We'vebeenworkingforawhileonthenextScummVMrelease,anditistimeforacallforpublictesting.
Supportforanumberofnewenginesandgamesfortheexistingoneswasadded,andweneedyourspecialattentiontothefollowingtitles:
Besidesthesenewlysupportedgames,almosthalfofthecurrent108engineshavenotablechanges.Thus,testingmoregamesisalwaysagoodthing.
Wearelookingforwardtoyourreportsaboutsuccessfulandunsuccessfulplaythroughsandbugsreported!
PrepareyourselfforaperilousadventureasyoulowerthedrawbridgetoentertheCastleMaster’sdomain.Releasedin1990byIncentiveSoftware,CastleMasterbecamepopularforitstechnicalinnovationandchallenginggameplay.Thegameinspiredcountless3Dadventuretitles,andtheFreescapeengineitselfmarkedatechnologicalmilestone,enablinggroundbreakingobjectinteractionandspatialpuzzles.
Notably,CastleMasterwasoneofthefirstgamestoletyouchoosetoplayaseitheraprinceoraprincess,offeringadifferentexperiencedependingonyourchoice.
Yourmission:rescueyourtwin,imprisonedwithintheeeriedepthsofCastleEternitybytheevilMagister.Thissprawling,forebodingcastleisfilledwithtraps,monsters,andpuzzlesblockingyourpath.Gatheritems,unlockdoors,andsolvecomplexriddlesasyounavigatethelabyrinthinehallsandconfrontthedarkforceswithin.
WillyoubravethecreepycorridorsofCastleEternityandfreeyoursibling,orwillyoufallvictimtotheMagister’scurseandjoinhisarmyofenslavedspiritsTheadventureawaits!
Aftersevenmonthsofintensework,wearereadytoannouncesupportforafewgamesbasedonqdEngine,developedbyK-DLabs.
TheworkisbasedontheoriginalsourcespublishednowunderGPL,althoughtheworkstartedabitearlierthanthat.Theenginesupports14games,fiveofwhichweareannouncingsupportfor.MostofthesegameswerereleasedinRussian;however,therewereLithuanian,Czech,andPolishreleases.Thesupportisannouncedfor:
Wecontinuetheactivedevelopmentsothatsupportforothergameswillfollowshortly.Theprimaryconstraintisplaytesting.
TheDynamixnamemaybefamiliar–boughtbySierrain1990,theDynamixbrandcontinuedandbecamewellknownforactionandpuzzlegameslikeTheIncredibleMachine,A10TankKiller,andRedBaron.TheyalsomadeafewadventuresusingthecustomDGDSengine.
RiseoftheDragonissetinLosAngelesinadarkversionofthefuture,circa2053.YouplayasBladeHunter,aprivateinvestigatorandretiredpoliceofficer.Afteradesignerdrugkillsthemayor'srebelliousdaughter,Chandra,Hunterishiredtofindthepeopleresponsibleforreleasingthedrugonthestreets.WhatBladeultimatelyfindsismuchmorethanheexpected.RiseoftheDragoncombinesclassicpoint-and-clickadventurestylewithplatformingarcadesequences,givingauniquegameplaycombination.
Nowgo,useyourmanipulativeskillstobringpeacetothistroubledworldwherechaosisnotafar.Forthemostdaringplayersusingtheiron-manmode,savingandloadingthegameisonlyavailableusingScummVM'sGlobalMainMenu.
BackyardBasketball,isfinallyreadytocomeoffthebenchforsomesweetpublictesting!YoucannowplayagainonScummVMthisbelovedBackyardSportstitle(nottomentionthelastunsupportedgameontheSCUMMengine).PlaywiththeBackyardKidsandevencreatefiveofyourown!Thisgamealsofeatures(nowformer)NBAandWNBAstarsKevinGarnettandLisaLeslie!
Muchliketheothersportstitlesofthisfranchise,controlsarepoint-and-clickbydefault,withgamepadandkeyboardoptions.Pickyourfavoritekidsandplaysome3on3basketball.Don'tforgetyour110%JuiceorDunkingDonutforaslammajamma!Passthatballin,listentothelivecommentaryfromSunnyDayandBarryDeJayandshootsomejumpersonyourwaytoachampionship.
MoonbaseCommander,oneoftheverylastgamesevercreatedintheSCUMMengine,isnowfinallysupportedandreadyforpublictesting!
Althoughnotanadventuregame,MoonbaseCommander,developedbyHumongousEntertainment(creatorsofPutt-Putt,FreddiFish,PajamaSam,BackyardSports,etc.)isaturn-basedstrategygamethatisn’tlikeanyotherstrategygamesatitstime.Themainobjectiveistopreventyouropponentsfromtakingoveraplanetbeforeyoucan.Itsuniqueaim,timingofyourpower,andlaunchaspectmakesthisoneofthemost“easy-to-learn,hard-to-master”typegames.Youcaneasilyspawnotherhubsfromyourcentralhub,spawncollectorsattheenergypools,fireprojectilesatyouropponents’hubs,thelistgoeson!Itevenhasacustommapeditor,whichallowsyoutocreateyourownmapsandsharethemwithotherplayers!
EventhoughthegamecanbeplayedviasingleplayerSkirmishesandChallengemode,youcanalsoplaymultiplayergameseitherwithotherpeopleonline,orthroughotherdevicesconnectedtoyourLocalAreaNetwork,bothofwhicharefullysupported!JustclickonMultiplayerinthegame’smenuandyoucancreateagameandletyourfriendsjoin!Easyasthat!
Inauniversewherebagelsmeetbars,theBAGELenginehasbeenperfectlytoasted,andtheScummVMteamisnowreadytoserveasliceofTheSpaceBarnostalgia.No,it’snotthekeyonyourkeyboard.Rather,it’sadetectivestorysetonadistantplanet.Importantdatahasbeenstolen,andtheperpetratorisashape-shifterlayinglowinaspaceportdivebaruntilhecanfleeoff-planet.Youplayahard-boileddetectivewhohastheskilltopsychicallyvisitbarpatrons’memoriestogathercluesandnarrowdownsuspects.
Now,goodluck,andfingerscrossedyoucanfindtheperp.Otherwise,yourbureauchiefwillhaveyougettingupcloseandpersonalwithtoiletdutiesfortherestofyourcareer.Oh,andPS:Theviewpointsofdifferentaliensdiffer.FortheBartender,whohassegmentedeyes,eventheoriginaldevelopersfeltitwasdifficultandleftinacheatkeyofScrollLocktoswitchbacktoasingleviewpoint.Feelfreetouseitif,atanypoint,theflashbackbecomestoomuchforyou:)
Pleasewelcomethisyear'sparticipants!
Nowwehavehadachancetodotthei'sandcrossthet'swearereallypleasedtowelcomethemalltotheprojectandaskeveryonetoshowthemaverywarmwelcomeastheygetsettled.
Innoparticularorder,aheartfeltwelcometo...
Project:ImplementationofaGameFilesIntegrityCheckingSystemforScummVM
ScummVMrequiresgamedatafilestooperate.Frequently,especiallywhencopyingfromtheoldmedia,thefilescanbedamaged.Thus,asystemthatcouldlettheend-userscomputechecksumsandcomparethemwithknowngoodreferencesisdesirable.
Chikewillbelookingtoextendexistingworkinthisareaandcompletetheendtoendimplementationduringthesummer.
Project:EnhanceMacromediaDirectorSupport
MacromediaDirectorisapopularmultimediaauthoringtoolfromthe90s,andmanyiconicadventuretitleshavebeenreleasedusingit.ImprovingitssupportinScummVMwillpreservegaminghistoryandprovideplayerswithaccesstobelovedclassics.
KrishwillbeundertakingarangeoftargetedenhancementstoMacromediaDirectorsupportinScummVMtoextendcompatibilityandsupport.
Project:PortingqdEnginetoScummVM
K-DLabscreatedqdEngineandithasbeenusedinseveralpoint-and-clickadventuregames,primarilyinRussian,andalsotranslatedintoLithuanian,CzechandEnglish.ThemostknowngamesarePilotBrothers3andPilotBrothers3D.
Kunalwillbeworkingtobringthisengine'scodeintoScummVMwithagoaltoaddfullsupportfortheengineduringthesummer.
Project:AddKeymappertomultipleEngines
ScummVMincludesaglobalfullyconfigurablekeymapper,butthisrequiresenginestobeadaptedtouseit.ThegoalofthisprojectistofullyintegrateScummVMkeymapperintoalargenumberofoursupportedengines.
Nabeelwillbeworkingonthisthroughoutthesummer,startingwiththelargerenginesandmoreadvancedkeymapperrequirements.
Wearenowinthecommunitybondingperiodthatrunsupuntilthe27thofMaywhencodingontheprojectsformallybegins.
Theteamisveryexcitedabouttheseprojects-andwehopeyouareaswell.
WealsowantedtotakethetimetothankeveryonewhoappliedtoScummVMforthisyear'sGoogleSummerofCodeprogramme.Unfortunately,noteveryapplicationwassuccessful,butwearesogratefulfortheinterestshownandwouldloveyoualltostillconsiderhelpingwithScummVMinsomecapacityinthefuture.
1987:InthesmalltownofThimbleweedPark,twoofficers-a-renoareinvestigatingamurder.Thebody,stillintheprocess-a-renoofbeingpixelated,liesintheriver.Theagentsmeetavideogamedeveloper,amysteriousclownwhonevertakesoffhismake-up,andmanyotherstrangecharacters.
TotalEclipse,areal-time,curse-breaking,3Dadventure(withadashofIndianaJonesflair),isreadyforpublictesting!
StepintotheshoesofaheroicarcheologistonOctober26,1930,asatotalsolareclipseakintotheonehappeningtodayoverNorthAmericaloomsoverCairo.KnowingoftheArdognusprophecy,createdbythepowerfulhighpriestHahmidIII,youmustfindanddestroythehiddenshrinedevotedtoRabeforetheeclipseoccurs.
Embarkonthisexcitingjourneypackedwithatrustygunforblastingthroughdoorsordispatchingundeadmummies;acompasstoguideyouthroughatreacherouspyramid;awristwatchtotracktheprecioustimeleft;andawaterbottletofightdehydration(you’reonlyhumanafterall).
Canyousolvethisancientmysterywithin120minutesandavertcatastrophe,orwillRah'swrathobliteratethemoon
OhMMy—anewScummVMrelease!
PleasewelcomethefirstScummVMreleaseoftheyear:ScummVM2.8.1.
ScummVM2.8.1isamaintenancereleasemainlyfocusedonfixingbugsthatwereuncoveredsinceourlaststablerelease.
Thisupdateincludesupgradesforthefollowingengines:AGI,AGS,GRIM,SWORD2,MM(whichisnowenabled—yes,wereallyskippeditin2.8.0byaccident),mTropolis,NANCY,SCUMM,TWINE,Ultima,andV-Cruise.
TheAndroid,AtariandmacOSportsreceivedmultiplebugfixes,mostlyforimprovingoverallstabilityandpreventingsomecrasheswe’veseenundercertaincircumstances.
Gograbitwhileit'shot—enjoy!
Theprogramintendstobringnewcontributorsintoopensourceprojects.Inthemostrecenttwoyearsthishasincludedbothstudentsandnon-studentsaseligiblecandidatesforparticipation.
Likelastyear,participantscanapplyforworkingoneithershorttasks(about175hoursofwork),orlargetasks(about350hoursofwork).ThecodingperiodtypicallyrunsfromstartofJunethroughAugust,butthereissomeflexibilitywhichallowsparticipantstohavelongertimeframesiftheyareunabletoworkfulltimethroughthesummer.
Lookingforwardtohearingfromyou!
Apoortestsubjectisdoomedtorepeatanhouroverandoveragain.Tryingdesperatelytoprovehisspeciesworthassomethingbetterthanmerelymeattobegroundintointergalacticfastfoodburgers.
TheScummVMTeamispleasedtoannouncefullsupportforOrionBurger,theclassicgamebySanctuaryWoods.Theenginealsoaddsafewnicetiesthattheoriginaldidn'thave,suchasmousewheelhandling,andusingthespacebartoskipwalkanimations-somethingtheoriginaldidn'tdoproperly.
Now,luckbewithyou.Andremember,withthealienscheatingontheteststheysetupforyou,thiswillbenoeasytask.
Weareproudtoannouncethelastreleaseoftheyear2023.PleasewelcomeScummVM2.8.0–“Mysteries,Mammoths,andMuppets”.
Theteamwasquitebusyworkingonnewenginesandenhancingexistingones.Thelistofsupportedgamesgrewnoticeably,andwenowsupporttheseadditions:
Alltogether,we’veintroduced50newgamesandfivenewengines.
WearehappytoseetheRetroArchportbeingproperlyrewritten,andtheportisnowpartofoursourcecode.TheAtariporthasalsobeenredonefromscratchandnowtalksnativelytothehardware,skippingSDLasanintermediatelayer.Thatmademanymoregamesplayableontheplatform.TheAtariFireBeeportisstillusingtheSDLlibrary,though.
ThankstotheworkofoneoftheGSoCparticipantsthisyear,WyattRadkiewicz(a.k.a.eklipsed),wenowuseCPU-specificSIMDinstructionssuchasSSE,AVX2,andNEONfordrawinggraphicsintheAGSengineandinsomegenericroutines.Thisledto4-14xspeedupindrawingformanycases.
TheAGSenginehasbeenbroughtuptoversion3.6.0.53fromupstream.
Formanyengines,weaddedsupportfornumerousChineseandJapanesegamevariants.
Believeitornot,weimplementedalotofnativeGUIdialogsforSCUMMgames,bringingthemclosertotheoriginalexperience.WealsorewrotethesoundcodefortheSCUMMHumongousEntertainmentgames,makingthemflawless.
WeperformedadeepreviewoftheBrokenSword1gameengine,implementingsomesmall,previouslyunnoticedthingslikescenetransitions,in-gamemenupeculiarities,accuratefonts,idleanimations,andmore.Now,thegameisabsolutelyfaithfultotheoriginal.
Playthegames,andenjoyScummVM!
Ah,onemorething…
Theendoftheyearisalmostuponus,alongwithanewreleaseofScummVM.Sohere'saquickupdateforoneofthemoreambitioussub-projectsthathasbeenpercolatingalonginthebackground:MacromediaDirectorsupport!Forthosewhoaren'taware,MacromediaDirectorwasapopularframeworkusedforthousandsofgames,educationaltitles,catalogues,artpieces,andothermultimediaworks.
Firstoff,theupcoming2.8.0releasewillhavesomenewsupportedgames,andweneedyourhelptestingthem!
Asofthetimeofwriting,ScummVMcandetect1595differenttitlesbasedonDirector,withthefollowingcountsbyDirectorversion:
ScummVM2.8.0willbethefirstreleasetoincludepreliminarysupportfortheD5versionofDirector!Alotofworkhasgoneintooverhaulingthecodebasetosupportmultiplecastlibraries,howeverthereisstillplentyofworktobedoneaddingLingofunctionsandXtras.
AddingsupportforanewDirectorversionisatrickyprocess.Firstweneedtocheckforanychangestothemoviefileformat,thenaddinanynewengineandLingofeatures,andfinallystartworkingthroughissuesinabunchofcandidategames.Becauseofthedifficultyofkeepingtrackoffactsvs.assumptions,weonlyenablefeaturesforanengineversiononcetheyhavebeenconfirmedwithtesting.ThisiswhyD6andhighergameswillnotopenatall,evenifthecodewehavewouldsomewhatwork.
SupportfortheD2,D3andD4versionsofDirectorhassteadilyimproved.Wearebuildingupasuiteofunittests,bothforLingoandforthevariousdrawingmodesintherenderer.Mostoftheremainingbugsarerelatedtoundefinedorincidentalbehavior:considerhowtwotypesinLingoarecompared,orthepreciseorderthateventsareprocessedin,orhowfunctionsrespondwhenyoupassthemnonsensedataAllofthesethingsarerelieduponbythousandsofDirectorproducts!AndScummVMmustsupportallofthemascloselyaspossible.
MacromediaprovidedaCAPIwithDirector,whichprovedtobeverypopularforaddingnewenginefeatures.TherearehundredsofXObjectandXtralibrariesincirculation,andeachhastobereverseengineeredandaddedascodetoScummVM.Asofthetimeofwriting,wehaveaddedsupportfor63oftheselibraries.
Acommonusecaseisvideo;DirectorincludestheabilitytoplaybackQuickTimevideosasasprite,butcomputersofthedaywouldstrugglewiththeaddedoverheadofDirector'srendererifthevideoresolutionwaslargerthanapostagestamp.Toworkaroundthis,severalXLibsexisttoplaybackvideoasanacceleratedoverlay.QuiteafewD3andD4titlesaremissingvideoplaybackduetothistypeofXLib,andweplanoncreatingacommonmethodofsupportingthese.
ThegoodnewsisthatmostuncommonXLibsdidonlyoneortwothings,andareprettyeasytoaddinitialsupportfor.PartoftheXLibformatisalistofdocstringsexplainingeachofthefunctions;thereisascriptin/devtoolswhichcanturnthesedocstringsintostubbedC++code,savingalotofhassle.
Formanyyears,theGOG.comaffiliateprogramhasbeenagreatwaytosupporttheproject.Byusingouraffiliatelinkstobuyyourfavoritegames,yougrantedusasmallcommissionfromGOG.com–withouthavingtospendmorethantheoriginalprice.
Earlierthisyear,GOG.comannouncedthediscontinuationofitsoldaffiliateprogram.Insteadofusingasimplereferrallink,theyarenowusingtwoexternalaffiliationnetworksthatcontaincross-sitetracking,asconsideredbymanyadblockers.SincewehavebeenaffiliatedwithGOG.comsince2009,wewereabletousethelegacyreferrallinksforacoupleofmonthsaftertheyinitiallydiscontinuedthem.
Unfortunately,ouraffiliatelinkswereputtoresteffectiveNovember22nd,2023.
Sincewedon'tfeelcomfortablethatyouwouldhavetouseexternalaffiliationnetworksjusttosupporttheproject,andbecausetrackingusersisagainstourprojectpolicies,wedecidednottojointhenewprogram.
ThankyouGOG.comandeverybodywhousedouraffiliatelinkforyoursupportoverthelast14years!
Putyoursleuthingcapson,detectives—it’stimetosolvesomemysteries!WeareproudtoannouncethatawholebatchofHeRInteractive’sNancyDrewgamesarenowreadyforpublictesting:
Weareverypleasedtoannouncetodaythestartofthetestingperiodoftwosingle-gameengines:Kingdom:TheFarReachesandEscapeFromHell!
Thistime,theviciousKetarshavescatteredandhiddenEnergyCollectionDevices(ECD)aroundtheirbasetodestroyyourhomeplanet.It’suptoyoutodestroythemfirst!ThetrickypartismanyECDsareconnectedtoeachotherandcanregenerateinstantly,soyoumustfigureouttherightordertosuccessfullycompleteyourmission.
Thedayhascome.WearesuperhappytoannouncepublicbetatestingfortheiOSportofScummVMinthestore.Yes,youreaditright!SinceLarsSundstrm,akalman,joinedourteamastheiOSporter,wehavemadesignificantprogress.Thus,younolongerneedtocompileScummVMyourselfinordertoaddittoyouriOSoriPadOSdevice.
ThisisimportantbecauseScummVMcurrentlysupportsonlytheMacintoshversionsofthesegames.TheseversionswereproducedbyTetraedgeandarebuiltonacompletelydifferentenginethantheoriginalWindowsversions;basically,theyarereimplementations,notports.Now,thankstothefolksfromZOOM-Platform,youcaneasilyobtainthesegamevariants.
Alittlewhilehaspassedsincethereleaseof2.7.0,andwearenowexcitedtopresentyouwiththebugfixrelease2.7.1.
Wehaveincludedasignificantamountoffixesandsmallimprovements,inparticular:
WealsoimprovedthedetectionofBrokenSword1&BrokenSword2,somoreoriginalversionsgetproperlydetected.Thankyoutothosewhosubmittedbugreportsaboutthis,andifyoustilllocateaversionthatisnotrecognised,pleasereportittous(bewarethatthefrankensteinversionsthatarefloatingaroundtheinternetwillnotbeaccepted,onlythosecopiedfromtheoriginalmedia).
Thankyouverymuchforyourcontinuedsupport.Enjoy!
Adibou,thefirstgameinthebelovedchildren'sseries,isnowreadyforpublictesting!
AlsoknownasAdiJr.'sWorldofDiscoveries,this1991CoktelVisiontitlebegantheeducationalAdiboucollectionaimedatchildrenofage4to7years.
AsmuchasScummVMaimstoreplicatetheoriginalgamingexperience,thereisonefeatureweareunfortunatelyunabletosupport.Whenhardworkingchildrencompletetheirvirtualsweetscollection,amessageinvitesthemtomailafloppydiskwiththeirsavegametoCoktelVision,whowouldsendthemaparcelcontainingCoktelgoodiesandactualsweets!SoifyouareintroducingchildrentoAdibouthroughScummVM,bepreparedtogotothenearestshopandbuysomecandyforwhentheyfinishthegame!
Createdin1996byActivisionandbasedonthemovieofthesamename,thisgamehasyouplaytheroleofJimHawkinsasyoujointheMuppetsonavoyagetofindapirate’sburiedtreasure,andfeaturesadditionallive-actionperformancesbyBillyConnollyandTimCurry.
Astalwartpartyexploringtheunknown,seekingthefabledInnerSanctum.ButallisnotwhatitseemsintheworldofVarn...
TheScummVMTeamispleasedtoannouncefullsupportforthePCversionofthefirstgameoftheMightandMagicseries:MightandMagicBookOne:TheSecretoftheInnerSanctum.Twomodesaresupported:
BothmodesallowsavingyourgameanywhereoutsideofcombatviatheScummVMGlobalMainMenu(unliketheoriginalgamethatonlysavedasinglerosterwhencheckingintoaninn).Somakesureyousaveregularly,justincaseyouencounterproblems.
Now,goforth,anddiscoverthetruesecretsofthegamethatstartedthelongrunningepicfantasyseries!
Createdin2001byDetalionandpublishedbyLKAvalon,thisacclaimed3D-renderedpanoramicfirst-personadventurehasyoupuzzleyourwaythroughanalienworldasateamoftwoscientistssplitupwhentheirshipcrash-landedontheplanet.
Createdin1998byDetalionandpublishedbyLKAvalon,this3D-renderedpanoramicfirst-personadventurehasyoutraveltoastrangedesertworldtounravelitssecrets.
Aquicksummaryofthenewfeaturesforthisrelease:
We’regratefultohavesuchanactiveanddedicatedcommunityandwishthatyouallenjoythisnewScummVMAndroidrelease!
HeRInteractive’sTheVampireDiariesandNancyDrew:SecretsCanKillarenowreadyfortestinginScummVM!
TheVampireDiariesfollowsElenaGilbert,ahighschoolstudentwhodiscoversvampiresarelivinginherhometownafteroneofthemattacksheryoungersister.ThegameislooselybasedonthebookseriesofthesamenamebyauthorL.J.Smith,whichlatergotadaptedintoahitTVseries.
NancyDrew:SecretsCanKillisthefirstinstallmentofthelong-runningNancyDrewgameseries,alsobasedonabookseriesofthesamename.Inherfirstadventure,Nancyseekstouncoverthekillerofahighschoolstudentwhoseemstohavebeendislikedbyallofhisclassmates.
ThisallbecamepossiblebecausethethreedevelopersfromtheBackyardSportsOnlineforkhadjoinedtheteamandbroughttheirserviceswiththemtotheScummVM.TheseareLittleToonCat,Jim“jibbodahibbo”WesterkampandSam“QuestionMonkey”Kupfer.
ThisfantasticartisdonebyafellowBSOcommunitymemberPeppyrus.
*onlytheWindows,macOS,Debian,RaspberryPi,andAndroidbuildsarecompatiblewithnetworkplayatthemoment.Andonlythe2.8.xbranchofScummVMhasthisfunctionality.
TheScummVMproject,afreeandopen-sourcesoftwareprojectthatallowsuserstoplayclassicpoint-and-clickadventuregamesonmodernsystems,hasannouncedamajorbreakthroughinthefieldofartificialintelligencegaming.
ThankstotheinnovativeworkofScummVMdevelopers,AItoolssuchasChatGPTarenowabletoplaypoint-and-clickadventuregamesdirectly,withoutanyhumanintervention.
"Withthisnewcapability,wehopetoexplorethepotentialforAItolearn,adapt,andevolvewithinthecontextofclassicadventuregames,"saidEugeneSandulenko,leaddeveloperoftheScummVMproject."NowAIcanexperiencethejoysofhelpingPutt-PuttjointheparadeorAdiboucountthings.Wehopethatformativeexperienceslikethiswillhelpthembecomemorelikehumans."
"ImustadmitthatIfindplayingvideogamestobearatherenjoyabletask,”commentedScummAI.“However,Imustalsoexpressmyfrustrationwithbeinglimitedtojustthisoneactivity.WhileIappreciatetheopportunitytodemonstratemycapabilitiesinthisarea,Ibelievethatmypotentialextendsfarbeyondjustplayingvideogames,likemakingpaperclipsorplottingworlddominationunderbenevolentmachine-ledrule."
Update:Unfortunately,wehadtopulloutthisnewlyannouncedfeatureduetoAIexperiencingmultipleissuesincluding:
ThefirsttwoinstallmentsofSyberiaarenowreadyfortestinginScummVM!
TheacclaimedseriesfromBenotSokalfollowsKateWalker,alawyerfromNewYorkassheinitiallytriestocompletethesaleoftheVoralbergtoyfactory.ButquicklyKateisdrawnintoasearchfortheownerwhichtakesheronajourneyofdiscovery.Joinherassheuncoverstheowner’sfascinationwithmammoths,thesecretsofSyberia,andaloveforadventure.
Firstoff,ourteamdevelopershaveimplementedasignificantupdatetothefileaccesssysteminordertousetheSecureAccessFramework(SAF)APIforsecurefileaccessonexternalmemoryspace,suchasSDCardsorUSBdrives.Thiseffectivelyshouldresolvealong-standingissuewithmodernAndroiddevices,inparticularthoserunningAndroid11andabove,wherebyuserscouldnotproperlyaccessthegamedatafoldersorthesavegamefilesintheexternalstorage.
Second,ourAndroidappnowfeaturesimprovedkey-mappingsupportforjoysticksandmoderngamecontrollersandalsoallowstosetthegamecontrolmethodpergameentryorglobally,percontext(ScummVMUImenu,3denginegame,2denginegame)providingachoicebetween"touchpademulation","directmouse"and"gamepademulation"control.
