Difference between revisions of "Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds"
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{{Introduction | {{Introduction | ||
− | |introduction = | + | |introduction = '''''Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds''''' is a {{Glossary:Sci-fi}} {{Glossary:RTS}} set in the ''[[Series:Star Wars|Star Wars]]'' universe and running on the same version of the [[Engine:Genie|Genie]] engine used in ''[[Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings]]''. Compared to ''Age of Empires II'', ''Galactic Battlegrounds'' introduces airborne units and a larger ratio of ranged weapons, but the core gameplay is nearly identical. |
− | |release history = | + | |release history = The game received the '''''Clone Campaigns''''' expansion in May 2002, featuring new campaigns and factions. |
− | |current state = | + | |current state = On modern systems, an unofficial [[#Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch|All-In-One Patch]] is required to fix color palette issues caused by a broken [[Glossary:DirectX/DirectDraw troubleshooting|DirectDraw]] renderer and add widescreen support. This is the only game running an engine by [[Company:Ensemble Studios|Ensemble Studios]] not to receive a high-definition re-release, but a [[#Modifications|modding scene]] is still active, most notably with the [https://www.moddb.com/mods/star-wars-galactic-battlegrounds-expanding-fronts Expanding Fronts] project. |
}} | }} | ||
Line 58: | Line 58: | ||
==Availability== | ==Availability== | ||
{{Availability| | {{Availability| | ||
− | {{Availability/row| Retail | | Disc | {{DRM|SafeDisc| | + | {{Availability/row| Retail | | Disc | {{DRM|SafeDisc|2.40.011}} | | Windows }} |
{{Availability/row| Retail | | unknown | | | OS X }} | {{Availability/row| Retail | | unknown | | | OS X }} | ||
{{Availability/row| GamersGate | star-wars-galactic-battlegrounds-saga | Steam | | | Windows }} | {{Availability/row| GamersGate | star-wars-galactic-battlegrounds-saga | Steam | | | Windows }} | ||
Line 68: | Line 68: | ||
}} | }} | ||
{{ii}} A preconfigured [https://wiki.dotslashplay.it/en/games/star-wars-galactic-battlegrounds Wine wrapper] for Linux is available for the GOG.com release. | {{ii}} A preconfigured [https://wiki.dotslashplay.it/en/games/star-wars-galactic-battlegrounds Wine wrapper] for Linux is available for the GOG.com release. | ||
− | |||
===Version differences=== | ===Version differences=== | ||
{{ii}} '''Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds Saga''' includes the base game along with the Clone Campaigns expansion. | {{ii}} '''Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds Saga''' includes the base game along with the Clone Campaigns expansion. | ||
{{ii}} The digital releases use the background music from the original release, rather than the Galactic Battlegrounds Saga re-release. The background music used in Galactic Battlegrounds Saga, formatted for use in-game, can be downloaded [https://community.pcgamingwiki.com/files/file/1212-galactic-battlegrounds-clone-campaigns-music-for-gog-release/ from the PCGamingWiki community site]. | {{ii}} The digital releases use the background music from the original release, rather than the Galactic Battlegrounds Saga re-release. The background music used in Galactic Battlegrounds Saga, formatted for use in-game, can be downloaded [https://community.pcgamingwiki.com/files/file/1212-galactic-battlegrounds-clone-campaigns-music-for-gog-release/ from the PCGamingWiki community site]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===Trial version=== | ||
+ | {{ii}} A free trial version is available from [https://www.gamefront.com/games/star-wars-galactic-battlegrounds/file/star-wars-galactic-battlegrounds-trial-version GameFront]. | ||
==Monetization== | ==Monetization== | ||
Line 83: | Line 85: | ||
|one-time game purchase = The game requires an upfront purchase to access on platforms other than EA. | |one-time game purchase = The game requires an upfront purchase to access on platforms other than EA. | ||
|sponsored = | |sponsored = | ||
− | |subscription = Available via an {{store feature|EA Play Pro}} subscription. | + | |subscription = |
+ | |subscription gaming service = Available via an {{store feature|EA Play Pro}} subscription. | ||
}} | }} | ||
Line 187: | Line 190: | ||
===[[Glossary:Widescreen resolution|Widescreen resolution]]=== | ===[[Glossary:Widescreen resolution|Widescreen resolution]]=== | ||
