Fs2 open on Linux/StartUp Script

Note: You will need to edit this script before it will work properly. The second line must point to the directory where you installed fs2_open. You can also find a more elaborated script example below in the i18n section. Also remember your specific paths throughout this article.

In order to use all of the advanced engine features of fs2_open, you'll need to start the executable with a number of command line arguments. Instead of typing them in every time you want to start the game, why not create a script that does it for you?

Create a new file named start_freespace (or whatever you like) in your home directory. Open the file in your editor of choice, and paste the following:

#!/bin/bash
cd /path/to/your/freespace/
./fs2_open_r -spec -glow -mipmap -jpgtga -orbradar -mod Media_VP

The last line starts fs2_open with a number of arguments that turn on extra features. In the example, the game will use specular highlights, glow-mapping, mipmapping, jpg and tga graphic files, the orb radar, and any MediaVPs installed to the /Media_VP directory. You should edit this line to use those features that your system supports.

More information about the available Command Line Arguments can be found at the Command-Line Reference

Once you've edited the file to your heart's content, make it executable:

$ chmod +x start_freespace

You can now type in start_freespace to start the game, or by clicking on start_freespace in your window manager. For convenience, you can copy it to your Desktop.

Refer to the Command-Line_Reference article for more information regarding the command line options.