OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast Launcher (rea-outrun-2006)

OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast Launcher

Play your own copy of the 2006 PC game OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast on Windows 10/11, the Steam Deck and Linux (Proton, your own Wine, or the AppImage, which brings its own Wine). Point the launcher at your installed game, pick a look and press Play. Everything the game needs is bundled and set up for you: no mods, patchers, winetricks, DLL overrides, compatibility modes or registry edits by hand. Your game folder is only read, never changed; the launcher plays from its own private copy.

This project contains no game files: you need your own copy of the game.

Status. Played end to end on Linux (Wine 11, DXVK, gamescope, an Xbox-style pad). Native Windows 10/11, the Steam Deck and Proton without or-play haven't been play-tested yet. Reports are very welcome at https://github.com/akitaonrails/rea-outrun-2006/issues.

The settings window, then the game in 4K with the HD texture pack, played on Linux. Click to watch (2:43, with sound).

Problems this launcher solves

Problem	What the launcher does
The 2006 EXE is wrapped in disc DRM that fails on modern Windows and breaks mod loaders.	Uses the DRM-free replacement EXE from OutRun2006Tweaks, the community mod that fixes the PC release, and installs the mod itself.
Tweaks' tagged releases are years old; current builds only exist as download links that expire after 90 days.	Ships a pinned, play-tested Tweaks build kept in this project's releases.
The mod needs a recent 32-bit Visual C++ runtime that most PCs don't have.	Puts the three runtime files next to the game. No installer runs.
On Linux: DXVK, DLL overrides, winetricks, and repacks that ship a SpecialK d3d9.dll which takes over Direct3D.	Sets up DXVK and the DLL overrides itself and keeps stray d3d9 files out of its copy. A fresh Wine prefix is enough.
Settings live in two INI files with dozens of keys, and the in-game overlay can quietly override them.	One settings window (and one commented launcher.cfg). Both INI files are written from it on every start; overlay changes to the keys it manages are reset.
Modern pads: shared trigger axes and phantom inputs; under Wine, a d-pad that doesn't move the menus.	Turns on Tweaks' new input system (full trigger range, rumble, impulse triggers) and picks the input method that works on your system.
Wine picking a portrait monitor or switching your desktop's video mode.	On Linux, runs the game inside gamescope at the size you chose, scaled to your screen.
The PC release's "Rush a Difficulty" is missing its first two seconds.	Applies Tweaks' official patch to the launcher's copy of your song. No music is distributed.
The community HD texture pack is a 3.2 GB manual download with no licence.	Downloads it when you ask, checks it, unpacks it and switches it on; the game reads it where it is.
Patching the game folder risks the copy you own.	Your folder is only read; the launcher works on its own private copy.

Screenshots

Play	Picture	HD Pack

Controls	Extras

What you need

OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast for Windows PC, installed: the folder with OR2006C2C.exe. The launcher recognises the original 2006 OR2006C2C.exe and a folder already patched with OutRun2006Tweaks' replacement EXE.

If your OR2006C2C.exe is another version, the launcher says so, shows its SHA-256 and doesn't start it. Report that code (never the EXE itself) with the unknown edition form.

Download and install

Download from the latest release: OutRunLauncher-<version>.zip for Windows, Steam and your own Wine, or OutRunLauncher-<version>-x86_64.AppImage for Linux.

Windows

1. Unpack the zip anywhere.
2. Keep its folders (tweaks, vc, linux, soundtrack) next to OutRunLauncher.exe.
3. Run OutRunLauncher.exe. The launcher is not signed, so on the first start from a downloaded zip Windows may say "Windows protected your PC": choose More info, then Run anyway.

Steam Deck

In Desktop Mode, either run the AppImage, or unpack the zip and add OutRunLauncher.exe to Steam (Add a Non-Steam Game), then force a Proton version in its Properties → Compatibility. The window recommends the Steam Deck look, and in Game Mode the game runs in Steam's own gamescope. Game Mode hasn't been tested yet.

Linux: AppImage

1. chmod +x OutRunLauncher-<version>-x86_64.AppImage and run it.
2. It brings its own Wine and keeps its Wine prefix in ~/.local/share/or-launcher/prefix.