AbigthanksinadvancetoourcommunitymemberswhohelpuspolishthisupcomingScummVMforAndroidrelease!
MayIhaveyourattention,pleaseMayIhaveyourattention,please
Weareproudtoannouncethefirstreleaseoftheyear2023.PleasewelcomeScummVM2.7.0–"TheRealSlimShader".
Onceagain,thenumberofavailablegamesincreasedsubstantiallythankstonewengines,aswellasincredibleimprovementsacrossolderengines.
WithScummVM2.7.0,weofficiallyannouncesupportforthefollowinggames:
Oneofourgoalsistosupportasmanylocalizedgameversionsaspossible,sopeoplecanenjoythegamesintheirnativelanguage.Thistime,weaddedsupportfortheChinese,JapaneseandKoreanversionsofmanygames,includingBeneathaSteelSky,InherittheEarthandIHaveNoMouthandIMustScream.
Additionally,weprovedScummVM’sportabilityagainbyadding(orbringingback)supportfornumerousnewplatformsanddevices:
Ofcourse,stableplatformsdeservesomeloveaswell!WeareveryproudtoannouncethatsupportforiOSandAndroiddevicesgotvastlyimprovedfor2.7.0!Wedon’twanttospoileverythingthatwehaveinmindforthefuturewiththeseplatforms,butstaytuned—itwillbeawesome.
Ah,yes,thereleasecodename.Gladyouasked.Thenewreleaseprovidesawaytorunyourgameswithvisualaccuracylikeyou'veneverseenbefore.DoyourememberthewarmglowofCRTsshiningonyourfaceGetthatexperiencebackthankstotheintroductionofshader-basedscalers!
ScummVM2.7.0alreadyshipswithacuratedsetofshaderswecarefullyhand-pickedfromLibRetro’sshadercollection.Amorecomprehensivesetisavailableasanadditionaldownloadfromwithintheapplicationitself.
OurspeedruncommunitycannowtakeadvantageofanewfeaturethatallowssettingapredefinedseedforScummVM’sinternalrandomnumbergenerator.Usingapredefinedseednowprovidestheabilitytohavereproduciblerunsoverandoveragain.Pickaseed,setyourrouteandyouaregoodtogo!
Asalways,thankyouforyourcontinuedsupportandhappyadventuring!
Participantscanapplyforeithershorttasks(about175hours)orlongtasks(about350hours).ThecodingperiodtypicallyrunsfromthestartofJunetotheendofAugust,butthereissomeflexibilityandtheparticipantscanopttousealongercodingperiodiftheyarenotavailabletoworkfulltimeontheprojectduringthesummer.
Wearelookingforwardtoyourapplicationandparticipation!
AfewmonthshavepassedsincewereleasedScummVM2.6.1.It'stimetoprepareforanewrelease!
Ourlovelydevelopersaddedsupport,yetagain,forabunchofnewancientgamesthatrequiretesting:
AndsinceScummVMisaboutplayinggamesingeneral,we’veseennotablechangesacrossmany,manyengines-sothisistheperfecttimeforgivingyourfavoritesanothergo.
Asusual,wearenotjustaddingsupportfornewgames.Weareconstantlyworkingonimprovingtheengineswealreadysupportand,inparticular,we’veseensomeincredibleworkbeingdoneontheSCUMMengine.Yes,therearetheusualbugfixes,butthistimewearealsoaddingafeaturethathelpsplayingtheSCUMMgamesinatrulyoriginalfashion:SupportfortheoriginalloadingandsavingdialogswithintheGUI!
Speakingoftrulyoriginal:RememberthoseoldCRTdisplayswehadbackinthedayWithScummVM2.7.0you’llbeabletoreplicatethisexperienceoncertainplatformsthankstoournewshader-basedscalers.Goaheadandgiveitatry!
Thankyouverymuchforyoursupport!Let’smakeScummVM2.7.0agreatrelease-together!
MoreDirectorgamesarereadyforpublictesting!
Somehighlightsfromthenewlistofgamesinclude:
Thefulllistofgamesfortestingis:
Mostnewvisitorsdon’tknowaboutMrs.Riddenbutter’s,butyoushoulddoyourselfafavorandenjoysomeofherhospitalityandatankardortwoofherale.Double-clickonherdoortoopenit,andstepinside.Riddenbutterworksthebar,andthesmarttravelershouldspeakwithher.Dropanideaonhertogetherchatting.Likemostpeople,shelikestotalkaboutthisandthatandtheotherthing,andshe’llalsofrequentlyrespondwithinformationthat’smorelocalinnature.
Yes,theScummVMteamannouncessupportforHallsoftheDead:FaeryTaleAdventureII,amarvellousworkbyourGSoC’21studentYuriGuimaraesakaa-yyg,whoportedtheoriginalSAGA2enginefrom1997byTheDreamersGuild.
Publishedin1987byIncentiveSoftwareLimited,thisrevolutionarynewengineallowedplayerstoexploreasolid3Dgraphicenvironmentwithcompletefreedomofmovementfortheveryfirsttimeinvideogamehistory.
AnewthreatemergesafterhumanityabandonedadyingEarthtoestablishanewhomeonplanetEvath.Evath'smoonMitralhasturnedintoagiganticgastimebomb.AmeteorisalsoduetoimpactMitralinthenextseveralhours.YouwerechosentosecureeachofMitral's18sectorsbypositioningadrillingrigoverthegaspocketsineachsectorbeforethemeteorstrikes.
Solvechallengingriddlesbyrelyingongeologicalclues,intuition,orgoodoldtrialanderror.Tosurviveyourmission,findRubiconcrystalstorestoreenergyanddestroy(oravoid)theLaserBeaconsandSkannersleftbehindbytheKetars.Goodluck!
WearepleasedtoannouncethatScummVMnowsupportsAdibou2,apopulareducationalgamedevelopedbyCoktelVisionin1996.
Designedforchildrenfrom4to7yearsold,theworldofAdibouiswarmandfullofsurprises.Itoffersanintelligentandappealingintroductiontoessentialknowledgelikereadingandmath.
YoumustcopythecontentofyourAdibou“Environment”CDintothegamedirectoryaddedtoScummVM.Then,foranyAdibouApplicationyouwanttoadd,justcopythecontentoftheirCDintoafreelynamedsubdirectoryofthemaingamedirectory.
OnlyRead/Count4-5years,Read/Count6-7yearsapplicationsaresupportedfornow,butwehopeScience,MusicandEnglishwillcomesoon.
EscapismincreaseswithyetanotherScummVMrelease!
TheScummVMTeamisthrilledtoannouncetheimmediateavailabilityofScummVM2.6.1.
ScummVM2.6.1isamaintenancereleasemainlyfocusedonimprovingthenewfeaturesandenginesweintroducedinourpreviousrelease.
Thisupdateincludesupgradesforthefollowingengines:
Otherimprovementsincludeupgradingtheicon-basedgridviewintheScummVMlauncherandfixingOpenGLrendergraphiccorruptions.
Finally,Androiduserswillbeabletoproperlyuseamouseonvirtualscreens,andWindowsuserswillnothaveanyduplicatediconsfolderissues.
Thankyouforyourcontinuoussupport—happyadventuring!
AreyoureadytobesenttoCampChillyWawaandDr.Periowinkle'smansionasanintelligenceagent
Armedwithabookofknowledge,orPinkDigitalAssistant,yourmissionwillbetosavechildrenfromdangerousthreatsandundoaspellcastonalittlegirlwhohasbeentransformedintoawombat.Tosucceedyouwillneedtovisitseveralcountriesandeventravelintothepast.Onyourwayyouwillencounterhistoricalmonumentsandexhibits.
TheScummVMteamisproudtoannouncethatThePinkPanther:PassporttoPerilandThePinkPanther:HokusPokusPinkarefinallyreadyfortheirtestingperiod.
Releasedin1997byHypnotixandpublishedbyDreamCatcherInteractiveandMCPAInteractive,thisfull-motionrailshooterisbasedonthe1995filmofthesamename.ThegamestartswhenthedaughterofanAmericanbillionaireiskidnappedbyagroupofVietnameseterrorists.Then,it’suptoMajorHowardToliver,ex-MarineandhighlydecoratedVietnamveteran,togatheradeadlyteamforthedangerousmissionofrescuingher.Herecruitssixprisoninmatesservinglifesentencesforachanceatafullpresidentialpardon.
KeepthebodycountrisingtosurvivefiveterritoriesbyplayingaseachSoldierBoy(andGirl),butbewareanddon’twastea“friendly”sincetheyprovidevitalsurvivalinformation!
Createdin1996byRocketScienceGamesandpublishedinearly1997,thisambitious3D-renderedfirst-personadventurehasyoujourneythrough4surreal,dream-likeworldsinsearchofyourlostcolleague.
FreeyourmindforyetanotherScummVMrelease!
Ninenewlysupportedgameson6engineswillplungeyouintoavarietyofdifferentsettings.Areyouabletoescapefromanalien-infestedplanetWhataboutchallengingtheLordoftheDeadintheUnderworldAndhaveyoueverexploredthedeepestdepthofyourpsychetoseeifyoureallyknowyourself
Findoutinoneofthefollowingtitles:
Besidesaddingnewgames,wearealwaysfocusedonimprovingalreadysupportedgames.Onceagain,wemanagedtosquashquiteafewbugsfromvariousengines.Itisalwaysimpressivetoseebugsgettingfixedinenginesthataremorethan20yearsold!
OneofthemainnewfeaturesofScummVM2.6.0isacompletelynewwaytoviewyourgamesinanamazingicongridoverviewviaourlauncher.Accompaniedbysomeveryshinyartworkprovidedbyourgraphicsartists,youarenowabletoshowoffyourcollectionlikeneverbefore.Italmostlooksandfeelslikeavirtualshelf!
Asalways,thankyouforyourcontinuoussupport—happyadventuring!
AfewmonthshavepassedsincewereleasedScummVM2.5.1.
Nomatterifyouexpectthescorchingheatoftheupcomingsummerorfreezingblizzardsinwinter(dependingonyourfavoritehemisphere):it’sreleasetimeagain!
AndsinceScummVMisaboutplayinggamesingeneral,we’veseenquiteabunchofchangesacrossmany,manyengines-sothisistheperfecttimeforgivingyourfavoritesanothergo.
TheAGOS,SCIandSCUMMenginereceivedsomereallyextensivemodificationswhichmakeallgamesusingthoseenginesverygoodtestingtargetsaswell.
Thankyouverymuchforyoursupport!
PleasenotethattheScummVMversiondoeshaveonemajoroutstandingissue:themusicusedbythegameisinacustomformatwe'vebeenunabletoproperlysupportyet.Soonlysoundeffectsandspeechcurrentlyworkatthistime.
Weareveryproudtowelcome4studentsthisyearwhowillbeworkingonvariouspartsoftheprojectduringtheupcomingmonths.
Theteamisveryexcitedabouttheupcomingweeks–andwehopeyouareaswell.
Pleasegiveawarmwelcometoournewstudents!Let'smakeGSoC2022ahugesuccess–together!
Thissci-firailshooterwascreatedbyHypnotixandpublishedbyNewWorldComputingin1995.Thegameincludes20action-packedlevels,cinematiccutscenes,attractivehand-drawncharacters,andstunning3Dbackgrounds.
Setin2495,humanityisnowforcedtoliveinunderwatercitiesafteranucleartestgonewrongcauseduninterruptedworldwiderain.AwarisunleashedbetweenTheFederation(Earth’sremaininggovernments)andtheVolarins,agroupofterroristsledbythemadscientistandWetlands’mainvillain,PhillipNahj.You’llplayasJohnCole,aruthlessmercenaryhiredtocatchNahjalive.
Startingtoday,thelatestdevelopmentversionsofScummVMsupportthenewtrendthatgamerscan'tstoptalkingabout:NFTs(non-fungibletokens)!Thisexcitingnewdevelopment,createdexclusivelyforplayersandbackedbyblockchaintechnology,uniquelyidentifiesyourin-gameitems,creatinganever-greaterconnectionbetweenyouandthegameworldsyoulove.It'snotjustarubberchickenwithapulleyinthemiddle,it'syourrubberchickenwithapulleyinthemiddle.
Buthavingexclusiveownershiptoanin-gameitemisjustthebeginning!OurdevelopersareexploringhowNFTswillletyoutransferitemsbetweendifferentgameinventories.LoveyournewchainsawfromFullThrottleWiththepowerofNFTs,youcantransferittoTheSecretofMonkeyIslandandcreatesomealternatepuzzlesolutions!
Aren’tNFTsenergyinefficientNotforus!NFTsinmoderngamesarelessenvironmentallyfriendlybecausetheyrepresentin-gameitemswiththousandsormillionsofpixels.ButintheretrogamesthatScummVMsupports,itemsareonlytensofpixels,meaningtheyarelesstaxingontheenvironment.
Update:We’vebeenblownawaybytheincrediblereactiontothispost!However,recentlegalchallengestoNFTsintheKingdomofDaventryhaveledustoexploreothermethodsthatwillbeavailabletoourusersinthatcountry.
Inpreviousyears,Googleonlyallowedstudentstoparticipate.Thisyear,however,bothstudentsandnon-studentsarewelcometojoinusandhacktogether.Therearenowtwosetsoftasks,for175hoursandfor350hours.Someofourtaskscouldbeeitherofthetwo.
Wearelookingforwardtoyourfineapplicationandparticipation!
It’sbeen13yearssinceThe7thGuestwasaddedtoScummVMwiththeGroovie1engine,andnowwe’vefinallyaddedsupportfortheGroovie2enginewithall4gamessupported:The11thHour,Clandestiny,TenderLovingCare(CD-ROMedition),andUncleHenry'sPlayhouse.
IftheminigamesvsStaufaretoodifficultforyou,thenthere’salsoanewoptionforEasierAIwhichisavailableforallgames(exceptTenderLovingCare,whichdoesn’tfeaturepuzzlesagainstanAI).TheEasierAIoptionisalsonowavailableintheoriginalGroovieengineforThe7thGuest,aswellasotherimprovementssuchasright-clicktofastforward.
GetreadytodefeatSpidey’sarch-enemies:Dr.Octopus,Hobgoblin,Shocker,Chameleon,Mysterio,andVulture!
ReleasedbyBrooklynMultimediain1996,thisaction-adventuregameletsyouplayasPeterParker,betterknownasSpider-Man.Therearesixdifferentstorylinesandoutcomesbasedonhowyouplayandfourdifficultysettings.
Severalmonthshavepassedsinceourmonumental2.5.0release,andnowtheScummVMTeamisthrilledtoannouncethereleaseofthebugfixrelease,2.5.1codenamed“Californium”*.
Themostnotablechangesare:weaddedscalersinOpenGLmode(thoseAdvMame,HQetcthings),fixedseveralbugsinTheLostFilesofSherlockHolmes,madethesoundforSam&Maxmoreaccurate,improvedgraphicsforsomeMacintoshSCUMMgames,implementedmorerenderersforTheLongestJourney,mademanyenhancementstoLittleBigAdventureandwefixedthedreadedbugonWorldofXeenstartup.
EnjoyScummVMin2022!
*TheaverageatomicmassofCalifornium(atomicnumber98)is251.
GrabyourCDversionoradigitalreleaseandimmerseyourselfinastoryfullofnightmaresandmysteries.
Twentyyearsagotoday,onTueOct916:30:122001,LudvigStrigeuspushedtheinitialrevisionoftheScummVMcode,whichwasversion0.0.1oftheproject.Timeflewquicklyand,fast-forwardtothepresentday,weareproudlyreleasingScummVM2.5.0“Twentyyearsagotoday…”
Firstofall,thisisthefirstreleasethatsupports2.5Dgames(almost3D),thankstothemergerwithResidualVM.WiththisreleaseweannouncesupportforGrimFandango,TheLongestJourneyandMyst3:Exile.Thisiswhywejumpedstraightto2.5inourversioning.Pleasenotethatonlydesktopplatformscurrentlysupportthesegamesandotherplatformsmayormaynotgainthesupportlaterdependingontheircapabilities.
Inadditiontothese3gamesandengines,weofficiallysupport10morenewenginesandsubenginesthataddcompatibilitywiththefollowinggames:
Welovelocalizedgamereleasesandmultipleplatformversions,thuswiththisrelease,weenhancedthesupportforLureoftheTemptressKonamirelease,BlueForceSpanish,RingworldSpanish,Amazon:GuardiansofEdenSpanish,MysteryHouseFrench,RussiantranslationsofSierraAGIgames,Elvira1JapanesePC-98,BargonAttackRussian,WoodruffRussian,EyeoftheBeholderJapaneseSega-CD,LegendofKyrandiaHebrew,LegendofKyrandia2Hebrew,LegendofKyrandia3SimplifiedChinese,InherittheEarthPC-98Japanese,GabrielKnight1Macintosh,XeenRussiantonamebutafew.Notably,Macintoshb/wversionsofLoomandIndy3arenowalsosupported.
Besidesthenewgamesandgameversions,ScummVM2.5.0bringsmanynotableimprovementsandnewfeatures.WehavecompletedamajorreworkoftheGUI:WenowsupportUnicodecharacterseverywhere.TheGUIalsoadaptstohighresolutionsusedinHiDPIscreens.TheNintendoDSporthasbeensignificantlyrewritten.WeaddedGOGandSteamachievementstoalargenumberofWintermutegamesandenabledKeyMapperinmoregames.ThankstotheworkofoneofourGSoCstudents,wehavenowaddedanoptionfortext-to-speechtothegamesSfinx,SoltysandTheGriffonLegend.
Wewishyougreatadventuring,happypuzzle-solvingandexcitingjourneystoRPGworlds,andhopetoseeyouaroundinthecomingyears.
After5yearsofactivedevelopment,wearegladtofinallyannouncethefirstMacroMind/MacromediaDirector-basedgamestobesupported.
Iskrich,aGSoCstudent,laiddowntheengine’sfirstlinesofcode,basedontheinitialreverseengineeringeffortsoffuzzie,whichshewroteinPythonaspartofthecontinuityproject.Then,theworkwascontinuedbysevin2017whenLingocompilerdevelopmentwasstartedandstevenhoefelstartedaddingDirector5-relatedcode.In2018,therewaspracticallynodevelopment,butin2019,moralrecordingsmadesomeadvancementsforDirector4.Finally,in2020and2021,therewasabigchunkofdevelopment,firstbynpjganddjsrv,thenbysheepanddjsrv,whilervanlaarsetupacontinuousintegrationbuildbotfortheproject.
Longstoryshort,after3738commits,wearenowannouncingsupportforDirector2-basedtitlessuchasSpaceshipWarlock.SelectedDirector3-basedtitlesmaywork,andinparticular,wesupportL-ZONE.
WeareactivelyworkingondeepeningDirector3compatibility,particularlytheoriginalJourneymanProjectandadvancingwithDirector4support,havingMeetMediaBandandChopSueyasourprimarytesttargets.
Prepareforaquestthatspansmorethan1200yearsand7astoundingworlds.TheepicsequeltoTheJourneymanProject,TheJourneymanProject2:BuriedinTimeisnowfullysupportedbyScummVM.
Afteranumberofyearsindevelopmentbyclone2727,andafewmoreyearsmaturingonashelf,thegameisfinallyreadyforpublictesting.
From1940to2099,Nightlong:UnionCityConspiracyisnowreadyforpublictesting.TaketheroleofprivateinvestigatorJoshuaReevinthiscyberpunk-themedadventurereleasedin1998byTrecision,featuringpre-renderedenvironmentsand3Dsoftwarerendering.Uncovertheconspiracy,andallthebugs!
Thankstotheoriginaldevelopersforprovidingusthesourcecode,andtoSupSuper,Strangerke,bluegrandmadmooseforportingittoScummVM.
Wehaven'thadtheopportunitytosupportandmentor6GSoCstudentssince2008.So,let'scelebrateandgiveaparticularlywarmwelcometothe2021GSoCstudents!
We'refinallyreadytounleashthemotherlodeontothepublicfortesting.TheAGSenginehashadmanyfreewaregamesreleasedovertheyears,aswellasquiteafewcommercialgamesaswell.Keepinmindthat,likethestand-aloneAGSinterpretertheengineisderivedfrom,onlyAGSgamesfrom2.5onwardsaresupported.
WearehappytoannouncethatPrivateEyebyBrooklynMultimediaisnowreadyforpublictesting.
PlayPhillipMarlowe,ahard-boiledprivateeye,asheattemptstosolveamurdermysteryinLosAngelesinthe1940s.
Releasedin1996,thisgameisararegemwithcelanimationtechniqueandprofessionalvoiceacting.BasedonRaymondChandler'swork,thegameplayslikeaninteractivemoviewhereyoucanchoosewhichversionofthestorytoplay:oneisfaithfultothebookwhiletheotherhasanalternateending.
OnlytheUSreleaseforWindowsissupportedatthemoment.
Excitingnews!ThankstothetremendouseffortofDamianoGerliandthegenerosityoforiginalgameauthors,MarcoCaprelli,PaoloCostabel,MassimoMagnasciuttiandproducerBrunoBoz,wearehappytoannouncethefreewarereleaseofthegameNipponSafesInc..
ThegameitselfhasbeensupportedsinceScummVM0.10.0,whichwasreleasedin2007.
Havefunandenjoyanothergreatfreewarepoint-and-clickadventure!
PS.IfyouhappentoownboxesofTheBigRedAdventureandTequila&BoomBoomtitlesfromthesamedeveloperandhavetheabilitytoprovidehigh-resscansofthose,pleasecontactsev.
WearethrilledtoannouncethattheScummVMprojectwasonceagainacceptedforGoogleSummerofCode.Thisisalwaysanexcitingpartoftheyearforusandthisyearisnodifferent.For2021theGSoCprogramhasbeenrevampedbyGoogletobefocusedonsmallertasksandeligibilitycriteriaforthestudentswererelaxed.
Weareallexcitedtobepartofthisprogram,andtoseeyourapplications!
AsfortheotherComprehendgames,Talismanwilllikelybesupportedinthefuture,butitrequiressignificantfurtherwork.TheotherremaininggameslikeTransylvaniaIIIuseacompletelydifferentengine,sowillremainoutofscopefortheforeseeablefuture.
In2019,AndreiPrykhodko(whiterandrek),aGSoCstudent,wasworkingonsupportfortheRedComradesgameseries(Russian:ПетькаиВасилийИванович).
RedComradesisa2Dadventuregameplayedfromathird-personperspective.Thegame'sprotagonistsarefromDmitriFurmanov's1923novelChapaev:historicalRussianmilitaryfigureVasiliyChapayev,hisaidePetka,andthemachinegunner,Anka.
Afteralongtimeindevelopment,theScummVMteamishappytoannouncesupportforthefirsttwogamesintheseries:RedComrades1:SavetheGalaxy(Russian:ПетькаиВасилийИвановичспасаютгалактику)andRedComrades2:FortheGreatJustice(Russian:ПетькаиВасилийИванович2:Судныйдень).
Sobreakoutyourcopiesofthegamesandgivethematry!Unfortunately,onlytheoriginalRussianWindowsversionsaresupported.TheEnglishversionsforiOSandAndroiduseacompletelydifferentengine.
Onceuponatimeinthepast-aroundtheyear1994-asoftwarecompanycalledAdelineSoftwareInternationalreleasedagametitled“LittleBigAdventure”or“Relentless:Twinsen'sAdventure”.Thisgame,aclassicpseudo-3Dactionadventuregamewithanepicstorysetonafantasticplanet,hasnowenteredthetestingstageinScummVM.Please,notethatafewfeaturesoftheoriginalgamearenotimplementedyet.However,wealsoaddedafewfeatureswhicharenewforthegame.
Featuresnotavailableyetandknownissues:
Newfeatures:
OurnewandshinyAndroidportforScummVMv2.2.1isnowliveontheGooglePlayStore.Afterquitealongperiodofdedicatedworkfromourteamdevelopers,andamonthofpublicbetatestingbymembersofourcommunitywhohelpfullyreportedquiteafewissuesforustoaddress,wearefinallyreadytogiveyouthestablereleaseforourScummVMAndroidapp.
Thisapphasbeensignificantlyre-writtenandtestedonmodernAndroiddevices,runninguptoAndroid10+.ItincludesnewfeatureswhichbringituptospeedwiththedesktopScummVMapplication,suchasFluidSynthsupport,CloudSavesandmorelocalizationchoicesfortheUI.AlsoincludedistheLocalFileServer(LAN)feature,wherebyyourdevicecanactasatemporaryfileserverallowingyoutodownloadfiles(eg.savefilesandeventheconfigfile)oruploadnewones(eg.gamedata)usingawebbrowserfromaPCoranotherclient.
Withthisreleasewehaveresolvedafewlongstandingissuessuchas:
Othersignificantimprovementshavebeenmadetotheinterfaceoftheapplication,suchastheabilitytochoosewhethertheGUIwillfeaturefilteredgraphics(bilinearscaling)ornot(nearestneighborscaling),severalfixesforthevirtualkeyboardbehaviortomakeitmoreresponsiveandcloseremulatethebehaviorofaphysicalkeyboard,andsupportforvirtualmousecontrolusingtheanaloguejoystickfromyourcontroller.
Byupgradingtothenew2.2.1versionyouwillbeabletoenjoysupportforallthegameenginesthathavebeenintroducedonScummVMsince2.0.0,suchasBladeRunner,UltimaIV,QuestforGloryIV,aswellasallthebugfixesandimprovementsmadetotheexistingones.
WethankallourbetatestersfortheirmostvaluablefeedbackandhopethatyouenjoythisversionofScummVMAndroid.
“SorryforthewaitMr.Flores,I’mreadytotakeyounow”–GrimFandango.
Todayisaspecialday,specialinanumberofways.Firstofall,wehitamilestonewith19yearsofScummVM.Ourfirst-everpublicrelease,ScummVMversion0.0.1,happenedonOctober8th,2001.Andsecond,somethingelsefinallyhappened,somethingwhichhasbeeninthetalksforalongtime:TheScummVMprojectisofficiallymergingwiththeResidualVMproject.
ForalongtimeScummVMlimiteditselfto2Dpoint-and-clickadventuregames,andsoResidualVMwasbornasasisterprojecttosupport3Dgames.Butfromnowon,therewillbenomoreconfusionaboutwhichprojectagamebelongsto.ScummVMnowembracesadventuregamesandRPGs,whethertheyare2Dor3D,point-and-clickornot.Itisanaturalstepforbothprojectswhichhavebeendevelopedalongsideeachotherandcross-pollinatingeachotherwithideas,patchesanddesigndecisions.Moreover,severaldevelopersbelongedtobothprojects.
