NS2 Tech Support FAQ (updated January 6th, 2014)
Flayra
Game Director, Unknown Worlds EntertainmentSan Francisco Join Date: 2002-01-22 Member: 3Super Administrators, NS2 Developer, Subnautica Developer
Game Director, Unknown Worlds EntertainmentSan Francisco Join Date: 2002-01-22 Member: 3Super Administrators, NS2 Developer, Subnautica Developer
With the recent influx of players due to our Steam holiday sales and the Jumble Bundle, we are seeing the following problems.
KNOWN ISSUES & SOLUTIONS
Game keeps asking you to Optimize Shaders, and then says you need to verify the integrity of the cache.
Exit the game. Find NS2 in your games list, right-click it and click "Properties". Click "Local Files" and then choose "Verify integrity of game cache". It should tell you that some files were invalid, and it will automatically download them again. Run the game after this is done, let the game optimize shaders and it should work now.
Game doesn't support Mac/OS X
NS2 does NOT support Mac. We worked on this awhile, but we never finished it. I don't know where it was listed as supporting Mac, but this was a mistake. If you bought the game through Steam and want your money refunded, you have to contact Valve support. For Humble Bundle, you can contact them here.
When I´m connecting to a server, the connection fails. I´ve already checked if I´m connected to steam and if the same problem occurs also in other games.
This may be resolved by lowering the pings per minute setting in Steam. You can do this in the Steam settings under the "Downloads" tab and setting the "Game server browser: max pings / minute" pull down to 500.
The game "tabs back" to the desktop when you start it, even though it's still running.
The game seems to be incorrectly auto-detecting a resolution that isn't supported by your monitor. Find your system_options.xml file in your %appdata%\Natural Selection 2 folder (open Explorer, type %appdata% then hit enter, then browse to the Natural Selection 2 folder). Open it up with Notepad or other editor, then find this line:
<window-mode>fullscreen</window-mode>
...and change it to:
<window-mode>windowed</window-mode>
Then run the game again. You should now be able to play around and find a resolution that works in full-screen.
Main game menu not working - stuck at blank screen
This problem is caused by Steam not properly removing files when it updates. You should be able to fix it with the following:
- Uninstall NS2
- Find your NS2 directory, and remove all remaining files. The directory should be something like C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\Natural Selection 2.
- Reinstall NS2 through Steam normally
The game doesn't start under Linux
There is a problem with the game not working under some versions of Linux. We're not sure what's causing this or how to fix it, so unfortunately you'll probably have to figure it out yourself through these forums and other players, or get a refund from Valve and/or Humble Bundle (above).
After opening menu, some graphics options are blank, the decal life slider is to the far left, even beyond a selectable point. Options can be changed, but neither the "back" nor "apply" buttons will work. Settings cannot be applied, menu cannot be closed or backed out of, and only way to quit game is to use the console command.
This is triggered by one of your settings values being outside of the range of expected values.
There should be a file in this location that stores your settings:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\<steamid>\4920\remote\options.xml
If you delete the line:
<marineVariant>6</marineVariant>
...and then start the game, it should work.
I changed the resolution and then got a black screen and could still hear the game (at a very low fps). Now the game won't start - I get a "Couldn't Initialize Render Device" error.
It seems that the selected resolution is not support on your machine. This can be fixed by deleting the system_options.xml file in the %appdata%\Natural Selection 2 directory. You can find this directory easily by opening Explorer, typing "%appdata%" (no quotes), and hitting enter.
I get a crash dialog from GLSLCompiler.exe.
Switch away from OpenGL to DirectX. You may also be able to fix by deleting the system_options.xml file in the %appdata%\Natural Selection 2 directory. You can find this directory easily by opening Explorer, typing "%appdata%" (no quotes), and hitting enter.
OTHER ISSUES
If your problem isn't listed here, browse this Tech Support problem and you may see an answer there. Otherwise, we may be able to help you with your individual problem. To get support from us:
- Go into your \Games\Steam\steamapps\common\Natural Selection 2 directory (usually C:\ but could be a different drive).
- Find TechSupport.exe in that directory and run it, following the prompts for it to gather lots of info about your system.
- Click "Save", then send that file to us at tech-support@unknownworlds.com.
We can't promise to look into every problem, but if we're not overwhelmed with other things and/or you write us nicely, that will increase the likelihood.
KNOWN ISSUES & SOLUTIONS
Game keeps asking you to Optimize Shaders, and then says you need to verify the integrity of the cache.
Exit the game. Find NS2 in your games list, right-click it and click "Properties". Click "Local Files" and then choose "Verify integrity of game cache". It should tell you that some files were invalid, and it will automatically download them again. Run the game after this is done, let the game optimize shaders and it should work now.
Game doesn't support Mac/OS X
NS2 does NOT support Mac. We worked on this awhile, but we never finished it. I don't know where it was listed as supporting Mac, but this was a mistake. If you bought the game through Steam and want your money refunded, you have to contact Valve support. For Humble Bundle, you can contact them here.
When I´m connecting to a server, the connection fails. I´ve already checked if I´m connected to steam and if the same problem occurs also in other games.
This may be resolved by lowering the pings per minute setting in Steam. You can do this in the Steam settings under the "Downloads" tab and setting the "Game server browser: max pings / minute" pull down to 500.
The game "tabs back" to the desktop when you start it, even though it's still running.
