NodeWorld
ENFR

Install on Linux

You need a 64-bit Linux (x86-64) with glibc 2.35 or later: Ubuntu 22.04, Debian 12, Fedora 36 and later. You play with a PC VR headset through an OpenXR runtime such as SteamVR, or on your screen with keyboard and mouse.

Install the AppImage

NodeWorld for Linux is one file, an AppImage: nothing to extract, nothing installed in the system.

  1. Download NodeWorld-<version>-x86_64.AppImage from the link you were sent.
  2. Put it in a folder of your own that it can stay in, for example ~/Applications (the game replaces this file when it updates, so the folder must be yours).
  3. Make it executable: in your file manager, open its Properties and allow it to run as a program, or in a terminal:
bash
mkdir -p ~/Applications
mv ~/Downloads/NodeWorld-*-x86_64.AppImage ~/Applications/
chmod +x ~/Applications/NodeWorld-*-x86_64.AppImage

The first time it starts, NodeWorld puts itself in your applications menu with its icon, and the website's Open in NodeWorld buttons start it (the nodeworld:// links, see Instances). It does this again each time it starts, so the menu entry follows the AppImage if you move it. To start it without touching the menu or the links, set NODEWORLD_NO_INTEGRATION=1.

Start the game in VR

  1. Start SteamVR (or your OpenXR runtime) and put the headset on until you see its home.
  2. Start NodeWorld from your applications menu, or double-click the AppImage, or in a terminal:
bash
~/Applications/NodeWorld-*-x86_64.AppImage

Start the game on your screen, without VR

With no headset started, the game goes to your screen on its own. To start without VR while a headset is plugged in, right-click NodeWorld in the applications menu and pick NodeWorld (no VR), or add the launch option --novr:

bash
~/Applications/NodeWorld-*-x86_64.AppImage --novr

The keys are on the Controls page.

Next: first launch and sign-in.

Updates

When a new version is out, the game offers it when it starts: it downloads the new AppImage, puts it in the place of the old file (same folder, same name) and starts again. See Game updates.

Remove NodeWorld

Delete the AppImage, then the menu entry, the link to the AppImage and the icon:

bash
rm ~/.local/share/applications/nodeworld.desktop
rm -r ~/.local/share/nodeworld
rm ~/.local/share/icons/hicolor/256x256/apps/nodeworld.png

Your settings and your sign-in stay in ~/.config/unity3d/NW/NodeWorld (delete that folder to remove them too).

If something goes wrong

  • "Permission denied" when you start it: the AppImage is not executable yet. Run chmod +x on it (see above).
  • "Cannot mount AppImage, please check your FUSE setup": install FUSE 3 (sudo apt install fuse3 on Ubuntu and Debian), or start it with --appimage-extract-and-run.
  • The game shows an error or a black screen without a headset: start it with --novr.
  • The game does not start in my headset: start SteamVR first and wait for the headset home, then start NodeWorld.
  • The update says it could not be installed: the AppImage is in a folder you cannot write to. Move it to a folder of your own (~/Applications), start it from there, then update again.
  • "version `GLIBC_2.35' not found": your system is older than Ubuntu 22.04 or Debian 12. The game needs a more recent system.