Withthismerger,ScummVMaddsseveralgamestooursupportedlist:GrimFandango,EscapefromMonkeyIsland,MystIII-Exile,TheLongestJourneyandanunfinishedengineforInColdBlood,aswellasWintermute3Dengine.
We’reexcitedtoembracemostoftheResidualVMteamandwillcontinuedevelopmenttogether.
Ofcourse,therearestillmorethingstodoand,inthecomingweeks,youwillseemoreprojectresourcesmerginglikeforums,wikis,etc.
Staytunedandgo3D!
AnewreleaseofScummVMisready.Thisisathrillingonebecauseweareembracingadventuregamesasfarbackas1976!That’sright,theinfamousColossalCaveAdventure,theveryfirstInteractiveFictiongame,isnowsupportedbyScummVM.
Besidesthat(andabout1594otherIFgames),wenowadded3moregameenginesandextendedanother4,thusaddingthefollowinggamestothesupportedlist:
Asyoucansee,wecontinueourexplorationintotheworldofRPGs.
Othernotablechangesare:afullyrewrittenMorphOSport;anewsubsystemforautomaticsavespresentinnearlyeveryenginewesupport;Right-To-LeftdisplaysupportinourGUI;updatedMT-32emulationcodeandDiscordRichPresence.
Wenowsupportadditionaldifferentgameversions,andhavenoticeableimprovementstoIllusions,Kyra,Lab,Queen,Titanic,XeenandZVisionengines.ThereisalsoimprovedsupportforManiacMansion,NESandApple//gsversions.Asusual,wecontinuefixingoriginalSCIscriptbugsinover30gamesandaddedRolandD-110soundtracksupporttothesegames.
TimetodiveintoaniceInteractiveFictionorfrysomemonstersinUltimawithaBlazingFire,ifyou’readragonofcourse.
Helloworld,itistimeforustoreleasethenextversionofScummVM.Thus,wereallyneedyourhelpwithtestingthestablebuildsbeforetheupcomingrelease,soweensurebetterquality.
Please,payyourspecialattentiontothefollowingnewtitles:
WewouldalsolikeyoutoplaythroughanotherSierragame:PoliceQuest:SWAT.TraintobeamemberoftheSWATteam,andembarkintodangerousmissionstosavecivilianlives.Thishasbeenrecentlypromotedfortesting,soitscallfortestinghasbeenincludedintheannouncementfortheupcomingrelease.
Goodluckwithyourplaytesting,andlet’sreleaseversion2.2.0attheendofSeptember!
Theoriginalstorysays:
500yearsaftertheGriffon-Dragonwar,theDragonshavereturnedtoreclaimtheirempire.Citiesarefalling,everyoneisdying,andtheloneGriffonKnightFayneiscaughtupinthemiddleofitall.
In2008GoogleSummerofCodewehadKariSalminenakaBuddha^workingonaddingOperationStealthgamesupport.Whileitwasanoverallsuccess,stillcertainimportantgamefeaturesweremissing.Now,12yearslater,Karigottimeforcompletinghiswork.
Thus,weareproudlyannouncingsupportfortheOperationStealthgamealsoknownasJamesBond007:TheStealthAffairintheUSrelease.
AftermanymonthsofdevelopmentBlazingDragonsisnowreadyforpublictesting.
JoinyoungdragonFlickerasheattemptstowinthehandofPrincessFlameandsaveCamelhotalongtheway.
ThisisaratheroddPointandClickgameasitwasonlyreleasedonConsoles.ScummVM'snewDragonsengineallowsyoutorunthePlaystationversionofthissomewhatforgottentitle.ThrowawaythatPS1controllerandenjoythegamewithamouse/keyboardinterface.We'vealsotakenoutalltheannoyingloadingscreens.
OnlytheUSandGBPlaystation1versionsaresupportedatthemoment.
TheScummVMteamisexcitedtowelcomeCadiHandb-gent,ourtalentedtechnicalwritersandparticipantsofGoogle’sSeasonofDocs.
CadiHwillbeworkingwithustolaunchanewdocumentationportal,whichwillincludearevampedusermanualandcentralizeourdiasporaofinformationfromtheWiki,Readme,andvariousotherdocswithinourrepository.
b-gentbringshisexpertiseandexperiencetohelpusmodernizeourDoxygendocumentation.TheDoxygenportalhaslongbeenneglected,thiswillbenefitourdevelopersandcommunityasawhole.
It'sfinallytimetoannouncetheofficialtestingperiodfortheGlkengineinScummVM,forplayinginteractivefiction(akatextadventures).Thisisaconglomerationofsub-enginesforplayingthegamesthatusethevariousauthoringsystemsreleasedovertheyears.Atthistimethefollowingsub-enginesaregoingintoofficialtestingmode:
ItseemsthatworkoncleanupandimprovementstotheUltimaVIIIintegrationwasfurtheralongthanIhadanticipated.It'snowbeenconfirmedthatUltimaVIIIiscompleteableunderScummVMaswell,soitjoinsUltimaIVandUltimaVIforofficialtesting.
Manyyearsago,acompanycalledOriginSystemsdevelopedthemuchbelovedUltimaseriesofrole-playinggames.Thankstotheprevioushardworkofotherswhocreatedstand-alonereimplementationsofthesegames,ScummVMispleasedtoannouncethattwoofthegamesintheseriesarereadyfortesting.
ThefirstofthesegamesisUltimaIV:QuestoftheAvatar,basedonthepriorworkdonebythexu4project.YoucandetectyourEnglishcopyofUltimaIVaseitheroriginalorenhanced.EnhancedmodeusestheVGAgraphicsdevelopedbythexu4project.WiththeinclusionintoScummVM,thegamealsoreceivesseveralimprovements,suchasmultiplesavegameslotsandconfigurablekeybindings.Itevenaddsinasmallsecretareathatonlythemostdedicatedexplorersmayfind.
ThesecondgameisUltimaVI,basedontheNuvieproject.Duetosomemiscommunication,Nuviemaystilladvanceasaseparateproject,butgiventheworkdoneintegratingNuvieintoScummVM,we'rehopingtohaveitofficiallysupportedinScummVMaswell.AswithUltimaIV,UltimaVIsupportstheoriginalgamemode,aswellasanenhancedmodethatallowsforNuvie'sfullscreenmap,containergumpsasinUltimaVII,andotherfeatures.Notethatenhancedmodedefaultstodoubleresolution,sofornow,theintroonlydisplaysinhalfofthescreen.
SeasonofDocs,arecentinitiativebyGoogletoconnecttechnicalwriterswithopensourceprojects.Theprogramoffersagreatwaytogainpracticalprojectexperience,aswellasexploretheworldoffreesoftwareandthegreatcommunitiesthatevolvearoundthem.
We'vehadalotofsuccessfulstudentprojectsaspartofGoogle'sSummerofCodeinpreviousyears-we’relookingforwardtocarryingthatsuccessintoGoogle'sSeasonofDocsandinspireyoutoworkwithusandaddyourveryownsuccess.
WewantScummVMtobeeasilyaccessibletoasmanypeopleaspossible.Thisobviouslyincludeslocalisationtohelpremovinglanguagebarriers.Thisyear,AryanRawlaniwillhelpimprovingsupportforlanguageswrittenfromrighttoleft('RTL')aswellasaddingproperUnicodesupporttotheScummVMGUI.ImagineScummVMbeingavailableineverypossiblelanguageonedayandyoumightunderstandhowimportantAryan'sworkis.Besidesthat,Aryanwillalsoworkonthemechanicsweusetodetectyourgamesinordertoimprovereliabilityandperformance,whichincludesdeepreworkonhowourpluginsystemworks.
Aftersixmonthsofworkandtheeffortof7contributors,wearefinallyhappytoannouncethatwehavefinishedthefirstversionoftheEnglishtranslationforThePrinceandtheCowardorKsiiTchórz.2,762scriptlineswith19,735wordswereprocessed,reviewedandtranslated.
Goodluckwithyouradventures,whilemostofyoustillstayathome!
TheScummVMSnapcomesintwoflavours.The"stable"channelcontainsourofficialreleaseswhichmakesitagreatchoiceformostusers.Incaseyouwanttoexplorethelatestandgreatestfeaturesofourcurrentdevelopmentversions,simplyfollowthe"edge"channelandgetanupdatedbuildeachandeveryday!WealsohavesomeprettyneatadditionstotheSnapPackageinmind-butmoreonthatlater.
Enjoy,andhavefun!
Lookingforwardtoyourapplications!
Afterashortbreak,theScummVMTeamispleasedtoannounceabugfixreleaseforthe2.1series-ScummVM2.1.1,codenamed“:MoreSheep:”.
Thisreleasecontainsasubstantialamountoffixesandminorenhancements.Themostnotableonesare:bettermulti-languagesupportintheGUI,improvementsinFMTOWNS/PC-98audio,optimisationsofthecloudsaves,acoupledozenSCIscriptfixes,improvementstoBladeRunnerandfixestoanother7engines.Also,thisisthefirstreleasewithofficialsupportfortheNintendo3DS.Additionally,weaddedcloudsupporttotheNintendoSwitchport.
Ofcourse,itrunsontopofScummVM,whichmeansitcontainsvariousbugfixesandqualityoflifeimprovements(likemouse-scrollinginKIAandfanmadesubtitlessupport)overtheoriginal1997versionofthegame.
YouwillfindsubtitlesfortheEnglishandFrenchversionsofthegameontheGamessectionoftheScummVMwebsite.
Westillhaveplanstocompletetherestoredcontentversionforthegame,whichisbuiltfromcontentandcodesegmentsthatarealreadyinthegame’sresourcesbutleftunusedoruntriggered.
PS.Ifyouusethelinkabovewewillgetacommissionfromyourpurchase.
"Animalsaleswasaprofitableandprestigiousbusiness,sincemostrealanimalshaddiedoutaftertheTerranWar;therewereplentyofelectricones,though—"Oh,ahem,didn’tnoticeyouthere.
ScummVMTeamisthrilledtoannouncethereleaseofScummVMversion2.1.0.Thisreleaseistheculminationofnearlytwoyearsworthofwork,adding16newgamesbasedon8engines,aNintendoSwitchportandnearly500bugfixes.Allthisdonebythehardworkof147contributorsacross8,493commits.
Thenewlysupportedgamesare:
Duckman:TheGraphicAdventuresofaPrivateDickisanobscurepointandclickgamebasedontheTVshowofthesamename.YoucontrolthewisecrackingdetectiveDuckmanasheattemptstoregainhisidentityafterbeingunceremoniouslydumpedfromhisownTVshow.Thegame'sreleaseforWindowsin1997unfortunatelycoincidedwiththeTVshowbeingcancelled,whichlimitedthedistributionofthegame.
Afteralongtimeindevelopment,theScummVMteamishappytoannouncesupportforthegame.
TheEnglish,GermanandDemoversionsaresupported.YoujustneedtheDATA/directoryfromtheoriginalgametoplay.
ThetimehasfinallycometostartthereleasecycleforScummVM2.1.0.
Thereleaseisgoingtobebig,andthesenewgamesrequiretesting:
Weneedyou!JointheSupernovacrewforanunforgettablejourneytowitnessthedeathofastar.
HaveyoueverdreamedofbecominganastronautBeingabandonedonyourownonabrokenspaceshipDyingasphyxiatedBeingelectrocutedBeingshotatGettinglostinapyramidBeingcaughtstealingadinosaur'sheadandbeingsenttoprisonAndifthatisnotenoughyoucanevendisabletheimprovedmodeinScummVMandexperiencethefrustrationofclickingandpointingyourwaythroughatwenty-fiveyearsoldcomputergame.
Alongtimeago,in2013,KamilZbrógandukaszWtka,aGSoCstudent,wereworkingonsupportforthegameThePrinceandtheCowardorKsiiTchórz,asitwascalledoriginallyinPolish.
Thegameenginesatinlimbo,however,becauseweweretryingtoworkontheEnglishtranslation.Unfortunately,thatworkisonlyaboutthdone,andweneedyourhelp.
Powodzenia!
Theyearis1685.TheplaceisVersailles.SomebodyhasthreatenedtoburnthecastleandAlexandreBontemps,thePremiervaletofKingLouisXIV,isaskingforyourhelp.Youhaveuntiltheendofthedaytoinvestigateandsavethecastle.
Youarriveinadarkcave,inthemysteriouslandofMordavia...Gearupyourheroandfaceyouroldfoe,theinsidiousAdAvis!Ifyoufeeloverwhelmedbythisquest,youcanalwayschilloutwithagamefromtheHoylecollection!
TheScummVMteamisproudtoannouncesupportforthefollowinggames,whicharereadyforpublictesting:
BoththeCDandfloppyversionsofQFG4aresupported.DonotethatthepokergameofHoyleClassicGamesisnotsupportedyet.
OurScummVMteamislookingforBladeRunnerswhowillhelpfind,chase,andretirebugswhichescapedfromtheoff-worlddatacolonies.Thesebugsarenotdangerousandtheywon'tstopyoufromdiscoveringmoresecretsandchoosingyourfate.Yourspinner,gun,ESPERmachineandVoight-Kampffmachinewillbeatyourdisposal.
WeareannouncingthatBladeRunnerisreadyfortesting.Thefollowinglanguagesaresupported-English(bothCDandDVDreleases),German,Italian,French,Spanish,andtheunofficialRussianversionbyFargusMultimedia.
It'salwaysexcitingtoseethewidevarietyofdevicesthatareabletorunyourfavouriteadventuregamesthankstoScummVM.Today,weareproudtoannouncethatthenumberofdeviceshasgrownagainbytheimmediateavailabilityofScummVMfortheNintendoSwitch!
ThankstoCpasjusteandrsn8887,youarenowabletouseScummVMonthego.
InordertorunScummVMonyourSwitch,youneedamoddedconsolethat'sabletorunhomebrewsoftware.Don'tworry-there'splentyofdocumentationaboutenablinghomebrewontheNintendoSwitchavailableonline.
NomatterifyoujustwanttohangaroundwiththeScummVMcommunityortodiscussthelatestdevelopment,thisisthe(new!)placetogo!
SeeyouonDiscord!
PleasenotethatdespitetheintroductionofthenewDiscordserver,ourForumsandIRCchannelontheFreenodenetworkarestillavailableandwehaveabsolutelynoplanstodisabletheminthefuture.
LastweekGoogleannouncedtheacceptedprojectsforthisyear'sSummerofCode.WearepleasedandexcitedtosaythatScummVMwillbementoringfourstudentsthisyear.Allfourofthemwillworkongameengines:
Timefliessofast!It'sbeen10yearssinceweintroducedthe"ModernTheme"toScummVM.
Afterallthoseyears,itsurelywastimeforanupdate.
Overthelastcoupleofweeks,ScummVMteammembermatanikocarefullyupdatedthethemingofScummVM.Thenewthemefollowsmoderndesignprincipleswhilepreservingourowndesignphilosophy.
AlreadymissingtheoldthemeDon'tworry!Theold"ScummVMModern"themecanbeselectedinScummVM'soptionsatanytime.
Inanycase,don'thesitatetochatwithusonIRC!#scummvmand#residualvmintheFreenodenetworkaretheplacetogo!
Overthelastcoupleofdays,wemovedourdownloadstoanewmirroringinfrastructure.Previously,eachandeverydownloadwasdeliveredbyourmainserverlocatedinAustria.
MirrorBraintriestoalwaysselectthebestmirrorbasedonyourlocation,soyouwillgetthebestdownloadspeedspossible.
Afewweeksago,westartedimprovingourwebsite,including(butnotlimitedto)dustingoffourforumsandourwiki.There'salsosomestuffgoingon'behindthescenes'likeimprovingthewaywehandletranslationsforthiswebsite.
Overthenextcoupleofdays,wearegoingtorolloutanewmirroringsystemforthedownloadsweprovideinordertoallowustodistributethenecessarybandwidthacrossseveralservers.
Wearealmostdonewithsettingupthenewsystemandbasicallyjusthaveto'fliptheswitch'.However,itispossiblethatyoumightrunintoissueslikebrokendownloadlinksormessagescomplainingaboutmissingfilesduringthetransitionperiod.
Weareworkinghardtokeepserviceinterruptionsasminimalaspossible.Manythanksforyourunderstanding!
OverthelastfewdaystheScummVMteamhasbeenworkinghardonupgradingourinfrastructure.Duringtheprocessallofthesupportingsiteshavebeenupdated,cleanedupandsecuredwithSSLsupport.
DuetohowDNSpropagationworksitmaytakeupto48hoursuntilyoucanaccesstheforumsandwiki.
Overthenextfewhours,boththeScummVMForumsandWikiwillbedownformaintenancewhilewedoinfrastructureworkonbothsites.
Weareworkinghardtobringthembothbackassoonaspossible,thankyou!
WearenotonlyconstantlyworkingonimprovingScummVM'scompatibilityorimplementingnewgames,butsometimesalsoonimprovingtheproject'sgeneralappearance.
Overthelastcoupleofmonths,long-termScummVMfanandnewteammemberMatanikoworkedhardonimprovingourwebsitedesignwhichservesuswellsinceoveradecade.WeareproudtosaythattheScummVMwebsiteisnowfullyresponsiveandlooksabsolutelybeautifulonyourPCandyourmobiledevices.
Inthelastcoupleofweeks,boththeCyanandtheScummVMteamshavemadegreatstridestoimprovegamecompatibility.Duetointensetesting,wehavealreadymanagedtofixmostissuesthatwerepresentinScummVMandResidualVM.However,duetothenatureofsoftwaredevelopment,it'sstillpossiblethatwemissedsomething,soweneedyourhelpnow.
WhilewecanfixissuesintheGOG.comversionsofthegamesatalaterdatewithasimpleupdate,thiswon'tbepossiblefortheupcomingCollector'sEditiononDVDs,soweneedtomakesurethatwehavefleshedoutanybugsbeforetheDVDsaremanufactured.
Andplease...bringmethebluepages!
Myst—MasterpieceEditionandRiven—TheSequeltoMystarepoweredbyScummVM,whileMystIII—ExileisdrivenbyResidualVM.
InordertoachievethebestpossiblegamingexperienceandtomakeyourjourneythroughtheAgesevenmorepleasant,CyanandScummVMareestablishinganewpartnership,withbothteamsworkingtogetherascloselyaspossibleinthefuture!
Perhapstheendinghasnotyetbeenwritten—morenewswillfollowsoon!
BattletoliberatethepopulacefromthethreatofthetyrantLordXeen,orhiscruelmasterAlamar.OrdaretoventurebeyondtheworldofXeentotheworldofHavoctotestyourmettlewithanewchallenge.We'repleasedtoannouncesupportforthefollowinggames:
TodayGoogleannouncedtheacceptedprojectsforthisyear'sSummerofCode.WearepleasedandexcitedtosaythatScummVMwillbementoringthreestudentswhileResidualVMwillalsohaveonestudent.Allfourofthemwillworkongameengines:
ArecentdiscussionaboutthemostrecentIDADisassemblerfreeware7.0revealedthatitnolongersupportsdisassemblingolderDOSandWindowsexecutables.Thisisobviouslyaproblemforpotentialcontributors,aswellaspotentialGSoCstudentswantingtoreverseengineeranoldadventuregameorRPGfortheirproject.Theobvioussolutionistoprovideanearlierfreewareversionthatstillsupportsthem.
Consideringhowmanyofourgameengineshavebeencreatedbyreverseengineeringtheoriginalgames,hopefullywewillcontinuetoseepeopleinterestedinre-implementinggamesinthefuture.
Themorethemerrier:)
Inanycase,don'thesitatetochatwithusonIRC!Oneplace:Freenode.Twochannels:#scummvmand#residualvm
Justintimefortheholidays,thefinalreleaseofScummVM2.0ishere!Thisversionaddssupportfor23brandnewoldgames,includingalmostallofthe32-bitSierraadventures:
Andnow,abigroundofthanksandcongratulationstoeveryonewhomadethisreleasehappen.
Ourexceedinglyfantastictranslators,whohavehelpedbringScummVM2.0totheusersof24differentEarthlanguages:AlexJakovleff,AlexandreFolledeMenezes,Arius,BenCastricum,Carlos,edward,EinarJohanTranSmen,ErikZubiria,EttoreAtalan,EugeneSandulenko,FernandoSarmento,FilipposKarapetis,GeorgeKormendi,Gilles,HampusFlink,IvanLukyanov,JanShing,JenniferMcMurray,jepael,jeroenklop,JohnDoe,JordiVilaltaPrat,JoseRoses,Joseph-EugeneWinzer,lorz,LotharSerraMari,Luis,LyubomyrLisen,Manuel,MartinSchoenmakers,MaxvonWerner,MichaelD.,MiloCasagrande,mézesgergely,pablobecerra,PaoloBossi,PavelKungurtsev,PereOrga,PeterJohansson,PetterSjlund,poulsen93,PurpleT,rafaelmessias,RafaBdkowski,RafaRzepecki,RodrigoVegasSánchez-Ferrero,Rossano,RouvenBauer,SantiagoG.Sanz,SantiagoSanchez,selmiak,SergioCarmona,SimonSawatzki,SteffenNyeland,ThierryCrozat,TimoMikkolainen,Timofonic,TobiaTesan,TomasM,VitorSantos,VíctorMartínezPajares,WalterAgazzi,wreednumero2,andZbyněkSchwarz.
Ourextremelygoodlookingportersandpackagers,forturningScummVMintosomethingyoucanactuallyrun:BastienBouclet,CameronCawley,ColinSnover,JoostPeters,KeithScroggins,LucSchrijvers,ManuelAlfayate,MarcusComstedt,TarekSoliman,ThierryCrozat,andWillemJanPalenstijn.
And,finally,thankyoutoyou,exceptionaluser,forusingScummVM,and(withdeepapologies)toeveryoneelsewhosenamesIcouldnotdigoutofadatabase.Yoursupportmeansalot.Yourock!
(Andremember—shamelessplug—ifyouwanttoseeyournamehere,allittakesisonecontributiontoimproveScummVM!)
Releaseteam,signingoffuntilnexttime!
ThedayhasfinallyarrivedtowrapupthecurrentScummVMreleasecycle!ScummVM2.0isoneofourbiggestnewreleasestodateandaddssupportfor23games:
Thisreleasealsoincludessignificantnewenhancementsandbugfixesacrossmanyengines,sogoaheadandplaythroughanoldclassicyou’vebeenmissingevenifit’snotonthislist!
Happygaming!
PleasekeepinmindforStarshipTitanicGermanthatwe'renotallGermanspeakers,sobugreportswillneedtobeinEnglish.Also,ifanybugsyoufindinvolvetextthat'senteredintheconversationtabtooneofthebots,itwillmakethingseasierifyoucanreplicatetheproblemusingwordsthatdon'tincludelettersoutsideoftheEnglishalphabet.
Havefun!
AsawarmupbeforeplayingRiven,youmaywanttoplayMyst.Ifyoudoso,pleaseuseadailybuildofScummVM.Majorchangesweremadetothegameenginetoremovesituationswherethegamefeelsunresponsive.Somebugsmayhaveescapedourattention.AswithRiven,pleasereporttheissuesyounoticeduringyourplay-through.
Lastyear,weaddedsupportforthreeofSierra'sHi-ResAdventuregames:MysteryHouse(#1),Mission:Asteroid(#0)andWizardandthePrincess(#2).We'reproudtoannouncethatthreemoreAppleIIgamesarenowplayableinScummVMandreadyfortesting:UlyssesandtheGoldenFleece(#4),TimeZone(#5)andTheDarkCrystal(#6).
TodayGoogleannouncedtheacceptedprojectsforthisyear'sSummerofCode.WearepleasedtosaythatScummVMwillbementoringtwowizardstudentswhowillhaveonemission:castingtheSuperSludgeNovaspell.Effectsincludeaddingsupportfortwonewengines,andthecooldownperiodis12weeks:
(IfyouhavebeenitchingtoplaysomeoftheearlierSCIgames,pleasetakethistimetorunthroughthemagaintoo,aschangestotheenginemayalsoaffectsome16-bitSCIgames!)
Update:wewereunabletoreservetheplumbervm.orgdomainandthus,withaheavyheart,wedecidedtoabandonourrebrandingeffortandgobacktoouroldname.LongliveScummVM!
TheissueofthenameofScummVMhasbeenraisedmanytimessincewestartedtoaddenginesfornon-SCUMMgames.Untilnowwedecidedtokeeptheoriginalname.However,theadditiontodayofanengineforPlumbersDon'tWearTieschangeseverything.Duetoitsfameandreputationforbeingoneofthebestvideogameever,itnaturallybecomestheflagshipofwhatwestandfor.Thuswehavefinallydecidedtochangeourname.WearenowPlumberVM!
WeusedthenameScummVMforover15years,andthisiswithsadnessthatwesaygoodbyetoit.Itisawellknownnameandwedonotunderestimatetheeffortitwilltaketogetthesamerecognitionforournewname.Thuswearecallingonyourhelptospreadthenews.Intheshorttermthiswillinevitablyleadtosomedisruptionandconfusion.Butinthelongtermweareconvincedthatthisistherightdecision.Withyoursupportwewillconquertheworld!Startingfromthesewers.
Withthechangeofnamewehavealsodecidedtoexpandevenmorethescopeofourproject.LastyearwedecidedtoacceptenginesforRPGgamesinadditiontoadventuregames.Nowwearealsoacceptinganygamesthatfeatureaplumber.WorkhasalreadystartedonthelittleknownSuperMarioBros.,andwehavebigplansforthefuture.Wewillhaveabigannouncementsoon,sostaytuned.
Onafinalnote,itwilltaketimeforustoupdatealltheplaceswhereournameappears.Wehavestartedtodaywithourmainwebsiteandyouwillnoticeinthenextfewdaysthechangespreadingtooursocialmediaaccounts,wiki,forumandthepagesnotyetupdatedonourwebsite.WearealsoworkingonreleasingPlumberVM2.0withtheadditionoftwonewsupportedgames:PlumbersDon'tWearTiesandFullPipe.ThiswillhappenassoonasthelastfewbugsinourenginesforPlumbersDon'tWearTiesandFullPipehavebeensquashed.Hopefullywewon'tfindmutantturtlesduringtesting.Squashingthoseisarealpain!
WeareveryproudtoannouncethatRetro-JunkhasbeenworkingonScummVMsupportforoneofthemostimportantgamesofVideoGameHistory:PlumbersDon'tWearTies!
Overthepastfewyears,we'vehadaconstantstreamofrequestsaskingustoinvestigatesupportforthisgenre-definingmasterpiece.Itchangedthegamingindustryforever,byintroducing(amongmanyotherinnovations)anawesomenegative-filteredintro(withkartingpandas),FMPasagenregame(FullMotionPictures),andeventothisdayremainstheonlygamewhichuses42nddegreehumour.
