Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[The_Explorer]

I was looking for a mars game to...uh..."play". And found this about two weeks ago.

https://github.com/mars-sim

Headless version doesn't have graphics (its better for leaving in the background if want to do other stuff on PC)
Swing version is most popular and has graphics of the colonies, mars and a lot more additional info. Its the one intended to use, though does take up a lot of PC resources

Though this seems to aim to be a highly realistic play itself simulation that runs in the background. You can have input, but otherwise I guess its better to let the game do its own thing.

It took me a long time to setup though. I had to install java 11, and installing java on windows 10 didn't seem very easy. Then have to open it in the windows console thing with run commands, because the .jar files it comes with don't open for me.

Either way, I've let it run for a week in the background, though I do turn off my PC at night. People are mostly dead, but got new people, one of the bigger colonies has gotten pretty big and its the "main" colony I guess and the people there do a lot better. There is random weather that happens and the colonists do their thing...mostly die tbh.

I tried manually doing stuff, but it makes the people die more lol. But tbh, I do like seeing how it evolves on its own. Its not really a game, its a literal simulation of mars. But I like it.

[The_Explorer]

I managed to get their github version working and compile it...which...was easier than getting java to work...

So now can play on their latest stuff

Also there is a commander mode that is more for "gameplay". You only get one colony though and I think that is it.

And its probably just cause colonizing Mars is hard, but I left the game running on github version over night and each colony only had 1-2 people left lol. I asked them if this is just normal or if was supposed to interact with the game more than it being an actual "AFK sim"

[EuchreJack]

Dunno how many Martian years are simulated by leaving the game on overnight, but I'd imagine any system left to its own devices for several years with no adjustments whatsoever would probably break down.

Hard to get into 'cause I can't even figure out how to get it working.

[The_Explorer]

Dunno how many Martian years are simulated by leaving the game on overnight, but I'd imagine any system left to its own devices for several years with no adjustments whatsoever would probably break down.

Hard to get into 'cause I can't even figure out how to get it working.

It sort of has an install "guide"

https://github.com/mars-sim/mars-sim/releases

You need to add oracle java (at least that is what I used to get the game working) to advanced system settings-environmental paths to system variables. Then can just use the command thing windows has. For the advanced system settings, its complicated and googling it would have a better result. But I can try. For user, find the oracle java folder with the java clients in it and set it to that folder (its a java bin folder). Then in system variables, in "path" edit that and add wherever its installed to. I left it at default so its...

C:\Program Files\Common Files\Oracle\Java\javapath

is where the path is.

I think I did user variables for it wrong though but at least the "game" works.

I'd still google this info though since I'm just a random person and its messing with windows stuff.

Its incredibly complicated and hard to get running. Took me literally all day from morning to night lol. The way to install it and get it running is as niche as the game itself If anyone takes the time to get it working then its probably the perfect game for them lol.

As for the AFK part, supposedly people leave it running in the background for days and weeks at a time. That is the main use of the "headless" branch without UI or graphics or anything is to just let the game run itself. Its supposed to be a full functioned simulation, but there is probably more to it...I'll see what they say about that when they respond how off hands the game actually is.

[The_Explorer]

So the sim can actually be played in AFK mode, except there is a bug (at least on the github version) where colonists get stuck in the airlock. Thats why they all died.

[Ekaton]

I’ve been playing it on and off for years now, but I always encounter a game-breaking bug at some point. It has an incredible potential, but doesn’t work properly yet.

There are many bugs that kill your colonists. Last time i tried the game, they were getting stuck by the rover whenever they tried to access it and kept dying of asphyxiation.

[Great Order]

I remember "playing" this years ago.

I swear it was much easier to launch and play back then.

[The_Explorer]

I’ve been playing it on and off for years now, but I always encounter a game-breaking bug at some point. It has an incredible potential, but doesn’t work properly yet.

There are many bugs that kill your colonists. Last time i tried the game, they were getting stuck by the rover whenever they tried to access it and kept dying of asphyxiation.

Ah. Has it always been broken then? Makes it not very "playable" if colonists die to bugs constantly