− | {{ii}} A No-CD executable is required for this.<ref> | + | {{ii}} A No-CD executable is required for this.<ref>{{Refurl|url=https://www.wsgf.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?p=154791#p154791|title=Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds Patcher|date=May 2023}}</ref> Note that the GOG.com version already ships a decrypted binary and does not require such. |
{{++}} This fix is already included with the [[#Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch|Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch]] and [[#Expanding_Fronts|Expanding Fronts]]. | {{++}} This fix is already included with the [[#Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch|Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch]] and [[#Expanding_Fronts|Expanding Fronts]]. | ||
{{Fixbox|description=Use a widescreen patcher|ref={{cn|date=July 2016}}|fix= | {{Fixbox|description=Use a widescreen patcher|ref={{cn|date=July 2016}}|fix= | ||
Line 329: | Line 332: | ||
|audio = false | |audio = false | ||
|subtitles = true | |subtitles = true | ||
− | |notes = Retail only.<ref> | + | |notes = Retail only.<ref>{{Refurl|url=https://archive.ph/pdISE|title=Novo Milênio, 30/11/2001.|date=9 June 2023}}</ref> Main game and expansion pack.<ref>{{Refurl|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021118110058/https://www.novomilenio.inf.br/ano02/0206bcdr.htm|title=Novo Milênio, 08/06/2002 (archived).|date=9 June 2023}}</ref> |
|fan = | |fan = | ||
}} | }} | ||
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{{ii}} This issue does not occur on Windows 8 and later. | {{ii}} This issue does not occur on Windows 8 and later. | ||
{{ii}} See [[Glossary:DirectX/DirectDraw troubleshooting|DirectDraw troubleshooting]] for further details. | {{ii}} See [[Glossary:DirectX/DirectDraw troubleshooting|DirectDraw troubleshooting]] for further details. | ||
+ | {{Fixbox|description=Use [[#Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch|All-In-One Patch]]|ref=|fix= | ||
+ | }} | ||
− | {{Fixbox|description= | + | {{Fixbox|description=Use [https://github.com/narzoul/DDrawCompat/releases DDrawCompat]|ref={{cn|date=July 2021}}|fix= |
− | + | }} | |
+ | |||
+ | ===Indeo codec missing=== | ||
+ | {{ii}} Upon playing a cutscene, an error message is displayed reading {{code|Video not available. Cannot find 'vids:IV50' decompressor}} instead of the video output, but with audio playing regardless. | ||
+ | {{Fixbox|description=See [[Troubleshooting guide/Startup and launching problems#Video not available. Cannot find 'vids:IV50' decompressor|Troubleshooting guide]].|fix= | ||
+ | }} | ||
+ | {{Fixbox|description=Install the Codinstl codec|ref=<ref>{{Refurl|url=https://steamcommunity.com/app/356500/discussions/0/405693392908045242|title="Video not available. Cannot find 'vids:IV50' decompressor" FIX :: STAR WARS™ Galactic Battlegrounds Saga General Discussions|date=2023-09-08}}</ref>|fix= | ||
+ | # Download the [http://www.cucusoft.com/codecdownload/codinstl.exe Codinstl] codec. | ||
+ | # Run the {{file|codinstl.exe}} file, proceeding through the installer. | ||
+ | # Run the game. | ||
}} | }} | ||
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* Handful of custom map randomizers, and an expanded map editor. | * Handful of custom map randomizers, and an expanded map editor. | ||
* Native widescreen support, and a windowed mode option through an external configuration tool. | * Native widescreen support, and a windowed mode option through an external configuration tool. | ||
− | {{++}} The aforementioned configuration tool can also speed up animations to | + | {{++}} The aforementioned configuration tool can also speed up animations to 60 FPS, as well as other experimental features such as large map support and larger fonts for some text. |
{{--}} Windows only. | {{--}} Windows only. | ||
{{ii}} Uses a separate executable from vanilla ({{file|battlegrounds_x2.exe}}). Hence, it does not interfere with a vanilla installation, but it needs to be renamed to launch with Steam/Galaxy or use online multiplayer restoration tools. | {{ii}} Uses a separate executable from vanilla ({{file|battlegrounds_x2.exe}}). Hence, it does not interfere with a vanilla installation, but it needs to be renamed to launch with Steam/Galaxy or use online multiplayer restoration tools. | ||
− | {{ii}} Configuration data for Expanding fronts is stored in {{file|{{p|game}}\Game\player.nf1}} and | + | {{ii}} Configuration data for Expanding fronts is stored in {{file|{{p|game}}\Game\player.nf1}} and {{Registry|{{p|HKCU}}\Software\LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC\Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds: Expanding Fronts\1.0}}. Changes made in the external configurator are stored in {{Registry|{{p|HKCU}}\Software\LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC\Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds: Expanding Fronts\Configurator}}. |