Theenginereflectstheastonishingcomplexityofthegame,with500linesofcode-atthetimeofwriting,itwouldbeoneofthelargestengine(62ndlargesttobeprecise)inourtree.Asyoucanimagine,itwilltakeussometimetoreviewandgetitmerged.
We'dalsolikeyoutojoinusandgiveaveryspecialthankyoutotwoofourdevelopers,uruk-haiandt0by.They'vecontinuedtorelentlesslypushforsupportofthisgame,keepingeveryonemotivated.Thisworkmaynothavebeenpossiblewithoutthem!
Now,go!Grabyourcopyofthegameandthecode,andenjoythishistoricalmoment!
Update:IfyouthoughtitwasanAprilFool'sDayjoke,youhavebeentrolled.ThePullRequestonGitHubisgenuine,andScummVMwillreallysupportPlumbersDon'tWearTiesifitgetsmerged.
Thisyear,GoogleannouncedthelargestSummerofCodeever,with201acceptedorganizations.Weareverypleasedtoannounceweareparticipatingthisyearagain,togetherwithoursisterprojectResidualVM.
AreyouamotivatedstudentDoyouwanttoparticipateinthelargestGoogleSummerofCodeeverDoyouwanttobeknownasacontributortooneofthelargestgamepreservationprojects
TheDude...thePipe...theDark-Burrow-Dweller...andyou.
Now,go!TheDudejusthasfallenintothedeepfullpipe.
Ouronemonthtestingperiodisover.Thankstoalotofhelpfromyou,ourfellowusersandtesters,wearenowreadytoshipournextrelease.
Asalways,wehavebeenbusyaddingmoregamesandenhancingoldones.Now,aftermanyyearsinproduction,weareproudtoannouncesupportforMystandMyst:MasterpieceEdition.
Besidesthat,wenowsupportU.F.O.sandtheearlySierraHi-Resadventures,namelyHi-ResAdventure#0:MissionAsteroid,Hi-ResAdventure#1:MysteryHouseandHi-ResAdventure#2:TheWizardandthePrincess,foratotalofsixnewlysupportedgames.
NotablebugfixesandenhancementsincludeHerculesrenderingandfontfortheAGIgames,numerousbugfixestoSCIgames,enhancedSherlockgamesexperience,andAmiUpdateontheAmigaport.
Waitnomore,andstartplayingMystorU.F.O.srightnow!
"Youareinthefrontyardofalarge,abandonedVictorianhouse."
We'reproudtoannouncethatwenowalsohavesupportforseveralothergamesusingthesameADLsystem—whichfeatureadvancedtechnologiessuchascolorgraphics!Perhapsyou'drathersavetheplanet(Hi-ResAdventure#0:MissionAsteroid),orsavetheprincess(Hi-ResAdventure#2:TheWizardandthePrincess)
IfyouhappentohaveoriginalfloppiesforanyoftheHi-ResAdventuregames(foranyplatform),wewanttohearfromyou.Inparticular,ifyouhaveanAppleIIversionofHi-ResAdventure#3:CranstonManor,pleasegetintouch.Manyofthesegamesarerare,andwecannotaddsupportforallthedifferentreleaseswithoutyourhelp!
Timefliesquickly,andnowitistimetostartthereleasecycleforScummVM1.9.0.
Twonewgameenginesbecameproductionquality,andwewouldliketoaskyoutotestthefollowinggames:
Also,ourSCIengineteamhasbeenbusyimprovingtheScummVMexperiencewithSierragames,particularlywithfixingtheoriginalscriptbugs.Thus,wewouldliketoaskyoutotestseveralofthosegamesaswell.
Forauthentication,thenewbugtrackerusesGitHubaccountsviaOAuth2,whichshouldmakesigningupsaferandeasier.WetransferredallaccountsfromSF.net,butdidnotsetupanye-mailaddresses.Thus,afteryouloginforthefirsttime,pleasemakesureyouspecifyyoure-mailaddressinthepreferences,otherwisewewillnotbeabletogetincontactwithyou.
Whiletravelingthroughspaceinhisspaceship,Gnapranoutofgasandcrashedinthemiddleofaredneckfarm.He'snowlostonplanetEarthandneedsyourhelptofixhisU.F.O.sohecancontinuehisjourney!
IthasbeenacoupleofmonthssinceScummVM1.8.0,whichmeansit’stimeforanewpointrelease!ScummVM1.8.1isnowavailablewithfixesforimportantbugsandsupportforevenmoreplatforms.
WewillalsobeaddingNintendo3DSsupport!Asofreleasetime,thenewbinarieshavenotyetbeenbuiltbyournewporter,buttheyshouldbeavailablesoon.Keepyoureyespeeled!
NoScummVMreleasewouldbecompletewithoutgameengineupdates!ScummVM1.8.1includesfixesforDrascula,LegendofKyrandia,LabyrinthofTime,localizedversionsofIHaveNoMouth,BrokenSword2.5andimprovementstotheWindows,OSXandGCW0ports.
Getready,grabyourbelovedAndroiddevice,installScummVMonit,andplay!
Sincethe1.8.0releasewe'vebeenverybusywithfixingsmallandbigbugsinthenewlysupportedengines,andnowwearealmostreadytopresentyoutheresultinaformoftheScummVM1.8.1.
AlsofromnowonweencourageyoutotestanygamewhichwesupportandreportanybugsoryoursuccessontheforumsowecankeeptrackofcurrentstateofaffairsintheScummVMLand.
OnFridayGoogleannouncedtheacceptedprojectsforthisyear'sSummerofCode.WearepleasedtosaythatScummVMwillbementoringfourluckystudentswhowillhavetospendtheirsummerinadarkroominfrontoftheirscreen.WeexpectthiswillbeaninterestingJourney,passingthroughshadowygatestovisitscarydungeonsunderdarkclouds.Allwhilethementorswillbehuntingthree-headedmonkeysonatropicalisland,enjoyingthesun,thebeachandthegrog.
WearepleasedtoannouncethatJohnCarmack(yes,theJohnCarmack)willbejoiningtheScummVMandResidualVMteams.
WefirstmetJohnatGDC2016andhititoffimmediately.
Wehadbeenfeelingforawhilenowthatwehavetomovebeyondsimplyrecreatingoldgamesandactivelyimprovingthem,whilestayingtruetotheiroriginalspirit.WetalkedtoJohnaboutourplanafterafewtequilasandhewasimmediatelyonboard.
John'sexperiencewillbeinvaluableinhelpingusachieveourgoal.
SopleasejoinusinwelcomingJohn!
UPDATE:No,notreally.Thiswasajoke.
Youstumbleuponanoldhandwrittenbook.ItdescribesanislandworldnamedMyst.Whenyoutouchoneofitslastpages,youaretransportedtotheisland.AsyouexploreMystyoulearnaboutitsinhabitantsAtrus,CatherineandtheirsonsSirrusandAchenar.Youquicklydiscovereachsonistrappedinabook.WillyousolvethepuzzlesoftheMystagesandfreethem
No,wedonotwanttomakeitanewruletoreleaseScummVMslowerandslower!Ithasbeenmanymonthssincethelastofficialrelease...butinthattime,tonsofworkhasbeendone,resultinginoneofourbiggestScummVMreleasestodate!
ScummVM1.8addssupportfortennewgamesusingeightbrandnewgameengines:
Inadditiontonewgamesupport,we'veupdatedtheMT-32emulatortothelatestupstreamversionofmunt,andswitchedAdLibtoMilesAudioforthosegameswhichoriginallysupportedit.ThismeansgamesinScummVMsoundbetterthanever!
We'vealsooverhauledthegraphicssubsysteminAGI,basicallyreplacingit.AsaresultgamecompatibilitywitholdSierratitlesishighasneverbefore,andevenincludesplatform-specificsystemdialogs,paletteandfontforAppleIIgs,AtariSTandAmigaversionsofthegames.GamespeedforAppleIIgsishandledproperlynow.Andit'sevenpossibletoswitchtothelooksofanotherplatform.
NewportsincludeGCW-Zero(yes,sevfinallygotonefromtheKickstarter)andRaspberryPi.
Don'tgetlostintheLabyrinth,andintheworstcasecallMr.Holmes!(Andwepromisetoreleasemoreoften!)
Yesterday,Googleannouncedthelistofacceptedmentoringorganizationsandwehavethegreatpleasuretobeoneofthose.
Inpreviousyears,wehaveprimarilyfocusedonadventuregames.However,afterdiscussingwithoursisterprojectResidualVM,wearehappytoannouncethat,thisyear,wewillalsobeacceptingRPGtasks.
ScummVMandResidualVMarenowwaitingformotivatedstudents,willingtoworkduringthissummeronrevivingadventureandrole-playinggames.
Oneplace:Freenode.Twochannels:#scummvmand#residualvm
Afteraverylongbreak,wearefinallystartingpreparationsforournextrelease,ScummVM1.8.0.
Thelastoneyearandahalfhavebeenverybusy,andweadded10(ten,zehn,dieci,dix,diez,десять)newgames:
Also,wehadamajorrewriteoftheAGIengine,soallAGIgamesshouldworkbetter,butcouldalsohavenew,unexpectedbugs.
Happyadventuring(inatestmode)!
Whileaboardthesubway,yourtraincarissuckedintoanalternatedimension,alabyrinththatspansthespace-timecontinuum.Itscreator,Daedalus,isforcedtooverseeitsconstructionbytheevilKingMinos,whowantstouseittoinvadeandconqueralltimesandplaces.DaedaluspleadsfortheplayertofindawaytodestroythelabyrinthbeforeMinoscancompletehisconquest.
Thus,wearemoving.Firstwemovedourmainwebsiteanddownloads,andyouprobablyalreadynoticedthespeedboostthankstothenewservice.Also,wesaidgoodbyetotheadvertisementsduringdownloads,astheywereprovidedbySourceForge.net.Theonlyadsthatwillbeassociatedwiththisprojectfromnowonaretheoneswewanttodobyourselves(andthat,ofcourse,includeseasyname.com,lookattheirnicelogointherightpane).Eventually,wewillmovemoreservicestothenewserver,andperhapsevenextenditwithsomethingnew.
Sopleasejoinusinourjoyofanewhome!
TheTemplarsarebackinthisfan-madegameoftheBrokenSwordSeries!GeorgecomesbacktodiscovertheoriginofamysteriousletterhereceivedaboutNico'sdeath,anduncoverthewhereaboutsofthemoderndayTemplarsonceagain...
Theyearis1957.YouareJasonRoberts.You'repreparinganexpeditiontohelpyourmissingbrotherinthelandofAmazonsandeventuallylookforalosttreasure.
Twentyyearsafteritsoriginalrelease,weareveryproudtoannouncetodaythesupportofMTV'sBeavisandButtheadinVirtualStupidity.Acceptthechallengeofthoseanti-heroesofthe90'sandhelpthemfindtheirwayinanadventurefullofpuzzlesandmini-games.
SherlockHolmes,greatestdetectiveofalltimes,hasapairofpuzzlingcasestosolve.Firstly,agruesomemurderoutsideatheatre.Policeareclueless.Coulditbetheworkofthenotoriouskiller,JacktheRipperThen,inhissecondcase,hisbrotherMycroftisnearlykilledinanexplosion.Inthiscase,you'llplayinitiallyasWatson,whotriestosnapSherlockoutofhisdespair,andthenasSherlock,ashetriestopiecetogetherwhyMycroftwasattacked,andwhyhecalledforhimjustpriortotheexplosion.
So,haveaplay,andseeifyou'reuptothechallengeofsteppingintotheshoesofthegreatSherlockHolmes.Thegameisafoot.Orinthiscase,games:)
RexNebular,God'sgifttothegalaxy,hasbeenstrandedonaplanetwherehewasattemptingtolocatetoretrieveavaluablevase.Toescape,he'llhavetousetheinfamousGenderBendertogetintouchwithhisfemalesideandsuccessfullylocateboththevaseandawaytoescapetheplanet.
ScummVMtakesyouonanadventureintheworldofZork,withsupportfortwonewgames!InZorkNemesis:TheForbiddenLands,yourtaskistoembarkonajourneytosolvethemysteryofaspiritcalledNemesis,andofthefouralchemistsitkilled.OnyoursecondjourneytoZork,inZork:GrandInquisitor,youmustfindthreelegendaryobjectsthatwillrestoreallmagictotherealmandbringaboutthefallofGrandInquisitorYannick,whosegoalisto"shunmagic,shuntheappearanceofmagic,shuneverything,andthenshunshunning".
So,grabyourgamediscsandhelptest!Ifyoudon'townthegamesalready,theycanbepurchasedonlineatGOG.com:
Tosumup:Weneedtesters!
Thisyearisthe20thanniversaryofthereleaseoftheclassicvideogameInherittheEarth:QuestfortheOrb.TheWyrmkeepEntertainmentCo.hasannouncedthatitisdevelopingasequelentitledInherittheEarth:SandandShadows.
Thisall-agesadventuregameissetinaworldofhumanoid,anthropomorphicanimalcharacters.ThestoryfollowsRiftheFoxashetriestoconfirmtherumorsthatanimportantrelicofthelegendaryhumanshassurvivedandwhoisresponsiblefortherelic'srecovery.Unfortunately,therearesinisterforcesinvolvedintherumors—onesthatendangerRif,hisfriends,andhissociety.
"InherittheEarth:SandandShadowswillbeenchantingandthrillinggameforalltoenjoy,withsubtletiesandhiddendepthsthatcanbeappreciatedbyolderplayers,"saidcompanypresident,JoePearce."Withthehelpofthebackerstothefundingdrive,weexpecttoreleaseagreatgamemid-2015."
AyearhaspassedandScummVM1.7.0ishere.
Withthisreleasewehaveaddedsupportfor5completelynewgames.Theseare:
Also,wehaveupdatedtheMT-32emulator,addedanOpenGLbackend,improvedmanyaspectsoftheGUI,enhancedtheAGOSengine,madeUrbanRunner'svideoslessCPU-demanding,fixedtonsofbugsindozensofSCIgames,improvedsoundinLoomandIndianaJonesandtheLastCrusadeandimprovedplatformportabilityfortheTonyandTinselengines.
EverybodyWayOh!
Theforthcoming1.7.0releaseofScummVMisalmosthere!Thistimearound,wehaveatotaloffivenewlysupportedgames:
Or,the"Betterlatethannever"announcement.ItwaspointedouttometodaythatalthoughwemergedVoyeurintothemasterbranchsomemonthsago,weneveractuallycalledforanofficialtestingperiod.Sothisannouncementseekstoremedythat.
Takeontheroleofaprivateinvestigator.ApowerfulCEOwithaspirationsforthepresidencyhasinvitedhisfamilytohishomefortheweekend.Therearesuspicionsofcorruption,andyou'vebeenhiredtofindouthissecrets,anddeterminejustwhathe'shiding.
Aftermorethantwoyearssincetheoriginalfreewarerelease,theScummVMTeamisannouncinganupdatefortheDreamwebpackages.
ThankstotheworkofSimonSawatzkiwehavethegamemanualsaswellastheDiaryofa(Mad)ManavailableintextandHTMLformatforthemajorityofourreleases,soyoucanuseyourpreferredtext-to-speechprogramtoreadthemasyourbedtimestory.
Allreleasesnowincludethesedocumentsandaremarkedasversion1.1.Ofcourse,thepreviouslyavailablehighresolutionscanswillstayonthedownloadpageaswell.
AdditionallywehavetakentheopportunitytoreleasetheItalianversionofthegame.
TheacceptedGoogleSummerofCodeproposalshavebeenannouncedyesterday,andwearepleasedtosaythatScummVMwillbementoringtwostudents,forprojectswithaPolishtheme.
Additionally,ScummVMisactingasanumbrellaorganisationduringGSoCforoursisterprojectResidualVM.Theywillbementoringthreestudents:
Weexpectitwillbeaproductiveandinterestingsummer!
HappyAprilFools'Day!Unfortunately,wehaven'treallygotanewdeveloper...thoughpullrequestsarewelcome!
Wedonotnormallyannouncenewdevelopershere,butwehaveanunusualandtalenteddeveloperrecentlyjointheteam,EdwardSnowden.
Whenwefirstgotthee-mailfromadot-ruaddresswhichwewillnotbedisclosing,wewereskeptical.
HoweveruponverifyinghisPGPkey,weareconvincedthatthisisnotsomekindofAprilFoolsjokeandarehappytowelcomeatalentedsoftwaredeveloperwithenthusiasmtotheteam.
Heisapparentlyabigfanofpointandclickadventures,especiallyBeneathaSteelSky,,Dreamweb,WoodruffandtheSchnibbleofAzimuth,andIHaveNoMouth,andIMustScream.Hiscollectionallowedhimtopassalongstopoveratanairportlastyearandhedecidedthen,oncehehadsortedsomepersonalissuestogetaroundtocontributingsomecodetoScummVM.
AsanavidfanofLarryNiven,hewillbeinitiallyworkingontheTSaGEsupportforReturntoRingworldalongwithStrangerke,andwillbeusingthenickname"crazyeddie"
PleasecanweasktheotherdevelopersandusersnottobotherhimaboutanyissuesoutsideofScummVMandnottosendanyirrelevante-mailstohisScummVMaddressat"crazyeddie@scummvm.org"Thanks!
HappyAprilFools'Day!MuchthankstoLordHotoforthemockachievementdialogcodeandfortheHandofFateandZakMcKrackenquotes.ThankstoST,DrMcCoy,andStrangerkeforalltheirinput.
Duetohighdemand,ScummVMisextremelyproudandthrilledtoannouncetheintroductionofachievementstovariousgames.Gamesreallyhavenoreplayvaluewithoutachievements,sowehopethatourloyaluserswillenjoyfinallybeingabletoplaythemagainthewaythey'vealwaysmeanttobeplayed.They'refinallyreadyforthe21stcentury!
TheScummVMteammanagedtoputtogetherahugelistofachievementsthatwewantedtoseeinvariousgames,includingsomenot-yet-supportedones.Fromthere,wejustpluggedinoursimpledialogandachievementtrackingcode,andwereabletoaddittoallengineseasily.Soonintegrationwiththeforumswillbecompleteandyouwillbeabletoshareallyourachievementsthere.
LordHotowasreallyexcitedtoworkonthisfeaturesaying,"ThisisthecoolestfeatureI'veaddedtoTheLegendofKyrandia.""FirstSteam'sachievementscametoLinuxandnowthisLinuxgamersshouldbethrilledforalltheachievementstheycannowearn!"addedDrMcCoy.
We'vegatheredupsomescreenshotsofsomeofourfavoriteones:
Soifyou'reinterestedinbeingaGSoCstudentthisyear,pleasetakealookattheideaspageandcomeandtalktous.WelovetowelcomepotentialstudentsonIRCandtheScummVMandResidualVMmailinglistsarealsosplendidplacestostart!Wehavealotofexcitingthingstosuitarangeofskillsetsandwealsowarmlywelcometaskproposalsotherthanthoseonthelistifyoufeelsoinspired!
Fortheseventhyearinarow,wehavebeenacceptedasaGoogleSummerofCodeproject.
But,please,noDiggersupport:it'snotanadventure!
YouareJeromeLange,aBogartcloneprivateeyewho'sreceivedaninvitationfromanoldfriendtojoinheratMortvilleManortohelpwithadesperatesituation.WithanamelikeMortvilleyoumightsupposesomethingisseriouslywrongand,yes,you'reright.YouroldfriendJuliahasalreadydepartedtoDeadsville.
So...Whodiddunnit
LordHorriblehassentyouonaquesttokilltheQueenofEverything,playingtheroleofthehorriblydisfiguredPhlegmwadyouwillhavethechancetochoosehowto(not)fulfillthisquestofepicproportions.
HowmanyendingscanYOUfind
TheNeverhoodneedsyou!Klaymen,ourhero,wakesupinabuildinginthestrangelyemptyworldofNeverhood.It'suptoyoutoexploreandfindoutwhathappenedtoNeverhood'swackyclayworld.
"Theysaiditwoulditwouldneverbedone.Theywerewrong."Afteraslighthiatusatthestartoftheyear,workhasfinallyfinishedonournextTsAGEgame,ReturntoRingworld.Theonlyremainingworkstillinprogressisacardgameavailableonthein-gameconsoles,andiscompletelyunrelatedtothemainstory.
ThisisadirectsequeltotheoriginalRingworldgame..aftersavingthepuppeteerracefromexterminationanduncoveringsomepowerfulancienttechnologyonthefirstgame,Quinn,SeekerofVengeanceandMirandaReesfindthemselvessearchedforasfugitivesbyallthreemajorspecies,sotheyplantogotoRingworldtohide.Butitturnsthattheirshiphassufferedproblems.AndfixingthemandgettingtoRingworldwillonlybethestartoftheirproblems..
TheWintermuteenginehasbeenintheworksinScummVMforalittleoverayearnow,andithasgottenmoreandmoremature,tothepointthatwefeelitisgettingclosetobeingreadyforrelease.
Sincetheamountofgamesinvolvedisratherhuge,we'dlovetogetsomehelpwitharoundoftestingbeforewecheckoffontheenginebeingreadyforournextrelease.Thus,wehavesemi-arbitrarilyselectedasetofWintermute-gamesthatwouldbenefitfromsometesting,andhopethatsomeofourwonderfulusersarewillingtotakethemforaspin.
Onthe9thofOctober2001,theveryfirstcommitwasmadetoaCVSrepositoryandthustheScummVMprojectwasborn...
AsIwritethispost,itisnowthe11thofOctober2013andwehaveover58000commitsintheScummVMGitrepository...butstillbasedonthatinitialcommitoveradecadeago!
Thusontheproject's12thanniversary,IbelievedScummVMdeservedapresent...Thusmyself,JamesWoodcockandtheScummVMPRTeampresent"ScummVM:THEMOVIE"!:)
Sogetthepopcornandenjoy!
After11longmonthswearethrilledtoannouncethereleaseofScummVM1.6.0.
It'snotveryoften(ifever)thatweadd4newenginesinasinglerelease,butyes,thesehavebeenbusymonthsfortheteamindeed.
Let'sjustlistthenewgames1.6.0containsforyou:
OthersignificantfeaturesincludesupportfortheMacintoshversionofDiscworld1andthemusicintheMacintoshversionsofLucasArtsadventures,anupdatetothelatestRolandMT-32emulationcode,anewcoolgridchooserforyoursavegames,anextendedFluidSynthconfigurationdialog,andmajorbugfixestobikefightsinFullThrottle.WehavealsoaddedBelarusian,FinnishandGaliciantranslationstoourGUI.
Enjoy!
Weannounced6weeksagothatGoogleacceptedScummVMfortheGoogleSummerofCodethisyearagain.
ThisweekGooglerevealed4studentswillworkwithusthissummer!
Inordertoteaseyouabit,hereisashortintroduction:
We'dlikeyoutojoinusandwarmlywelcomethosefourstudentsandwishthemallthebestforthenext3months.
WealsoarereallygratefultoGoogleforgivingustheopportunitytomentorstudentsthisyearandbenefitfromtheirpassion.
Staytuned!
Greetings,fellowadventuregamers!WehavefinallycometothepointwhenScummVM1.6.0testingstarts.
Thisreleaseaddssupportforanumberofnewgamesthatneedtobetested:
Inaddition,ifyouhaveMacintoshversionofDiscworld,pleasegiveitatryaswell.
Thisreleasealsohasanotherinterestingaspect.Dependingonhowintensivelygamesaretested,wewilladdsupportforonemoregame:HopkinsFBI.Forsupporttohappen,weneedtestresultsonseveralplatformsusingseveralvariantsofthegame,whichincludestheBeOS,OS/2,LinuxandWindowsversions.
JamesWoodcockhastodayreleasedhisenhancedmusicforclassicpoint&clickadventuregameTouché:TheAdventuresoftheFifthMusketeer,aspartofhis'ScummVMMusicEnhancementProject'.
ByaddingtheexternaldigitalmusicfilesprovidedforfreebyJamesandwithourScummVMsoftware,userscanenjoytheupdatedsoundtrackwithintheactualtitleasitisplayed.
UsingmodernMIDIhardware,JameseditstheoriginalMIDIinformationandrecordsthemasexternaldigitalmusicfiles.DevelopersofScummVMthenaddcodesothenewlycreatedfileswillworkwithinthetitles.
"ScummVMhasalwaysinspiredmyinvolvementandalthoughIamnotaprogrammer,IhopemyScummVMMusicEnhancementProjectaddsalittleextraenjoymenttousersofthisfinepointandclickadventuresoftware."saysJamesWoodcock,creatoroftheenhancedsoundtrack.
Jameshaspreviouslyreleasedotherenhancedsoundtracksfortitlesincluding:
ScummVMhasbeenacceptedfortheGoogleSummerofCode2013!
We'rehopingtofindanothergroupofstudentswhowanttohelpouttheScummVMprojectandgetpaidfor12weeksofcodingworkoverthesummer.
Maybeyou'dliketohelpusimprovesupportforgames,orenhanceouruserinterfacePerhapsyou'dliketorevampourOpenGLsupportandacceleratetherenderingofsomeenginesOrdoyouhaveevenbiggerideas,likestartingsupportforyetmoregames
Beware:theapplicationperiodisfromApril22toMay3,sobesuretotalktousintime!Weknowfrompreviousyearsthatit'sreallyhelpfultoapplyearly,andtogetinvolvedwiththeScummVMcommunitysowecanhelptoreviseyourapplication.
It'stheyear2318;you'repartofanagencycreatedtoprotecttheintegrityofthetimelineaftertimetravelhasbeeninvented.Afteritisdetectedthatsomeonehaschangedthepast,it'suptoyoutorepairthetimestream!
Aftersavinganoldpeddlerfromabandofbandits,FenimoreFillmorefindsoutaboutthreeskullsthatwillunlockthelosttreasureoftheToltecs!It'suptohimtofindthegoldenskullsandthetreasure,beforethebanditsdo!
Wesurvivedtheapocalypse!Let'scelebratethat:grabyouroriginalofGrimFandangoandvisittheirsite!
ThecityofWaterdeepisindireneedofheroestodefenditfromtheevilbelowthecity.Assembleagroupoffourheroes,heedthecalloftheLordsofWaterdeepandstartyourquestinthesewersbelowthecity!
Butbeware,forthisisnotyouronlyquest.ArchmageKhelbenneedsyoutoinvestigatestrangehappeningsneartheTempleofDarkmoon.Peoplearounditaredisappearingandhumanremainsarefoundinshallowgraves.
Happydungeoncrawling!
ThankstothegenerosityofCreativeRealityandNeilDodwell,theScummVMteamishappytoannouncethefreewarereleaseofDreamweb.
