if GPG deprecated player’s exercise of influence then they surely had chosen a more sophisticated file/tank format).
Also I liked to see some notes how this game should reach a harmonic state although many it expectations like mapping, modding, multiplayer/game-hosting, cheat-prevention, PvP, etc. have to be satisfied at the same time.

I hope GPG’s absence isn't representative for their support on SS, or it will be even more chaotic than with DS2...

i bought the space siege game today at walmart, its interesting to note the evolution of game boxes, i can remember a time when they were big boxes and big thick manuals, then they went to smaller boxes and thin manuals, and now with space siege, its a dvd case for a box and a manual insert.

As far as support goes the readme for the game says Sega is suppose to be one handling support, and the manual makes no mention of this game even being moddable, so i guess that tells us that this is a game that is meant to be played and wont be supported via modding tools by the software company so we will have to resort to using modified tanking tools if it is to be moddable.

anyways the game installed with no problem from the dvd. but the real test comes next the actual game play.

readme.txt from the dvd follows -

Space Siege Release Notes

© 2008 Gas Powered Games. All rights reserved. Space Siege, GPGnet, and Gas Powered Games are the exclusive trademarks of Gas Powered Games Corp. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Multiplayer Connectivity by Quazal. SEGA and the SEGA logo are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of SEGA Inc. All rights reserved. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are property of their respective owners.

For news and updates visit http://www.gaspowered.com
________________________________________
CONTENTS

System Requirements
Installation
How to Install
Basic Game Controls
Gameplay Hints, Tips and Other Information
Savegame Location
Contact Information
Multiplayer Space Siege
GPGnet
Contact Information
General Information
Performance Tips
Troubleshooting
Uninstalling Space Siege

________________________________________
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:
Microsoft® Windows® XP Service Pack 2, Vista
2.6 GHz processor
512 MB RAM
3 GB available hard-drive space
128 MB video RAM or greater, with DirectX 9 Vertex Shader / Pixel Shader 2.0 support (Nvidia 6800/ATI 9800 or better)
Sound card, instancing required
Broadband internet connection (DSL/Cable).

RECOMMENDED SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:
3.0 GHz Intel or equivalent AMD processor or better
1 GB RAM or better
3 GB available hard-drive space
256 MB video RAM, with DirectX 9 Vertex Shader / Pixel Shader 2.0 support (Nvidia 8000 series or better)
Sound card, instancing required
Internet connection with Cable/DSL speeds

INSTALLATION

How to Install
Place the Space Siege disc into your DVD-ROM drive. If the Installer does not automatically run within one minute, manually Explore the disc and run "Setup.exe" to launch the Installer.

Follow the on-screen directions.
NOTE: GPGnet can not be uninstalled from add/remove programs if the Microsoft .NET Framework is uninstalled first. To reinstall the Microsoft .NET Framework visit the Microsoft Download Center
________________________________________
BASIC GAME CONTROLS

Move     Left click on valid destination
Shoot                                      Right click on valid target
Use Interactive Object (containers, doors, lifts, etc.) Left click on object in world.
Move Skills on UI Action Bar Left click and drag to move skills on Action Bar.
Pick Up Left click on item or Z key (picks up all items around Seth in set radius)
Toggle weapons Left click on weapon toggle arrow.
Select New Weapon Left click on weapon to change; Left click on new weapon in pop up menu.
Open Abilities/Skills/Character/Mission Log/Map page Left click on the appropriate button on the bottom right hand side of the screen
Install Cybernetic Upgrade Click on the Cybernetic component you wish to install. You must be at an Autodoc to install
Purchasing Skills Left click on skill icon.
Set an Ability to an Action Bar Click and drag Ability from Ability Button Window to Action Bar
Focus on Enemy (Target Enemy) Right click on enemy.
Keep focus on Targeted Enemy. Continue to hold right click on a targeted enemy.
Activate an Ability Press corresponding hotkey.
Use ability on target Abilities are automatically directed at the current target. Thrown objects such and gernades and traps will be thrown towards the cursor
Activate Character Ability 1 1
Activate Character Ability 2 2
Activate Character Ability 3 3
Activate Character Ability 4 4
Activate Character Ability 5 5
Activate Character Ability 6 6
Activate Character Ability 7 7
Activate Character Ability 8 8
Activate Character Ability 9 9
Activate Character Ability 10 0
Activate Robot Ability 1 F1
Activate Robot Ability 2 F2
Activate Robot Ability 3 F3
Activate Robot Ability 4 F4
Activate Robot Ability 5 F5
Activate Robot Ability 6 F6
Activate Robot Ability 7 F7
Activate Robot Ability 8 F8
Activate Robot Ability 9 F9
Activate Robot Ability 10 F10