{{ii}} A higher resolution icon for this mod can be found [https://archive.org/download/battlegroundsicons here] (choose {{file|battlegrounds_x2.ico}}). | {{ii}} A higher resolution icon for this mod can be found [https://archive.org/download/battlegroundsicons here] (choose {{file|battlegrounds_x2.ico}}). | ||
Latest revision as of 22:46, 2 June 2024
Developers | |
---|---|
LucasArts | |
Mac OS (Classic) | Westlake Interactive |
Publishers | |
LucasArts | |
Japan | Electronic Arts |
Mac OS | Aspyr Media |
Digital | Disney Interactive Studios |
Engines | |
Genie | |
Release dates | |
Windows | November 9, 2001 |
Mac OS (Classic) | June 5, 2002 |
macOS (OS X) | June 5, 2002 |
Reception | |
Metacritic | 75 |
Taxonomy | |
Monetization | One-time game purchase, Subscription gaming service, Expansion pack |
Modes | Singleplayer, Multiplayer |
Pacing | Real-time |
Perspectives | Bird's-eye view, Isometric |
Controls | Multiple select, Point and select |
Genres | RTS |
Themes | Sci-fi |
Series | Star Wars |
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds is a sci-fi RTS set in the Star Wars universe and running on the same version of the Genie engine used in Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings. Compared to Age of Empires II, Galactic Battlegrounds introduces airborne units and a larger ratio of ranged weapons, but the core gameplay is nearly identical.
The game received the Clone Campaigns expansion in May 2002, featuring new campaigns and factions.
On modern systems, an unofficial All-In-One Patch is required to fix color palette issues caused by a broken DirectDraw renderer and add widescreen support. This is the only game running an engine by Ensemble Studios not to receive a high-definition re-release, but a modding scene is still active, most notably with the Expanding Fronts project.
General information
- GOG.com Community Discussions
- GOG.com Support Page
- Steam Community Discussions
- Galactic Battlegrounds at LucasForums Network
Availability
Source | DRM | Notes | Keys | OS |
---|---|---|---|---|
Retail | SafeDisc 2.40.011 DRM[Note 1] | |||
Retail | ||||
GamersGate | ||||
Saga edition. | ||||
GOG.com | Saga edition. | |||
Humble Store | ||||
Origin | Saga edition. DRM-free when launched directly from executable[Note 2] Included with EA Play Pro. Currently only visible in the EA App's Browse menu. |
|||
Steam | Saga edition. |
- SafeDisc retail DRM does not work on Windows Vista and later (see above for affected versions).
- A preconfigured Wine wrapper for Linux is available for the GOG.com release.
Version differences
- Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds Saga includes the base game along with the Clone Campaigns expansion.
- The digital releases use the background music from the original release, rather than the Galactic Battlegrounds Saga re-release. The background music used in Galactic Battlegrounds Saga, formatted for use in-game, can be downloaded from the PCGamingWiki community site.
Trial version
- A free trial version is available from GameFront.
Monetization
Type | Notes |
---|---|
Expansion pack | The expansion pack includes new factions, units and campaigns. |
One-time game purchase | The game requires an upfront purchase to access on platforms other than EA. |
Subscription gaming service | Available via an EA Play Pro subscription. |
DLC and expansion packs
Name | Notes | |
---|---|---|
Clone Campaigns | ||
Bonus Mission: Serapin's Bounty | Included on second disc of some releases of Clone Campaigns. Requires Clone Campaigns. |
Essential improvements
Patches
Official
Unofficial
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch
- A massive community patch that adds a variety of enhancements and stability improvements to the game. They include:
- Modern Windows support
- A DirectDraw rainbow color patch and wrapper
- Widescreen support for Clone Campaigns
- New in-game music
- Support for Italian & Russian
- New launcher for the games
Skip intro videos
Run the game with the -nostartup command line argument[citation needed]
|
---|
Game data
Configuration file(s) location
System | Location |
---|---|
Windows | <path-to-game>\Game\player.nfx[Note 3] <path-to-game>\Game\player.nf1[Note 3] HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC\Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns\1.0 |
Mac OS (Classic) | |
macOS (OS X) | |
Steam Play (Linux) | <SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/356500/pfx/[Note 4] |
-
player.nfx
is for the base game whileplayer.nf1
is for the Clone Campaigns expansion.
