Red Faction FAQ

This page provides fixes to commonly encountered issues, and answers to frequently asked questions.

It would be impossible to list absolutely every issue and question that may come up on this page. If you're facing an issue or have a question that doesn't appear on this page, please feel welcome to join the Red Faction Community Discord and ask it. It's extremely likely that someone there knows the answer and would be happy to help you.

Join the Red Faction Community Discord

Common Issues when Launching Red Faction

Nothing happens when I try to launch the game, or it launches but immediately crashes

Cause:

If you're running an official Red Faction version, this issue is likely a compatibility issue with modern hardware or a modern operating system. If you're running Pure Faction, you may experience this issue as Pure Faction is not compatible with certain versions of Windows 10.

Solution:

Installing and switching to Dash Faction should resolve this issue for you.

Error "Please insert Red Faction CD 2"

Cause:

You're running Red Faction version 1.0, 1.1, or 1.2, and those versions require CD 2 be in your CD-ROM drive for the game to launch.

Solution:

Official version 1.21, as well as all commonly-used community versions of Red Faction resolve this issue and allow you to launch the game without CD 2 in your CD-ROM drive.

Error "Unable to initialize DirectX 8.0"

Cause:

This issue occurs when launching Red Faction (particularly in full screen mode) on some new hardware.

Solution:

All commonly-used community versions resolve this issue - we recommend using Dash Faction for maximum compatibility with new hardware and operating systems. You may need to launch the community version you choose in "windowed" or "stretched" mode as opposed to full screen mode to resolve this issue.

Error "At least 8 MB of available video memory is required"

Cause:

This error occurs when Red Faction 1.0, 1.1, or 1.2 is launched on a system with 2GiB or more available video memory. At a technical level, the issue is caused by a signed DWORD being read as less than the minimum of 5MiB, and is resolved with the replacement of a signed less than comparision with an unsigned less than comparison.

Solution:

Official version 1.21, as well as both Dash Faction and Pure Faction resolve this issue and allow you to launch the game on systems with 2GiB or more available video memory.

Error "Unable to read project sound information. Is bluebeard.bty missing?"

Cause:

This error occurs when the stock file bluebeard.bty is missing from your Red Faction directory.

Solution:

The fix for this issue is very simple. You will need to download an original Red Faction bluebeard.bty file (available on FactionFiles.com) and drop it into your Red Faction directory.

The default Red Faction directory for Steam copies of Red Faction is C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\red faction\
The default Red Faction directory for non-Steam copies of Red Faction is C:\games\RedFaction\

Error "Unsupported game executable has been detected."

Cause:

If you get this error when attempting to launch Dash Faction, it means you've tried to hook an incompatible version of the game. Dash Faction was built as an add-on for Red Faction v1.20 (NA), and it requires that version to run.

Solution:

The easiest way to resolve this issue is to reinstall Dash Faction via the installer, which should patch your game as required so you have the right version. In very rare cases however, you may need to manually download the necessary version of rf.exe, place it in your Red Faction directory, and configure the Dash Faction "Game executable" (via the Options button in the Dash Faction Launcher) to the rf.exe you just downloaded. You can download an original, unmodified rf.exe from v1.20 (NA) from FactionFiles.com.

The default Red Faction directory for Steam copies of Red Faction is C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\red faction\
The default Red Faction directory for non-Steam copies of Red Faction is C:\games\RedFaction\

Error "failed to inject DLL [...] win32 error 126 The specified module could not be found."

Cause:

If you get this error when attempting to launch Dash Faction, it means the required DashFaction.dll file is not in the same directory as DashFactionLauncher.exe. This may be because you've moved DashFactionLauncher.exe to your desktop or another location, when you intended to instead create a shortcut.

Solution:

The easiest way to resolve this issue is to reinstall Dash Faction via the installer. Alternatively, if you know that you've moved DashFactionLauncher.exe and/or DashFaction.dll out of the directory that contains the other Dash Faction files, you can fix this issue by moving them both back.

Error "../../launcher_common/process.h:126 : win32 error 5 Access is denied."

Cause:

If you get this error when attempting to launch Dash Faction, it usually means the game executable is requiring elevation to run.

Solution:

The easiest way to resolve this issue is to simply run the Dash Faction Launcher with elevated rights by right clicking on it and clicking "Run as Administrator".

Error "Game executable has not been found. Please set a proper path in Options."

Cause:

If you get this error when attempting to launch Dash Faction, it means the "Game executable" field in the Dash Faction Options (accessible via the launcher) is not properly configured. This may be because you've moved your Red Faction executable to a new location.

Solution:

To resolve this issue, click the "Options" button in DashFactionLauncher.exe and click the "Browse" button next to the "Game executable" field. Specify a Red Faction v1.20 NA executable, then click OK. If you don't have this file, you can download an original, unmodified rf.exe from v1.20 (NA) from FactionFiles.com. This rf.exe file should be dropped into your Red Faction directory.

The default Red Faction directory for Steam copies of Red Faction is C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\red faction\
The default Red Faction directory for non-Steam copies of Red Faction is C:\games\RedFaction\

Common In-Game Issues

Submarine explodes after Geothermal Plant

Cause:

This error occurs when Red Faction is running with a high framerate (FPS), as will almost always occur when its running on a modern computer.

Solution:

There are 2 ways to handle this issue - the first a solution to the issue and the second a temporary workaround:

Install the modern Dash Faction patch which completely resolves the issue without requiring you to take any additional action (This is the best way to handle this issue and is highly recommended to fix this and other crippling issues with the game)
Alternatively, as a workaround you could limit your framerate/FPS to less than 60 via external methods as the submarine drops from the crane

Below is a video walkthrough on how to resolve this bug with the Dash Faction patch if you'd rather watch than read a text guide:

I can't shoot, move, or jump; or my game is stuttering, glitching, warping, or running too fast

Cause:

Red Faction has numerous issues when running on systems with newer hardware and/or software, including but not limited to those in this list. There's not one issue to point to as the cause of these issues.

Solution:

We recommend using Dash Faction, as it resolves these issues and is compatible with all known hardware/operating system configurations. Some other community-made Red Faction clients resolve some amount of these issues, but Dash Faction is by far the most comprehensive solution.

Game has severe graphical issues

Cause:

Red Faction, particularly official versions v1.00 through to v1.20, suffers from a number of very severe graphical issues on modern hardware.

Solution:

We recommend using Dash Faction, as it resolves these issues and is compatible with all known hardware/operating system configurations. Some other community-made Red Faction clients resolve some amount of these issues, but Dash Faction is by far the most comprehensive solution.

I'm getting severe framerate/FPS drops

Cause:

If you're running official version v1.21, this issue occurs when some specific levels are loaded. At a technical level, it's caused by v1.21 not properly handling invalid floating point values within the entity orientation matrix.

Solution:

No commonly-used community-made RF clients suffer from this issue. We recommend Dash Faction as it does not suffer from this issue, and fixes the vast majority of other issues you may encounter.

I'm getting severe framerate/FPS drops and I'm already using Dash Faction

Cause:

If you're already running Dash Faction, this issue occurs when OBS or OBS Studio attempts to hook the game for recording/streaming if you have anti-aliasing enabled in the Dash Faction launcher.

Solution:

To resolve this issue, exit the game and turn off anti-aliasing in the Dash Faction Launcher options panel, then relaunch the game.

Game crashes when I pick up items

Cause:

This issue occurs on official version v1.21 when you attempt to pick up weapon, health, armor, or ammo pickups while running the game at high resolutions.

Solution:

No commonly-used community-made RF clients suffer from this issue. We recommend Dash Faction as it does not suffer from this issue, includes proper support for high/custom/widescreen resolutions, and fixes the vast majority of other issues you may encounter.

Game crashes when I attach pistol silencer, or when I get the "monkey suit"

Cause:

This issue usually happens when you have a custom Pistol mod installed that doesn't have a proper silencer included.

Solution:

Unfortunately, there is usually no easy way to repair Pistol mods to include a proper silencer. Therefore, you should remove your custom Pistol mod to fix this issue. If you don't remember which file included the mod, an easy way to remove any installed clientside mods is to empty (or rename) your \user_maps\multi\ and \user_maps\single\ directories.

Sound from vehicles/robots/weapons is very loud or cuts off

Cause:

Red Faction doesn't correctly handle scaling sounds when you move the "Sound Effects" slider in the options menu, resulting in some sounds being very loud and/or cutting in and out based on your proximity to their source. The problem isn't known to occur with music or message volume.

