Building on Linux

Step-by-step guide to building OpenRCT2 on Linux

This guide covers building OpenRCT2 from source on various Linux distributions.

Prerequisites

Build Tools

You’ll need CMake 3.24+, a C++20 compiler (GCC 12+ or Clang 11+), and Ninja or Make.

Required Dependencies

OpenRCT2 requires the following development libraries:

• SDL2 development files
• libzip (≥1.0)
• zlib
• libpng (≥1.6)
• OpenSSL (≥1.0.0)
• libcurl
• FreeType2
• fontconfig
• ICU (libicu)
• zstd (libzstd)

Optional Dependencies

• FLAC (libflac)
• Vorbis (libvorbis, libvorbisfile)
• Ogg (libogg)
• OpenGL development files
• discord-rpc
• ccache (for faster rebuilds)

Installing Dependencies

Ubuntu/Debian

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y \
  git cmake ninja-build \
  g++ pkg-config \
  libsdl2-dev \
  libzip-dev libpng-dev \
  libssl-dev libcurl4-openssl-dev \
  libfreetype6-dev libfontconfig1-dev \
  libicu-dev libzstd-dev \
  zlib1g-dev

# Optional dependencies
sudo apt install -y \
  libflac-dev libvorbis-dev libogg-dev \
  mesa-common-dev libgl1-mesa-dev \
  ccache

Building OpenRCT2

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/OpenRCT2/OpenRCT2.git
   cd OpenRCT2
   
2. Create a build directory

   mkdir build
   cd build
   

   Do not build in the source directory. CMake will reject in-source builds.

3. Configure the build

   For a standard release build:

   cmake .. -G Ninja -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
   

   For a debug build:

   cmake .. -G Ninja -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug
   

   To install to a custom prefix:

   cmake .. -G Ninja \
     -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
     -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr/local
   
4. Compile

   ninja
   

   This will compile both openrct2 (the GUI) and openrct2-cli (the headless server).

   The build process will also generate required asset files (g2.dat, fonts.dat, palettes.dat, tracks.dat).

5. Install (optional)

   To install system-wide:

   sudo ninja install
   

   Or to a custom DESTDIR:

   DESTDIR=/tmp/openrct2-install ninja install
   

Build Options

Creating a Portable Build

For a portable build that can be moved to any directory:

cmake .. -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DPORTABLE=ON

This sets the RPATH to $ORIGIN, allowing the binary to find libraries relative to its location.

Building for AppImage

For AppImage packaging:

cmake .. -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DAPPIMAGE=ON

This sets RPATH to $ORIGIN/../lib for the AppImage directory structure.

Headless Build (Server Only)

To build only the headless server without GUI support:

cmake .. -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DDISABLE_GUI=ON

Static Linking

For a statically linked build:

cmake .. -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DSTATIC=ON

Building with Tests

cmake .. -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug \
  -DWITH_TESTS=ON

ninja

# Run tests
ctest --output-on-failure

Running OpenRCT2

After building, you can run OpenRCT2 directly from the build directory:

./openrct2

For the headless server:

./openrct2-cli host /path/to/save.sv6

On first run, OpenRCT2 will ask you to locate your RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 installation directory.

Using CCache

CCache can significantly speed up rebuilds. It’s enabled by default if detected.

To install CCache:

Ubuntu/Debian

sudo apt install ccache

To disable CCache:

cmake .. -G Ninja -DOPENRCT2_USE_CCACHE=OFF

Troubleshooting

GCC Version Too Old

GCC 12 or later is required. Older versions will fail to compile.

If your distribution provides an older GCC:

Ubuntu (use GCC from toolchain PPA)

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-toolchain-r/test
sudo apt update
sudo apt install gcc-12 g++-12
export CC=gcc-12
export CXX=g++-12

Or use Clang instead:

sudo apt install clang  # Ubuntu/Debian
export CC=clang
export CXX=clang++

Missing pkg-config Files

If CMake cannot find libraries:

# Check pkg-config can find libraries
pkg-config --modversion sdl2
pkg-config --modversion libzip
pkg-config --modversion libpng

# If not found, install the -dev packages

OpenSSL Link Errors

If you encounter OpenSSL linking issues:

# Make sure openssl-dev is installed
sudo apt install libssl-dev  # Ubuntu/Debian
sudo dnf install openssl-devel  # Fedora

X11/OpenGL Errors

For headless systems or when OpenGL is causing issues:

cmake .. -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DDISABLE_OPENGL=ON

Native Packages

Several distributions offer pre-built OpenRCT2 packages:

• Arch Linux: sudo pacman -S openrct2
• Gentoo: emerge games-simulation/openrct2
• NixOS: nix-env -iA nixpkgs.openrct2
• Ubuntu PPA: Available from the nightly PPA
• Flatpak: flatpak install flathub io.openrct2.OpenRCT2

These may be easier than building from source if you don’t need the latest development version.

Next Steps

• Building on WSL - Alternative method using Windows Subsystem for Linux
• Contributing - Guidelines for contributing code
• Development Setup - Setting up your development environment