Tribes 2 is back and ready to play

I've created a repack of the client with the necessary patches to play online already installed. You can download it here : http://tribes2.wikidot.com

You don't need anything to get started, the installer will give you a fully activated tribes 2 and connect you to the already growing community of players that are forming. You will also be able to host your own server if you choose.

If you are able to help me provide more mirrors to this repack of tribes 2 for public download, post to the forums on the tribes 2 necrosis portal at the link listed above.

Thanks to everyone who made this possible I don't take any credit for the work of making the online component of this game playable again, I just wanted to make it more accessible to new and old players, please promote tribesnext and the tribes 2 necrosis portal.
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Comments

  • Isn't that a separate Tribes revival project from this one?

    Kinda pointless to tell us, if it is.
  • Withdraw can finally END!!! Thank you for posting this...even if it is different branch of development...We are ALL ONE T2 Community!!!
    Yoto
  • edited December 2008
    Seems like you just packaged the offline-internet-mode patch with Rain's alternate server listing, and a bunch of maps and voicepacks. I also notice that you don't credit Rain, or provide any links to his project site. That's not very respectful.

    Congratulations on prepackaging a set of capabilities that we've already had for about a year; without proper authentication, it isn't usable for building a new community.

    Wait for us to finish the TribesNext patch. We're really close now.
  • I went to the community homepage and saw this:
    Yesterday at 04:32:10 PM
    Re: Tribes 2 is back... by Thyth
    I got all excited 'cuz I thought the TribesNext master server patch was done. Don't do that to me :P
  • Seems like you just packaged the offline-internet-mode patch with Rain's alternate server listing, and a bunch of maps and voicepacks. I also notice that you don't credit Rain, or provide any links to his project site. That's not very respectful.

    Congratulations on prepackaging a set of capabilities that we've already had for about a year; without proper authentication, it isn't usable for building a new community.

    Wait for us to finish the TribesNext patch. We're really close now.

    well in effect, thats what i've done... but now i've removed the voicepacks and maps, and basically retooled it to be a fresh out of the box installation. The purpose of all of this is just to provide a way for people to get the game in the first place. Many people have never even heard of tribes. But for those who have AND for those who have not I wanted a simplified release. Also, the intention here is not to compete with tribesnext, but to work with you. My release will continue to be updated to be the easiest way to go from zero to tribes 2 as quickly as possible. If the tribesnext patch is better than what i've currently included, then i will use that patch in my release instead in the future, HOWEVER: When i found tribesnext as i was searching for places to release news of this repack, i saw several people here who apparently didnt realize that there is already a way to play tribes 2 right now. As stated before I just want to take the existing backbone that supports the multiplayer community, and repackage it into a more visible, more user friendly gateway for everyone to have access to. All of this work being done by the community isn't helping nearly as many people as it could be due to lack of visibility and thats just the role i'm trying to fill. BTW ver 1.1 of the installer was released this morning. Happy Tribes 2 Playing everone. Support the efforts of tribesnext!
  • edited December 2008
    So how is this better than just DLing TCMS and starting in -nologin mode?

    Because pretty much everyone has already done that.
  • and a bunch of maps and voicepacks
    Ew.
  • edited December 2008
    So how is this better than just DLing TCMS and starting in -nologin mode?

    Because pretty much everyone has already done that.

    perhaps, but apparently there are still several people out there who have no idea where to start. i wouldn't go so far as to say 'pretty much everyone'. maybe the die hard veterans who follow along with the scene, but this is intended for people who may just now be returning for a look at a game they fondly remember after years of other interests. I was one of those people once, and I remember how much effort I put into locating the resources available. I want to make the search, and the process of set-up easier.. to the extent that this could be presented to entirely new users as well. I purchased tribes 2 when it was brand new as many people here did also. The game never reached the level of popularity that it should have, even at its peak. It was far ahead of its time and suffered from a severe lack of visibility. But the game was so good that even today there are people who haven't lost interest dating back to that original release. I think if this is presented to the public on a broad scale as a free game, and made as easy to aquire as something less interesting but more popular, like say war rock, combat arms, or enemy territory, I think this could be a major competitor as a free to play fps. So I intend to try to make it as easy to access as those games are and present it to a whole new audience. I know that there might be some massive opposition but this game deserves it. I also intend to keep the release itself up to date to resolve any issues that i can. Simply put I want to TRY to be the best and most visible way to get and play tribes 2 out there, with the least amount of effort involved.

    and to kryand, as i mentioned earlier, all skins, voicepacks, and maps have been removed as of version 1.1, which is a complete rebuild from scratch including nothing but the multiplayer and lan patches pre applied.

