freeciv
Freeciv is a Free and Open Source empire-building strategy game inspired by the history of human civilization. Upstream repository for the standalone Freeciv client and server. Report bugs and submit patches at https://redmine.freeciv.org/projects/freeciv
Runssource: GitHubhomepageCGPL-2.0commit af1c40980e63
C, GPL-2.0 licensed. The project labels itself: freeciv.
freeciv runs. An Argusic agent installed it in 12 minutes and hit 5 errors and fixed every one without help on a clean machine with no GPU, and the whole session was recorded.
The freeciv-server binary (version 3.3.90.14-dev) was built from source, runs successfully, loads all game rulesets from the data directory, and accepts TCP client connections on port 5556.
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.
- meson and ninja not installed1 minute
- zlib development headers not found1 minute
- icu-uc development package not found1 minute
- curl development library not found1 minute
- sqlite3 development library not found1 minute
- Install time
- 12 minutes
- Cold machine to finish
- 13 minutes
- Errors hit and fixed
- 5 hit, 5 fixed with no human help
- How the result was proved
- cd /work/repo/build-server && FREECIV_DATA_PATH=/work/repo/data echo 'show settings' | timeout 3 ./freeciv-server printed 'Loading rulesets', loaded all core rulesets (terrain, units, buildings, techs, etc.), added 6 AI players, and reported 'Now accepting new client connections on port 5556'
- Model tokens used
- 96,484
- Exact commit tested
- af1c40980e63
- 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.
- 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
Watch the session
The whole run, from a clean machine, at the speed it actually happened. Nothing is cut and nothing is sped up.
A recording of attempt 2, run , the attempt that decided the verdict above. The terminal recording it was made from is the evidence, stored with a sha256 fingerprint; the video is a rendering of it. Nothing loads from the video host until you press play.
The end of the recording
The last lines of the terminal session that decided this verdict, exactly as they were recorded.
96,484 Here's my final report. The start time was approximately 10:25 and the current time is 10:37, so ~12 minutes elapsed. **Errors encountered and fixed:** 1. `meson` and `ninja` not installed → installed via Python venv pip install 2. `zlib` not found → downloaded `zlib1g-dev` deb, extracted headers to `/tmp/local/include`, libs … 3. `icu-uc` not found → downloaded `libicu-dev` deb, extracted headers and libs to `/tmp/local` 4. `curl` not found → downloaded `libcurl4-openssl-dev` deb, extracted headers and libs to `/tmp/lo… 5. `sqlite3` not found → downloaded `libsqlite3-dev` deb, extracted headers and libs to `/tmp/local` All were resolved by extracting `.deb` packages into a local prefix and pointing `PKG_CONFIG_PATH`,… The meson configure step passed on the first clean attempt (after all deps were in place) and ninja… The test scripts (`check_macros.sh`, `copyright.sh`, `header_guard.sh`, `va_list.sh`, `trailing_spa…
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.
- Installed in 12 minutes.
- Recovered from all 5 errors 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.
- Licensed GPL-2.0, as reported by its host.
- Measured 2 times, so the result is not a one-off.
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
Topics (from GitHub)
Embed the badge
Markdown for the project README. It links back here; terms on the terms page.
[](https://argusic.com/subject/freeciv)Questions
- Does freeciv run?
- Yes. freeciv runs. Argusic installed and launched it on a clean machine in 12 minutes, hitting 5 errors on the way, and recorded the session.
- How did Argusic test freeciv?
- On a fresh, disposable machine, with every command recorded and the repository pinned at commit af1c40980e63. 2 attempts are recorded, and the full method is on the methodology page.
- What did it cost to test freeciv?
- The run that produced this verdict cost $0.08: real compute and model cost, not a list price per million tokens. It is recorded on that run's page.
- How long does freeciv take to install?
- 12 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 freeciv need a GPU?
- Not to start. Argusic reached a running state on a machine with no GPU.
- What goes wrong when installing freeciv?
- 5 things broke in the recorded run, and 5 were fixed without human help. Each one, and the time it cost, is listed on this page.
- Where is the evidence for freeciv?
- All 2 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.