The game audio plays hot with no in-game control -- testers couldn't
hear voice chat without the Windows mixer (playtest night). The -/=
keys now step the OpenAL listener gain (the master scale every source
inherits) in 5% steps, clamped 0..150%, edge-detected in the per-frame
poll with a foreground guard; the value persists to content\volume.cfg
and reloads at boot (BT_AUDIO_VOLUME env still wins when set; default
stays 0.6). README updated.
Verified: volume.cfg 0.25 -> boot log "master gain=0.25"; key stepping
needs a live focused session (awaiting live verification).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
The between-rounds arcade flow (first-playtest-night field request): at
mission end every pod exited, seats dropped, and every round required
everyone to re-run join.bat with no way to adjust the mission.
1. AUTO-REJOIN: StopMission (operator END / mission clock -- NOT a
window close) sets gBTMissionStoppedByConsole; after the matchlog
upload btl4main relaunches the pod into the join wait with the same
cmdline (BT_CALLSIGN/BT_MECH ride the inherited environment).
2. SEAT RECLAIM: the assigned tag is mirrored file-scope
(BTRelaySelfTag) and re-presented as the 3rd SEAT_REQUEST payload
field (BT_SEAT_CLAIM); the relay holds a dropped seat for its tag
for 90s and a returning player gets their EXACT seat back -- static
ordering across rounds, the real-pod model. Non-claim joiners skip
reclaim-held seats.
3. LIVE MISSION EDITS: the console gains "Apply mission settings"
(enabled while a session runs) writing arena/time/weather/length
into the session egg; the relay re-reads the file at round reset and
egg release (roster shape locked mid-session).
Verified 2-pod 3-round: pods self-relaunched after each clock end; the
SECOND-to-rejoin still reclaimed its original seat (ordering held); the
between-rounds edit landed ("mission length now 75s"). Known edge
noted in the KB: a stale ready flag from a not-yet-exited old conn can
satisfy the launch gate mid-rejoin -- operators launch on green dots.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
The 1995 front-desk conversation, over the internet. join.bat/
join_lan.bat now open a JOIN-GAME menu (the FE in BT_FE_JOIN trim:
CALLSIGN edit + the 18-mech list + JOIN); the choice relaunches into the
normal join with BT_CALLSIGN/BT_MECH env, rides the relay SEAT_REQUEST
as {callsign NUL mech NUL} (empty payload = roster defaults, wire-
compatible), and the relay validates the mech tag, HOLDS egg delivery
until every pod's console pad is connected, rewrites the egg via
eggmodel (vehicle= + rasterized callsign bitmaps, graceful no-PySide6
fallback) and streams it to all pads -- so every player's egg copy
carries every player's callsign.
The hold is gated on CONSOLE-PAD count, not game-side registration: a
pod HELLOs only after parsing the egg's roster, so a registration gate
deadlocks (hit live in the first run; pods animate in WAITING FOR
MISSION ASSIGNMENT during the hold).
Verified 2-node e2e (env-injected requests): thor/vulture requested over
roster defaults bhk1/ava1 -> relay held 1/2, released at 2/2, rewrote
both seats (relay log), the delivered egg carries vehicle=thor/vulture +
name=VIPER/MONGOOSE, both pods launched and built [cyl] tables for both
requested mechs. Join-menu layout screenshot-verified; the menu's
click-through relaunch awaits live human verification.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Distributed test zips go stale and stray. BT_EXPIRE (CMake option,
DEFAULT ON so a zip can never accidentally ship without it) makes the
exe refuse to start BT_EXPIRE_DAYS (default 14) after its build day:
boot logs the remaining window, an expired build logs + shows a
"test build expired -- ask the operator for the current build" box and
exits. btversion.h now stamps BT_BUILD_UNIX (UTC-midnight-rounded so
the only-on-change header churns once per day, not every build) +
BT_BUILD_DATE. Dev is unaffected: every build re-stamps the day.
-DBT_EXPIRE=OFF builds a non-expiring exe; mkdist reads the cache and
marks such a zip "-noexpire" + prints a warning, and the tester README
expiry note is {EXPIRE}-marker-gated like the steam lines. Second
compile-gate exception after BT_STEAM (convention updated in
glass-cockpit.md). Quality gate, not DRM -- a clock rollback defeats it.
Verified live: default build logs "test build window: 14 day(s) left";
a -DBT_EXPIRE_DAYS=0 build logs TEST BUILD EXPIRED and parks on the
explanation box (window title checked) without starting the game;
restored to 14 and rebuilt clean.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
For the 8-player playtest. Damage authority is VICTIM-side, so no single
peer sees the whole match: every -net instance now writes a compact
machine-parseable matchlog_<date>_<time>_<pid>.txt (auto-armed by -net;
BT_MATCHLOG=1/0 overrides; solo silent), and at mission end a relay-mode
pod dials the relay game port (the seat-request throwaway-dial pattern,
envelope route -9) and streams the file back -- the relay saves every
peer's copy under matchlogs/ on the operator's machine, so testers send
nothing by hand. tools/matchcheck.py <dir> reconciles all of them:
damage claimed (FIRE/PROJ/SPLASH/RAM, shooter-side) vs applied (DMG,
victim-side authoritative), kill/death replication across observers,
PLAYER_DEAD counts, scores, version skew, replicant-application and
unattributed-damage anomalies, mid-mission disconnects.