    Its not going to stop here either, I'm working on eliminating the 'Unhandled Exception' errors as well and if i complete that task the changes will be included in version 1.2. Also as i mentioned earlier I'll be testing the work put out by tribesnext and determine when to incorporate it into the release to make it the best, easiest distribution possible.

    Thanks for everyone's interest, stay tuned, and tell someone who's never heard of tribes 2 to check out the awesome new free fps, tell them its better than halo or something and then just gauge their reaction.

    As a side note... did anyone here notice how happy Yotofuji was? There are MANY people out there who would have the same reaction to this release, and i'm doing it for them.
  • Its not going to stop here either, I'm working on eliminating the 'Unhandled Exception' errors as well and if i complete that task the changes will me included in version 1.2. Also as i mentioned earlier I'll be testing the work put out by tribesnext and determine when to incorporate it into the release to make it the best, easiest distribution possible.
    You'd need a catchy name and a good website for that.
    Thanks for everyone's interest, stay tuned, and tell someone who's never heard of tribes 2 to check out the awesome new free fps, tell them its better than halo or something and then just gauge their reaction.
    Actually, Halo's PC Multiplayer is close to perfection, the simplicity makes it excellent :-)
  • Yes, your efforts are with good intention, but if all you are doing is glorifying the "-nologin" trick, this effort of your may actually just cause more confusion. TribesNext intends to truly replace the Tribes 2 online functionality, not just make use of a bypass hack. When it's released, it will all be in 1 nice neat file. People without T2 can DL the one file and install it and be ready to go. People with T2 already installed can DL a smaller patch that will bring their installation to the same level.

    What your "Necrosis" is doing is glorifying a hack that was only meant to be a temporary solution. Any solution utilizing "-nologin" mode has massive security problems that will prevent the game from being taken seriously. TribesNext solves those problems by reimplementing the login process and authentication server. My point is, if you go around trying to advertise "Necrosis" as the official revival patch of T2, in the end you are only going to take away from the TribesNext system, which is a much more permanent and secure solution, as opposed to a temporary hack. By trying to promote "Necrosis" as some T2 revival, you are only going to confuse people when they are faced with both it and TribesNext. It's pretty clear that TribesNext is the superior choice here, and if you truly look it over, you'll come to the same conclusion fairly quickly. If not, then believe me, we've been confronted by a couple egotistical people in the past who believed that they could do better than TribesNext, and they have all been forgotten.

    Anyway, my suggestion is to just do what I do when people ask you if it's possible to play T2. Link them for a tribes2_gsi.exe if necessary, then link them to TCMS and Morrow's server:
    Sierra shut down the online servers. You can still play on "nologin" servers if you install some scripts.

    Check these links:
    http://www.tribalwar.com/forums/showthread.php?t=500559
    http://www.the-construct.net/forums/showthread.php?t=265

    Start T2 with the offline shortcut and you're good to go. Also, check http://www.tribesnext.com for the new community patch that will be out soon.
    There's no need to base a T2 revival movement around the hack, give it a name, and tell people you're going to save T2. It's just going to confuse people.
  • the intention isnt to confuse anyone. if you are a new user and search for information about playing tribes 2 right now... its not clear that there is a way to play at all, most likely you'll get a load of pages about how the servers have been shut down and theres no keys left for circulation etc.

    also, you make it sound as though all i've done is include the lan patch, and while thats a part of whats included, this also includes the patch to access the already existing alternate master server, which means that people can just fire it up and see a slew of servers with people playing and then join.

    so when you say that i'm just trying to confuse tribesnext users, its not true. as of right now, you cant play online against other players with anything released by tribesnext. If someone else comes out with a better smoother installation method as you suggest tribesnext will provide, i'll stop promoting this. But i'll keep my efforts on hand in case of future need.