________________________________________
GAMEPLAY:

There is no single strategy that will always be effective in Space Siege--there are simply too many strategic variables.

________________________________________
SAVEGAME LOCATION

The save game, preferences files, replay files, and other associated game files can be located at:
o XP: [root:]\Documents and Settings\USER\My Documents\My Games\Space Siege
o Vista: [root:]\Users\[name]\AppData\Local\Gas Powered Games\SpaceSiege\savegames\[profile]\
________________________________________
MULTIPLAYER Space Siege:

LAN and Direct IP Multiplayer Connect:

Players can connect to each other either locally over a Local Area Network (LAN) or remotely via direct IP connection. Both connection types use the TCP/IP protocol. To host or join either type of game, click Multiplayer > LAN/IP.

Host a LAN or Direct IP game:

1) From the Main Menu, click Multiplayer > LAN/IP.
2) Enter your nickname.
3) Click “Host”.
4) Enter the Game Name that you want other players to see.
5) Enter a custom port or leave it set to “Auto” (recommended).
6) Click “Create”.

If you have players joining via Direct IP, you will need tell them your IP address, along with the Port on which the game is running. The game will tell you the current Port number in the chat area of the Game Lobby.

Join a LAN game:

1) From the Main Menu, click Multiplayer > LAN/IP.
2) Enter your nickname.
3) Click on any available games in the highlighted Server List window. Information on that game will be displayed in the Server Information window to the right.

Join via Direct IP:

1) From the Main Menu, click Multiplayer > LAN/IP.
2) Enter your nickname.
3) Click the “IP Address/Hostname” field at the bottom of the window. This area will become highlighted, and a cursor will appear in the field.
4) Enter a valid IP address or Hostname into the “IP Address/Hostname” field.
5) Enter the Port number in the “Port” field.

If you wish to join a LAN game instead, simply click in the “Server List” window to highlight it, choose a server, and press Join as normal.

GPGnet:

GPGnet is an Internet gaming service provided by Gas Powered Games which allows players to meet up, challenge other players, join games, and compete in a worldwide ranking system, all without paying any special connection charges.

In order to use GPGnet, your computer must have the TCP/IP protocol installed, and must provide TCP/IP support for 32-bit applications.

Product Key Required
• You must have installed Space Siege with a valid product key in order to connect to GPGnet and play online. A product key cannot be connected to GPGnet by two PCs at the same time. If upon connection to GPGnet you receive an error message related to your product key, please re-install Space Siege and enter a valid product key.

Online Knowledge Base
• GPGnet includes an extensive Knowledge Base with troubleshooting information for both GPGnet and Space Siege. You can find the Knowledge Base by opening GPGnet and going to Help > GPGnet Knowledge Base.

.NET 2.0 Framework Required
• GPGnet requires the .NET 2.0 Framework installed in order to function. The necessary files are normally installed along with your installation of Space Siege. Some users, however, must install the framework separately. If you receive an error message reading "can't find MultiplayerClient.exe," this is usually caused by a failure to have .NET 2.0 installed. You can locate the files by using Windows Update or by visiting http://www.microsoft.com/net.

Firewall settings
• Open ports 6112 to UDP traffic, and open 9104 to UDP traffic. These are among the most common ports used by online multiplayer games. Space Siege cannot be modified to use other ports. Also, open ports 30340 and 30341 to UDP traffic, for GPGnet to function. Make sure that GPGnet and Space Siege appear on your Windows Firewall exception list, and the exception lists of other firewall products you are currently running. If you are behind a DMZ, disable all on-access scanners.

