Blog about ScummVM Freeware games of our openSUSE Build Service games project

Status

Lately in my spare time I put some effort in packaging the Freeware games, which are supported by ScummVM engine. I improved packaging of

but also successfully submitted freshly:

The packages include support for all languages, which have been made available. Also a wrapper script, which on the first run asks for the desired language via xmessage (how retro!) and then creates an appropriate section in scummvm.ini file with fullscreen set, scale factor of 3 (best quality) and enabled subtitles. This section is then used for the scummvm interpreter. Next time the wrappers script runs directly scummvm using this section.

What's missing

  • more testing of the packages; improve/fix wrapper scripts if needed
  • do some advertising that we have such packages

So I started to blog about these packages. Here is my first blog about Drascula: The Vampire Strikes Back

Outcome/Results

Not so much. I marked the wrapper scripts of the games as bash scripts by replacing #!/bin/sh in the header with #!/bin/bash. I tested briefly that language selection works as expected. I couldn't find any issues with that. Also I noticed that - when running in a Wayland session (I've tried GNOME) and using fullscreen mode of scummvm - the input is completely broken and you can't terminate scummvm any longer either (apart from killing the process id manually). I've tried to workaround this by starting scummvm on Xwayland by using environment variable SDL_VIDEODRIVER=x11 but this didn't help at all (seems it doesn't run on Xwayland at all). OTOH fullscreen mode of scummvm works fine in a X session (e.g. GNOME on Xorg).

Update on Wayland/Fullscreen issues

My results above were in a VM running sle15-sp4 using QXL as driver (1024x768 resolution I believe). Looks like things are working fine on Leap 15.4 on bare metal using Intel driver (Tigerlake, 1080p resolution).

Looking for hackers with the skills:

scummvm games freeware testing blogging documentation retro

This project is part of:

Hack Week 21

Activity

  • about 3 years ago: patrikjakobsson liked this project.
  • about 3 years ago: tdz liked this project.
  • about 3 years ago: hennevogel removed keyword blog from this project.
  • about 3 years ago: fos liked this project.
  • about 3 years ago: ptesarik joined this project.
  • about 3 years ago: vliaskovitis liked this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "retro" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch removed keyword scummvmgamesfreewaretestingblogbloggingdocumenation from this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "scummvm" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "games" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "freeware" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "testing" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "blog" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "blogging" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "documentation" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch added keyword "scummvmgamesfreewaretestingblogbloggingdocumenation" to this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch started this project.
  • over 3 years ago: sndirsch originated this project.

  • Comments

    • ericmenk33
      7 days ago by ericmenk33 | Reply

      That’s a great initiative with ScummVM freeware packaging, making classic games more accessible for everyone. To fully enjoy such retro adventures, having reliable peripherals can really enhance the gameplay experience. Brands like roccat сайт offer high-performance keyboards, mice, and headsets designed to bring both modern and classic games to life with comfort and precision.

    Similar Projects

    Port some classic game to Linux by MDoucha

    Let's pick some old classic game, reverse engineer the data formats and game rules and write an open source engine for it from scratch. Some games from 1990s are simple enough that we could have a playable prototype by the end of the week.

    Write which games you'd like to hack on in the comments. Don't forget to check e.g. on Open Source Game Clones, Github and SourceForge whether the game is ported already.

    Hack Week 25 - TBD

    It's time to pick a game for the upcoming Hack Week. Discuss in the comments what game you'd like to hack!

    Hack Week 24 - Master of Orion II: Battle at Antares & Chaos Overlords

    Work on Master of Orion II continues but we can hack more than one game. Chaos Overlords is a dystopian, lighthearted, cyberpunk turn-based strategy game originally released in 1996 for Windows 95 and Mac OS. The player takes on the role of a Chaos Overlord, attempting to control a city. Gameplay involves hiring mercenary gangs and deploying them on an 8-by-8 grid of city sectors to generate income, occupy sectors and take over the city.

    How to ~~install & play~~ observe the decompilation progress:

    • Clone the Git repository
    • A playable reimplementation does not exist yet, but when it does, it will be linked in the repository mentioned above.

    Further work needed:

    • Analyze the remaining unknown data structures, most of which are related to the AI.
    • Decompile the AI completely. The strong AI is part of the appeal of the game. It cannot be left out.
    • Reimplement the game.

    Hack Week 20, 21, 22 & 23 - Master of Orion II: Battle at Antares

    Master of Orion II is one of the greatest turn-based 4X games of the 1990s. Explore the galaxy, colonize planets, research new technologies, fight space monsters and alien empires and in the end, become the ruler of the galaxy one way or another.

    How to install & play:

    • Clone the Git repository
    • Run ./bootstrap; ./configure; make && make install
    • Copy all *.LBX files from the original Master of Orion II to the installation data directory (/usr/local/share/openorion2 by default)
    • Run openorion2

    Further work needed:

    • Analyze the rest of the original savegame format and a few remaining data files.
    • Implement most of the game. The open source engine currently supports only loading saved games from the original version and viewing the galaxy map, fleet management and list of known planets.

    Hack Week 19 - Signus: The Artifact Wars

    Signus is a Czech turn-based strategy game similar to Panzer General or Battle Isle series. Originally published in 1998 and open-sourced by the original developers in 2003.

    How to install & play:

    • Clone the Git repository
    • Run ./bootstrap; ./configure; make && make install in both signus and signus-data directories.
    • Run signus

    Further work needed: