The Last Express engine was merged?

Serious Callers Only · Tue Oct 19, 2010 8:33 am

Only the best adventure game ever.

Reverse engineering it is painful i guess? The google code page seemed like it was reimplementing the whole game, no script interpreter right?

Julien · Post by **Julien** » Tue Oct 19, 2010 8:43 am

Yep, all the logic is hardcoded (see here: http://personal.markmoran.net/Programmi ... esume.html for an idea of how the original AI code was written).

At this time, I wouldn't even try to play it. The first chapter isn't completable and there are tons of bugs and missing features. I'm down to 34 AI logic functions to implement (most of them among the biggest). After I'm done with that, I'll start implementing the missing or broken features (inventory, sound cache, savegames).

Luckily the chapters are relatively independent, so once the common code is in a good shape, we can begin testing all the first chapter outcomes (and there are quite a few

)

Serious Callers Only · Tue Oct 19, 2010 8:49 am

Really cool and impressive thanks for your work.

Bluddy · Post by **Bluddy** » Tue Oct 19, 2010 9:18 am

Hey Julien

Great job on the engine!

Looking very briefly at the AI section of the code, it seems like maybe it was a bit of overkill in Smoking Car's design, no? I got the impression that the game was a large theater, playing virtually the same way no matter what happens, and the only thing that changes is where you are and what you experience. Creating AI agents for each character would suggest that maybe the original design was for characters to move about randomly and to interact with other characters differently each time?

Julien · Post by **Julien** » Tue Oct 19, 2010 9:32 am

Thanks!

I can't say what their original design was (especially since all we have is the compiled script code), but indeed the game always play mostly the same. There is still quite a bit of branching, but it does not affect the overall story line (you'll just have different endings & interactions with others depending on your actions, which is already quite a bit!).

I prefer not to imagine the mess it would have been if they had tried to make it even more dynamic

Also remember that they needed the ability to rewind & forward the game at almost any time.

Sordid · Post by **Sordid** » Fri Oct 22, 2010 7:30 am

Is it already detectable by SVN?

Post by **eriktorbjorn** » Fri Oct 22, 2010 6:55 pm

Sordid wrote:Is it already detectable by SVN?

I don't know about the snapshot builds, but the one I compiled myself detects my English version of the game at least.

Sordid · Post by **Sordid** » Sun Oct 24, 2010 2:29 pm

Well, perhaps it's because of my german version. Which data is needed? I just extracted my first Disc and tried every folder...

Post by **eriktorbjorn** » Sun Oct 24, 2010 2:43 pm

Sordid wrote:Well, perhaps it's because of my german version. Which data is needed? I just extracted my first Disc and tried every folder...

There is an entry in the detection code for the German version. I think what it needs are the CD1.HPF, CD2.HPF, CD3.HPF and HD.HPF files.

Sordid · Post by **Sordid** » Sun Oct 24, 2010 3:40 pm

You're right! I just had to copy all the mentioned files. Thanks!

CoreyHaim8myDog · Post by **CoreyHaim8myDog** » Mon Nov 15, 2010 9:00 pm

I have been trying for days to get this game to work. I have a MacBook. On several sites I have found methods which purport that the game is playable on my machine, but I have had no success. Does anyone know of a reliable way to get this game to play?

If you do, please explain it to me like I am 4 years old. Seriously, I majored in philosophy, all this is Sanskrit to me.

Thanks,

Chris

Red_Breast · Post by **Red_Breast** » Mon Nov 15, 2010 11:44 pm

You don't say Corey if you are trying to run the game using ScummVM or on it's own.
I haven't even checked to see if my version is detected yet but quote from Julien above "At this time, I wouldn't even try to play it."
You have a Macbook. What operating system is your version of the game for? I can't actually recall if this game got a hybrid (Win and Mac compatible) release at any time. My own version is 150 miles away from myself at the moment so I can't check it. Because of the game's age if you have a Mac version at all it will be from the PPC days. I have little experience with Apple hardware but seem to recall the new stuff has some sort of Classic mode? I might be wrong.
But as far as ScummVM and the game goes unless there's been loads of progress since Julien posted I wouldn't even try it yet.
Maybe somebody else here familiar with Mac could help but I assume as you won't be able to use ScummVM yet you'll get better help elsewhere.

Post by **eriktorbjorn** » Tue Nov 16, 2010 4:44 am

Red_Breast wrote:I can't actually recall if this game got a hybrid (Win and Mac compatible) release at any time. My own version is 150 miles away from myself at the moment so I can't check it.

The one I bought is, according to the box, for DOS ("6.22 or higher"), Windows ("95/98") and Macintosh ("Power Macintosh, System 7.1.2 or higher"). At some point, I managed to install the DOS version with DOSBox, but I don't remember exactly how. The DOS installer doesn't quite seem to work.

Perhaps this thread (scroll down to the message beginning with "I got it working in OS X under Boxer, here's how") is useful?

Serious Callers Only · Thu Nov 18, 2010 5:45 pm

It works on wine after a no cd patch. Can also be made to work on dosbox.

Red_Breast · Post by **Red_Breast** » Sat Jan 15, 2011 2:37 pm

Dot-emu have the game now for 7 and a half euros.

http://www.dotemu.com/en/the-last-express