Solution:

If you're running Windows Vista, 7, 2008, 2008 R2, 8, 2012, 8.1, 10, or 2016, it is recommended to set the in-game Red Faction "Sound Effects" volume (in the Options->Audio panel) to 100%, then use the Windows volume mixer to scale the game's audio to the desired level.

HUD elements are all jumbled together in top left corner of screen

Cause:

Red Faction official versions only support four resolutions (640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024). If you try to use an official version of the game with any other resolution (including any widescreen resolutions), all HUD elements will be jumbled in the top left corner of the screen.

Solution:

Both Dash Faction and Pure Faction resolve this issue for multiplayer, however Pure Faction will not properly display vehicle HUDs or radio messages (from Eos, Hendrix, etc.) in single player. We recommend using Dash Faction, as it fully resolves this issue in all situations, meaning you will be able to play both single player and multiplayer without HUD issues. Furthermore, Dash Faction includes a "Big HUD" option, to enlarge the HUD when running at higher resolutions.

Rail Driver scope is bugged and displaying yellow lines

Cause:

This issue usually happens when Red Faction is running in 16-bit mode.

Solution:

To resolve this issue, set Red Faction to run in 32-bit mode.

If you're using an official version, you can make this change by pressing the "SETUP" button in the Red Faction launcher, and setting "Framebuffer" to "32 Bit" on the "Video" tab, then pressing "OK."

If you're using Pure Faction, you can make this change by going to the "Game Settings" tab of the Pure Faction launcher and setting "Colour Depth" to "32 Bit," then pressing "Save Settings."

If you're using Dash Faction, you can make this change by pressing the "Options" button in the Dash Faction launcher, and setting "Color Depth" to "32 bits," then pressing "OK."

Character reflection in mirrors is broken

Cause:

This issue (dubbed "Frankenparker" by the community) exists in all official versions of Red Faction after version 1.1, as well as all community-made versions except Dash Faction, and is caused by the skin for the miner Parker character model being applied to the mesh for undercover Parker.

Solution:

This bug has been fixed in the Dash Faction community made Red Faction version as of v1.3.0. When using Dash Faction, Parker will go undercover without any such visual issues. As a bonus, Dash Faction also increases the resolution of mirrors and screens, so you'll get a better look at the fixed undercover Parker.

Audio in cutscenes isn't synced with facial animations

Cause:

This known issue occurs on all official Red Faction versions, as well as all community-made versions except Dash Faction, and is caused by timing issues affecting the game to varying degrees based on the game's framerate while the cutscene is playing.

Solution:

The Dash Faction community made Red Faction version resolves this issue, and cutscene animations and audio will be properly synchronized when you're running Dash Faction. Dash Faction also includes an option to allow the player to skip cutscenes if they don't wish to watch them.

I can't jump out of the water

Cause:

This known issue occurs on all official Red Faction versions when running at high framerates (FPS).

Solution:

Both Dash Faction and Pure Faction resolve this issue. We recommend Dash Faction as it also fixes the vast majority of other issues you may encounter.

Odd graphical or audio issues after the game has been open for a while

Cause:

A memory leak exists in all official Red Faction versions, as well as all community-made versions except Dash Faction (v1.5.0+), which causes strange graphical or audio glitches if Red Faction has been open through a very large amount of level loads - this can occur when you save and load extremely often while playing through the single player campaign. This issue will eventually lead to your game fully freezing and/or crashing, and the loss of any unsaved progress.

Solution:

Installing and using Dash Faction is the best solution for this issue, as Dash Faction entirely resolves the issue (along with many other issues). Alternatively, as a workaround, you can restart your game the first time you notice this issue occuring.

After loading a saved game, I'm in a different place in the level and I lost all my weapons

Cause:

This issue occurs when you save (or quicksave) your game when your character is out of bounds while using Pure Faction, resulting in an essentially corrupt savegame file. At a technical level, this issue is caused by a "spawn error" because the game is unable to determine the proper entity to which your player should be assigned. When a "spawn error" occurs, you spawn as a new "miner1" entity with 100/100 health/armour and a 12mm Pistol with maximum ammo.

Solution:

Unfortunately, as this issue is caused by a savegame file that has essentially been corrupted, no easy fix exists. We encourage you to save your game often, using different savegame filenames, so that if this rare issue were to occur, you can simply revert to an earlier savegame file.