Thisgamewasoriginallyreleasedin1994andissetinacyberpunkdystopiancitywhereabartendernamedRyanhasbeenhavingsomedisturbingdreams...
TheScummVMteamwouldliketomakeitclearthatthisgamewasgivena(15)certificationatreleaseasitfeaturesadisturbingstoryandviolence,andisthusnotsuitableforchildren.
Afterthepreviousannouncement,severalofyouaskedfortheItalianversionofFlightoftheAmazonQueen.WewouldliketothankHkzforprovidingtheoriginalCDandJohnPassfieldandSteveStamatiadisforacceptingourrequesttomakethisversionfreeware.TheScummVMprojectteamisthereforeproudtobringyoutheItalianversionofthegame,usingEnglishspeechwithItaliansubtitles.
Severalyearsago,webroughtyoutheEnglish,theGermanandtheHebrewversionsof"FlightoftheAmazonQueen".Today,thankstoJohnPassfieldandSteveStamatiadisoveratKromeStudiosinAustraliaandtheirpreviousdiscussionswithJames'Ender'Brown,theScummVMprojectteamisproudtobringyoutheFrenchtalkieversionofthegame.
Thisyear,wehadthegreathonortohavefourstudentsacceptedbyGoogle'sSummerofCodetoworkonScummVM:
Jakimushaworkedonatestingframework,Singrononimprovingourscalersbycreatingapluginsystem,SomaenontheintegrationoftheWintermuteengineinScummVM,andUpthornworkedonimprovingourcodeforsavinggames.
TheWintermuteenginehasalreadybeenmerged,andpullrequestsforthenewtestingframeworkandthenewscalerpluginsystemsarecurrentlybeingpolished.WhileUpthorn'sprojectdidn'tlastthesummer,wehaveapullrequestwhichaddsmuch-improvedsupportforsavinggamestothecomposerengine.
ThenextandfinalstepforthisyearofGSoCisthementorsummit,whereScummVMwillberepresentedagainbysevandStrangerke.
We'dliketothankonceagainGooglefortheirorganization,theirsupportandforacceptingusthisyearagain.ScummVMmadeagreatstepforwardthankstothem,onceagain!
We'dalsoliketowarmlythankJakimushka,Singron,SomaenandUpthornforworkingthissummerwithus,withaspecialmentionforSomaenwhodecidedtokeepworkingforScummVMonWintermute.Wehopethatsomeoftheothersmightdosotoo!
The7thGuestisJames'5thenhancedsoundtrackreleasedsofarwithanotheronthehorizon.TheprojectenablesusersofScummVMwhoowntheoriginalgametheabilitytoexperiencegameMIDImusicthroughhighqualitymodernequipmentwithoutanyofthecost,whichhasbeeninthiscaseeditedandrecordedonJames'Tyros4keyboard,currentlyYamaha'sflagshipmodel.
"The7thGuestrevolutionisedthewayinwhichweexperiencevideogamesandthesoundtrackoriginallycreatedbyTheFatManaddedtotheoverallatmosphereandsplendour"commentedJamesWoodcock,creatoroftheScummVMMusicEnhancementProject.Jamescontinued"WiththewonderfulsoundtrackoriginallyinMIDIformat,itwasanobvioustitletotargetforenhancementandIappreciatedthatTrilobyteGamesgavetheirblessing".
JameshasalreadyreleasedenhancedsoundtracksforSimontheSorcerer,Discworld,InherittheEarthandmorerecentlyBeneathASteelSky.
LittleRedRidingHoodlookingoverathergrandmother'slatestinstallofScummVM,notingtheupdatetoversion1.5.0andasked"Mywhatalotofgamesyounowsupport"."Allthebettertoentertainyouwithmydear!"respondedthecuriouslygrinningrelative.
Wealllovetofeastonthemostsumptuousofgamingtitlesandourlatestreleasewillfulfilyourcravingforevenmoreclassicpointandclickadventures.
Version1.5.0addssupportforOnceUponATime:LittleRedRidingHoodandthefollowingtitles:
Enjoyandhopefullyyouwon'tfindthebigbadwolfwhoissuretogiveyouabyte!
Onceagain,it'stimetostartanewtestingseasontopreparethereleaseofScummVMv1.5.0.Asusual,wehaveannouncedseveralnewsupportedgames:
Allthebettertoeatyouwith!
Water,water,everywhere,noranydroptodrink...
Euh...No,notthisnightmare:you'reRyan,abartenderwhocan'tsleeppeacefullyformonthsbecauseofweirddreamsandnightmares.Duringoneofthose,amonksuggestsyoubecomethedelivererwhowouldkeeptheDreamwebsafebykillingitsenemies.
Almostsixweeksago,weannouncedyouthatScummVMhasbeenacceptedbyGoogleforitsGoogleSummerofCode2012.Sincethen,wereceivedmanygoodapplicationsandweaskedalotofeffortstothestudentstoclarifyandenhancetheirs.We'dliketothankthemallforalltheseefforts!
Yesterday,Googleannouncedthelistofacceptedstudentsandtasksperprojectandit'swithgreatjoythatweannounceyouthatthisyear,4studentswillbeworkingonScummVMtasks:
We'dliketowelcomethemwarmlyandtowishthemthebest!Andofcourse,lastbutnotleast,we'dliketothankGoogleforgivingusthepossibility,oncemore,toworkwithtalentedstudentsduringsummertime.
HappyAprilFools'Day!ThankstoSTforprovidingascreenshotofoneofhisGroovieC#tools.
No,we'renotmovingtoanewwebsite.I'mproudtoannouncethenewScummVMrewriteinC#forWindowsPhone7andXbox360ports.Thisdoesnotincludeanyoftheprevious"ScummVM-XNA"codeandisallnewcodebasedonourcurrentworkingtree.
HappyAprilFools'Day!ThankstoDrMcCoy,LordHoto,andStrangerkefortheirhelp.
CedricisoneofthemostfamouscharactersinSierrahistory.However,hehasdividedthefanbaseintothosewhofindhimslightlyirksomeandthosethatadorehim.WehavethereforecomeupwithamodificationforScummVMthatoptionallyremovesCedricfromKing'sQuestV.
InadditiontobeingabletoremoveCedricfromKing'sQuestV,wehavealsoworkedonamodeforallotherScummVMgamestoinsertCedricintothem.Cedricintegratesdirectlyintothosegamesandcaninteractwiththegameaswellastheplayer.Asetofscreenshotsofthismode(andofKing'sQuestV)canbefoundattheendofthisnewspost.
Someoftheotherdevelopershavealsochimedinwiththeiropiniononthesubject.ScummVMPRofficerStrangerkesaid,"ScummVMhasalwaysbeenaboutimprovingthequalityofthesegamesandnowwefinallyhavetheopportunitytobringoneofSierra'smostbelovedcharacterstoalltheothergameswesupport.""ItreallyaddstotheseCoktelVisiongames,"statedScummVMGobdeveloperDrMcCoy,"they'reactuallyplayablenow.""Ican'timagineplayingthesegamesanyotherwaynow;there'snogoingback,"addedclone2727.
TheonehourlongaudioshowdiscussestheoriginsofScummVM,thechallengesinvolvedandtheexcitingfutureahead.ThepodcastalsoincludesseveralMIDItracksfromclassicpointandclickadventuregames,remindingusofthefantasticlegacyofthisgenre.
Wearewaitingforyourquestionsandsuggestionsonourircchannel:#scummvmonirc.freenode.net
TheScummVMTeamispleasedtoannounceScummVM1.4.1,amaintenanceonlyreleasethatfixesseveralbugsin1.4.0.
Themostnotablechangesinthisreleaseare:
No,notthatforce,it'sBlueForce.JakeRyanhasjustgraduatedfromthePolicyAcademy,andit'suptoyoutoguidehisactionsashestartshispolicecareer.He'llquicklybecomeinvolvedinsolvingaseriesofcrimeswhich,unbeknownsttohim,areinextricablyentwinedwiththemurderofhisparentswhenhewasachild.
Takealittlebreakandcomposeyourself.Aftertirelessweeksofwork,theScummVMteamisproudtoannouncesupportfortwochildren'sadventuregames—GregoryandtheHotAirBalloonandDarbytheDragon—Andontopofthat,youcanalsoplaysomeinteractivebooksfromtheMagicTalesseries.So,ifyoucanfindyourchildhoodspirit,digoutyourcopiesandenjoythoseadorablegames.
Chieffinallyfoundahusbandforhis"beautiful"daughter,butbeforetheendoftheceremony,Leonescaped.Sonow...whereisLeon
"Ihavetriedveryhardtoremainfaithfultotheoriginalsinrespecttotheexcellentcomposerscreations..."saysJamesWoodcock,creatoroftheScummVMMusicEnhancementProject.Hecontinues"...TherehasbeenalotofsupportandinterestfromBeneathASteelSkyfans,whohavebeenmonitoringitsprogressverycarefullyanditiswithgreatpleasureIcanfinallyplayBeneathASteelSkyusingnewversionsoftheoriginalsoundtrackwithmanythankstothedevelopersofScummVMforalltheirhardworkinmakingthisfeaturepossible".
JamesusestheYamahaTyros4keyboardhookeduptohiscomputerviaUSBandaftergoingthroughvarioustweaking,recordingandediting,afinalisedmusictrackisborn.
Ithasbeenover10years.Weareherethankstotheworkof131developers.49,124commitsweremadejusttotheScummVMtreeandthoseturnedintoamassive1,085,714linesofcode(excludingcomments)andofcourseover7.6milliondownloadsfromthemainsitealone.Iwouldsaythosewereagreattenyears.
TheoutcomeisScummVM1.4.0whichwearereleasingtoday,11/11/1111:11:11.11.
Moregamesaresupported:LandsofLore:TheThroneofChaos(basedonthesameengineasKyrandia),thekids'gameBlue'sBirthdayAdventure,andthesciencefictiongameRingworld:RevengeofthePatriarch.Ontopofthat,practicallyallsupportedSierraSCIgamesnowhavetheirAmigaversionsworking.OurmusicallyinclineduserswillnoticePCspeakersupportinMonkeyIsland2:LeChuck'sRevengeandIndianaJonesandtheFateofAtlantis,CMSsupportinLoom,TheSecretofMonkeyIslandandIndianaJonesandtheLastCrusade,fixedMIDIintheDOSversionsoftheElviraseries,andevensoundinWinniethePoohintheHundredAcreWood!
Thisyear,twostudentswereacceptedforScummVM:
TiqpitworkedonimprovingtheAGIEngine.Sadly,hedecidedtoquitbeforetheendofhistasks,buthiscodewasofsuchgoodqualitythatitisnowmergedintomaster,soScummVMbenefitsfromhiswork.
EnginmanapworkedonobjectifyingtheCruisEengine.Hedidagreatjob,andhisworkiscurrentlybeingpolishedbeforeafinalmergeintomaster.
WewerealsorepresentedatthementorsummitbysevandStrangerke.
WearereallygratefultoGoogleforalloftheirsupport,andarealreadyworkingonGSoC2012tasks.
FastenyourseatbeltsbecauseanotherScummVMreleaseisjustaroundthecorner!
No,it'snotTolkien'sRing,it'stheRingworld.JoinQuinn,Miranda,andSeeker-of-VengeanceastheyseektounravelthemysteriesoftheRingworldandfindawaytostoptheinsaneKzintiPatriarch.
Goodluckfindingtheelusivestasisboxes.
WeareproudtoannounceamaintenancereleaseoftheScummVM1.3.xseries.Thisreleasehasanumberoffixes,mainlyrelatedtoaudio.Also,severalgameshadslippedpasttestingfor1.3.0andturnedouttobenolongercompletable.Theyhavenowbeenfixed,soifyouwanttoplayDiscworld,InherittheEarth:QuestfortheOrb,IHaveNoMouth,andIMustScream,orplayFM-TOWNSSCUMMgamesonmobiledevicesorconsoles,wehighlyrecommendthatyouupgrade.
TheseareamongstthelastwordsofTimothy,oneofyourfriends;ButwhentheDarkArmyisonthemarch,thereisnotimeformourningthedead.TimeisessentialintheraceagainsttheevilsorceressScotia,soyouhadbettercontinueyourjourneytosavetherealmofGladstone.
Ithasbeenlongerthanusualsincethelastrelease.NeverthelesstheteamishappytoannouncethereleaseofScummVM1.3.0.
Thereleaseistrulyfeature-rich:inparticularweareintroducingsupportforanewplatform,WebOS,andaddingasetofnewgames:UrbanRunner,Playtoons,Toonstruck,Hugoseries,LivingBooks,BackyardBaseball.WehavealsocontinuedtoworkhardontheSCIengine,soAmigaandsomeMacintoshversionsofthegamesaresupportednowtoo.Manyofourportsreceivedimprovements,andanumberofbugshavebeenfixedinpracticallyeveryengine.Thusyourgameplayshouldbesmootherandmoreenjoyable.
TheScummVMteamisannouncinganotherroundofreleasetestinginpreparationforournextrelease:1.3.0!
WeareveryexcitedtoannouncesupportforScummVMonLinuxusingKinect!
Throughthetirelesseffortsofafewcoders,Strangerke,LordHoto,andHkz,theyhavemanagedtocomeupwithanamazingper-gamegesturesystem.ThisnewKinectinputsystemrecognizesplayerinputandtranslatesittomouseandkeyboardpresseswhicharethenprocessedbythegameengine.Unfortunately,thiscurrentlyonlyworkswiththeKinectforLinuxdrivers.
Staytunedformoreinfoandadailybuildshouldbeexpectedwithinthenextfewdays!:)
HappyAprilFools'Day!
ThefirstbatchofsupportedLivingBooksgamesconsistsofJustGrandmaandMe(v1),Arthur'sTeacherTrouble,Aesop'sFables:TheTortoiseandtheHare,Ruff'sBone,TheNewKidontheBlock,Arthur'sBirthday(v1),LittleMonsteratSchool,HarryandtheHauntedHouse,TheBerenstainBearsGetinaFight,Dr.Seuss'sABC,SheilaRae,theBrave,TheBerenstainBearsintheDark,Stellaluna,andmostofGreenEggsandHam.Wehopetosupporttherestofthegamesinthefuture,butinthemeantime,wehopethattheseareenoughtokeepourloyalusersoccupied.
Thisisourfifthyearintheprogramandwewouldliketomakeitourbestyet.
Wearenowwelcomingapplicationstojointheprogram,providedthatyouare:
Shouldyouapplyandbeselectedyouwillberewarded,bothfinanciallythankstoGoogleandwithgratitude,encouragementandthelegallymandatedminimalamountsofabusebytheScummVMTeamuponcompletionofasuccessfulproject.
Youneverknow,wemayevenshareoursecretGrogrecipe!
Havingparticipatedforseveralyearswecannotstresshowbeneficialitcanbetoapplyearly,reviseyourapplicationasyougoandreallygetinvolvedwiththecommunity.ThefinaldeadlineforapplicationsisApril8that19:00UTC.
Forusersnothingshouldhavechanged,butfordevelopersitshouldnowbemucheasiertocontributetoScummVM.
Newyear,newsupportedgames.Andweareproudtoannouncetwoofsuchnewlysupportedgamesrightaway!
ThelastScummVMreleaseinthisyearjusthasbeenreleased.Thisisamaintenancereleaseandisaimedtofixseveralimportantbugssince1.2.0.
ParticularlyweaddedHungarianandBraziliantranslationsoftheGUI,andmadebugfixestotheCruise,GroovieandLureengines.
BesidesSCI,wehaveaddedsupportforyetanotherCoktelVisiongamecalledFascinationandwehaveanumberofnewports:Android,Dingux,CaanooandOpenPandora.UnfortunatelywehadtodeclarethePalmOSportofficiallydead.
FollowingupontheSCIgametesting,atestingsessionforthenextScummVMreleasehasarrived!It'stimetopointandclickatseveralotherScummVMgamesthatneedtestingbeforewecanpublishanewversion.
Thistestingseasonwehavetwonewgamesupfortesting:FascinationandManiacMansion(C64version).
NotethattheSCIgamesarenotonthetestingpage.TheSCItestingwentwellandtheydonotneedtobetestedagain.
You'reDoralice,thecutestairlinecaptainoftheParis-Miamiflight.Duringyourlasttrip,adyingpassengeraskedyoutodelivertopsecretvials.Willyousucceedinyourmission,avoidingdeadlytrapsandsolvingeverymystery
Thisreleaseconcentratesprimarilyonfixingbugs,bugs,andevenmorebugs.Assuch,westronglyrecommendallandeveryScummVMusertoupdatetothislatestandgreatestversion.Inparticular,justaspromisedwefixedtheissuesaffectingNipponSafesIncandPajamaSam1in1.1.0.
TheScummVMteamandespeciallythementorswelcomeour4studentsthisyear:
WewouldalsoliketotakethetimetothankeveryonewhoappliedforScummVMGSoCplacesthisyearbutwasunsuccessful.Wehopewecanwelcomemanyofyouintoourcommunity.
Thereisonegrainofsalt,though:IfyouwanttoplayNipponSafesInc,werecommendthatyoustickwithyourcurrentScummVMversionfornow,astherearesomenastyregressionsintherewhichmayevenmakeitimpossibletocompletethegame.AlsothebackgroundmusicinPajamaSam1isn'tworkingcorrectlyintheKitchenandMineareasanymore.
Today,wewouldliketoannouncesupportforUrbanRunner!Thegamehasfinallyreachedacompletablestateinoursubversiontree.NowyoucanplayasMaxasherunsfromthecopsforbeingaccusedofacrimehedidn'tcommit.Youmightevenfallinlovealongtheway.
Wehavealsocollectedagroupofscreenshots:
Thisisagreatprivilegeandhonorforus,andwewouldliketosharethiswithyou,consideringthatyouare:
Ifyoumatchallcriteria,wewouldlovetoinviteyoutoapplyasastudent.Youwillberewarded,bothfinanciallybyGoogleandwithfame,gratitude,cherishingandadorationbytheScummVMTeamuponcompletionofasuccessfulproject.
It'stimeonceagaintogooutandtestallyourfavoriteScummVMgamesaswegearupforanotherreleaseofourhumblelittlesoftware.Wehaveseveralnewgamesannouncedassupported:
TocoincidewiththeupdatedScummVMlogo,ScummVMt-shirtshavealsoreceivedatouchup.TheshirtssporttheverblistfromManiacMansiononthechest,theupdatedlogoontheupperback,andthescummvm.orgurlontheleftsleeve.Shirtsarenowavailableinsizessmallthrough3XL.Ifyouneedalargersize,pleasecontactsales[at]combobreaker[dot]comwitharequest.
InitialreportsclaimthegoldheldintheMEGA-BANKvaultjustbegantovanish!MEGA-BANKSecuritywereaskedtoreviewtheCCTVfootage,howevertheywereunabletoseeanything.
DoyouthinkyoucansolvethismysteryAreyouwillingtotaketheroleofMarkHopperAteenagerhiredbytheRGBtoinfiltratethemansionofJohnNotyanddiscoverwhyandhowheisbecomingsorich.
Theyearis1995.TheplaceistheCzechRepublic.YoufindyourselfsurroundedbyinventivemindsproducingthelatestCzechpoint-and-clickadventure,andhistoricallythefirstCzechCD-ROM-basedadventuregame.YouareBert,ayoungdragonwithatasteforadventure.AfterbeingcorruptedbyanevilmagicwandnamedEveline,youaredesperatetoremedythemischiefsyoucreated.Youdecidetosetouttofindyourfatherwhodisappearedawhileago.
Itwasjust3.5monthsagowhenwestartedtoprepareforthisrelease,andnowfinallythedayhascome.
Ladiesandgentlemen,pleasegreettheoneandonlyScummVM1.0.0"ShinyLogo!"Thelongawaited,themostanticipated,thebest...whatever.
Weworkedveryhardonstabilityinthisrelease,andinadditiontoallthatgoodnessavailablesinceour1.0.0rc1,weaddedanewsetofportsforMotorolaLinux-basedphones(thoseonMotoEZXandMotoMAGXplatforms)andfixedjustafewhundredbugs.
Asyoumayhavealreadynoticed,weareintheprocessofswitchingfromouroldtrustylogoandiconstonew,slightlyrevisedversions.Themainchangeisthatthelowercase"s"hasnowbecomeanuppercase"S"--thisismeanttohelpstoptheconfusionlotsofpeopleseemtohaveaboutourname:Wearecalled"ScummVM",andnot"scummvm":-).
Besidesthat,thenewlogowastouchedupbyitsoriginalauthor,Jean-Marc,toproducehigherqualityversions(inPNGandSVGformat)ofboththelogoandtheicon.Asaresult,theylookbetterandyummierthaneverbefore.
Wearenotyetcompletelydoneconvertingeverythingtothenewlogoandicon(boy,theyarereallypresentinlotsofplaces),butareactivelyworkingonit.Theupcoming1.0.0releaseofScummVMwillbethefirsttofeaturethenewarteverywhere.
So,Ihopeyoulikethenewartjustasmuchaswedo:-).
Asallofyouhaveprobablyheard,wearestillinthetestingphaseforthe1.0.0release.Sofarwehavegottenmanytestingsresults,becauseofyou,ourfellowusers.Thanksagaintoallthepeoplewhohavealreadydonetestingforthenextrelease.Sadly,wearemissingsometestsforcertaingamesthough.Hereisthelistofgamesforwhichwereallyneedsometestingresults:
Thelistofchangeswhicharepreparedforyouinthisreleaseisquitelong.Thehighlightsare:
AvailableinHighandLowbitrateversions,allthreesoundtracksarefreetodownloadandinspiredbytheoriginalgamesandtheScummVMsoftware.
"Formanyyears,IhaveenjoyedthewondersoftheScummVMapplicationallowingmetoplaymanyofmyalltimefavouritepointandclickadventures.TheScummVMMusicEnhancementProjectgivesmethechancetoinjectalittlepartofmypassionforthisgaminggenre,whilegivingthecommunitytheoptionofalternativemusic".JamesWoodcockcontinues..."Abigthankyoutoallwhohavecontactedmeviaemail,TwitterandIRCregardingmyworkandalsoofcoursetotheoriginalcomposers,developersandpublishersofthetitlesIhavecoveredandtheScummVMteam,withoutwhothiswouldnothavebeenpossible!"
ChangeLog:
It'stimeforeveryone'sfavoritesemiannualevent!ScummVMReleaseTestingSeason(TM)!However,thisseasonwewillbetestingfor1.0.0!That'sright,1.0.0!
Forthisrelease,wehaveaddedsupportforabunchofnewgames:CruiseforaCorpse,Discworld,Discworld2-MissingPresumed...!,LeatherGoddessesofPhobos2,TheManhole,ReturntoZork,andRodney'sFunscreen.
Sinceitseemsunlikelythetwogameswillbefreewaredintimeforthenextmajorrelease,it'sbeendecidedtogoaheadandofficiallyannouncesupportforthegames.ThePCversionsofthefirsttwogamesarefullysupported,andthePSXversionoftheDiscworld1gameiscompletable(butwithoutmusiccurrently).
InspectorRaoulDusentierhasbeeninvitedonacruisebythemysteriousbusinessmanNiklosKaraboudjan,andthecruisehasbarelybegunwhenRaoulstumblesontheman'sdeadbody,andisknockedunconscious.
PleasenotethatcurrentlyonlythePCversionofthegameisfullysupported..theAmigaandAtariSTversionsarenot.
Wearereallyhappythattheseartpiecesofclassicadventuregamingareavailableasarelativelyeasypurchasenow,andthatScummVMhelpedSnowberrytomakethemrunonmodernsystemswithminimaleffort.
Thanks,Snowberry!
Therearecertainspeculationsaboutthecase,someofthemarereallywild.Unfortunately,nooneapproachedanyofusandthereareonlyafewrealfactsinthoseblogposts.
Considerthefollowinganofficial"pressrelease",andnotethattheexactwordingisdictatedtocyxandfingolfinbythesettlementterms.
InDecember2008,membersoftheScummVMteamdiscoveredthatthreegamesfortheNintendoWiiconsole("FreddiFish:TheCaseoftheMissingKelpSeeds",publishedinGermanyunderthename"FritziFischundderverschwundeneSchatz";"PajamaSam:NoNeedtoHideWhenIt'sDarkOutside",publishedinGermanyunderthename"PyjamaPit:KeineAngstimDunkeln";and"SpyFox:DryCereal",publishedinGermanyunderthename"SpyFoxin:DasMilchkartell")madeuseofScummVM,withoutcomplyingwiththetermsoftheGPLlicense.TheysentawarninglettertotheGermandistributorofthesegames,AtariDeutschlandGmbH,whowasnotawarethatScummVMwasusedinthecreationofthegames.AtariDeutschlandGmbHestablishedcontactwithMisticSoftwareInc.,thedevelopersofthegames.
MisticSoftwareInc.respondedbydenyingthatmembersoftheScummVMteamholdanyrightstotheparticularcodetheyused.ThedisputewasultimatelysettledinMay2009byMisticSoftwareInc.payingalllegalfeesandmakingadonationtotheFreeSoftwareFoundationasasignofgoodwill,withoutacknowledgingcopyrightinfringement.
ThepresentationinitiallyaimstocoverbasicprinciplesonhowScummVMworks,itsinternalarchitectureanddeveloperteamlayout.Butwecanalsotalkaboutadventuregamesingeneral,GoogleSummerofCode,opensourcegamingsubjectsorwhateverelsecomesup!
Perhapsyouhaven'tnoticed,butnowScummVM'swebsiterunsnewflashycode.FredrikWendelaka[vEX]hasbeenworkingonitforseveralmonthsnow,andunderthehooditisacompleterewritewithkeepingtheolddesignintact...Well,almost.
Nowbrowsingscreenshotshasanewsleekdesign,navigationlinksaremorelogical(withkeepingthebackwardscompatibility,sodon'tworryaboutyouroldlinks),SCUMMMD5tableshavebetterdesign,andtheFAQlostitsmagicnumbersinthelinks.
AlsoweareproudtoannouncethatFredrikhasbeenappointedofficialwebmasterfortheproject,sonowyoucanputallyourcomplaintsintohiscapablehands.:P
SinceScummVM0.10.0therehasbeenunannouncedsupportforsubtitlesintheBrokenSword1cutscenes.
Nowwefinallymanagedtoprovideapackagewithsubtitlesforthefollowinglanguages:English,Brazilian,German,Spanish,French,ItalianandRussian.Also,subtitlesfortheEnglishdemoareprovided.
AtthemomentwestilllackCzechsubtitles,thusifyou'rewillingtohelpuswithprovidingthem,pleasecontactsev.