Anti-virus software
• Many users of antivirus software (such as Nvidia Access Manager, NOD32, Norton, PandaSoft, etc.) are unable to connect to GPGnet, experience poor performance or game crashes. If you experience trouble, we suggest that users place both Space Siege and GPGnet on the exception lists for these software products or otherwise disable them during gameplay.

If you CAN connect to GPGnet, but CANNOT connect to games
• First, please understand that Space Siege is a peer-to-peer multiplayer game, meaning that open connections must exist between all the players attempting to play. While common for RTS games, this configuration differs significantly from server-client games such as first-person shooters and MMOs. If you CAN connect to GPGnet, but CANNOT connect to games, this is likely a firewall or antivirus conflict either with your own connection, or your opponent's connection. It is not uncommon for players to be able to connect to server-client games but be unable to connect to peer-to-peer games. Please see the steps above to open your connection to all necessary traffic in order to play.

If you CANNOT connect to GPGnet
• If you have firewall software, please make sure you have ports 6112, 9104, 9105 and 1101 open to UDP traffic.

Automatic patch downloads
• GPGnet automatically delivers patches of itself and of Space Siege to connected players. If patching fails, never seems to end or aborts, make sure you don’t have anything in the background that is either updating Windows or using your Internet connection during the patch download and application process.

Routers with Symmetrical NAT
• Certain routers that use symmetrical NAT may not work well with GPGnet and Space Siege. These routers are very rare, and most have firmware updates available to fix the problem. If you are using a router with symmetrical NAT, please contact the manufacturer to see if there are firmware updates available.

________________________________________
CONTACT INFORMATION

General Information
http://www.SEGA.com
http://www.gaspowered.com

Technical Support
The SEGA technical support department will attempt to help you resolve any problems that you may experience with Space Siege.

Please note that each GPGnet profile is stored on Gas Powered Games’ GPGnet servers and may be deleted by Gas Powered Games when abandoned by the GPGnet account owner who created it. Such abandonment is determined by the same rules that apply to GPGnet accounts. To prevent the deletion of your GPGnet profile, be sure to play with it long enough upon creation and often enough thereafter to prevent abandonment.

Web-based technical support can be found on the support section of our web site at http://info.SEGA.com/support/

Prior to contacting our technical support representatives, we ask that you have the following information available.
• Your phone number
• Your e-mail address and Postal address
• Model of computer you are using
• The version of the Windows operating system you are using
• Manufacturer information for the DVD-ROM, mouse, and keyboard peripherals you are using
• The SEGA game you are having problems with (e.g. , Space Siege)
• Description of the problem or the error message you received
Support web address: www.SEGA.com/support
E-mail Address:

Our support representatives will not answer questions pertaining to game playing hints, product release dates, and other non-technical issues.

________________________________________
PERFORMANCE TIPS

Graphics Settings:
- Shadows: Alters the quality of shadow generation. Off: no shadows. Low: shadows are cast onto the terrain only. Medium: shadows are cast on terrain and meshes High: same as medium but filtered to soften edges.
- Lighting detail: Lets the user select the number of anti-aliasing samples (or no anti-aliasing.)
- Texture Detail: Lets the user specify how detailed the textures should be. Basically, the user is using this to limit the size of the textures used.
- Level Of Detail: Modifies the rate at which lower resolution models are "swapped in" as the camera pulls away.
- Vertical Sync: When turned on, the system waits for a vertical refresh before presenting the next frame to the screen.

Background Applications and Performance
Programs that run in the background while on the Internet, such as ICQ, web browsers, voice communication applications, or file sharing programs cut into the speed at which Space Siege plays. Turning off these Internet-specific applications can also increase your game speed. Antivirus and firewall software also commonly contribute to performance issues. If you experience performance problems with Antivirus or firewall software try to configure the software to exclude Space Siege from security checks. Contact your software vendor for details.

System RAM and Performance
Another method of increasing performance in Space Siege is to add RAM to your computer if you are playing on a 512MB system. Space Siege can consume a great deal of memory. This process is slower than using RAM directly, and while the speed of your processor is a factor in the performance of the game, additional memory can greatly enhance your game speed on baseline systems.

