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New launcher beta: 2021.7-rc.5

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Deuterium Oxide

Deuterium Oxide

Distribution Manager
Paradox Staff
15 Badges
Jan 13, 2014
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Now, that was a long beta period! So long, we need a bit more of it! This is Launcher beta 2021.7-rc.5 and this is a big one!

Introduction
For quite some time we have been introducing distribution client functionality into the launcher v2, with the eventual goal of retiring the old v1 that has long been the mainstay client of our own distribution backend. The v1 client will still be available through Play Paradoxplaza but with time we hope to replace it with v2.

Hopefully this will end the confusion as to what the "Paradox Launcher" actually is - Seeing as v1 is a distribution client and v2 has been more of a splash screen - v2 will take on both roles in a short while, and this beta is the first user-facing step towards that goal.

But why, you ask? There are several reasons:
  • Reduced maintenance burden with fewer pieces of software to security patch and keep up to date
  • Ability to use distribution-type functionality in games that have need for it (seasonal content patches for example)
  • More robust, and better maintained, download and install functionality
  • Wider operating system support for the distribution platform. With v2 2021.7-rc.5 we extend the use of our own distribution backend for the first time to Mac users.


What's new
The major new feature in this beta is the ability to start the launcher in standalone mode. In practical terms, this simply means starting the launcher executable directly from your operating system, rather than from a third-party client (such as the Steam client, GOG Galaxy, the Epic launcher etc). The launcher in standalone mode will connect to our distribution backend, retrieve your ownership and offer you games to install.

Please be aware that PDX ownership and game availability is separate and distinct from Steam, Epic etc. Likewise, the game versions available are different and will install in different locations as compared to Steam or other distribution clients.

What do I own?
If you ever bought something from the Paradox Plaza store, you'll have ownership of that game / DLC on our backend. We also integrate Steam ownership so that you should also be able to download and play games you own on Steam through the PDX Distribution system, and hence through the launcher.

As stated above, game availability is not the same as on Steam, and you may find that there are titles missing - This is normally due to the fact that older titles simply do not exist in versions that are adapted to the PDX ecosystem of services and hence not available through the PDX distribution channel.


How do I help test it?
First of all, opt into the Beta. Please be aware that here be dragons - Is in beta for a reason after all. Once that is done, there are two different parts to test:
  1. Test that nothing has been broken when it comes to starting the launcher the "regular" way through Steam etc.
  2. Test that standalone mode works as anticipated
    1. You should see some titles (or no titles if you have no Steam or PDX ownership)
    2. You should be able to download and install games
    3. You should be able to play games you installed through the launcher
In order to run the launcher in standalone mode, do this:

Navigate to
Code: 
C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Programs\Paradox Interactive\launcher
Double-click on
Code: 
bootstrapper-v2

Navigate to
Code: 
Users/<user>/Library/Application Support/Paradox Interactive
Double-click on
Code: 
bootstrapper-v2

Run
Code: 
~/.paradoxlauncher/boostrapper-v2


But that's not all!

We have a raft of other features aside from standalone mode! Of course these also include the features previously announce for rc.2, but more stuff has snuck in there!

  • Standalone mode (see above)
  • Importing and exporting playsets to JSON files
  • Better UI performance on long mods lists
  • Fixed detection of newly connected / disconnected monitor
  • Localization fixes
  • Fixed links in Terms of Use document (that I'm sure all of you read carefully!)
  • Removed spurious mod name truncation (again!)
  • Fixed broken DLC ownership checks - GeForce NOW only
  • Improved error handling when Xbox Game Pass app is not installed - GamePass only


Soooo, that should be it. As you might anticipate, this has taken some time to get to a beta-ready state, and as such bugs are highly anticipated. Your help in finding these is appreciated! If all goes to plan, and no critical bugs that cannot be hot-fixed are found, this version will go live in three weeks, according to tradition.

Be well.
D2O
 
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Welcome back, and thanks for this very promising-looking launcher/client! Looking forward to ditching the v1 "launcher" :cool:

2021.7-rc2 seemed to have a problem where changes like game language did not "take" - is that also fixed in this one?
 
On the standalone launcher, I get the black window bug again, when selecting Imperator Rome.
This seems to be because of the rolling ads and probably will happen with other games that don't have any promo material.

This works reliably, 10/10 times:
  1. There must be multiple big ads running, like a sale and a patch ad.
  2. You must own a few games, including Imperator. I tested with CK3 and Stellaris.
  3. Start the launcher, wait for everything to load.
  4. Select a game with multiple big ads.
  5. Wait for the ad to change or do it manually by pressing the arrow on it (appears on hover-over).
  6. After it changes, switch to Imperator. The window should go black.
It looks like videos are broken on the forum right now. Here's the drive link:

There's another ad bug but it's minor: when switching from IR to another game, you might see the ads in a column:
1629520745595.png

This is harder to replicate, maybe 3/5:
  1. There must be multiple big ads running, like a sale and a patch ad.
  2. You must own a few games, including Imperator. I tested with CK3 and Stellaris.
  3. Start the launcher, wait for everything to load.
  4. Switch to Imperator.
  5. Wait for 20 seconds. Use a timer.
  6. Switch back to Crusader Kings. The ads might appear in a column. Scroll down, you'll be able to see all of them. In a second they'll reset.
Video:

