What's the straight word on recording demos?
by Daniel Buckmaster · in Torque Game Engine · 10/21/2008 (10:32 am) · 7 replies
I've searched for news about Torque's demo-recording functionality, which seems to me to be broken. I can record demos fine, but when I play them back, I get an immediate crash (after the chat hud pops up over the top of my main menu).
I found an old thread (ca 2001) that confirmed that playback is broken. However, I found a more recent (2006) resource that uses the demo functionality, with no comments about poblems with demo playback.
What's the straight word?
I found an old thread (ca 2001) that confirmed that playback is broken. However, I found a more recent (2006) resource that uses the demo functionality, with no comments about poblems with demo playback.
What's the straight word?
About the author
Studying mechatronic engineering and computer science at the University of Sydney. Game development is probably my most time-consuming hobby!
#2
10/21/2008 (10:57 am)
I've never gotten demo playback to work either. It just crashes for me too. Seems rather inconsistent with different people reporting different results with it.
#3
10/22/2008 (9:10 am)
Could it be a platform-specific thing? That shouldn't be the case, though, should it? 
#4
I believe the starter.fps has the "Recordings..." gui button already on the main menu. Does it crash for you in the stock fps demo? Also, what O.S. are you using? I like having the recording option - I'm curious to know if this is a platform specific problem.
10/22/2008 (10:39 am)
Hmm.. that's odd. The recordings work fine for me in TGE 1.5.2, on win xp, have tried it on multiple pc's. Havent tried on my linux box yet though. I believe the starter.fps has the "Recordings..." gui button already on the main menu. Does it crash for you in the stock fps demo? Also, what O.S. are you using? I like having the recording option - I'm curious to know if this is a platform specific problem.
#5
Actually, doing some more testing - demos DO work! But not on Stronghold. I'm happy now, sort of :)
When I load a demo on Barebones, the console shows:
When loading a Stronghold demo, however:
11/04/2008 (10:43 am)
I'm on Windows XP, SP2 I think.Actually, doing some more testing - demos DO work! But not on Stronghold. I'm happy now, sort of :)
When I load a demo on Barebones, the console shows:
Connection established 1503 Sending request for file starter.fps/data/sound/takeme.wav Sending request for file starter.fps/data/sound/takeme.ogg Error: shape starter.fps/data/shapes/crossbow/ammo.dts-collision detail 0 (Collision-3) bounds box invalid! //Lots more failed requests like that, for basically everything! Successfully loaded mission lighting file: 'starter.fps/data/missions/sgLightingPackDemo_91b9e4ed.ml' Activating DirectInput... keyboard0 input device acquired. common/client/recordings.cs (45): Unknown command prepDemoPlayback. Object ServerConnection(1503) GameConnection -> NetConnection -> SimGroup -> SimSet -> SimObject Mapping string: MsgClientKilled to index: 13 Mapping string: %1 gets nailed by %2! to index: 14 Could not locate texture: starter.fps/data/shapes/player/crossbow Could not locate texture: starter.fps/data/shapes/player/clip Exporting server prefs... creator/recordings/*.rec
When loading a Stronghold demo, however:
Connection established 1513
Sending request for file starter.fps/data/sound/takeme.wav
Sending request for file starter.fps/data/sound/takeme.ogg
Error: shape starter.fps/data/shapes/crossbow/ammo.dts-collision detail 0 (Collision-3) bounds box invalid!
//Lots and lots more file requests again
Activating DirectInput...
keyboard0 input device acquired.
common/client/recordings.cs (45): Unknown command prepDemoPlayback.
Object ServerConnection(1513) GameConnection -> NetConnection -> SimGroup -> SimSet -> SimObject
//-----------------------------------------------
Synapse Gaming Lighting Pack
Starting scene lighting...
Starting TGE based scene lighting...
Lighting with light #26 (TGE vector light)...
Lighting interior object 1 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/cottage/cottage.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 2 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/cottage/cottage.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 3 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/cottage/cottage.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 4 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 5 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 6 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 7 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 8 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/tower/tower.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 9 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/tower/tower.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting interior object 10 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/tower/tower.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.000 seconds)
Lighting object 11 of 11...