Dual Core and Performance
Space Siege will utilize your dual and quad core processor natively and automatically. Running a dual or quad core processor is one of the best ways to improve performance in Space Siege.

Updated Video Drivers
It is highly recommended that you install the latest drivers for you video card. These can be downloaded from your video card manufacturer's website. Please visit http://www.nvidia.com/ or http://www.ati.com/ depnding on the type of card you have.

Updated Sound Drivers
If you are experiencing problems with audio, or general performance problems, you should check with your soundcard manufacturer to see if there are updated drivers available. These can usually be obtained from the soundcard manufacturer website.

Cursor Lag
Some lower end systems may experience a sluggish cursor when running Space Siege in fullscreen mode, particularly in lower framerate situations. A user can eliminate this by utilizing the chat console within the game.
To activate this, do the following :

1. Start up "Space Siege" and either start a game or load an existing one.
2. Once the game has begun, press the ‘Enter’ key to bring up the chat console.
3. Type “forceflushbeforepresent” (without the quotes) into the chat field.
4. Press enter to submit the text. You can toggle this setting off again by entering this text again from within the chat console.

Motherboard Drivers
Often motherboard drivers are overlooked when updating systems, and as a result most computers are running very old versions that simply do not work properly and may cause very noticeable slow downs and stability issues. Please check with your motherboard manufacturer to see if there are updated drivers available.

Enabling or Disabling Secondary Monitor
Space Siege may crash when enabling or disabling the secondary monitor.

Disabling and Enabling Windows' Language Switching
Steps to disable Windows’ on the fly language switching, which can interfere with in-game debug commands utilizing the Alt and Shift keys:

1. Open the “Control Panel”, and select “Regional and Language Options”
2. Open the “Languages” tab and press [Details…]
3. Press [Key Settings…]
4. Select “Switch between input languages” and click [Change Key Sequence…]
5. Uncheck the checkbox by “Switch input languages”

Steps to re-enable Windows’ on the fly language switching which can interfere with in-game debug commands utilizing the Alt and Shift keys:

1. Open the “Control Panel”, and select “Regional and Language Options”
2. Open the “Languages” tab and press [Details…]
3. Press [Key Settings…]
4. Select “Switch between input languages” and click [Change Key Sequence…]
5. Check the checkbox by “Switch input languages”

________________________________________
TROUBLESHOOTING

- Save Game Error: "Save Failed! Error writing data during serialization." This error occurs when you attempt to make a save file and are out of hard drive space. You need to clean up sufficient space on your hard drive before attempting to save again.
- In windowed mode, if the screen goes black but music is still playing, attempt to manually resize the window. In this circumstance, the game has not crashed, it is likely just that an edge of the window was clicked but the resize mode hasn't completed. By manually clicking on the edge of the window, you can finish the resize command.

If you launch the game and it gives an error that it can't fina a PhysX?????.dll, try re-installing the game. If this doesn't fix it, you can download the latest PhysX drivers at: www.nvidia.com. Then choose SUPPORT then DOWNLOAD DRIVERS then NVIDIA PHYSX SYSTEM SOFTWARE. THis should resolve the error message on launch

Dual Monitor Mode:
- It is possible to set your primary monitor out of range if you set an invalid resolution on your primary monitor and ANY resolution on your secondary monitor. To get out of this mode, go to your start menu and load Space Siege through the Safe Mode link.
________________________________________
UNINSTALLING

Uninstalling Space Siege:
To uninstall Space Siege: follow these steps:
1. Click on the Start menu
2. Choose Control Panel
3. Double-click Add/Remove Programs
4. Select Space Siege:
5. Click Remove
6. Follow the on-screen instructions.
When uninstalling Space Siege, you are given the option to delete your saved games, screenshots, and replays. Your GPGnet profile will remain on GPGnet and you may still play over GPGnet from any system that has Space Siege installed.

NOTE: GPGnet can not be uninstalled from add/remove programs if the Microsoft .NET Framework is uninstalled first. To reinstall the Microsoft .NET Framework visit the Microsoft Download Center
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So it has been written, and so it shall cometh to pass! Quothe The Darkelf, forevermore!