Additionally, Dash Faction resolves most savegame corruption issues, meaning your savegame files are less likely to become corrupt and result in this issue.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I get a copy of Red Faction?

Answer:

Red Faction is available for purchase as a digital download or physical copy (CD).

Digital Download:

Steam
GoG

Physical Copy (CD):

Amazon
eBay

Will Red Faction run on my computer?

Answer:

Red Faction's recommended system requirements are listed below, but virtually any system built in the last 10 years should have no issue meeting them. Most newer hardware and operating systems however will not run the game properly by default. To resolve these issues, we recommend you use one of the great community versions of the game that have been developed by dedicated community members.

Official Red Faction Minimum System Requirements

Operating System: Windows® 2000/XP
DirectX Version: DirectX 8
Processor: Pentium II 400 MHz or greater
Memory: 64 MB RAM
Video Card: 3D Graphics Accelerator Card (8MB)
Sound: Direct X Certified audio hardware

Can I play Red Faction on Linux?

I've heard about Pure Faction and/or Dash Faction. What are they, and should I download them?

Answer:

Pure Faction and Dash Faction are both third-party community-made patches for Red Faction that fix bugs, add features/enhancements, and provide a better play experience than the base game. In some cases, especially on modern systems and Windows versions, these third-party community-made patches may be the only way to play Red Faction, as the official versions suffer from numerous issues that commonly cause the game to run poorly or not at all.

Pure Faction has not been in active development for some time and should be considered obsolete. Dash Faction however is in active development and will provide a significantly better play experience than Pure Faction or any official versions. As always, if you have any questions or run into any issues with Red Faction, please visit the Red Faction Community Discord

Where can I go to talk to other Red Faction fans, find people to play with, or ask for help with an issue?

Answer:

The Red Faction community lives on the Red Faction Community Discord. The vast majority of the game's community is there, and we'd love to have you as well! We're an inviting and approachable community of old school and new Red Faction players, and we should be able to help you with any issue you may be experiencing with the game.

The #rf1-matchmaking channel on the Discord server is intended to be used for organizing multiplayer matches.

Where can I find community-made Red Faction mods or levels?

Answer:

FactionFiles.com is the most extensive source of community-made mods and levels for Red Faction. Some specific categories of community-made Red Faction files from Faction Files are listed below.

Throughout Red Faction's 18+ year history, many other community sites have come and gone such as Red Faction Planet, Levels4You, RED tech, and RF HQ. The only file hosting site from RF's early history to still be available online is RedFactionView.net

Community File Categories:

How do I install and play custom mods?

Answer:

NOTE: We've tried to standardize the distribution format of mods on FactionFiles.com and this guide assumes you're installing mods from there. These steps may not work for you if you obtained a mod from another source.

Installing Conversion Mods

Please see our step-by-step guide: Installing Conversion Mods (RF1)

Installing Clientside Mods (Weapon Skins, Player Skins, or HUD / UI / Sound / Texture Mods)

Please see our step-by-step guide: Installing Clientside Mods (RF1)

How do I install and play custom levels/maps?

Answer:

NOTE: We've tried to standardize the distribution format of both single player and multiplayer maps on FactionFiles.com and this guide assumes you're getting them from there. These steps may not work for you if you obtained maps from another source.

Installing Multiplayer Maps

To install custom multiplayer maps, simply extract all .vpp files contained within the file you downloaded for the map to your "...\user_maps\multi" directory. (Normally this will be C:\Steam\steamapps\common\red faction\user_maps\multi for Steam users, and C:\games\RedFaction\user_maps\multi for non-Steam users) After the .vpp files are extracted, restart your game, then the newly installed map should be visible in the "Create Server" panel.
Alternatively, if you're using a community version of Red Faction, you can simply join an existing multiplayer server running a map you don't have. As long as that map is available on FactionFiles.com, you will be prompted to press a button to download and install it when you try to join.
IMPORTANT: Some maps, particularly newer maps, may not work properly unless you're running a new community-made client. We recommend using Dash Faction for the best experience.

Installing Single Player Campaigns/Maps

Most single player campaigns/maps you download will include a text file with installation instructions. If the one you downloaded has such a text file (normally named "How to play MODNAME.txt"), follow those instructions. If such a text file doesn't exist, extract all .vpp files contained within the file you downloaded to your "...\user_maps\single" directory. (Normally this will be C:\Steam\steamapps\common\red faction\user_maps\single for Steam users, and C:\games\RedFaction\user_maps\single for non-Steam users)
Once extracted, you'll need to launch the game, open console by pressing ~ (or `), then type "level LEVELNAME" and hit enter, where "LEVELNAME" is the filename of the first level. If you're unsure what filename this is, and it's not indicated in a text file distributed with the campaign/map, please join us on the Red Faction Community Discord for assistance.
Of course, if you run into any issues installing or playing multiplayer or single player maps, please join us on the Red Faction Community Discord for assistance.

How do I make my own custom mods or levels?

Answer:

Red Faction maps are made in RED, and mods are made using a mixture of Table files, meshes exported from 3Ds Max, and textures (.tga and .vbm).

Visit the RF1 Editing Main Page for documentation, tutorials, and other developer resources.

External tutorials:

The Red Faction community lives on the Red Faction Community Discord The vast majority of the game's community is there (including level designers and mod developers), and we'd love to have you as well! We're an inviting and approachable community of old school and new Red Faction players, and we would be more than happy to help you learn to create maps and mods for Red Faction!

Does anyone speed run Red Faction?

Answer:

Yes!

What are the major differences between the PlayStation 2 and PC versions of RF?

Answer:

While Singleplayer campaign is pretty much identical in both ports and their menu interfaces are different, the major differences lays down in Multiplayer domain. Apart from small design changes upon few multiplayer maps, chances of survival within online PC multiplayer are minimal while facing veteran fighters as the weapon damage properties are different in multiplayer than singleplayer. The important changes are listed below:

PS2 Splitscreen (offline) and AI Bot matches are not available on PC.
PC version comes with competitive online multiplayer to be played against real players instead of bots.
PS2 Autoaim and Zoom-In are taken out on PC port because it could be exploited for real-time cheating.
Bonus level Marooned from PS2 version is replaced by GlassHouse on PC port.
Some of the player multi-characters exclusively on PS2 version are also unavailable on PC version.
Capture The Flag mode is introduced in PC port while PS2 version doesn't have it.

Can I play the PlayStation 2 multiplayer maps on the PC version?

Answer:

Yes!

Download PlayStation 2 Classic RF Map Pack.

Does Red Faction automatically save my progress in single player?

Answer:

No.

Red Faction on both PS2 and PC never had the option to autosave. You were required to save manually only. Thankfully, the Red Faction Community's Dash Faction patch as of 1.8.0 version has now an autosave feature for PC which it is the critical update requested by many players for singleplayer experience:

Dash Faction 1.8.0

How do I kill the giant robot (combot/trash disposal bot)?

Answer:

Movement and scripted events for artificial intelligence (AI) entities in Red Faction are sometimes buggy. While no inherent issue exists with the combot, and it will properly follow you to the incinerator eventually, it may be inconsistent and take a few tries. It's important to avoid luring it into the back rooms (with the robots), as it can be difficult to lure back out. Deal damage to it until Hendrix tells you a disposal pit exists on the lower level, then attempt to lure the combot on to the top of the incinerator door before pressing both control panel buttons to turn on the fan and the incinerator. This may take a few tries, but it will work. After the combot has been incinerated, a cutscene will begin.

Please note that no method exists to destroy the combot with weapon fire from the weapons you can have at this point in the campaign - however, the combot will automatically be destroyed 9 minutes after Hendrix informs you of the location of the disposal pit.

How do I enable anti-aliasing or anisotropic filtering?

Answer:

You can turn on both features in the Options panel in the Dash Faction Launcher.

How do I enable DirectInput for my mouse input?

Answer:

Turn on Use DirectInput in the Dash Faction Launcher.

Alternatively, use the inputmode console command in Dash Faction.

How do I match my RF mouse sensitivity to my sensitivity in other games?

How do I run RF in a window or at a custom/widescreen resolution?

Answer:

Red Faction official versions only support four resolutions (640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024). Both Dash Faction and Pure Faction support custom/widescreen resolutions, however Pure Faction doesn't properly scale the FOV for widescreen resolutions or properly display vehicle HUDs or radio messages (from Eos, Hendrix, etc.) in single player. We recommend using Dash Faction, as it has fully implemented custom/widescreen resolution support. Furthermore, Dash Faction includes a "Big HUD" option, to enlarge the HUD when running at higher resolutions.