Object lighting complete (0.641 seconds)
TGE based scene lighting complete (0.750 seconds)
Starting Synapse Gaming Lighting Pack scene lighting...
Lighting interior object 1 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/cottage/cottage.dif)...
Object lighting complete (1.281 seconds)
Lighting interior object 2 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/cottage/cottage.dif)...
Object lighting complete (1.484 seconds)
Lighting interior object 3 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/cottage/cottage.dif)...
Object lighting complete (1.093 seconds)
Lighting interior object 4 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.734 seconds)
Lighting interior object 5 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.922 seconds)
Lighting interior object 6 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.796 seconds)
Lighting interior object 7 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/dock/dock.dif)...
Object lighting complete (0.719 seconds)
Lighting interior object 8 of 11 (starter.fps/data/interiors/tower/tower.dif)...
Exporting server prefs...
creator/recordings/*.recIt looks like it takes a while to light the first tower, then it gets tired and gives up or something, because I get dumped back to the main menu.
#6
I did actually get recordings to work for me but was still having problems with them. Sometimes they would work, sometimes not, but I noticed that once a particular recording would quit working it wouldn't work at all anymore. So after a little bit of experimentation I did figure out that if you change any of the assets that were used (removal or moved) and/or significantly alter the scripts then old recordings would indeed become broken.
Once I figured that out I've had fewer problems with recordings. So delete any old recordings. Start a new game, make a recording. Stop recording, and try the new recording from the menu and it should work. I tried Stronghold also and it worked, but it worked strangely. When it started playback of the recording I could hear the recording playing in the background and the screen turned red at the point in which I shot myself. From the console I could see the lighting process - and it was significantly slower than when normally starting the Stronghold. I normally load Stronghold in a few seconds and yet it took almost a minute while the recording was "playing". After the lighting process was over with then playback started from the beginning and played just fine. It only exhibited that behaviour on Stronghold though.
Something definitely weird there - why is it even trying to relight the scene? Shouldn't the recordings use a pre-existing lightmap - the one generated when you started that mission initially? That's what it seems to do with other missions at least, because if I delete the lightmaps then the recordings don't work once again.
Oh, and I'm using Vista with Aero turned on despite the majority recommendation to turn it off when using Torque. Vista with Aero off does bad things for me.
11/04/2008 (12:59 pm)
Even more inconsistencies.I did actually get recordings to work for me but was still having problems with them. Sometimes they would work, sometimes not, but I noticed that once a particular recording would quit working it wouldn't work at all anymore. So after a little bit of experimentation I did figure out that if you change any of the assets that were used (removal or moved) and/or significantly alter the scripts then old recordings would indeed become broken.
Once I figured that out I've had fewer problems with recordings. So delete any old recordings. Start a new game, make a recording. Stop recording, and try the new recording from the menu and it should work. I tried Stronghold also and it worked, but it worked strangely. When it started playback of the recording I could hear the recording playing in the background and the screen turned red at the point in which I shot myself. From the console I could see the lighting process - and it was significantly slower than when normally starting the Stronghold. I normally load Stronghold in a few seconds and yet it took almost a minute while the recording was "playing". After the lighting process was over with then playback started from the beginning and played just fine. It only exhibited that behaviour on Stronghold though.
Something definitely weird there - why is it even trying to relight the scene? Shouldn't the recordings use a pre-existing lightmap - the one generated when you started that mission initially? That's what it seems to do with other missions at least, because if I delete the lightmaps then the recordings don't work once again.
Oh, and I'm using Vista with Aero turned on despite the majority recommendation to turn it off when using Torque. Vista with Aero off does bad things for me.
#7
11/06/2008 (8:54 am)
Well, I tried a fresh recording, and this time the lighting made it all the way through, but then everything froze for a while, and I was put back in the menu. The pause was much longer than the recording should have been playing for, though. And the chat HUD appeared as soon as I hit play, on top of the main menu. But apart from that, nothing happened. 
Associate Scott Burns
GG Alumni