SCI: QFG2 Hangs After Purchasing Saurus

[jkoudys]

ScummVM 1.8.0git2992-gf4ce7851f84 (Dec 3 2024 19:58:59)
Features compiled in: ALSA SEQ TiMidity RGB zLib PNG

I tried on the latest version, and the mid-april git.

I buy the saurus on day 2, it comes up and licks me. Then Groucho Marx stands there twiddling his cigar forever. The guard never pipes up and says he'll be honored to help me. I tried both an imported wizard and a new fighter. There's no way to proceed and the game hangs, though I can still use the keyboard and check the time of day. It makes the game unwinnable as you must buy the saurus.

[antoniou79]

Replying to jkoudys:

ScummVM 1.8.0git2992-gf4ce7851f84 (Dec 3 2024 19:58:59)
Features compiled in: ALSA SEQ TiMidity RGB zLib PNG

I am puzzled by the version shown here albeit the date next to it is recent.

You mention latest and a daily from mid-April, but those would be 2.10.0git and 2.9.0git respectively.

1.8.0git is quite old.

Edit: If possible, and you're indeed testing with a ScummVM version 2.8.1 or greater, please attach a saved game close to the point before the issue happens

[sluicebox]

Hello! Thank you for reporting this; can you please attach a save game file so that we can reproduce this?

You can find the paths for your platform's save files here: ​https://docs.scummvm.org/en/latest/use_scummvm/save_load_games.html#savelocation

Could you also tell us the QFG2 version number? It's in the about box under the Sierra menu; usually on the second screen.

The ScummVM version info you posted is a little confusing, but let's ignore that and assume that since you tried several versions, at least one of them was a recent one. If we can't figure it out from the save file, we'll grill you to make sure you're indeed using a version from the right decade =)

[jkoudys]

Okay I think the version may have been one of the previous version's I'd checked out. I just looked down for the word "saurus" and tested before that to see if the problem was the same (it was)

Latest version tested and confirmed to have bug:
ScummVM 2.10.0git467-g234dc99fd3c (Dec 4 2024 21:06:53)
Using SDL backend with SDL 2.31.0
Features compiled in: ALSA SEQ TiMidity RGB zLib FreeType2 PNG cloud (servers) ENet SDL2 TinyGL OpenGL (with shaders)

QFG2 version is 1.102 (just downloaded it from gog)

Weirdly scummvm now in Spanish since my latest build, and it's not getting saves from ~/.local/share/scummvm/saves/ like it was before (my old games are still there). Anyway probably separate problems. I started a new game and played forward until the same scene, and same bug as before.

Here's the saves. qfg2.001 and .004 are right before the hang. Buy the saurus through any means (refuse until it's 5 dinars, buy right away at 50 dinars, or "bargain" for 20 dinars). Soft hang immediately follows.

[antoniou79]

Hmm, I'm testing with a local build of ScummVM 2.10.0git on Windows 10 (edit: Also tested with ScummVM 2.8.1 stable), with the same version of the game (1.102), from GOG, and loading your 004 saved game I was able to purchase the Saurus (both immediately, or after haggling for 20 dinars); then the seller leaves, the Saurus comes out of the pen, and there's no soft lock here. I can still move around, leave the screen, ride the Saurus and go to the desert...

I used the default settings for the game (only "Prefer Digital Sound effects" selected), and also tested with "Use RGB Rendering" selected as well.

Perhaps the issue is platform specific?

[sluicebox]

Thanks, jkoudys. The save games and version info are a huge help.

I suspect this is a sound issue with your platform. When the saurus kisses you, a sound should play, and the script waits for that sound to complete. If the sound were to somehow not play, or not complete, then the script would do exactly what you describe: wait forever in hands-off mode while Groucho animates.

I get the impression you might be on a linux, not that anyone has ever accused linux of having sound issues!

Try this: uncheck "Prefer digital sound effects" in our Game options screen. I think that will change the saurus sound, and if digital samples are the thing your platform is having a problem with, that would fix it.

If you still want to troubleshoot this, try bringing up our debugger (Ctrl + Alt + D) and typing the command vo hiSaurusSP state, hit enter, and report back what it says. That will confirm exactly where the script is stuck.

You can also attach scummvm.log after it hangs, it might include some details about audio failures. You can find the location of this file in the Global Options \ Paths screen.

Are other sounds in the game working? Are you able to play any Sierra games with speech in ScummVM on this platform?

We occasionally get SCI tickets like this that turn out to be someone's linux platform not being able to play sounds, and I never seem to hear the resolution. Maybe they go fix their platform issue? Maybe they say "oh yeah, sound just doesn't work" and give up?

[jkoudys]

That would make sense. I'm on debian bullseye but running in a chroot on a chromebook. Every couple months the chroot support gets worse and worse and not long ago it broke sound. The linux has sdl and alsa libs built but there's no actual device driver.

I'll see if I can play without sound somehow and get it to work.

[sluicebox]

Ah, okay, a picture is coming into focus =)

To be clear, unchecking "prefer digital sound effects" will still get you sound, in fact it will get you the sounds you were more likely to hear back then. It just excludes the fancy digital samples of some sounds in favor of the normal MIDI-ish versions. It's an easy way to rule out those as the problem, and it sounds like the kiss sound effect is one of those, so it's worth a shot.

I am pretty certain that either way, sound is the root cause. Maybe the logs will turn up something; maybe you can help figure out more details and we can handle the underlying failure better.

[jkoudys]

I've tried rebuilding with alsa disabled, or changing the sound device, always the same issue. Could scummvm simply get a sound-off option? It does seem like it is that effect that tries to play but doesn't causing this. Weirdly this seems to be the only event of its kind, as I've finished qfg1 and 3 without incident.

[sluicebox]

You need sound for SCI. The games rely on sound timing and the embedded cues that fire during playback. And no, nothing about SCI sound is simple =)

So far I've just guessed that this is sound related from the end result, but we don't know where or what the failure is. We'll need details to troubleshoot this further.

1. Are you hearing any sounds in QFG2 under any circumstances?
2. If you are hearing sounds, does unchecking the "Prefer digital sound effects" checkbox affect this scene? (If you're not hearing any sounds, then it won't matter.)
3. What's in scummvm.log?
4. Under Game Options \ Audio, is there a Music Device selection that improves any of this?