The game seems to be incorrectly auto-detecting a resolution that isn't supported by your monitor. Find your system_options.xml file in your %appdata%\Natural Selection 2 folder (open Explorer, type %appdata% then hit enter, then browse to the Natural Selection 2 folder). Open it up with Notepad or other editor, then find this line:
<window-mode>fullscreen</window-mode>
...and change it to:
<window-mode>windowed</window-mode>
Then run the game again. You should now be able to play around and find a resolution that works in full-screen.
Main game menu not working - stuck at blank screen
This problem is caused by Steam not properly removing files when it updates. You should be able to fix it with the following:
- Uninstall NS2
- Find your NS2 directory, and remove all remaining files. The directory should be something like C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\Natural Selection 2.
- Reinstall NS2 through Steam normally
The game doesn't start under Linux
There is a problem with the game not working under some versions of Linux. We're not sure what's causing this or how to fix it, so unfortunately you'll probably have to figure it out yourself through these forums and other players, or get a refund from Valve and/or Humble Bundle (above).
After opening menu, some graphics options are blank, the decal life slider is to the far left, even beyond a selectable point. Options can be changed, but neither the "back" nor "apply" buttons will work. Settings cannot be applied, menu cannot be closed or backed out of, and only way to quit game is to use the console command.
This is triggered by one of your settings values being outside of the range of expected values.
There should be a file in this location that stores your settings:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\<steamid>\4920\remote\options.xml
If you delete the line:
<marineVariant>6</marineVariant>
...and then start the game, it should work.
I changed the resolution and then got a black screen and could still hear the game (at a very low fps). Now the game won't start - I get a "Couldn't Initialize Render Device" error.
It seems that the selected resolution is not support on your machine. This can be fixed by deleting the system_options.xml file in the %appdata%\Natural Selection 2 directory. You can find this directory easily by opening Explorer, typing "%appdata%" (no quotes), and hitting enter.
I get a crash dialog from GLSLCompiler.exe.
Switch away from OpenGL to DirectX. You may also be able to fix by deleting the system_options.xml file in the %appdata%\Natural Selection 2 directory. You can find this directory easily by opening Explorer, typing "%appdata%" (no quotes), and hitting enter.
OTHER ISSUES
If your problem isn't listed here, browse this Tech Support problem and you may see an answer there. Otherwise, we may be able to help you with your individual problem. To get support from us:
- Go into your \Games\Steam\steamapps\common\Natural Selection 2 directory (usually C:\ but could be a different drive).
- Find TechSupport.exe in that directory and run it, following the prompts for it to gather lots of info about your system.
- Click "Save", then send that file to us at tech-support@unknownworlds.com.
We can't promise to look into every problem, but if we're not overwhelmed with other things and/or you write us nicely, that will increase the likelihood.
Comments
what about the problem with the shaders not compiling on Linux? -> http://forums.unknownworlds.com/discussion/132941/linux-after-update-ns2-hangs-with-a-black-screen-while-hogging-my-cpu
Anyways, I'm talking about the "Reinforced patch" Build 253 (from over 4 months ago) and the hell it unleashed on so many people. Both 32 and 64bit systems alike (usually 4gb ram related) are still having memory errors and crashing hourly during play. For a 32bit game like NS2, it sure demands a lot from our computers. Even one of my own systems to this day cannot run this game anymore. I've helped many people with their systems (and I'm happy to do so), but when it comes to "this problem" there are only a few things I can walk them through, and then it's left up to chance (like the random kind). Sometimes that even includes various overclock support to help turn these kid's 20 minutes of game time into 40 before their next crash+reboot cycle. And I thought 253 opened the funding flood gates?
Yes 4 months is a long time but they've also made a lot of progress. Since even before the Reinforced patch, their performance enhancements has made huge strides and I've thanked them for their work... like with $$$. And if I wasn't a beginner programmer, I would help like SamusDroid does. And I appreciate your bottom comments about 1 on 1 help to people if you're able. That kinda stuff really grows the game; so imagine what solving this memory problem will achieve.
Please add this topic to your list along with maybe some performance suggestions, mod disabling, and other related basics; i'll paste a couple links below. And I love that Eclipse is back! A shining classic I wish more people could see. If we're here to help people, then let's keep important lists and info like yours as complete as possible. This game still has a long successful road ahead.
The 32&64bit Memory Allocation Error:
- forum link to the discussion --> forums.unknownworlds.com/discussion/132243/32-bit-crashes-what-s-going-on-natural-selection-2/p1
- forum link to its description --> unknownworlds.com/ns2/32bit/
I can't play NS2 - it runs, shows menu, but after pressing play and loading it is black screen with cursor (screenshot is in attachments). Game is _not_ freezing, cusrsor moves, steamoverlay works. Game cache is verified.
I ran "steam steam://rungameid/4920 &> natural_selection.log" (can be found in attachments), there's a lot of LUA errors there.
Sorry for my twisted english, it's not my native.
AMD FX8350
GTX 650ti
16gb ram
nvidia-drivers-331.20
Can you try the 263 steam beta?
It should fix many linux issues.
also: http://wiki.unknownworlds.com/ns2/Linux_Guide
My computer specs: I5 3570K - 8GB RAM - GTX 660Ti
My modem / router ADSL is a ZTE ZXHN H108N.
This is the log after trying to join a server:
http://pastebin.com/kB3tLRDB
I've tried enabling dmz and the result is the same and lowering the max pings / minute solution for steam... still can't connect, I hope you can help, because I really liked the first Natural Selection!!
Sorry about my english, it's not my native language...