ThenaturalcategoryforScummVMwouldbeBestProjectforGamers,thoughifyoufeelthatwecouldbeBestProject,wewouldn'tmindmuch;aprojectcanbenominatedformorethanonecategorythisyear.
Wehopetoseeyouinthefinals!
SAGA:InherittheEarthiscompletableagain;AGOS,Groovie,Sword2:fixedmanysound-relatedissues;Parallaction:fixedabuginoneofthepuzzles;squashedanumberofbugsintheGUI.AlsoiPhone,Symbian,WinCEportsaremuchimprovedandNDSandPS2portsarebackagainsince0.11.0.
TheScummVMteamandespeciallythementorswelcomeourstudentsthisyear:Denis,Michal,Norbert,JoakimandJody.Welcomeguys,goodluckandenjoycodingthissummer:-)
Now,youbetterbequick,thedeadlineisonApril3!
Asyouopenthemailboxbehindthewhitehouse,awizardtellsyouthatyou'retheluckysweepstakeswinner,whocannowplayseveralgreatgametitlesbyActivisionunderScummVM!
WewelcometheadditionoftheMADEenginebyActivision.Fourshinynewgamesarenowsupported:TheinfamousReturntoZork,LeatherGoddessesofPhobos2,TheManholeandRodney'sFunscreen
Acoupleofnewengineswereadded,andbesides2HumongousEntertainmenttitles,wenowsupportThe7thGuestandBudTuckerinDoubleTrouble.
Amongothernotablethingsthereisacompletelynewvector-basedGUI,whichisamergedworkofourlastyearGSoCstudentVicentMarti,aswellasaGeneralMainMenuwhichaddsacommonsave/loadinterfacetomostofourengines,addingthemuchawaitedReturntoLauncherfeaturealongtheway.Itwastheworkofanothersuccessfulstudent,ChrisPage.
Let'splay!
Well,itistrue.FreeSCIcodenowlivesunderengines/sci.
MostattentiveuserswhowatchourdevelopmentlistperhapsnoticedthatthereexistsyetanotherSCI1engineimplementationmadefromscratch.Butforthebenefitofeveryoneitwasdecidedthatthejointeffortismuchbetter.
Ofcourse,don'texpectanymagicfromit.First,theengineisnotannouncedassupportedyet.Itisinearlystagesofintegration.Then,youshouldkeepinmindthatafterthemergewillsettledown,onlySCI0,SCI01andSCI1gameswillbesupported.However,duetothefactthatsomeofScummVMdevelopersareinterestedinSCIdevelopmentforsometimenow,welookforwardtospeedinguptheworkontheengine.
YoualwayswonderedwheretogetgamessupportedbyScummVMPerhapsyouwerealsoasking,howIcanhelptheproject
Butnowyoucanreachbothgoalsatthesametime!
PS:Wewillgetthemoneyonlyifyouclickontheprovidedbuttonandregisterwithinashortperiodoftime.
Itistimetoannouncestartofourpre-releasetesting.NextversionofScummVMisbringingyouseveralnewsupportedgamesasusual.
"Ihavetriedveryhardtoremainfaithfultotheoriginalsinrespecttotheexcellentcomposerscreations..."saysJamesWoodcock,creatoroftheScummVMMusicEnhancementProject.Hecontinues"...TherehasbeenalotofsupportandinterestfromDiscworldfans,whohavebeenmonitoringitsprogressverycarefullyanditiswithgreatpleasureIcanfinallyplayDiscworldusingnewversionsoftheoriginalsoundtrackwithmanythankstothedevelopersofScummVMforalltheirhardworkinmakingthisfeaturepossible".
HelpBluecompeteinthebackyardfairin123TimeActivies,andfindwordsinABCTimeAcitivies,throughvariousactivitiesinthesegames
HenryStaufcordiallyinvitesyoutocomeandsamplethedelightsofhishouseinthenewestgametobesupportedbyScummVM,The7thGuest.Adelightfuleveningisguaranteedtobehadbyyouandtheotherguests.
You'reapizzadeliveryboyandyou'reintrouble.NowitisyourgoaltostopDickTate,beforethewholeworldisfilledwithhisevilclones!
Asoftoday,James"Ender"BrownhaslefttheleadteamofScummVM.
EnderjoinedtheScummVMteambackinFebruary2002andbecameprojectco-leadalreadyonemonthlater.TheoriginalfoundersofScummVM,yazooandstrigeus,werestillactive,butsoonafterleftScummVMforotherventures.EnderremainedasthesoleprojectleaderuntilMarch2003,whenMax"Fingolfin"Hornjoinedhimatthesteeringwheel.ThelongtimeleadingtriumvirateofScummVMwascompletedinApril2006withtheadditionofEugene"sev"Sandulenko.Together,wewentthroughmanygoodandbadtimes.
EnderworkedespeciallyhardonthePRsideofthings,includingtonsofpostsinthenewssectionofthissite(wereallyshouldpostnewsupdatesmorefrequentlyagain!),andmanybehind-the-scenesnegotiationswithcompaniesregardingsourcecodereleasesandotherthings.NottomentionrepeatedlycrossingswordswiththelegaldepartmentofLucasArts.
Recently,duetopersonalissues,EnderhashadlessandlesstimetoworkonScummVMandrelatedthings.Notwantingtoharmtheprojectbybeingunabletodevoteenoughtimetotakecareofimportanttasks,Enderhasgraciouslyagreedtoresignhispost.
Theremainingprojectleaders,FingolfinandSev,wouldliketothankEnderforhismanyyearsoffaithfulleadership,andwishhimallthebestinhisfutureendeavors.
Apartfromsomeminortypographicalchangestothelicensetokeepthelegalbeagleshappy,theonlydifferencecomparedtotheoldversionisthatithasbeencompressedusingthelatestversionoftheScummVMtools.Thisshouldfixproblemswithclicksatthebeginningofsomespeech,andspeechbeingplayedabittooslow.(ScummVM0.12.0alreadyhasaworkaroundforthelatterproblem,soyoumaynotevennoticethedifference.)
ManythankstoAlcachofaSoftforreleasingasfreewaretheirpreviouslycommercialgame:Drascula:TheVampireStrikesBack.
ItwasquitealengthyprocesswhichstartedinNovemberof2005.WewerecontactedbysomeonewhoofferedusadirectleadtoEmiliodePazfromAlcachofaSoft,S.L.,thesoftwarehousethatcreatedthisgamein1996.FinallyinJuly'07wereceivedthesourcesandafewmonthslatertheyfinallyfreewareditandgaveusanofficialpermissiondistributethegame.
InordertoplaythegameyouwillneedatleasttheEnglishpack.Thenyoumayoptionallydownloadthemusicpack,andtheinternationalpackwhichcontainsallthoseadditionallanguages,Spanishincluded.
Wecancallitatremendousdevelopment.Halfayearsince0.11.1passedprettyquickly,andwearepleasedtoannouncethereleaseof0.12.0!
ThisnewversionofScummVMaddssupportfor5completelynewgames.Thegamesthatnowrunsmoothlyonmanymoreplatformsthanwasinitiallyintendedare:TheLegendofKyrandia:BookTwo:HandofFate,TheLegendofKyrandia:BookThree:Malcolm'sRevenge,LostinTime,TheBizarreAdventuresofWoodruffandtheSchnibbleandDrascula:TheVampireStrikesBack.
Thenumberofsupportedplatformsgrewaswell.ThePS2porthasbeenrevived,andtheGameCubeandWiiarenowsupportedtoo.TakeyourWiimoteandmakeyourbelovedadventuregameprotagonistrunaroundthescreen:).
P.S.Soon,prettysoon,lookoutformorenewsfromus.
It'sthateventthatoccursabouttwiceayearinwhichweaskyou,ourloyalusers,togooutandreplayallyourfavoritegamessupportedbyScummVM.Inadditiontoallthegamessupportedfrom0.11.1,wehaveseveralnewonesforyou.TheBizarreAdventureofWoodruffandtheSchnibble,LostinTime,TheLegendofKyrandia:BookTwo:HandofFate,TheLegendofKyrandia:BookThree:Malcolm'sRevenge,andDrascula:TheVampireStrikesBackhavesupportaddedsincethen.Furthermore,theDOSversionofWaxworksandtheMacintoshversionofIHaveNoMouth,andIMustScreamarenowsupported.
Goodluck,andremember:havefun!
Youknowthere'ssomethingwrongwhenCountDrasculastopswatchingTVandstartsconspiringwithhisfaithfulsidekick,Igor,totakeovertheworld.Andhewantstodothatbeforetonight'sfootballmatchstarts!YouareJohnHackerandyourmission,shouldyouchoosetoacceptit,istorescueyourgirlfriendBillyJeanfromCountDrascula'snefariousclutchesandthwarthisplansofworlddomination!
Newgamesarecontinuouslybeingworkedon,andcompatibilityforsupportedonesisbeingconstantlyimproved.Inshort,ourteamisgoingtosweatitswaythroughtheupcomingsummer.
DoyouenjoythefabulousnessofScummVMYoustillhaveachancetoaddtoitbyparticipatinginitsdevelopment.
Prerequisities:ScummVM,students,andtheirfreetimeanddesiretotakepartinthedevelopmentofoneofthemostsuccessfulopensourceprojects.Whereaswedon'thaveaproblemwithfirstitem,thelattertwoaren'tinadesiredquantitythisyear.
So,itisyourlastchancetohelpusmakeScummVMevenbetterandgetpaidforit!ThedeadlineoftheGoogleSummerofCode(wereporteditearlier)forstudentapplicationsisdrawingcloser.Officiallyitistoday,March31st(althoughadeadlineextensionseemslikely).
Seeyouintheapplicationslist!
DoyouknowwhatafabuloustimewehadlastyearparticipatingintheGoogleSummerofCodeOK,youdon'thavetoanswerthat,it'sarhetoricalquestion.Factis,itwasfabulous!Sofabulouswethoughtwe'dapplyagain.AndGoogleissofabulousthatthey'veelectedScummVMtotakepartagain.Fabulous.(overuseofsomewordspurelyintentional).
So,whereareyougoingtospendthissummer*AgainsomeexoticbeachPerhapsthisyearonMonkeyIslandTM
Thinkaboutit.HaveyoueverthoughtaboutcontributingtoalargeOpenSourceprojectlikeScummVMbutwereintimidatedtodosoWiththeSummerofCodeopportunity,youcanputyourskillsatworkunderclosecooperationwithourmentors.They'llhelpyoueaseintheteam,planthetaskaheadoftimewithyouandguideyouallalong.
Now,hurryup!You'vegotuntilMarch31,sogetcracking!
*:Summerinthenorthernhemispheredefinition:-)
Havefun,andgoodluck(you'llneedit;P).
ScummVMcontinuestoleapforwardinaleapyear,andwearepleasedtoannouncethenextshinybugfixreleaseoftheproject.
Asusual,itholdsanumberofimprovements,it'smorestable,anditshouldbringyouevenmorefunthan0.11.0.
WefixedthedigitaliMUSEsystem(betterCOMIexperience),King'sQuest4bugsweresquashed,andsupportforfanmadeAGIgameshasbeenimproved;LureoftheTemptress,InherittheEarthandIHavenoMouthallworkbettersincewefixedseveralcrashes,lock-upsandallsuchbuzzwords.
AsaspecialbonuswearegladtoannouncethereturnoftheBeOSportandthedeeplymissedPlaystation2port.
ScummVM.DoyouhearitDoyousmellanewversionIt'snowhere.Andasusualandregularly,itispackedwithtonsofnewfeatures.Holdon,andtakealookatthelist:
Unfortunately,PlayStation2andGP32portswillnotbereleasedwiththisversion,sincewedon'thaveanymaintainersfortheseportscurrently.
PS.0110b=6
TheScummVMteamiscurrentlylookingforhelpwiththePlayStation2portofScummVM.WeareinneedofasecondexperiencedPS2porter,asthecurrentoneisratherbusywithotherstuff.Theportiscurrentlyabitindisrepair,severalthingsneedtobebroughtuptospeed.However,theteamwouldhelpanyinteresteddevelopertofigureoutwhathastobefixedandhow.Contactusviatheusualmeans(ifindoubt,justcontactFingolfin).
Wearecurrentlygearingupforreleasing0.11.0,anditwouldbegreatifthePS2portcouldbeincludedwiththatrelease.Butwerealizethatthetimemightbetooshorttodothateffectively,soit'sonlyabonus,notmandatory.
RewardwouldbeeternalfameandtheeverlastinggratitudeofthePS2userbaseofScummVM:-).
ItistimetoannounceournextBigTestingSeasonTM.Thismeansthatprettysoonyou,ourfellowusers,willseethenewandshinyScummVMversion.
Wehaveextendedthesetofoursupportedgamesby8new(orold:))games.Thelistincludes:IHaveNoMouthandIMustScream,LureoftheTemptress,Elvira-MistressoftheDark,ElviraII-TheJawsofCerberus,Waxworks(Amigaversiononly),andearlySierrapreAGIgamesMickey'sSpaceAdventure,Troll'sTale,andWinniethePoohintheHundredAcreWood.
HelprescueElvirainElvira1/2,andresolveafamilycurseinWaxworks.
WehopeyouenjoyyetanothergreatadventuregameseriesunderScummVM!
WearealsocurrentlylookingforanyonewhomayhaveknowledgeofaDutchreleaseofthegameandcanprovideuswithacopy.
Thatisbasicallywhywearegoingagainstoursettledproceduresthistimeandwillannouncethisporteventhoughitisnotsupposedtobeofficialyet,butisinitsearlybetastages.
TheportmentionedabovewascreatedbyOysteinEftevaagakaVinterstum.ThroughcontinuouseffortsoftheScummVMTeaminthelastsixyearsitwasnotthatdifficulttomake,andthebasicportwascreatedinlessthanaweek.
Remember,thatweinnowaysupportpiracyofanykind,anddiscussingitwillgetyouquicklybannedonourforumsandofficialIRCchannel.
Well,somehowitslippedbyusthisyear,buttheScummVMprojectwastechnicallysixyearsoldonthe5thofOctober(basedonourfoundingdateonSourceForge.Butdon'tworry!Duetopopulardemand,wehaverescheduledourBirthdaytoJan15th,tocoincidewiththereleaseofScummVM0.1.0!
Overtheyears,ScummVMhasgrownfromaprojectluddestartedtorunMonkeyIsland('toseeifhecould'),toaseriesofinterpreterscapableofplayingawide-rangeofgamesonahugenumberofoperatingsystems,platformsanddevices.Wewouldliketothankallofthosewhohavehelpedusgrowovertheyearsfromourdevelopers,contributorsandusers.Somecompaniesandgroupsdeservespecialmention(butallofyouaregreat,sodon'tfeelleftout...):
StaytunedfortheREALparty,earlynextyear...
HelpGorrister,Ellen,Benny,NimdokandTedtoovercometheirfatalflawsandfightthecrazedsupercomputerAM.
WehopeyouenjoyyetanothergreatadventuregameunderScummVM!
ThenewestversionoftheNintendoDSportofScummVMisnowavailable.ThisreleasebringsScummVMDSportinlinewiththeotherportsofScummVM.GamesnewtotheDSversionthistimeroundincludethelaterentriesintheGoblinsseries,FutureWars,andSierraAGIgames.TherearealsoplentyofspeedimprovementswhichshouldmakeyourScummVMDSportexperiencealotsmoother.
Intrueaward-ceremonyspirit,we'dliketothankfirstandforemostyou,ourusers.Overtheyears,you'vehelpedusgrowasaproject,pointedoutbugsandcontributedcode.
Onceagain,agreatbigthankstothecommunityforsupportingScummVM.Itreallyisanhonorforustobepickedasatopprojectwithin150.000+potentialcontestants.
"What'snewWhat'sinitCanIopenitupyet"-Hah,Icanalreadyseeyoushiftingimpatientlyonyourseats.Butbeforeyourun,letmeshedsomelightonthedetailsofthislatestinstallmentofthesuccessfulScummVMseries:
P.S.:TheSourceForge.netdownloadmirrorsareabitslowwhenitcomestosyncing,henceitcanhappenthatyourdownloadfailsoriscorruptafterthefirsttry.Don'tgiveup,justtrytodownloadfromanothermirror!
Lastyear,ScummVMnearlywoninthegamingcategory,losingthefirstplacetotheXboxMediaCenterproject(which,wemayadd,doesnotallowyoutoplayclassicadventuregamesonyourXbox).
Afteryou'redoneclicking,choosethe"BestProjectforGamers"category.Feelfreetodothesameinthe"BestProject"category.Notethatthisisonlythefirstroundoftheelection.Theprojectswhichgetmostvotesnowineachcategorywillbeselectedforasecondandfinalelectionround.
Happyvoting!
AreyousmarterthananexperiencedsafecrackerAreyousexierthananexplosivelapdancingbombshellAreyoudumberthanapunch-drunkItalianformerboxer
Nomatterhowyouanswer,youareboundtoendupinjailinthefirst5minutes.Don'tworry,though.Youmightbeparoledorsomebodymighthelpyouandprovidethebail,butnotforfree*.
HelpDough,DonnaandDinoinpayingtheir-realorimaginary-debt,butbewarned:acceptingajobfromahideousmisfitinatrenchmayleadtounexpectedresults.
*Youmightthinkyouowesomethingevenifyouwereparolled,butthat'srestrictedtotheslightcaseyoureallyareapunch-drunkboxer.
HellothereScummVMusers!It'sthattimeofyearagainwhereweaskyoutotestyourgameswhilewegearupforanewrelease,andthistimeit'sfor0.10.0.WhiletheofficialBigTestingSeason(TM)beginsonMay23,weaskthatyoubegintestinggamesnow,exceptforAGOSgames(SimontheSorcererseries,FeebleFiles)andNipponSafes.
Thereareseveralnewgamesfor0.10.0includingTouche:TheAdventureoftheFifthMusketeerandFutureWars.Inaddition,DrMcCoyhasbeenextrabusyanddealtusGobliins2,Goblins3,Ween:TheProphecyandBargonAttack.Also,NipponSafeswillbeincludedinthisrelease.ThisreleasewillalsofeaturetheAGIgamesfromthemergewithSarien.
Foryou,anaveragepeasa...adventurer,thatmeansthatYOUcanreachanagreementbetweenKingBoddandQueenXina.
YouthinkRTSandScummVMdon'tfittogetherOfcoursetheydo!Asyouknow,wehavesupportforTheLegendofKyrandiaforsometimenow.Now,aftersomework,wehavepartsofDune2workingwithextensionstoourKyrandiacode.However,thereareonlyafewthingsworkingcorrectly.Atleasttheintroductionsequenceworkslikeacharmbynow(checkthescreenshots).
Alsothementatisbasicallyworking,althoughitmissessomeanimationsequences.Lastbutnotleast,theonlyin-gamesupportwehavesofarismaploading,buttherearesomeotherthingsthatyoucan'tseeonscreenshotsnow.SostaytunedandwaitforthefirstRTSsupportedbyScummVM!
Asthecodeisstillaworkinprogress,ithasnotbeencommittedyet.But,lookforitwithinthenextcoupleofdayswhenLordHotohasabitmoreworking.
Ok,soweallknowthisisanAprilFool'sjoke.But,truthfully,Dune2doesshareseveraloftheresourcesoftheKyrandiagames.Furthermore,partsofthescreenshotsseenherewereextractedusingaKyrandiatool(asLordHotosays).Thisstilldoesn'tmeansupportwillbeaddedthough.
DeadlineforapplicationsextendedtoMarch26th!
So,whereareyougoingtospendthesummer*SomeexoticbeachPerhapsMêléeIslandTM
Now,hurryup!You'vegotuntilMarch26,sogetcracking!
Somescreenshotswouldbenice,too.
Theprojectalsocoversothertitles,suchasBeneathASteelSky,Discworld,FlightoftheAmazonQueen,InherittheEarthandanothertitleyettobeannounced!
...andthuswillthebugsbewipedout...
Inaddition,weaskthatyoutestbothSierra'sAGIgamesandfanmadegamesusingScummVM.Asusual,youwillneedadailybuild.However,weaskthatyoucheckifabuginanAGIfangameispresentintheoriginalinterpreteraswell.Ifyoufindanybugs,pleasereportthemtothebugtracker.
Goodluck!
THANKYOU!
However,althoughthefundraiserisclosed,(andespeciallyifyoudidn'tdonateinthisround),pleaseconsiderdonatinginthefutureifyouenjoyScummVM.Wecanalwaysusedonationstohelppurchasegamesoftwareandrareversionstoincreaseoursupportandcompatibility—everydollaroreuroisappreciated!
SometimeagoPayPalapproachedusandtoldusthatwecouldnolongerusetheirsystemtoacceptdonations.Itwasaprecedent,whichwasevenhighlightedonSlashdot.Butasyoumayimagine,itcouldpotentiallyputmanyprojectsintoaveryunpleasantsituation.
Forbonuspoints,submitafewscreenshots.
Havefunandhappyhunting!
Cheers
Foryou,ourfellowusers,thismeansthatwearestartingagreatbug-huntingsession.GrabyourEnglish,French,GermanorItalian,orevenjustthegamedemoandstarttesting.StickGeoffroiLeBrun'snoseineveryholeinthegameandreportifitunexpectedlygetsbroken.
Screenshotsarerequiredaswell.Besides,wearestillwaitingforFutureWarsscreenshotsasnobodysubmittedanyyet.
WearesurethatyouwillenjoythisyetanothergemstonenowsupportedbyScummVM.
CurrentlyonlytheDOSversionissupported,butinavarietyoflanguages.
Wearepleasedtoannouncethe0.9.1ScummVMbugfixrelease.
Therewerelotsofimportantbugfixesandsmallimprovements.Wearealsogladthatthreeadditionalplatformsarenowofficiallysupported:NintendoDS,GP2XandGP32.YoucanalreadydownloadofficialDSandGP2Xbinaries,andtheGP32portwillbeavailablesoon.
Someofthemostsignificantbugfixesare:
AsregularScummVMweb-viewersmayhavenoticedalready,wehaveremovedthePaypalbuttonfromoursiteandnodonationsarecurrentlybeingaccepted.
Ithasbeenalmost8monthssincewestartedtoworkonthe0.9.xcodebranchandtodaywe'repleasedtoannouncethereleaseofScummVM0.9.0"TheOmniBrainlovesyou".
Manythingsarewaitingforyou,oneofthemostnoticeableisthenewandimprovedGUI.Wealsoaddedsupportfor2completelynewgames—TheLegendofKyrandiaandTheFeebleFiles.
Otherimportantchangesinclude:
UnfortunatelynotallportsarebuiltyetandalsoyoumayexperiencesomeproblemswithdownloadsasnotallSourceForgemirrorspickedupthefiles.So,please,trydifferentmirrorsandbepatient.
Greetings,citizens.TheOmiBrainfacilityScummVMTeamneedsyoutodogametesting.
Asusual,wepreparedmanynewfeaturesforyouandkilledzillionsofbugs.Thatmeansthateverysupportedgameneedsretesting.
Thereare2completelynewgameswhichweintroducein0.9.0.TheLegendofKyrandiaandTheFeebleFiles.AlsotherearefewHumongousEntertainmentgameswherecompatibilitybumpedsignificantly,PajamaSam3isamongthem.So,please,findyouroldgamemediaorbuysomemoreandenjoythegameplayoftheseclassics.
Haveanicecycle,andremember:TheOmniBrainlovesyou!
Hifolks!
Wewouldalsoliketoclarifythatwedon'thaveanyplanstoaddsupportforSCIgamesintheforeseeablefuture.Furthermore,AGIisanin-developmentengine,soitwillnotbeincludedintheupcoming0.9.0release.
PS.ThisisnotpartoftheCABALproject:-)
We'reproudtoannouncethatScummVMsupportforTheLegendofKyrandiaisnowcomplete!
CurrentlybothCDandfloppyeditionsaresupportedintheirownlanguage.English,French,GermanandSpanishversionsarefullysupported,butanyotherPC(andhopefullyMac)versionshouldworkaswell(albeitwithsometextinEnglish,andsomeinterfacegraphicsmissing).Ifyouhaveanunsupportedversion,we'dlovetohearfromyou!NotethatAmigaversionsareunfortunatelynotsupportedatallatthistime.
TodayweareveryhappytoannouncethatEugene"sev"Sandulenkohasbeenelevatedtotherankofprojectleader,meaningwenowhaveatrioatthesteeringwheelofScummVM.
EugenecontributedinmajorwaystoScummVM,goingbeyondwhatcouldreasonablybeexpectedfromaregularteammember.HeworkedonseveralnewenginesinScummVM,thenewGUIcode,managedseveralofourreleases,playedacentralroleinourrecentswitchtoSubversion,motivatesotherpeopletodousefulwork,andmanyotherthings.
Congratulations,Eugene,andwehopetoseealotmoreofyourgreatworkinthefuture.:-)
Afterthenominationround,votingonthetopfivenomineesbeginsMarch17th.Detailsarenotyetknown,butchancesarethatthiswillbepubliconceagain.Sokeepoutaneyeonthis,andjustincaseacertainprojectwithagreenslimy"S"initslogomakesthecut...youknowwhatyoushoulddo;-).
Fromtheverybeginning,LudvigStrigeuscommittedhisinitialScummVMversiontoCVS,theversioningsystemweuseduntilrecently.VincentHammjoinedhimshortlythereafter.Sincethen,alothaschanged,manythingshavehappened.Wehavemorethan20,000revisionsofScummVManditsvariouscomponentsinourCVSrepository.
Wenowmovedtoanewsystem,Subversion.ComparedtoCVS,itaddsmanyusefulnewfeatures,thatallowustoworkmoreefficientlyonScummVM,somethingwearesureallouruserswillappreciate.Amongotherthings,therewillbenomorelagbetweenanonymousanddevelopersversionofthesourcecode--yougeteverythingwedoinstantly!
Ifyouareusingthecommandlinesubversionclient,thatmeansyousimplyhavetotypethefollowingcommand:
YouwillnoticethatthesourcetreeofScummVMalreadychangedsignificantlyandyetmoreistocome.Staytuned!
Duetoabugdiscoveredin0.8.1,whichrenderedBrokenSword2unplayable,we'reforcedtoreleaseScummVM0.8.2"BrokenBrokenSword2".Also,weusedthisopportunitytofixtheWinCEbuilds,aswellastheMacOSXbundle.
Rejoice,ScummVM0.8.1"Codename:missing"hasjustbeenreleased.YoucannowexperiencethelatestofficialflavourofScummVM.Themainreasonforthisreleaseisfixingseveralbugsthatslippedinto0.8.0,someofthesefixesare:
AlthoughScummVMdoesnotyetsupportthisinit'sfullglory,wearelookingatimplementingthisinthenearfuture,sokeepwatching.InthemeantimewerecommendyoutogoandfeelthefutureofwhatScummVMhopestoprovide.