Save game data location
System | Location |
---|---|
Windows | <path-to-game>\Game\SaveGame[Note 3] |
Mac OS (Classic) | |
macOS (OS X) | |
Steam Play (Linux) | <SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/356500/pfx/[Note 4] |
Save game cloud syncing
System | Native | Notes |
---|---|---|
GOG Galaxy | ||
Origin | ||
Steam Cloud |
Video
Graphics feature | State | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|
Widescreen resolution | See Widescreen resolution. | ||
Multi-monitor | |||
Ultra-widescreen | See Widescreen resolution. | ||
4K Ultra HD | See Widescreen resolution. Pixel-based scaling; Lossless Scaling in conjunction with Expanding Fronts set to 1920x1080 and windowed mode can help. |
||
Field of view (FOV) | Uses 2D sprites. Real estate is increased with higher resolutions. | ||
Windowed | Use Expanding Fronts. | ||
Borderless fullscreen windowed | In Expanding Fronts, enable windowed mode and set window resolution to the desktop resolution. | ||
Anisotropic filtering (AF) | |||
Anti-aliasing (AA) | |||
Vertical sync (Vsync) | See the glossary page for potential workarounds. | ||
60 FPS | Animations play at 20 FPS. The Expanding Fronts mod can speed up animations to 60 FPS. | ||
120+ FPS | |||
High dynamic range display (HDR) | See the glossary page for potential alternatives. | ||
Color blind mode | Enable Friend or Enemy Colors .Expanding Fronts also adds larger text support. |
Widescreen resolution
- A No-CD executable is required for this.[3] Note that the GOG.com version already ships a decrypted binary and does not require such.
- This fix is already included with the Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds All-In-One Patch and Expanding Fronts.
Use a widescreen patcher[citation needed] |
---|
|
Input
Keyboard and mouse | State | Notes |
---|---|---|
Remapping | ||
Mouse acceleration | ||
Mouse sensitivity | Scroll speed can be adjusted. | |
Mouse input in menus | ||
Mouse Y-axis inversion | ||
Controller | ||
Controller support |
Controller types |
---|
Audio
Audio feature | State | Notes |
---|---|---|
Separate volume controls | ||
Surround sound | ||
Subtitles | The game has subtitles for all the dialogue in-game; the campaign intros also have subtitles. | |
Closed captions | ||
Mute on focus lost | ||
Royalty free audio | Music adapted from the films. | |
Red Book CD audio | Replaced with Ogg Vorbis wrapper in digital rereleases. The digital releases use the background music from the original release, rather than the Galactic Battlegrounds Saga re-release. The background music used in Galactic Battlegrounds Saga, formatted for use in-game, can be downloaded from the PCGamingWiki community site. On Windows, CD music might not play correctly; see the troubleshooting guide for solutions. |
Localizations
Language | UI | Audio | Sub | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
English | ||||
French | ||||
German | ||||
Italian | Retail only. Digital copies require the All-In-One Patch. | |||
Japanese | Retail only. | |||
Brazilian Portuguese | Retail only.[4] Main game and expansion pack.[5] | |||
Russian | Requires the All-In-One Patch. | |||
Spanish | ||||
Ukrainian | Fan translation for the Saga release by TSF, download. |
Network
Multiplayer types
Type | Native | Players | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
LAN play | 8 | Versus |
||
Online play | 8 | Versus The official MSN Gaming Zone service has been shut down; use Voobly. |
Connection types
Type | Native | Notes |
---|---|---|
Matchmaking | Zone.com support has been discontinued. | |
Peer-to-peer | ||
Dedicated | ||
Self-hosting | ||
Direct IP |
Ports
Protocol | Port(s) and/or port range(s) |
---|---|
TCP | 2300-2400, 6073, 47624 |
UDP | 2300-2400, 6073 |
- Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.
Issues fixed
Windows Vista and 7 colours
- Windows Vista and 7 can have issues with displaying true colours in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds correctly.
- This issue does not occur on Windows 8 and later.
- See DirectDraw troubleshooting for further details.