Install gamescope for the best result; without it the game runs in a normal window. Your Linux files are drive Z: in the window.

Linux: Steam (Proton)

Add OutRunLauncher.exe from the unpacked zip as a non-Steam game and force a Proton version in its compatibility settings. The launcher notices Proton and sets up DXVK and the DLL overrides itself.

Linux: your own Wine

Run linux/or-play from the unpacked zip: the settings window, then the game in gamescope. It needs wine (and ideally gamescope).

or-play          # the settings window, then the game
or-play --play   # the game with the saved settings, no window
or-play stop     # end the game
or-play status   # running or idle

linux/README.md has its options (another prefix, a wrapper such as a distrobox).

First run

1. Press Browse… and choose the folder with your OR2006C2C.exe. Under Wine your Linux files are drive Z:, e.g. Z:\home\you\Games\OutRun 2006.
2. Pick a look. Coast to Coast is recommended (Steam Deck on a Deck-sized screen).
3. Press Play (or Enter, or Start on a pad).

The first start copies the game into the launcher's own folder (about 1 GB, once); later starts only copy what changed. The HD texture pack is optional: nothing is downloaded unless you press Download in the HD Pack tab.

The settings window

Play: the folder with your game, the four looks, and your saves folder.

Look	Resolution	Frame rate	What else	When to pick it
Original 2006	640×480	60	the game's own picture	to play the game as it shipped
Coast to Coast (recommended)	your screen's	60	longer draw distance, sharp reflections, 16× anisotropic filtering, the console versions' sky glow, the hi-def characters, the CD switcher, no boot logos, free drive	the first run picks it on most screens
Steam Deck	1280×800	60	lighter reflections, easy on the battery	picked on a Deck-sized screen
Custom	—	—	any change in the other tabs	when you change something yourself

Picture: the screen (resolution as a borderless window, exclusive fullscreen, frame rate, vsync), the detail (draw distance, car reflections, anisotropic filtering, anti-aliasing) and effects (sky glow, Xbox brightness, hi-def characters). On Linux, how gamescope enlarges the picture: Smooth, Sharp, Even pixels or FSR.

HD Pack: the community HD texture pack redraws the menus, HUD, sprites and button prompts (Envido32's compilation of the Sonic-TV OR2006Sprites project). Download fetches it from the pack's own GitHub release (326 MB) with progress, speed and time left; Cancel stops it, and Download later carries on from where it stopped. The launcher checks the download and the free space, unpacks it (3.2 GB) and switches it on; Remove deletes it. Or choose a copy you already unzipped. Details: docs/HD_TEXTURES.md.

Controls: the steering deadzone, rumble (off, on, motors swapped, or merged) with its strength and a Test rumble button for Xbox-style pads, impulse triggers for Xbox One/Series pads (Windows only), the input API (only for a pad that isn't seen), and the manual gearbox.

Extras: the CD switcher (change the music during a race: Back or X for the next track, Z for the previous one) with optional shuffle, skipping the boot logos, free drive (no countdown), the horn any time, roadside animations from any game mode, OutRun miles on the menu, and the "Rush a Difficulty" fix. Online play goes to the community server (clarissa.port0.org); pick a user name and password in the game's multiplayer menu.

The window works with a pad or the keyboard alone: the d-pad or arrows move, A or Enter press, LB/RB or Ctrl+Tab change tabs, Start plays. Every row says in one line what it changes, and a control you can't use right now (impulse triggers under Wine, shuffle without the CD switcher) is greyed out with the reason under it.