    Until i see another single file release that allows people to play tribes 2 without any headache, i'll keep working on this one. my intention is to add to the community, not detract from it.

    before any of these lan patches, or alternate master servers, or combating revival projects, i was hosting a server for some friends using hamachi, just because i wanted to show some younger people what tribes 2 even is at all, they had never seen it. Those people are still around and continue begging me to help them get access to tribes 2, so they can play and so that they can show their friends who also have never heard of the game. Thats what i've attempted to do. They weren't able to locate or use the existing resources available, and so i decided to try to remedy that situation for the good of the community. This isn't about my efforts at all and i realize that what i've done pales in comparison to the work of others. I'm not doing this for glory or credit or anything else. I just want tribes 2 to have MORE players and MORE visibility. I dont see many other people bringing the existing structure to the people who want it.
  • I know you're not trying to confuse anyone, but what I am saying is some people will end up confused anyway. I was also more referring to the people who download and follow along with "Necrosis", not TribesNext users. The way you introduced your patch made it sound like it was going to be a huge project to revive T2, so if down the line you say "ok guys now forget 'Necrosis' and use TribesNext", it might take a while for it to catch on with everyone. And if you don't end up saying that, it will still confuse people who have heard of both solutions and don't know which to use, and it will also deprive anyone who uses "Necrosis" of having a secure online community.

    Really, you're going to have to manually point people to Necrosis anyway if you want them to find it, so it would be just as easy to point them to TCMS and possibly Morrow's as well. Also, I don't know what master server list you are using with yours, but TCMS already has like 30 servers on my list (mostly always empty, but still). So if the master server you use is independent of that, then your users are missing out yet again.

    On a side note, you keep talking of visibility, but any "-nologin" solution has pretty much already reached the entire scope of its visibility.
  • I know you're not trying to confuse anyone, but what I am saying is some people will end up confused anyway. I was also more referring to the people who download and follow along with "Necrosis", not TribesNext users. The way you introduced your patch made it sound like it was going to be a huge project to revive T2, so if down the line you say "ok guys now forget 'Necrosis' and use TribesNext", it might take a while for it to catch on with everyone. And if you don't end up saying that, it will still confuse people who have heard of both solutions and don't know which to use, and it will also deprive anyone who uses "Necrosis" of having a secure online community.

    as of right now, there isn't anything to be confused about, people coming to tribesnext want to play tribes 2, when they don't see a way to do it right now, they might lose interest. I'm providing them with an immediate solution. as for getting them to switch from one to the other, as you mentioned, i'm just trying to make it easier to use work thats already been completed. when the quality of a playable tribesnext alternative surpasses that of the alternate master server that i'm directing people to, i'll be using the same resources to direct attention there, and i wouldnt be opposed to linking out to any of the working solutions available right now.
    Really, you're going to have to manually point people to Necrosis anyway if you want them to find it, so it would be just as easy to point them to TCMS and possibly Morrow's as well.

    thats the point exactly, to point MORE people to the existing work, and it might be even EASIER for me to take your suggestion and point people to that work directly, but i think that entirely new tribes users would find it easier to just intall one program that works right away
    Also, I don't know what master server list you are using with yours, but TCMS already has like 30 servers on my list (mostly always empty, but still). So if the master server you use is independent of that, then your users are missing out yet again.

    thats the master server i use, i'm trying to bring more players onto it.
    On a side note, you keep talking of visibility, but any "-nologin" solution has pretty much already reached the entire scope of its visibility.

    yes if your a tribes veteran thats probably true, but trying to attract people who never heard of tribes to come and play a game where you have to download something, patch it, and change the batch file, (keeping in mind that many of these people are likely to screw it up) is unrealistic.
  • This will be a moot point in a couple of weeks anyway, as we are really close to release.

    In my opinion, it would be best to leave the game be until our patch is ready.
  • Im sticking to the TribesNext Patch, ive read the progress bits, and it seems Elec is doing it properly ;)
  • right i'm not suggesting otherwise, meanwhile if you want to play right now, or later tonight, or something to that effect, the resources are available now, and i've repackaged them into a simple single file installer.