Hooks at the authoritative sites: Mech::TakeDamageMessageHandler (DMG,
post-base, zone + post-application damageLevel), MechWeapon::
SendDamageMessage (FIRE), projectile impact/splash/collision dispatch
(PROJ/SPLASH/RAM), wreck entry (DEATH -- a ONE-SHOT latch at
MovementMode 9, NOT the transition: a replicant arrives at 9 straight
from the type-6 record header and never runs the transition branch),
BTPlayer vehicle/death/score handlers (VEHICLE/PLAYER_DEAD/SCORE), zone
crit cascade (CRIT), APP.cpp RunningMission (MISSION), L4NET host
handlers (PEER_UP/PEER_DOWN). Every line t=/w=/st=-stamped + fflushed.
Verified 2-node: mesh run pairs A's 22 FIRE 1:1 with B's 22 DMG (same
amounts, cylinder-resolved zones, ~200ms latency); force-damage kill run
logs 103 DMG + 3 DEATH inst=M + 3 PLAYER_DEAD across three respawn
cycles victim-side and the kill SCOREs shooter-side; relay-mode run
auto-uploaded BOTH peers' files at the mission-clock stop and matchcheck
produced the full report with exactly one (correct) anomaly -- the force
hook's claim-less damage, the unattributed-damage detector working.
Relay gained a route-specific 8MB cap for the upload frame (game frames
stay capped at 1600).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
play_solo hardcoded -egg ARENA1.EGG, bypassing the miniconsole front end
that already carries the full pickers: SOLO/RAW-SOLO/HOST-LAN/JOIN-LAN
modes, 8 maps, all 18 mechs, 4 experience levels, colours/badges/patches,
drop zones, advanced damage, time-of-day, weather and mission length.
The bat now launches zero-arg (BT_PLATFORM=glass -> the menu); the menu
relaunches the exe with the generated egg and the cockpit/gauge env
(BT_START_INSIDE/BT_DEV_GAUGES) inherits into the mission child. Menu-boot
verified with the bat's exact env; the solo menu->mission->menu cycle was
verified at FE landing. README + the btoperator generated-bat template
updated to match.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
The unification flattened BT_STEAM into the always-on exe; the user flagged
the constraint that makes it the one legitimate compile gate: the Steamworks
SDK license bars a public release with Steam inside, so a release build must
exclude it entirely.
- CMakeLists: option(BT_STEAM OFF) restored around the Steamworks block --
an OFF configure touches no SDK headers, no steam_api.lib, no DLL copy.
BT_GLASS stays retired (always defined); ONE build dir either way.
Dev checkout: build/ configured once with -DBT_STEAM=ON.
- mkdist: reads BT_STEAM from build/CMakeCache.txt. Steam-OFF zips exclude
play_steam.bat + steam_api.dll (explicitly filtering a STALE DLL left by
an earlier ON build), strip the README steam section ({STEAM} line
markers), and take a -nosteam name suffix so the flavors never clobber
(found live: both stamped 4.11.436 and the release zip overwrote the dev
zip).
Verified both flavors:
ON (dev build): steam smoke degrades to Winsock without the client;
zip carries play_steam.bat + steam_api.dll + README steam lines.
OFF (scratch build-relcheck, deleted after): 0 compile errors; exe dir =
btl4.exe + OpenAL32.dll only; boots + simulates; BT_STEAM_NET=1 inert
(transport not in the binary); end-to-end zip has zero steam bits and
a clean README.
KB: context/glass-cockpit.md unified-build section records the license gate.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
The first zips (pre-mkdist) shipped d3dx9_43.dll / msvcp140.dll /
vcruntime140.dll next to the exe -- testers without the VC++ / DirectX
redistributables cannot load the exe otherwise. mkdist missed them (the
clean-extract boot test passed only because this machine has them system-
wide). Carried into redist/ (recovered from BT411_4.11.341.zip) and
packaged next to the exe.
Also: players/README.txt -- the tester instructions (updated for the
unified build: one exe, clickable cockpit surround, trigger-config regroup,
the settled keymap, play_steam.bat) -- stamped with the version and placed
at the zip root, matching the original zips' shape.
Clean-extract verified on BT411_4.11.435.zip: root has README + 4 bats,
exe dir carries all 4 DLLs, glass-profile boot simulates.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