Options

Every option has the same name in the window, in launcher.cfg (with underscores) and on the command line (with hyphens). Where things live says where launcher.cfg is; the first run writes it with every option commented. Settings are saved when you press Play.

launcher.cfg / flag	In the window	Values	Unset	What it changes
game / --game	Play: Game folder	a folder	the launcher's own folder, if the game is there	The folder with your OR2006C2C.exe. Only read, never changed.
look / --look	Play: the look cards	original, coast_to_coast, steam_deck	Coast to Coast	Every picture, control and extra setting at once; settings given on their own win over it.
saves / --saves	Play: Saves	a folder	Saved Games\OutRun 2006	Where your saves are kept: copied into the game before it starts and back when it ends.
runtime / --runtime	— (file and flag only)	a folder	%LOCALAPPDATA%\OutRunLauncher\OutRun2006	Where the launcher keeps its private copy of the game.
resolution / --resolution	Picture: Resolution	WIDTHxHEIGHT, original or off	the game's 640×480	The size the game draws at, as a borderless window.
fullscreen / --fullscreen	Picture: Exclusive fullscreen	on, off	off	Takes over the screen instead of a borderless window. Holds the frame rate at 60.
fps_limit / --fps-limit	Picture: Frame rate	10 to 240, or unlimited (0)	60	Frames per second. Above 60 the picture is interpolated between the game's 60 ticks a second (experimental).
vsync / --vsync	Picture: Vsync	on, off	on	Waits for the screen's refresh: no tearing, a little more delay.
draw_distance / --draw-distance	Picture: Draw distance	0 to 8	4	How much further down the road the scenery is drawn (0 is the game's own).
reflections / --reflections	Picture: Reflections	original (128), 512, 1024, 2048	2048	How sharp the reflections on the car are.
anisotropy / --anisotropy	Picture: Anisotropy	0 to 16	16	Keeps the road's texture sharp into the distance (0 is the game's own).
antialiasing / --antialiasing	Picture: Anti-aliasing	0, 2 (the game's 4× MSAA)	0	Smooths jagged edges; on NVIDIA under Windows, trackside cloth and barriers too.
sky_glow / --sky-glow	Picture: Sky glow	on, off	on	The console versions' glowing sky.
xbox_brightness / --xbox-brightness	Picture: Xbox brightness	on, off	off	The brighter picture of the Xbox release.
hd_characters / --hd-characters	Picture: Hi-def characters	on, off	on	The detailed driver and passenger models the PC release shipped but never used.
scaler / --scaler	Picture: Scaler (Linux only)	nearest (Sharp), pixel (Even pixels), fsr, linear (Smooth)	linear	How gamescope enlarges the picture to your screen.
hd_textures / --hd-textures	HD Pack: Use the HD texture pack	on, off	off	The community's sharper menus, HUD, sprites and button prompts.
hd_textures_folder / --hd-textures-folder	HD Pack: Pack folder	a folder	the downloaded pack, or textures-pack next to the launcher	Where the HD pack was unzipped.
deadzone / --deadzone	Controls: Deadzone	0 to 50	20	How far the stick moves before the car steers, in percent.
vibration / --vibration	Controls: Rumble	off, on, swapped, merged	on	The pad shakes on shifts, drifts and crashes; swapped trades the motors, merged drives both together.
vibration_strength / --vibration-strength	Controls: Strength	0 to 10	7	How strongly the pad shakes.
impulse_triggers / --impulse-triggers	Controls: Impulse triggers	off, on, swapped, merged	swapped	Rumble in the triggers of Xbox One and Series pads, on Windows.
input_backend / --input-backend	Controls: Input API	auto, wgi, raw, dinput, xinput	auto: WGI on Windows, XInput under Wine and Proton	How the game reads pads; change it only if a pad isn't seen.
manual_gearbox / --manual-gearbox	Controls: Manual gearbox	on, off	off	Races start with the manual gearbox selected.
cd_switcher / --cd-switcher	Extras: CD switcher	on, off	on	Change the music during a race.
music_shuffle / --music-shuffle	Extras: Shuffle the music	on, off	off	The race music comes in a new order each time the game starts.
skip_logos / --skip-logos	Extras: Skip the boot logos	on, off	on	Straight to the title screen.
free_drive / --free-drive	Extras: Free drive	on, off	on	No countdown timer: drive as long as you like.
horn / --horn	Extras: Horn any time	on, off	on	The horn works all the time, not only when your passenger asks for it.
random_anims / --random-anims	Extras: Roadside animations	on, off	on	Roadside animations from every game mode can appear on any stage.
show_miles / --show-miles	Extras: OutRun miles	on, off	on	Shows your OutRun miles next to the menu's sign-in text.
soundtrack_fix / --soundtrack-fix	Extras: Soundtrack fix	on, off	on	Restores the first two seconds of "Rush a Difficulty".

