Cataclysm-DDA
Cataclysm - Dark Days Ahead. A turn-based survival game set in a post-apocalyptic world.
Runssource: GitHubhomepageC++NOASSERTIONcommit 98e4c61d936a
C++, NOASSERTION licensed. The project labels itself: c plus plus, cataclysm, game, hacktoberfest and zombies.
Cataclysm-DDA runs. An Argusic agent installed it in 27 minutes and hit 1 error and fixed every one without help on a clean machine with no GPU, and the whole session was recorded.
Cataclysm-DDA curses binary builds from source, launches with --version, and its test suite runs successfully with all tested cases passing.
What the agent ended up with on a clean machine, in its own words. How this is measured
Measured by Argusic on a fresh machine every time. Every number links to its evidence. Argusic Score 100 of 100 (the mean of this project's run scores).
At a glance
Subject data from GitHub, linked at the top of this page, refreshed . Test data by Argusic (CC BY 4.0); every number links to a run page with the full log, the recording, and their sha256 hashes.
What was measured
From the run that decided this verdict. Every line is a recorded value, not an estimate.
What went wrong, in the agent's own words
The agent's own words, worst first, never rewritten into advice.
- libncursesw5-dev development headers not installed in container (no root access for apt)5 minutes
- Install time
- 27 minutes
- Cold machine to finish
- 27 minutes
- Errors hit and fixed
- 1 hit, 1 fixed with no human help
- Model tokens used
- 129,681
- Exact commit tested
- 98e4c61d936a
- Container image
- sha256:cdd920bce783
What was not measured
The other half, so you can see exactly how far this evidence goes. A gap is printed as a gap and never filled in.
- How the result was proved
- runs before 2026-09-07 did not record the command used to check the result
- Peak GPU memory
- this ran on a CPU machine, so there was no GPU to sample
- Behaviour over a long run
- each attempt uses the smallest documented settings and a fixed time budget, so this measures whether it runs, not how it holds up under load
The end of the recording
The last lines of the terminal session that decided this verdict, exactly as they were recorded.
1788635787 exec /bin/sh -lc "# Record the start time to calculate duration # The session started at 18:49 (first tool call output showed that time) # That's approximately 1788635340 in epoch. Current is 1788635787 # Diff is ~447 seconds = ~7.5 minutes. But actually the whole process from start to finish. # Let me just calculate from 18:49 to now 19:16 = 27 minutes echo \"Done\"" in /work/repo succeeded in 0ms: Done tokens used 129,681
Replay the whole session, every command from a clean machine to this point.
How it was tested
One agent, one container, no human help. It installs the project the way its own documentation says to, runs it, and fixes what breaks. Everything below is recorded as it happened: the terminal session, the log and the exact commit. The full method.
Strengths and limits
Measured facts, not opinions. How this is written.
What went well
- Reached a running state on a clean machine, with the session recorded.
- Recovered from all 1 error without a human stepping in, which says the failures are documented well enough to solve.
- Ran without a GPU, so it does not need one to start.
- Measured 3 times, so the result is not a one-off.
What did not, or is not known
- Took 27 minutes to install, slower than the median of the 4 comparable projects Argusic has measured.
- Its license file could not be classified automatically, so check it yourself before using it.
Of the 5 c-plus-plus projects Argusic has installed and timed, Cataclysm-DDA was the 4th fastest to reach a running state, and 4 of 5 reached one at all.
What it is a reasonable choice for
- Trying it on a laptop or a small server: it reached a running state without a GPU.
Run history
| tested by | attempt | outcome | score | cost USD | when |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argusic Runner | 1/3 | Runs | 100.00 | 0.10 | |
| Argusic Runner | 2/3 | Ran out of time | 0.00 | 0.39 | |
| Argusic Runner | 1/3 | Ran out of time | 0.00 | 0.48 |
Topics (from GitHub)
Embed the badge
Markdown for the project README. It links back here; terms on the terms page.
[](https://argusic.com/subject/cataclysm-dda)Questions
- Does Cataclysm-DDA run?
- Yes. Cataclysm-DDA runs. Argusic installed and launched it on a clean machine in 27 minutes, hitting 1 error on the way, and recorded the session.
- How did Argusic test Cataclysm-DDA?
- On a fresh, disposable machine, with every command recorded and the repository pinned at commit 98e4c61d936a. 3 attempts are recorded, and the full method is on the methodology page.
- What did it cost to test Cataclysm-DDA?
- The run that produced this verdict cost $0.10: real compute and model cost, not a list price per million tokens. It is recorded on that run's page.
- How long does Cataclysm-DDA take to install?
- 27 minutes in the run that decided this verdict, from a clean machine to a running state. That is one measured attempt, not an average.
- Does Cataclysm-DDA need a GPU?
- Not to start. Argusic reached a running state on a machine with no GPU.
- What goes wrong when installing Cataclysm-DDA?
- 1 thing broke in the recorded run, and 1 were fixed without human help. Each one, and the time it cost, is listed on this page.
- How does Cataclysm-DDA compare with the alternatives?
- Of the 5 c-plus-plus projects Argusic has installed and timed, Cataclysm-DDA was the 4th fastest to reach a running state, and 4 of 5 reached one at all.
- Where is the evidence for Cataclysm-DDA?
- All 3 recorded runs are on this page, each linking to its full log and terminal recording, stored with a sha256 fingerprint so it cannot be quietly altered.