As for general feedback:
  • The launcher should at least show where the games are being installed to. Ideally, let us choose that path. I want the games on my SSD, how can I control that?
  • Would be nice to have a speed limit setting for downloads, like other platforms have. Some games are quite big.
  • There's no pause button when installing.
  • This is subjective, but I don't like "Don't panic, ready to launch soon". Feels almost condescending. Can it show how much it's downloaded instead? Like "1 GB / 15 GB"
  • I got somewhat confused how to close Launcher Settings after opening them. It's not obvious that you need to click that title again. Maybe add an X or an arrow there?
Will the search bar be present on the game-specific version of the launcher? Or will you remove it on the stable version? (It doesn't do anything there, after all)
 

Attachments

  • black window.mp4
    1,8 MB
  • multiple ads.mp4
    12,7 MB
Last edited:
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Agamidae said:
also, Resume button stopped working, on both versions of the launcher
Click to expand...
In the sense that your last game is not the one shown there? Or it shows but does not start?

And, which games have you seen this in?
 
AndrewT said:
In the sense that your last game is not the one shown there? Or it shows but does not start?

And, which games have you seen this in?
Click to expand...
The latter. The tooltip correctly shows the last save, but nothing happens when I press it.
Tested with CK3, Imperator and Stellaris. Made new saves just to be sure. nada
 
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Thank you again for all of this! The launcher seems to be trivial but it has to handle so many platforms it's understandable how long it can take. I opted in so I can help.

Can confirm the Imperator Rome bug, it just goes blank.

It also seems that several games try to fetch a specific font but they just load a default (Times New Roman). Battletech, Surviving Mars and Tyranny all load a different kind of page since they cannot fetch any news, too.
 
Genocide Is Cool said:
When will this update be fully released? Geforce isnt going to put the games back in GFN until the full update comes out, so im still waiting :/
Click to expand...

The launcher beta typically runs for three weeks. This being one of the most chunky releases we have had, it might take a bit longer this time. Still, you should be aware that through we hope that the launcher fix is enough to get things going on GFN, we are not 100% certain yet - It could transpire that the game teams need to release a new GFN version as well.

It turns out that debugging stuff running on someone else's computer isn't hard enough, now we need to debug stuff that runs on someone else's computer that they rent from someone else that run their stuff in a custom standbox ;)
 
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Deuterium Oxide said:
The launcher beta typically runs for three weeks. This being one of the most chunky releases we have had, it might take a bit longer this time. Still, you should be aware that through we hope that the launcher fix is enough to get things going on GFN, we are not 100% certain yet - It could transpire that the game teams need to release a new GFN version as well.

It turns out that debugging stuff running on someone else's computer isn't hard enough, now we need to debug stuff that runs on someone else's computer that they rent from someone else that run their stuff in a custom standbox ;)
Click to expand...
Ah ok, so from what I am getting from this, either this beta should be enough to bring back HOI4 and the other games to GFN, or(more likely) this should be the patch for whenever it releases that brings it back, since there seems to be other issues at hand. At least the issue is almost over and eventually I will be able to play HOI4 again on GFN :)
 
Deuterium Oxide said:
The launcher beta typically runs for three weeks. This being one of the most chunky releases we have had, it might take a bit longer this time. Still, you should be aware that through we hope that the launcher fix is enough to get things going on GFN, we are not 100% certain yet - It could transpire that the game teams need to release a new GFN version as well.

It turns out that debugging stuff running on someone else's computer isn't hard enough, now we need to debug stuff that runs on someone else's computer that they rent from someone else that run their stuff in a custom standbox ;)
Click to expand...
Can you give us an estimated date about the GFN issue?
An date on when will GFN issue will fix, will relax my pocket about other month :)
 
AntitiKum said:
İf they fixed dlc problem what are they waiting for? what is issue ?
Click to expand...

The beta means we can get more certain that the fixes / new features we add do what we believe that they should - Sometimes they don't (see Agamidaes post above).

In this case, we are changing how ownership and DLC work. Imagine that we made a mistake, a tiny one where 1/10000 won't get to play with content they bought. This would result in thousands of people being upset with us and the ensuing shitstorm would be epic. And rightly so. The beta gives us a much better chance at catching these rare bugs, and that is why we have it.
 
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Deuterium Oxide said:
The beta means we can get more certain that the fixes / new features we add do what we believe that they should - Sometimes they don't (see Agamidaes post above).

In this case, we are changing how ownership and DLC work. Imagine that we made a mistake, a tiny one where 1/10000 won't get to play with content they bought. This would result in thousands of people being upset with us and the ensuing shitstorm would be epic. And rightly so. The beta gives us a much better chance at catching these rare bugs, and that is why we have it.
Click to expand...
Yeah this makes much more sense, although I think what he was saying was asking to release the fix seperately since (I think) since he doesnt know if he will continue his membership(?) since of the 3 week delay.

Also, how are you testing to see if the GFN patch works if only 1/10000 are affected? Just going into sessions again and again to see if anyone gets the bug? I am glad its fixed anyhow since it happened to me when I was playing CK3.
 
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