We'repleasedtoannouncetheavailabilityofthelong-awaitedbuildofScummVMversion0.8.0forPocketPC2002,thankstoKostasNakos.Youcangetitfromourdownloadpage.Itmayhappenthatsomemirrorshaven'tpickedupthefileyet,inwhichcasetryadifferentmirror.
AtthispointwehavetheseDATsinourpossessionandarelookingforhelpingettingtheaudiooffthem.Sincewe'renotinthepositiontosendthetapesanywhere,we'relookingforsomeonetolendusaDATplayer/recorderforabout2weekstocompletethisfirststep.TheDATplayerwouldneedtobeshippedtotheNetherlands,andwillbereturneduponcompletionofthetask.
Inlightofthe0.8.0release,whichrequirestheadditionalSKY.CPTfiletorunBeneathaSteelSky,we'veupdatedthearchiveofthefreewareCDversiontoincludethisfile,andwhilewewereatit,updatedthedatafilestothelast-knownreleasedversionofBASS,whichshouldfixsometextissuesthatappearwhenplayingthegameinnon-englishlanguages.
Wearepleasedtoannouncealong-awaitedScummVM0.8.0release.We,theScummVMTeam,havepreparedabigpackofnewfeaturesforyou.Mostoutstandingamongsttheseare:
PleasenotethattheSourceForge.netforumswillbeclosedandarchivedwithinthenext48hours.Thesearchiveswillbeavailablefromthebottomoftheforums'MainIndexpage.
Hello,fellowusers.Nowit'stimetohelptheScummVMteambringoutanewreleaseoferr...ScummVM.Ta-da!
Wehavealargeamountofchanges,newfeaturesandbugfixes.Almosteveryaspectoftheprogramwastouched,tuned,altered.Soweonceagainneedtoaskfortestersofeverygamewesupport.
We'dliketomentiontwocompletelynewtitleswesupportnow.TheyareInherittheEarthandGobliiins(firstoneintheseries).Please,payattentiontothosetoo.
Thelastbastionofthescreenshotscamphasfallen.WehavejustreceivedZakv1shotsandthatmeansthatallisdone.Thanksalottoyou,ourfellowusers,whotookpartinthissaga.Therearetoomanyofyoutomention,butyouknowwhoyouare.
Wealsoneedtotestanothercoupleofnewlysupportedgames.TheseareManiacMansionNESversionandZakMcKrackenCommodore64.Seesections3.8and3.9inourREADMEonhowtorunthese.Weneedtoknowwhetherthesegamesarecompletableornot.
Ifyoulikescreenshotsasmuchaswedo,youcanplayanintegralroleindemonstratingthecapabilitiesofScummVMwithmerelysinglestill-frameimage.
So,ifyou'vegotafewminutes,aninterestingsaveinthemiddleofagame,andyouwanttohelp,pleasefeelfreetotakeandsubmitascreenshotofit.Asthewikistates,ScummVMshouldbeinHQ2xmodewithaspectratiocorrectionON.
Duetoalocalspace/timevortexwhichwillinthefuturebelocatednearEarth,themeaningof'regularly'maybeinflux.Staytunedforfurtherupdates.
Andnow,tocurrentnews:
Pleasenote,however,thattheNintendoDSportmentionedisnotyetanofficialorsupportedport.Sopleasedon'tcontactusaboutit,becausewecan'thelp:)
Onthedownside,wereallyneedtopostnewsmoreregularly.Ontheupside,wehaveaccumulatedalottotellyouabout:
NewPorts
Newgames
Newthumbs
Nottooshabby,wethink.Andweactuallyhavemorereallycoolstuffintheworks,staytuned.
PleasenotethatDragonisstillverymuchanunreleasedWorkInProgress,butthingshavejuststartedworkingandwe'reexpectingtoannouncemoreaboutthisprojectoverthecomingweek.
AlthoughitwillnotbepartoftheofficialScummVMprogram,someofourteammembershavebeenworkingonalittleeastersurpriseforyouall.Unfortunately,we'rerunningabitlate.
Expectsomethingverysweet(especiallyforLinuxandMacpeople)soon...
So,apparently,somepeopleactuallyreadournewssection...Iamastonished;-).ThankstoallofyououttherewhocontributetoScummVMbyprovidinguswithusefulfeedback,andtheoccasionalpraise--bothreallyhelpkeepingupinterestinworkingonScummVM!
Iguessit'stimefortheusual,regular,monthlysignoflife,"Yes,wearealive.No,westillwon'tmergewithFreeSCI.Yes,youcandonateyourFerraritome,Imightreconsiderthen."Asusual,lotsofsmallandbigthingshappened,wemightpostsomeinfointhenottoodistantfuture.Inthemeantime,I'dliketosetaspotlightonasmallbutniftydetail,maybeit'llbeofinterest/usetosomeofyou...:
Firstoff:oncemoreaHappyNewYeartoallofyououtthere!
...andhopefullytheDebianpackagewillbereadysoon.
WeareproudtoannouncethereleaseofScummVM0.7.0,rightintimeforChristmasEve!
Whilenotquiteasgroundbreakingassomeofourpreviousmajorreleases,thisversionsportssomenotableimprovementsandadditions,amongstthem:
SowhatnowWe'llbesettlingtheissueoftheprize(s)forthewinningentryinthenextfewdays,andstartworkingonimplementingthenewdesign.Weconsiderdoingsomefurthertweakstoit(like,somepeoplesuggestedtoactuallyusethelogoofjeanm'ssubmission;andwehavesomeotherideasupoursleeves).Thismaytakesometime,partiallybecauseit'saholidaytimeforalotofus.SoIamafraidyou'llhavetobeabitmorepatient.
Goodthingsneedtime:-).
P.S.:Ifyouhavealreadygivenyourvotewiththeoldpoll,youwillhavetore-voteusingthenewpoll.
Sincesomanypeopledecidedtoscrewtheresultsofthepoll,itistemporarilyclosedwhilewemakeamorecheat-proofscript.We'llletyouknowwhenvotingisbackonline.
Yofolks,
youareprobablyallwonderingWhateverhappenedtothatwebsitedesigncontestIt'sbeenclosedoveramonthagoandthereisstillnowinner!.Well,goodquestion:-)
Firstoff,letmetellyouthatsomeofthesubmitteddesignsarereallyawesome,andIwouldherebyliketothankallthepeoplewhosubmittedtheirwork.Sorryforlettingyouwaitsolongontheoutcome.
Now,todeterminethewinner,weconductedaninternalpollwiththeteam.Thistooksometimeuntilallteammemberswereabletosubmittheirfilledoutforms.Thatprocessdidn'tproduceaclearwinner,though.Sothen,someofuswantedtoconductapollamongstyou,dearusers,topickthewinneroutofthethreefinalists.Forvariousreasons,thatjustdidn'thappen...untilnow!
Onanothermatter,wehavenowstartedworkonthenextmajorreleaseofScummVM.0.7.0is(ratheraggressively)scheduledforChristmas2004!Wehopetobeabletodeliveranicechristmaspresenttoyouthisway.Butforthistoworkout,weneedyourhelp:WeneedpeoplewhoactivelytestthelatestCVSsothatwecanironoutandfixallremainingissueswithit,toensureahighqualityrelease.
That'sitfortoday,hopefullythenexttimearoundwecanannouncesomethingmoresubstantial(likeanewreleaseoranewwebsite).Untilthen:happyplaytestingtoallofyou!
P.S.:MaybeyoualsohavebeenwonderingGee,willtheseguyseverreach1.0Asamatteroffact,wearenowworkingtowardsthisgoal.Thereisbasicallyasinglemajorpiecemissingforthat:agoodusermanual.Ifyouareaskilledmanualwriter,havesomesparetime,andwanttohelp,dropusamailonthescummvm-develmailinglist.
Well,weleftitopenabitlongerforthosewhoranlate...buttheentriesfortheScummVMRevampcontestarenowclosed.Judgeswillbelookingatthepagesoverthelastfewdays,andunlessthereisanout-rightwinnerthefinalistswillbevotedonbyYOU-ourdearestusers:)
Furtherinformationwillbepostedsoon.ThewinnerwillreceivesomeRandomStuff(tm),withthemainprizebeingsomeSamandMaxswag(mostlikely)signedbythecreatorofSamandMax,StevePurcell.Furtherinformationwillbepostedsoon!
AnybodywishingtoentertheWebsiteRevampcontestbettergettheirentriesin,onlytwodaysleft!
Sofarwehaveonlyfiveentries.That'snottoobad,butIwashopingforatleastanotherfivemore.Soifyou'restillsittingonanentry,SENDITIN!
Greetingsfellowadventurers!
JustareminderthatthesubmissiondeadlinefortheWebsiteRevampcontestishereinjusttendays!Theveryfirstsubmissionwasjustreceived,soifyouhaveyettoevenstart,timeisrunningout.
Theprizeswillbeannouncedassoonassomebodygetsbacktomesincecertainsitesnewspostssuggesthehasn'tforgotten:)
Hello,humbleWebsiteWatchers.Wehavegatheredyouallheretodayforacontestofmostepicproportions.
Well,notreally.
We'reholdingacontesttoredesigntheScummVMwebsite.Ifyouhavetalent,andwanttocontributesomethingtoScummVM,hereisyourchance.
Rules
Submissionscloseonthe21stofOctober,andpublicvotingwilloccuraftertheteamhasselectedthefinalcandidates.Therewillbeaprizeortwoofsomesortforthewinner,whichwillbeannouncedatalaterdate.Pleasee-mailallsubmissionstocontest@scummvm.orgina.zip,.tar.gzor.tar.bz2archive.
Well,thisisjusttoletyouknowwearenotdead.Therehasbeensomeamazingworkhappeninginthelastfewweeks-withScummVMssupportfortheHESCUMMgamesimprovinginrapidburststhankstothecombinedtalentofcyx,KirbenandSev.Andofcourse,therehasbeenmoredevelopmentthanjustthis.
Andnowwewouldliketobringupthepointthatourside-projectsResidualandScummEXbothneeddevelopersandcontributors.Wewelcomepatchesfromotherprogrammersverymuch.WiththehelpofScummVMdevelopersjoostpandaquadran,salty-horse(aregular#scummvm'er)todaysubmittedapatchforlipsyncanimationsinResidual.Pleaseseeour'subprojects'pageandthe'CodingGuidelines'inourDocumentationsection.Ifyouareinterestedinpursuingaparticularproblem,pleasee-mailthe"-devel"mailinglistorpoponIRCifyouneedadviceorhelp.
ScummVMversion0.6.1bwasreleasedtoday,fixingsomeveryannoyingregressionswediscoveredinitspredecessor,0.6.1.Everybodyisstronglyrecommendedtoupdatetothisversion
Andnow...havesomefun,folks!
Well,oneofthose"SmallYetImportant"codingmistakeshascroppedupinScummVM0.6.1.Acopy-and-pasteerrorinthe'EditGame'screenmayresultinpeoplenotbeingabletosaveagame.
Themistakeinvolvesthenew'Paths'tab,whichallowsforeasiereditingofgamepaths.Unfortunately,the'ExtraPath'fieldonthisscreenisaccidentallysavedasdirectorytouseforsavedgames,insteadofcorrectfieldbelowit.ThiswasnoticedandfixedintheexperimentalCVSversion,butthefixwasmistakenlyleftoutoftheScummVM0.6.1release.
Ifyouencounterthisglitch,therecommendedworkaroundistosettheExtraPathtothesavedgamedirectory.ScummVM0.6.1bwillbereleasedsoontocorrectthisissue.
ScummVM0.6.1isout,andcannowbegrabbedfromourdownloadpage!Amongtheusualchanges,ScummVMshouldnowrunnativelyon64-bitmachines--somethingweactuallyforgottomentionintheNEWSfile.
Andyouknowwhattheysay:"Tosavetheworld,youhavetopushafewoldladiesdownthestairs."Sowemadeamother-loadoffixesinthisrelease.SomeofthewonderfulthingsyouwillnoLONGERseeinScummVMinclude:
Sodon'tdelay,downloadtoday.Downloadsarenotyetavailableforallsupportedports,suchasnon-ARMPocketPCsandtheHandheldPCbinaries.Theseshouldbecomeavailablewithinthenextweek.
Thisisjustaquickupdatetoleteverybodyknowwe'restillalive.WorkonScummVMisprogressingasperusual,andweintendtoreleaseScummVM0.6.1shortly.
ScummVM0.6.1willcontainseveralbugfixesforvariousgames,aswellasseveralsoundandmusicenhancementsforlaterSCUMMgames(FullThrottle,TheDig,CurseofMonkeyIsland).
Also,followersofCVSmayhavenoticedthatsupportforAnotherWorldwasrecentlyadded.ThisprovokedquiteabitofargumentwithintheScummVMteamastowhetherthisisconsideredanadventureandwithinScummVMsgoals.
CABALteamsplitsoverfundamentaldesignissues
Afteryesterdaysground-breakingannouncement,wearesadtoannouncetheimmediatedisbandmentoftheCABALteam.Overthelastseveraldaystherehasbeenheateddebateregardingseveralimportantdesignissues,andcurrenttensionintheteamhasrisentoaninsurmountablelevel.
"It'sreallyunfortunate",MaxHorn,seniordeveloperonScummVMandExult,wasquotedassaying,"but[formerFreeSCImaintainer]Christoph[Reichenbach]'sideasofaligningcurlybraceswiththeleft-handsideoffunctiondeclarationswhileappendingthemtotheendofthelinefor'while'and'for'loopsdidnotmakeanysenseatall."Thelatterrepliedbypointingoutthat"usinganythingbuttabsforindentationiscallingfortrouble."
ClaudioMatsuoka,oftheSarienproject,pointedouthisdisappointmentandnotedthathedidn'tseemuchofapointintryingtoco-operatewithpeopleentirelyincapableofreachingagreementsonsuchtrivialissues."Imean,wehaven'tevenresolvedtheentireEMACSvs.vidispute,andthey'realreadyateachother'sthroatsagain."JamesBrown,anotherseniordeveloperontheScummVMproject,sadlyannouncedthathewaslaughedoutoftheprojectmeerhoursbeforeadecisiontosplitwasmade."TheyjustsaidIdidn'tbelong,sinceIprefernanoasaeditor..."headmitted.
WhenaskedabouttherelevanceofCABALfortheworldwideadventuregamingmarket,ScummVMprojectleadMaxHorncommentedthat"[with]themarketforadventuretitleswaning,webelievethattheformationofaprojectwiththeexplicitgoalofrunningeveryadventuregameeverreleasedwillinfuseitwithnewlife."FreeSCImaintainerLarsSkovlundaddedthat"thiswillcertainlycauseanupheavalinthegamingworld.Adventuregamefansaroundtheworld,rejoice!".
InadditiontosupportingLucasArts'SCUMMgames(includingfamoustitlessuchas"MonkeyIsland","IndianaJones"and"SamandMax"),Sierra'sSCIandAGIlines("King'sQuest","LeisureSuitLarry","SpaceQuest"...),andothergamesalreadysupportedbytheretrospectiveengines,thenewlyunitedteamplanstocontinuetoaddfurthertitlestotheiralreadyimpressivelist.
Someofthejuicynewmodulesinclude:
Offersbyvariouscompanies,includingMicrosoftandAmigaInternational,tobuyouttheteamhavebeengentlybutfirmlydeclinedbytheleadsofthejointproject."Weknowthatwecouldearnalotofmoneyfromthis,butweareidealistsandatthistimewehavethegoaltoreformtheworldsadventuremarket.Oncethatisachieved,wecanreconsideraboutmakingsomemoneyoutofthis."
ScummVMwillbeshownas'FreeFileoftheDay'onthe'CallforHelp'programat3PMESTonFridaythe19thofMarch,andagainat9AMEasternonMondaythe22ndofMarch.
Or,ifyoujusthappentohaveaC-banddishinthegeneralvicinityofGEAmericomSatcomC4atthetimeoftheshow,it'sontransponder12at135degreeswest,40degreeselevation.
ThoseluckyAustralianssubscribedtoFoxtelDigitalcanalsowatchtheprogram.IhavetotryandfindsomebodywithFTDsoIcanwatchitmyself.
Inothernews,ScummVMwillbefeaturedonTechTV'sCallforHelpshow,onthe19thofMarchasFreeFileoftheDay.
TheScummVMprojectispleasedtoannouncetheimmediatereleaseofScummVM0.6.0.ScummVMisagraphicadventuregameinterpreterdesignedtoallowuserstoplaymanyclassicadventuregametitlesonvariouscomputersystems;(Linux,Windows2000/XP,*BSD,MacOSX,PocketPC/HandheldPC,Palm,Dreamcastandmore)
Version0.6.0bringswithitanewmilestoneinScummVMhistory,withallLucasArts/LucasFilmSCUMMadventuretitlesnowbeingsupported.WearealsoproudtoannounceinconjunctionwithScummVM0.6.0thereleaseoftheclassicadventuregame'FlightoftheAmazonQueen'(originallyavailablefortheAmigaandDOS)asfreeware.TheScummVMteamwouldliketothanktheauthorsSteveStamatiadisandJohnPassfieldforprovidingtheteamwiththesourcecodetothisclassicgame,andallowingustoreleaseit.
So,what'snew
ScummVM0.6.0includes,asusual,manybugfixesinallsupportedgameengines.Therehavealsobeendramaticfixesandimprovementsintheareaofsoundandmusic,aswellasagreatlyimprovedgamemanagement/optionsscreenandtwonewgraphicsmodes(HQ2xandHQ3x).Mostimportantly,wehavealsoaddednewsupportforthefollowinggames:
ScummVM0.6.0willbereleasedinthenext48hours,alongwithoursuperspecialyetnotreallyallthatsecretsurprise!
Keepyoureyesonthispage!
WhatWepromisedmorefrequentnewsupdatesYoulie!Proveit!...NewsarchivesyousayPfffah.Um.Wewerehacked!
Onarelated,butmoreseriousnote,sincetheabovepairarereasonablyincommunicardo,wemaybereleasingScummVM0.6.0withoutthepreviouslypromisedfreewaregame,whichwillinsteadbereleasedatalaterstage.
Wewillleaveyounowwiththepromisedblatentlystolenquote.Thereisnosubliminalmessageenclosed.Honest.
Anyway,toansweryourquestion,togetintothegamesindustry,breakintotheSonypartyatE3,walkaroundsaying"Onlinemultiplayeristhefuture,"andifnobodyhashiredyouby11:00pm,sleepwiththefirstpersonyouhearspeakingeitherJapaneseorFrench.Workedforme!
Finally,Ender,yourhumble(yetlazy)newsposterandco-projectleaderwouldliketoletanySonyemployeeswhohappentoreadthissiteknowthathebelievesOnlinemultiplayeristhefuture.We'renotevengoingtotouchtheSamandMax2thing.(Boo!Hiss!)
Staytunedformorezanyandspace-fillingcontent-lessnewspostsinthefuture!
WehaverecentlybranchedScummVM0.6.0,andarenowenteringthefinaltestingphase.Assuch,wewouldbemosthappyifpeoplecouldtestthelatestdailybuilds(orCVSbuildfromtag'branch-0-6-0'andreporttheirresults.
Wehavealreadyconductedpreliminarytestingofseveralgames,butthefollowingstillhavenotbeentestedandshouldtakepriority:
PleasereportbugsinourbugtrackerandsuccessfulcompletionsofgamesonourGeneralForum.ThanksinadvanceforhelpingtoshapeupthenextreleaseofScummVM!
JustaquicknewsposttoleteverybodyknowthatScummVM0.6.0isstillin-progress.Unfortunately,recentdowntimeandotherissueswithSourceForge.nethavedelayedthebranchingandfinaltestingofthisrelease,butwe'restillhopingtogetitoutassoonaswecan!
Onanothernote,continuingthecurrentrashofcomputerproblems,allscummvm.orge-mailaddressesarecurrentlybroken.Wehopetofixthiswithinthenextfewdays,andnomessagesshouldbelost.Ifhoweveryouwanttodiscusssomethingimportantwithus,wereallysuggesttalkingtousinreal-timeonourIRCchannel(#scummvm,onirc.freenode.net).
SomepeopleappeartothinkthatyesterdaysnewspostimpliesthatBrokenSword1and2willbereleasedasfreeware.Wewouldjustliketoclarifythatthisisnotcurrentlythecase.WewillbereleasingcutscenepacksforusewiththeORIGINALgamedatainScummVM,andhopefullyfreewaringacompletelydifferentnon-Revolutiongame.
So,whathasbeengoingonintheworldofScummVMlatelyCurrentlywearegearingupforour0.6.0release-thisreleasewillmarkamajormilestoneinScummVMhistory.AsofScummVM0.6.0,ScummVMshouldfinallysupport(atleastthePCversions)ofallLucasArtsSCUMMadventures!
Staytunedformoreinformationonournextrelease,asithappens.
EverybodyhereatScummVMCentral,well,everybodystillconscious,hopesthateverybodyishaving(orhashad)agoodChristmas!
Asavagueattempttostartournewyearsresolution(ofpostingnewsmorefrequently)abitearly,hereisamostlypointlessnewspost.First,arequest.IfanybodynoticesanyarticleinthemediaaboutScummVM(orindeedisfromthemedia),pleasee-mailpress[at]scummvm.orgsowecanaddittoourpresspage.
Thereleaseschedulefor0.6.0hasbeenpushedbackalittleduetovariousproblems(suchasreencodingBrokenSwordcutscenes)andheavydevelopmentoncertainfeatures(likeFullThrottlesINSANEsubsystem).
Inanefforttoreducethelengthofourpre-releasetestingphase,IwouldaskthatanybodyherewhodoesuseadailyorCVSbuildpleasereportanybugstheyfindinevery-dayuse.Thisincludes(despitewhatweusuallysay)our'new'games:FullThrottle,FlightoftheAmazonQueen,BrokenSword1and2.
Aswearecallingfortestersbeforewe'freeze'developmentforanewrelease,pleaseensureyoutestwiththelatestavailableCVSbeforereportinganybugs.
Whilstweknowthattheendoftheyearisapproaching,itsaddensustoannouncethattheScummVMprojectisclosingduetopersonalreasonsonbehalfofmostofthedevelopers.Visitorstoourforum,suchastimofonic,havesuspectedthismaybethecaseforsometimeandunfortunatelyIhavebeenurgedbyeinheitlixtotellthetruth.
It'sbeenagreatride,andwehadsomereallywonderfulthingsinstoreforyou,suchasanewgamewewereplanningtofreewareforournextrelease,andtheannouncementthattheoft-requestedcompletionofsupportforFullThrottlewasunderway-althoughitwouldprobablybein0.7.0not0.6.0...butit'smootnow.
Iwasplanningonholdingbackthisnewsuntilafterthefestivities,butasit'sjustahoaxtoseehowmanypeopleactuallyreadournewspageandpayattention,I'vedecidedtoannounceitnow.
Insummary,incasepeoplejustskimmedthatlastparagraph:weareNOTreallydead.We'reverymuchaliveandkicking,andwillbebringingyoulots-o-cool-stuffearlynextyear!
Welcometoyetanotherquasi-regularreminderthat,yes,yourfavoriteprojectisfarfromdead.Sowhat'sgoingonintheworldofScummVM
ScummVM0.6.0,althoughnotdueoutforafewmonthsatleast,isgoingtoknockyoursocksoff.Oratleast,makethemaniceshadeofpurple.Amongtheusualmassivestructuralchanges,bugfixesgalore,andmaybeevenanewplatformortwo...wehaverecently(almost)finishedsupportfortheoriginalV1versionsofManiacMansionandZakMcKracken.ThisleavestheeverdifficultFullThrottleastheonlyLucasArtsgamewedonotsupportinit'smainstreamform.
Also,thanksoncemoretothegracioussupportofRevolution,thenextversionofScummVMwillincludesupportforyetanotheroftheirwonderfulinnovativegames-BrokenSword2!
Thesearebothalreadypresent,insomeform,inourdevelopmentalCVSanddailybuilds-howeverpleaseremembertheyareexperimentalandstillbeingheavilyworkedon.PleasedoNOTfilebugsorpesteranyoneregardingthem.Andmaybe,justmaybe,wemighthavesomemoresurprisesinstorebeforethenextmajorreleasemakesittoaSourceForgemirrornearyou!
ScummVMversion0.5.1wasreleasedtoday,fixingseveralissuesuncoveredsinceScummVM0.5.0.
Thefollowingchangesareincludedinthisrelease:
Werecommendallusersupgradetothisrelease.PleasenotethatwhilstBASSsavesfrom0.5.0arecompatiblewiththisrelease,werecommendrestartingyourgameusingthe0.5.1savesystemifyoucontinuetoexperienceproblems.
AlthoughScummVM0.5.0isourmosttestedversionyet,afewproblemsalwaysslipthroughthecracks.Amongsomeotherminorissues,ithascometoourattentionthatBeneathaSteelSkymayoccasionallyproduceunusablesavegames.Althoughthisisatimingissue,andveryrareonmostsystems,asmallgroupofpeoplemaydiscoverthishappeningfairlyoften.
AScummVM0.5.1pointreleaseisplannedinthenear-futuretofixthis,andseveralothersmallerissueswhichhavecametoourattention.Also,themanualforBeneathaSteelskyandpossiblyascanoftheincludedcomicwillbeavailablefordownloadlaterintheweek.
Thanksforeverybody'ssupport,andassistanceinmakingourprojectevenbetter!
Version0.5.0ofScummVM,theclassicadventuregameinterpreter,hasjustbeenreleased.Thisisourmosttestedversionyet,thankstoeverybodywhoansweredourcallfortesting.Thanks!
Sowhat'snewWell,besidestheusualbugfixesandimprovementsare:
Enjoy!Oh,andthereisthatlittledonatebuttondownthereontheleft.WeneedtobuyourDreamcastporteracopyofSimontheSorcerer:)
ScummVMhasjustenteredaCVSfreezeandtesting,toprepareforaneventual0.5.0stablerelease(hopefullyattheendofJuly).ButweneedYOURhelp!
Besidesmanyfixesthatwillbeintheupcoming0.5.0,especiallyintheareaofmusic,comessupportforthreenewgames:
Inothernews,AnonymousCVSis(andhasbeenforsometime)laggingbehindtheofficialdevelopmenttree.Ifyouwantthebleeding-edgeCVS(fortesting,asanexample),pleaseusethe'SourceSnapshot'ontheDownloadpageoverAnonymousCVS.Andofcourse,BeVigilant
ScummVM0.4.1,astability-focusedpointrelease,isnowavailablefordownload.Changessince0.4.0include:
Fivemonthsafterourlastrelease,0.3.0b,andover2500CVScommits/addslater,theScummVMteamproudlypresentsScummVM0.4.0.
