Tolerant patchers

[ShadowRun]

I am using GOG's version of Underrail (partly because I find "achievements" such as Steam has very discouraging; they put me off playing).

The installer file is named "setup_underrail_2.0.0.2.exe"

C:\Games\GOG\UnderRail\underrail.exe / File / Properties / Details / File Version says "0.1.0.0"

Within the game, the splash screen shows in the bottom left corner "Version: 1.0.0.0"


GOG has only one patcher I can download.

GOG displays it as "PATCH 1.0.0.7"

The downloaded patcher is named "patch_underrail_2.2.1.5.exe"

Running it displays an error:

Update 2.2.1.5 for UnderRail

This patch does not support your version of the game
please download a new installer

I don't have enough download quota to (re)download the full installer for version patches.


My suggestions would be:

• standardise the version numbers so that one version of the product deployment presents one consistent version number on the splash screen, Properties, installer, Start Menu, and everywhere else
• provide patchers that can accept any existing commercial version of an installation and update it to the patch's version

[player1]

This is a kind of discussion that is more suitable for GOG forums, since devs do not control how GOG packages the game.

[ShadowRun]

Well, the executable can have a version number consistent with the splash screen - surely that's within the governance of compilation / linking / building.

I don't know how the patches originate, but I suspect they come from Stygian and GOG just wraps them in their own GUI widgets. (I doubt that Stygian only provides GOG with a full installer for each subversion, and GOG generates their own binary diff.) If indeed Stygian produces the patch, it can simply contain the new version of all the resources modified since v1.0.0.0. When it is run, it can therefore update a v1.0.0.0 installation or a v1.0.0.1 installation or a v1.0.0.2 installation or a v1.0.0.3 installation or a v1.0.0.4 installation or a v1.0.0.5 installation or a v1.0.0.6 installation to v1.0.0.7 simply by injecting the v1.0.0.7 resources it contains. Stygian hand this patch over to GOG, and GOG wrap it in their GUI, and the one patcher is then useful to all players regardless of which old version they currently have installed.

Anyway, it's just a suggestion for an ongoing approach to take to patching.

I'm just as happy if the full patch is available for download the traditional way from underrail.com - as long as it's a patch that can bring multiple origin versions up to date.

[player1]

Actually, I'm pretty certain that full binaries are given to both Steam and GoG.

Then GoG makes diff patch of the game, on their own side.

[Styg]

You can safely ignore the file version. I haven't been updating that.

I do not know how GOG creates their patches but I would assume they run a diff as player1 suggests. We don't make any installers ourselves anymore and I intend to keep it that way. If you have trouble patching you should post on their forums as there little I can do to help there.

Btw, have you tried patching the game through GOG Galaxy?

[ShadowRun]

Fantastic - very good to know how it is done. I will take this up with GOG.

I haven't tried GOG Galaxy, no. Steam / Origin's tray executables tended to make simple things complicated, slow boot time, hog resources, download updates for the client itself silently, wasting monthly data I couldn't spare, and generally be all pain and no gain. Maybe GOG Galaxy is better :-) but I have no say in our monthly cap.

I might have to load up a USB hub with all my wifi dongles, install Connectify Dispatch, and hope the library throttling / shaping system (which limits each device to 60kbps) believes my laptop is really six separate users  Guess I'd better bring a good book!