Use All-In-One Patch |
---|
Use DDrawCompat[citation needed] |
---|
Indeo codec missing
- Upon playing a cutscene, an error message is displayed reading
Video not available. Cannot find 'vids:IV50' decompressor
instead of the video output, but with audio playing regardless.
See Troubleshooting guide. |
---|
Install the Codinstl codec[6] |
---|
|
Other information
API
Technical specs | Supported | Notes |
---|---|---|
DirectDraw | 7 | |
OpenGL | Mac OS and OS X only. |
Executable | PPC | 16-bit | 32-bit | 64-bit | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Windows | |||||
macOS (OS X) | |||||
Mac OS (Classic) |
Middleware
Middleware | Notes | |
---|---|---|
Cutscenes | Indeo codec | |
Multiplayer | MSN Gaming Zone |
Modifications
Expanding Fronts
- A fan-made expansion that brings new civilizations, units, maps, gameplay features, and quality of life improvements to Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds:
- Adds 4 new factions (Zann Consortium, Geonosians, First Order, and Resistance) with expanded vanilla factions and new units and techs.
- Handful of custom map randomizers, and an expanded map editor.
- Native widescreen support, and a windowed mode option through an external configuration tool.
- The aforementioned configuration tool can also speed up animations to 60 FPS, as well as other experimental features such as large map support and larger fonts for some text.
- Windows only.
- Uses a separate executable from vanilla (
battlegrounds_x2.exe
). Hence, it does not interfere with a vanilla installation, but it needs to be renamed to launch with Steam/Galaxy or use online multiplayer restoration tools. - Configuration data for Expanding fronts is stored in
<path-to-game>\Game\player.nf1
andHKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC\Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds: Expanding Fronts\1.0
. Changes made in the external configurator are stored inHKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC\Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds: Expanding Fronts\Configurator
. - A higher resolution icon for this mod can be found here (choose
battlegrounds_x2.ico
).
- Bodies Stay - A simple mod that just makes the bodies stay on the ground
System requirements
Windows | ||
---|---|---|
Minimum | Recommended | |
Operating system (OS) | 95 | 98, ME, 2000, XP |
Processor (CPU) | Intel Pentium II 233 MHz AMD Athlon 233 MHz |
Intel Pentium II 300 MHz AMD Athlon 300 MHz |
System memory (RAM) | 32 MB (95, 98) 64 MB (2000, XP) |
64 MB (95, 98) 96 MB (2000, XP) |
Hard disk drive (HDD) | 350 MB | |
Video card (GPU) | 2 MB of VRAM DirectX 8 compatible | 4 MB of VRAM |
Mac OS | ||
---|---|---|
Minimum | ||
Operating system (OS) | 8.6 | |
Processor (CPU) | PowerPC G3 | |
System memory (RAM) | 64 MB | |
Hard disk drive (HDD) | 350 MB |
Notes
- ↑ SafeDisc retail DRM does not work on Windows 10[1] or Windows 11 and is disabled by default on Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1 when the KB3086255 update is installed.[2]
- ↑ Launching from
<path-to-game>\Game\battlegrounds_x1.exe
. - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 When running this game without elevated privileges (Run as administrator option), write operations against a location below
%PROGRAMFILES%
,%PROGRAMDATA%
, or%WINDIR%
might be redirected to%LOCALAPPDATA%\VirtualStore
on Windows Vista and later (more details). - ↑ 4.0 4.1 Notes regarding Steam Play (Linux) data:
- File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data.
- Games with Steam Cloud support may also store data in
~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/356500/
. - Use Wine's registry editor to access any Windows registry paths.
- The app ID (356500) may differ in some cases.
- Treat backslashes as forward slashes.
- See the glossary page for details on Windows data paths.
References
- ↑ Not Loading in Windows 10; this will break thousands of - Microsoft Community - last accessed on 2017-01-16
- ↑ Microsoft - MS15-097: Description of the security update for the graphics component in Windows: September 8, 2015 - last accessed on 2018-02-16
- ↑ Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds Patcher - last accessed on May 2023
- ↑ Novo Milênio, 30/11/2001. - last accessed on 9 June 2023
- ↑ Novo Milênio, 08/06/2002 (archived). - last accessed on 9 June 2023
- ↑ "Video not available. Cannot find 'vids:IV50' decompressor" FIX :: STAR WARS™ Galactic Battlegrounds Saga General Discussions - last accessed on 2023-09-08