An unset option gets the launcher's default, the Coast to Coast value shown in its #key = line (the resolution is the exception: unset, it is the game's own 640×480). On every start the launcher sets the keys it manages in the game's outrun2006.ini and in OutRun2006Tweaks.ini, and keeps every other line of both (the game's language, comments, keys it doesn't manage).

Any option on the command line skips the window and plays; options override launcher.cfg for that run, and only --game is remembered. The launcher's own switches:

Switch	What it does
--no-window	play with the saved settings (and any options given)
--settings	only the settings window; exit code 0 when Play was pressed, 3 when it was closed, 4 when no window could be shown, 5 when another launcher or its game is running (--linux adds the Linux scaler, for or-play)
--check	checks the game folder and the launcher's files without playing; the report is printed and goes to launcher.log; exit code 0 ready, 1 not, 5 when another launcher is open (the window, or the game)
--download-hd-pack	downloads the HD texture pack and switches it on; exit code 5 when another launcher is open (the window, or the game)
--help	every option and its values

A bad option or value exits with code 2 and says what it takes.

Where things live

What	Windows	Linux (AppImage, or-play)
Settings (launcher.cfg) and log (launcher.log)	%LOCALAPPDATA%\OutRunLauncher\	in the prefix, drive_c/users/<you>/AppData/Local/OutRunLauncher/
The launcher's copy of the game	%LOCALAPPDATA%\OutRunLauncher\OutRun2006 (about 1 GB)	in the prefix, …/AppData/Local/OutRunLauncher/OutRun2006
Your saves	%USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\OutRun 2006 (or the folder you chose)	in the prefix, drive_c/users/<you>/Saved Games/OutRun 2006
The downloaded HD pack	%LOCALAPPDATA%\OutRunLauncher\hd-pack (3.2 GB)	in the prefix, …/AppData/Local/OutRunLauncher/hd-pack
Wine prefix	—	~/.local/share/or-launcher/prefix
or-play's log (play.log) and lock	—	~/.config/or-launcher
Registry: the game's graphics preference (GpuPreference=2;, the high-performance GPU)	HKCU\Software\Microsoft\DirectX\UserGpuPreferences, a value named after the copy's OR2006C2C.exe (%LOCALAPPDATA%\OutRunLauncher\OutRun2006\OR2006C2C.exe by default)	—
Registry, in the Wine prefix only	—	OR2006C2C.exe's DLL overrides (HKCU\Software\Wine\AppDefaults\OR2006C2C.exe\DllOverrides, recorded in HKCU\Software\rea-launcher\DllOverrides\OR2006C2C.exe), the settings window's UseEGL = N (HKCU\Software\Wine\X11 Driver) and the controller baseline under HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\winebus; a value you set yourself is kept

A launcher.cfg next to OutRunLauncher.exe is used instead when it exists (a portable install). Under Proton everything is in Steam's compatdata/<appid>/pfx for the non-Steam game. The game writes its saves (License.dat, your records) into the launcher's copy; the launcher copies them into your saves folder when the game ends and back in before the next start, so your saves folder always has them.

Troubleshooting

• "This OR2006C2C.exe is a version the launcher doesn't know." Your EXE isn't one of the known builds. Report the SHA-256 it shows and where your copy comes from with the unknown edition form.
• "OutRun 2006 or its launcher is already running." The launcher you started first is still waiting for the game, or is running without a window, or the game is still running from the launcher's copy after its launcher was closed. Quit the game (or let that launcher finish), then start the launcher again. The launcher exits with code 5.
• The pad isn't seen, or the d-pad doesn't move the menus. Try another Input API in the Controls tab (XInput under Wine and Proton, then DirectInput). On 8BitDo pads use the X-input mode switch.
• The HD pack is on but the game looks the same. Check the HD Pack tab: the note under the folder says whether it holds the pack. launcher.log says which folder the game was given.
• Your own WINEDLLOVERRIDES don't apply. Rules for the DLLs the launcher sets (dinput8, d3d9, mscoree, mshtml) are replaced by the