    In the meantime, i'm also extremely interested in the tribesnext project, and i also believe that it will be a better product when its available. I'm continuing to check up here as well for exactly that reason :)
  • right i'm not suggesting otherwise, meanwhile if you want to play right now, or later tonight, or something to that effect, the resources are available now, and i've repackaged them into a simple single file installer.

    In the meantime, i'm also extremely interested in the tribesnext project, and i also believe that it will be a better product when its available. I'm continuing to check up here as well for exactly that reason :)

    So basically, once the tribesnext solution is complete you refer all interest back to tribesnext?
  • This will be a moot point in a couple of weeks anyway, as we are really close to release.

    :o please god let it be eariler, I set a mental dead line for Christmas :P
  • So basically, once the tribesnext solution is complete you refer all interest back to tribesnext?

    thats exactly what i mean to do, as soon as theres a tangible product which is superior in quality to the solution i'm currently directing attention to
  • That sounds cool. ;)
  • thats exactly what i mean to do, as soon as theres a tangible product which is superior in quality to the solution i'm currently directing attention to
    I hope you plan to link to us, rather than slap a Necrosis sticker on the side of a pre-patched installer. If you distribute a pre-patched version of the game, we cannot permit you to link to it from this forum, nor can we endorse it.

    There are complex legal reasons for this, but it can be succinctly summarized as such: while we are free to reverse engineer a system and provide tools for compatibility, we do NOT have legal clearance to distribute a derivative work. Now, before a non-lawyer thinks there is a problem: distribution of an unauthorized derivative work is different than providing a tool that automatically patches the game when run (since the tool is not a derivative work any more than a hex editor, even if it is more specialized).

    At launch we will distribute the original GameSpy Installer that was put on FilePlanet in 2004 as part of the re-release. A separate (but very small) patcher will be our non-derivative work deliverable. Keeping them separate is critical to keeping us in the DMCA-1201f legal safe harbor.
  • Basically Thyth is a ninja.
  • Basically Thyth is a ninja.

    I would agree, and i'm pretty dng sure anyone with a brain would agree as well...
  • edited December 2008
    I've been reading the posts this Thyth guy has written. I've been writing code for 20 years, 10 of which professionally, and he speaks of things I have never even heard of. It's like the guy knows everything. He's not a ninja, he's THE ninja master. Thanks Thyth, you rule.

    -abstract/killmachine/dischord81/atlas
  • So i have been been following along with this tribes community and i just now signed up to say that I apreciate the work that is being done with the tribesnext project but i espeacially want to thank freethought for releasing his installer, because its great since i had no way too play the game. I tried it out and it works great and i am still waiting for the tribesnext project.

    Thanks for all the hard work. Keep it up guys. ;)
  • Basically Thyth is a ninja.
    he could be a ninja, or one of these
    [flash=200,200]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=y8Kyi0WNg40[/flash]
  • For those of you who doubted that the efforts made by myself and others would bring visibility to the alternate master server that is currently up and running hundreds of games every day, I just wanted to announce that the Tribes 2 Necrosis Repack has had well over 200 downloads every week since it was released, and growing. To reiterate: You can play Tribes 2 right now, download the entire game at http://tribes2.wikidot.com in a simple single 400 MB file, which installs to an out of the box-style, pre-patched installation which will automagically allow you to host or join any of SEVERAL existing servers running on the very nice alternate master server which has been so painstakingly delivered to the tribes 2 community by its die-hard supporters. Yes, you can have the best of both worlds. Tribes next will deliver a quality release for certain, but since you can't wait to play tribes 2 right now, GO AHEAD! its already here and waiting for you to come play, see you in-game!!!

    - Free Thought
  • Very nice move on the legal chess board Elec, glad to see your still around.
  • Hey freethought..In that File..You should add "DefenseTurret" so that the people can also play Arena..Cuz without DefenseTurret..You can't play Arena.
    That's also a heads up to the TribesNext DL package.
    Please and Thank You.
  • Thanks, thats a great idea! Might be about a week off though as a power surge fried my motherboard, and the replacement i got was faulty, but when I get that box back up i'll get right on it.
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