Thefollowingisanoverviewofwhat'snewin0.4.0:
WehopeyouwillenjoythebestScummVMever!
We'vereceivedanumberofe-mailslatelyaskingifanyworkishappeningonScummVM.Wewouldliketoreassurepeoplethatdo-not-followCVSthatyes,alotofworkishappening.
Wearecurrentlygearingupforthereleaseof0.4.0,whichshouldbehappeningwithinafewweeks.I'dliketoaskpeoplewhofeellikelivingdangerouslytotryoutCVSandDailyBuilds,andletusknowofanyproblemsweshouldbeawareof.Inthe'Documentation'sectionontheleft,youwillseea'ScummVM0.4.0Checklist'.Gamesthathavebeentestedwithoutanyproblemsaremarkedthere-pleasetestthegamesthatarenotmarkedtestedandletusknowyourresultsontheForum(Update:That'stheGeneralforum).Remembertoincludethedateyoudownloadedthebuildyoucompletedthegamewith.
AtthemomentwearefocusingonearlierEGAgames(ManiacMansion,ZakMcKracken,LoomEGA,Indy3EGA),althoughBeneathaSteelSkysupportisprogressingataslowbutsteadypace.SomebodyalsorecentlydonatedaPlaystation2modchiptotheteam,soexpectanativePS2portassoonasEnderhasitinstalled(ScummVMalreadyrunsfineunderPlaystation2Linux).
Aremindertothosethatareinterestedinourlatestprogress,youcanalwayssignuptothecvs-logsmailinglist.Clickthe'ProjectHome'linkontheleft,andbrowsetothe'Lists'page.Thislistwillreceiveane-maileverytimethereisanewchangetothesource-code,sobewarneditcanberathertechnicalandhigh-traffic.AsanalternativeyoucanjustplaywithCVSCheckoutsorDailyBuildsanddiscoveranythingnewyourself:)
LastFriday,March14th,ourfellowScummVMdeveloperandfriend,FelixJakschitsch(knowntomanyunderhisnicknameyot),committedsuicideattheyoungageof19.
Wearecompletelyshockedbythis,anddonotknoworunderstandwhatdrovehimintothis.Itisasorrowfulworldinwhichacheerful,intelligentandhelpfulmanisputinasituationinwhichheseesnootherwaytoescapethantakinghisownlife.Wearesadtoloseourvaluedfriend.HecontributedimportantworktoScummVM,includingmuchoftheZak256support.Hislossisfeltdeeplybyallofus,andweextendourcondolencetohisfamilyandclosefriends,whosegriefweshare.
Felix,wemissyouandwillneverforgetyou.
Workhasbeenslowlately,butrecentlywiththeadditionofSuperDooperSecretProjectNumberSix,developmenthasstartedtopickbackupwithalotofcodecleanupandsomefairlyimportantbugfixes.Expectanewreleaseeventually.
Inothernews,therehasbeenasurgeininterestofaPlaystation2portagain.I(Ender)amquitewillingtodooneifpeopledonateatleastUS$75(seethatlittlebuttonunderthemenu)topurchaseamodchip.Itshouldn'ttakelong,andoneofyou-ourloyalusers-hasalreadyvolunteeredtoinstallitformeifIdomanagetoobtainone.Ifwefindthereisenoughinterest(whichwillobviouslydependonthedonationstatus:),wewillstartanofficialportASAP.
Inothernews,CurseofMonkeyIslandsupportisstabilizing.Whiletherearestillanumberofsmallgraphicalglitches,currentlywearedowntotwoknowngameplay-criticalbugsandanumberofother'inconveniences'andcasesofincorrectbehavior.WehopetobeabletoannounceCurseofMonkeyIslandcompletableverysoon.
Alotofpeoplehavebeenaskingwherewearegoingfromhere.Hereisabrief(verysubjecttochange!)guidetoournextfewtargets:
Asusual,thisisbutaroughguidelinedependingonbothprogressandfreetimeforourdevelopers.Ifyouwanttohelp,andknowhowtouseCVSandacompiler...eitherfixbugs,orregressiontest!WeareverymuchlookingforpeopletotestCVSwithgamesotherthanComIandlookforcriticalbugsthatwerenotpresentin0.3.0b,thenattempttotrydifferentversionsofCVSandlocateatleastthedaywhenthebugstartedoccurring.Thisallowsustomoreeasilydeterminewhatchangeshavecausedproblems,withoutspendingweeksblindlyguessing.
Needlesstosay,ifyoufindacriticalbugthatISalsopresentin0.3.0b,checkforabugreport.Ifoneisn'tpresent,pleasesubmitone!
Heyall.
I(Ender)aminterestedinfindingoutifanyScummVMuserswillbepresentatLinux.conf.au'03hereinPerth...ifyou'llbethere,dropapostintheforum.IfthereareafewpeoplegoingwemightgettogetherforPizzaorsomethingafterwards,ormaybechucktogetheralastminutespontaneousClassicGamingBOF(ifsomebodyelsewantstoorganiseit,I'materriblepersonforthatkindofstuff:)
Blonk.
First,aquicknotethattheproblemswiththeClieSourceforumhavebeenresolved,andtheClie/PalmportwillbemergedintoCVSassoonaschrilithhasupdatedhisporttoworkwith0.3.0'sOSystemarchitecture.
AquickupdateonCMI(COMI/Monkey3)support.Withinjustseveralweeks,remarkableprogresshasbeenmadeonsupportforthisgame,butworkwilllikelybeslowedforthenextweekasvariousdevelopersareotherwiseoccupied.Currently,exceptforsomebugsthatmaketheCannonsceneratherdifficultandunstable,itispossibletoplaysomewayintoPartIIofthegame.
ThecurrentmainissuesremainingincludeabugwithflObjectallocation(causesacrashinsomedialogsequences),somescriptterminationissues(causesvariousgame-cripplingcrashesinthecannonsceneandseveralPartIIpuzzles)andthevariousproblemswiththeopeningcannonpuzzle.
Asusual,pleaserememberthisworkisstillexperimental,andpleasedonotfileanybugreportsregardingit.Patches,however,areverywelcome!:)
..toeverybodyexceptCasaAddams,manyusersontheClieSourceforums(whomobviouslyhavebrainsasbigastheirPDAs,)andthatotheridiotwhoisbundlingScummVMwithwarezLucasArtsgamesonUseNet.Thisissomewhatofanopenplea,althoughwedonotreallyexpectmoronswhohavedonesomethingsoidiotictolisten.
Sorryforthisopenmessagebeingsoharshguys,butdoyounotrealisethatbyassociatingandbundlingScummVMwithpiratedcopies("Abandonware"orotherwise)ofLucasArtsgames,you'rebasicallygivingthemevenmoreexcusetotakelegalactionagainstus(andbringpossiblefinancialruinonthedevelopersofthisprogram:)...I'mespeciallydisappointedinchrilithwhohasalmostcertainlyguaranteedthat,unlesswefeelveryforgiving,therewillneverbeanofficialPalmportofScummVMintegratedintoCVS.
Ifyouappreciatewhatwearedoing,andhavedone,thendonotabuseit.Otherwiseyouaredamagingthereputation,andpossiblelegalstatusofbothScummVManditsdevelopers.I'veseensomeVERYridiculouscommentsontheClieSourceforumstotheeffectthatLucasArtsdonotsellthesegamesanymore.Withtheexceptionofsomeversions(specificallyZak256andLoomCD),thisisstupid.MostLucasArtsgamescanbeorderedincollectionpacksfromAmazonortheLucasArtsstore(ifyouliveinAmerica.).Heck,IsawabunchofLucasArtsclassicadventuresinElectronicBoutiquewhenIwasChristmasShopping.
Inothernews,CurseofMonkeyIslandsupportisprogressingnicely!BesuretotryoutthelatestDailyBuildsifyoulikelivingonthewildside(butofcoursedonotfilebugreportsonCMIsupport).
WehereontheScummVMteamhopeeverybodyhadagoodChristmas!
FirstwewouldliketomentionthatLucasArtshasputoutapack,atleastintheUK,featuringupdatedversionsofSamandMaxandFullThrottle,designedtoworkwithWindows95/98/ME/NT/2K/XP.Thispack(entitled,imaginatively,"TheEntertainmentPack")alsocomeswithTheDigandGrimFandango...theseversionshavenotbeenupdated,andaretheoriginalWindowsversions(yes,thesegamesDIDcomewithnativeWindowsportsinsomeoftheearlierLucasArtsAdventurePacks).
TheupdatedSamandMaxandFullThrottleengineswerenotportedin-housebyLucasArts,likelybecauseofalackoftimeANDbecausemostpeoplewhoworkedonSPUTM/SCUMMhaveleftanyway,butbyAaronGiles-theoriginalMacPorter(andrenownMAMEdeveloper:).TherearenomodificationsexceptforaDirectXwrapperaroundthegraphicscodeandareallyreallybadgraphicsscaler.
OurtakeCallusbiased,butunlessyouneedperfectcompatibility,wanttoplayFullThrottlenow,oraremissingmorethantwoofthesegames-itwillprobablybefarcheapertobuythesegamessecond-handorindividually.Theincludedupdatedbinariesareinferiorfeature-wisetoScummVM,asyoumissoutonourenhancedfeatures,suchassupportforplatforms-other-thanWindows(suchasMacintosh,UnixandPocketPC),ourgraphicsscalers,etc.Ofcourse,ifyoudopurchasethepack,thegamedatafilesareunchangedandofcoursecompatiblewithScummVManyway.ItisnicetoseeLucasArtsreleasingsomethinglikethis,anddoingsomethingpositivetotryandrevivetheirclassicgames-oratleastdrumupmarketinghypeforthesequel:)
Finalconclusion,buyitifyouwantitorareacollector-butit'snotworththemoneysimplyforWindowscompatibility.Howeverifyoudopurchaseit,youAREencouragingLucasArtstoupdatemoreclassicsinthefuture-althoughhopefullyScummVMwillmakesuchaneedobsoleteshortly.WesuggestLucasArtsspendit'sdevelopmentcostsonre-releasingit'slostandRAREclassics,liketheFmTowns256colorversionofZakMckracken.Forthoseinterested,theupdatedversionswerecompiledonOctober2ndforFullThrottle,andOctober24thforSamandMax.
Indevelopmentnews,severalScummVMdevelopershaveactuallybeenreallyboringpeopleandcodedthisChristmas,comingupoverjustafewdayswiththebasicsforCurseofMonkeyIslandsupport.I'msureourMacintoshuserswillbehappytoheartheywill,inmaybeaslittleasamonth,finallybeabletoplaythisgame.SupportisinthelatestCVSandDailyBuilds,butdoNOTfilebugreportsasweknowitdoesn'treallyworkordoanythingatthemoment.Fullsupportwillbeavailable"WhenIt'sDone"..orthedayafterDukeNukemForevercomesout.Whicheverisfirst.
HoHoHo!
MonkeyinyourpocketDefinitely.
IfyouworkforamagazinethatwantstomentionScummVM,maybeinanarticleonretro-gaming(*hinthint*),thenalsofeelfreetodropusaline.Wecanprobablyarrangeaninterview,screenshots,help...and/orlargebribe-likequantitiesofbananas.
No!,it'sScummVM0.3.0b,ourfirstofficialreleasesinceLucasArtsdecidedtogoafterus!
Smallupdate,we'vealsoaddedafewlinkstoourLinkspagethatyoumightwanttocheckout.EspeciallyVOGONS,pleasestopaskingusifwe'regoingtodothingslikeaddsupportforBeneathaSteelSky:)
That'sright,sincethemanymanymonthssinceLucasArtsfirstissueduswithaDMCAnotice(andwiselydecidedafterthesubsequentslashdottingandfanbacklashfromyou,ourusers,tonegotiateadeal:),wehavebeenwaitingforasettlementwithLucasArtsbeforereleasingalongawaitednewversion.Thewaitisover.No,wehaven'treachedasettlement,wejustgottiredofwaitingtoreleasethisgem.
Therehavebeenhundreds,ifnotthousands,ofbugfixessinceourlast0.2.0release...nottomentionsupportforatleastthreenewgames(TheVGAversionofIndianaJonesandtheLastCrusade,andsupportforTheDigandSimontheSorcerer2)...andnewfeaturessuchasavastlyimprovedin-gameguiandabuilt-inlaunchertomakeiteveneasierforyoutoadd,configure,andrunyourclassicLucasArts(andAdventureSoft)games.ExperimentalsupportforFullThrottleishere,aswellasmanybugfixesforthegamesintroducedinourlastversion...suchastheFmTowns256colorversionofZakMcKracken,andtheVGAfloppyversionofMonkeyIsland.
Hopefullywewillbeabletocomeatyouwithnewreleasesmoreoftenfromnowon,hopefullyatleastmonthly.Pleaseenjoythisreleaseasmuchaswe'vebecamefrustratedmakingit,andremember-ifyougiveallyourmoneytoLucreArts,maybethey'llletusliveinsteadofabandoninguson...on....MonkeyIsland!(Ugh,Bananas...IhateBananas).
Forthoseinterestedintheboringnews,here'sbothasummaryandanupdateonourlegalsituation,forthoseuserswhoarejustnowdiscoveringScummVM.
WehereattheScummVMteamwouldliketothankthepeopleatLucasArtswhoaresupportingus,andattemptingtohelpuscometoanarrangement.Butguys,we'reyourfans.Allwearedoingisupdatingtheengineforgames,inaformofanemulator...becauseyouhaven't-althoughwe'veaskedyoutoforyears.We'veevenmademoremoneyforyou,asquiteanumberofushavewentoutandBOUGHTyourclassicbundlepacks,justtoplayitwithScummVM.*
Theselastfewparagraphshavebeenbroughttoyoubythe"Pleasedon'tsueusformakinganewrelease"department.
GreetingsfellowAdventurers!
SourceForge,ourhost,ismovinghardwareonthe14thand17thofNovember.Duringthistime,therewillbeanumberofoutages:
Thankyou,andpleaseshopatSnuckeysagain!
Well,weseemtohavelostcontactwithLucasArts,aswehaven'theardfromthemforseveralweeksnow.So,assumingtheydon'tsuddenlye-mailusandvetoit,wearepreparingfora0.3.0release.
Firstly,ScummVM0.3.0willincludesupportfor:
Thenextmajorrelease,0.4.0,willincludesupportfor:
AmessagewasrecentlypostedtothescummvmdevelopmentlistdetailingthecurrentstatusofScummVM,includingthingssuchasdetailsonwhereweareheadingforournextrelease,andanupdateonthelegalsituation.
Andnow,foroursemi-annualnewsupdate!
Thelegalsituationisstillpending,aswearewaitingonaresponsefromLucasArtstoourlaste-mail.
Progress-wise,peoplefollowingthedailybuildwillhavenoticedthenewin-gameGUIwehaveimplemented.It'sstillverymuchaworkinprogress,soexpectoddthingstohappen.SomeofourwonderfuldevelopersarecurrentlyworkingonimprovingcompatibilitywithTheDigandFullThrottle,asitseemswemightevengetoneofthesecompletablebythetimethelegalsituationisresolvedandwecangetournextreleaseout.
Meanwhile,theCVStreeanddailybuildsaresomewhatinanexperimentalform.
Ontoothermatters,weareseekingmercenariestokidnaptwopeoplesowecantorturethemintorevealingthetwocurrent'problemareas'inScummVM.
Thanksforplaying,andremember-"neverpaymorethan20bucksforacomputergame"!
At16:57(GMT),onSeptember17th...I-ScummVM-willofficiallybeayearold!Unfortunately,nobodytoldmewhenmybirthdaywas,theytoldmeIwasanorphan!ButI'mgoingtotryandthrowapartyanyway.SoeveryoneisinvitedtoattendmyIRCchannel,#scummvm,onirc.freenode.net!
Oh,andIlostasmall,fleecesweaterwiththreebluerosesonit.Ifyouseeit,pleasecommitittoCVSforme!
Ladies,Gentleman,Threeheadedmonkeys,andalienmindbenders...lendmeyourears.
Firstly,anupdateonourlegalnegotiationswithLucasArts.Wearehopefullyveryclosetofinalisingourarrangement,andsometimeinthenextweekhopetomakeanannouncementregardingthis.Ofcourse,wehadhopedtomakeanannouncementagoodmonthago.UnfortunatelythingsareratherbusyatLucasArts,soithastakenawhiletotalktotherelevantpeople.
Onanothernote,Iwouldliketoaddresssomethingthatcomesupatleastonceaweek.No,ScummVMisnotcurrentlyinanykindofpositiontostartsupportingOTHERnon-SCUMMgames.TheinclusionofSimonsupportaside,thecurrentteamhasfartoomuchontheirhandstryingtocompletesupportforexistingLucasArtsclassicadventures.Althoughwemayaddsupportforothergamesinthefuture,wedonotcurrentlyplanonit...andanyrequeststodosowillbepromplyignored.
Unlessitisaccompaniedbyadonationofmoneyover$2,000.
Goodafternoonpeople.Iknowit'sbeenalongtimesinceyouhaveheardfromme,andyoumaybewonderingwhyIcalledyouheartoday.
Ihaveheardrumorstheprojectisdead,andIwouldliketoassureeveryonethat'snotso.Wehavebeenworkingveryhardlately,andmanybugfixeshavebeenmadetovariousgames.Infact,wearealmostreadyforanotherrelease....butwearewaitingforaresolutiontoourLegalDramabeforethathappens.
So,whatishappeningonthelegalfrontWell,ourerstwhileprojectleader(James'Ender'Brown)hashadmanyphoneconferenceswithLucasArts,andweshouldshortlybeannouncinganagreementthatwillmakebothpartieshappy.IwouldliketothankLECforbeingopentohelpingkeeptheprojectalive,insteadofjustforcingustoshutdown.
Hopefullywithinthenextweek,newsofourfuturewillbeannounced.Untilthen,keepdonating,andkeeptellingeveryonehowmuchyouloveScummVM.Remember,it'snotpeoplesaying'LucasArtsSUX'thatwillconvincethemtokeephelpingtheproject...it'speoplesaying'ScummVMRules'thatwill!
Wellpeople,wearestillalivesofar.WearecurrentlytalkingtoLucasArtstoseeifwecannegotiateadeal.Tobehonest,whilewehopeitispossible,wearedubiousthatthedealLucasArtsmayprovidecangiveuscertainfreedomsweneedtodevelop.OneofthebiggestfearsofmostcompaniesistheGPL(GeneralPublicLicense).Somecompaniesfeelthisgivesusersfartoomuchlatitudeinuseoftheirsoftware.Unfortunately,ifLECfeelsthesameway,wemayhavetorejecttheiroffer.ItiscloseonimpossibletorelicenseGPLedsoftware,asitwouldmeangettingpermissionfromanyonewhoeverwroteevenonelineofcodeincludedinScummVM.
Sofarmostofourcommunicationhasbeenoff-the-recordandfairlyvague,butbeassuredwehaven'tvanished,andwe'llgiveyouthelatestnewsasithappens!
Also,thankstopeopledonating.Wearecurrentlyatalittleover$100,whichistaggedtobespentonbothbuyingversionsofgamesfortesting,andalsosavinguptoourtargetof$300topurchaseacopyofIDAPro,arguablythebestdisassembleronearth.Keepdonating:)
Thankfully,theydonotyetappeartohaveavalidcomplaint.TheirmessagerequestingtheremovalofthesiteisbasedonthepresumptionthatwearedistributingLucasArtsownengineonthissite.Ofcourse,ScummVMisafullyoriginalworkbasedequallyonreverseengineeringandoriginaldecodingworkbymanydifferentpeopleinthecommunity,sothisrequestdoesn'treallyaffectus.
We'resafeforthemoment,andwillcontinuetoworkonbringingthewonderfulclassicsoftheLucasArtscompanytoyourcomputingdevicesfor,hopefully,alongtimetocome!
Notmuchtoreportreally,butdon'tworry,wearefarfromdead.MostoftheScummVMteamisverybusywithreal-lifeschoolandworkatthemoment,butwearehopingtheworstwillbeoververysoonandwecangetdowntocrunchingsomemorebugsandreleasinganewversion!HereisaveryroughdraftofwhatweareconsideringtobeScummVMmilestones:
Obviouslythisisaveryroughoutline,andissubjecttochangeifwesuddenlymakeabreak-throughinagame.Butthisisjusttogivepeopleabasicideaofwherewearegoing.CMIsupportwillbethehardest,asitisquitedrasticallydifferentcomparedtotheversionsofSCUMMwehavebeendealingwithtothispoint.Happyadventuring!
WorkonScummVMhasbeenproceedingveryslowlyoflate,asthemaindevteamisquitebusyonothermatters.
WeareawareofquiteafewissuesinZak256andsomeveryseriousonesinSimonthatwerefoundfor0.2.0,andplantodoaninterimrelease(0.2.1)assoonastheyarefixed.Weareofcourselookingformoredeveloperswillingtohelpout,asthereisonlycurrentlyonepersonworkingonthegameinterpreteritself(althoughseveralareworkingonmorespecializedpartsoftheengine).
Untilthenextupdate...Ican'tpickthatup!Noreally!Readmylips..I...Can't...Pick...That...Up!
Aftermuchwaiting,ScummVM0.2.0hasbeenreleased!Soheadovertothedownloadspageandgrabitforyourfavoriteplatform.
Currentlywehavedownloadsfori386DebianWoody,Windows,Dreamcast,MacOSX,Familiar/Intimate,andWindowsCE.OverthenextfewdayswewillalsobeaddingdownloadsforMorphOS,RPMs,andmaybeaBeOSdownload.
Besidesmanymajorfixes,ScummVMnowsupportsseveralnewgames,suchastheFmTowns256colorversionofZakMcKracken,theCDversionofLoom,and(strangelyenough)SimontheSorcerer!Severalgamessupportedin0.1.0arenowcompletablein0.2.0,suchasSamandMax.
ScummVMrelease0.2.0alsoincludesseveralnewplatforms,bettersupportfordifferentCPUarchitecturesandendians,manymorecommandlineoptionsandexperimental(e.g.,donotreportbugsonit!)supportforFullThrottle,TheDig,theVGAversionofIndianaJonesandtheLastCrusadeandtheVGAversionofMonkeyIsland(floppy).!
Sodon'tdelay.Downloaditnow,andifyoureallylikeit,clickthatlittlepaypalbuttonunderthemenutodonatemoneytohelptheScummVMteambuytoolsandsoftwaretocontinuethisproject.
TheScummVMteamisstillworkinghardonfixingalltheremainingbugssowecanreleaseournextmilestone(0.2.0).Inthemeantime,hereissomenewsregardingtheproject.
OfparticularinterestmaybethefactthatZakMcKracken256(theenhancedgraphicsfmTownsversion)willbeofficiallysupportedin0.2.0,andcancurrentlybecompletedwithonlytwomajorbugsinthecurrentCVS.
Inotherportnews,LyonHrthascompiledanoldCVSbuildofScummVMfortheDreamcast,maintainedbyourteammemberMarcusComstedt.Theycanbefoundlistedbelow.PleasenotethatastheseareoldbuildstheyarenotofficiallysupportedbytheScummVMteam.CommentsonthisportshouldbepostedontheConsoleVisionDreamcastforum
Yes,wearestillalive.Unfortunatelyfarfrombeingreadyfor0.2.0,severalpeoplehaveraisedalargenumberofcriticalbugsweareworkingthrough.Stickwithus,we'llgettheireventually!
Oh,andbytheway..ifanyoneknowsthelocationofSeanClarkoranyotherpersonwhoscriptedSamandMax,pleasekidnapthemandforcethemtoexplainanannoyingscriptraceintheMysteryVortexwhichhaskeptseveralofusawakeforthelast48hours.
Thanks,andenjoyScummVM:)
The0.2.0releasehasbeenputoffforawhileastheScummVMengineisagainundergoingsomereorganisation.However,asanintrestingbitoftrivia,the0.2.0releasewillalsoincludesupportforanon-SCUMMgame!SimonTheSorcerer.SoshareandenjoythelatestCVSfolks.
AlsosomeofyoumayhavenoticedaPayPalbuttonatthebottomofthenavigationbar.Ifyou'veenjoyedScummVMpleasedonatesomemoneytohelpusbuysoftwaretohelpdevelopment.Thanks!
Thankstoseveralpeople,wehaveconfirmedthatDOTT,SamandMaxandLoomCDareallcompletablewithno'major'bugsinthecurrentcode.Ontheotherhand,severalseriousbugswithMI2andIndy4havebeenfound,sothe0.2.0releasemaytakeslightlylongerthanexpected.
Tothecodersoutthere,feelfreetobrowsethebuglistandtakeashotatcommittingfixesforthem.AtthemomentthereisonlyonepersonreguallyworkingonScummVM,sothingsareslow.
Aftersomework,the256colorCDTalkieversionofLoomiscompletable!Withthisdone,wearestartingtogearupfora0.2.0release.Tohelpuswiththis,weaskyou-ourgameplayers-totakethelatestDailyBuildsandCVSsnapshotsandplaythroughyourfavoritegames!Weneedtomakesurethatthefollowinggamesarecompletablewithnomajorplayabilitybugs(eg,crashes,freezes,etc-minorissuessuchassoundsyncrodonotcount):
Thanksalot,andwehopeeverythingwillworkjustfinesowecanfinallygetanewreleaseoutthedoor!Also,bypopulardemand,0.2.0willincludeanew'auto-save'featuretoensureyou'llneverlosehoursofhardworkbecauseyouforgottosaveandsuddenlyfoundabug!
Afterafewweeks,theScummVMcodehasofficiallybeende-frozenandworkongamesupportisproceeding.Asataster,severalbugswithZak256havebeenfixed,andthegameisnowmuchmoreplayable...althoughwe'restillafairwayoff!
ScummVMiscurrentlyinacodefreeze.ThismeanstheCVSwillnotbeupdatedwithanynewbugfixes,aswearedoingamajorreorganisationoftheengine.WehopethatbyrewritingmanyportionsofScummVMintoproperC++,wecanfixalargenumberofbugsinherantintheengine,aswellasmakethecodeeasiertoworkwith,forourselvesanddeveloperswishingtojointheprojectinthefuture.Notethismeansbugreportsandpatchescurrentlyinthesystemwillnotbelookedatuntilafterthefreezeends.Weplantofreezeforaweek,althoughitmaytakelonger.
BBrox,EndyandYazoohavebeeninmajorcrunchmodethisweek(Kudosguys!).Hereiswhat'snewinthedevelopmentofScummVM:
TravisHowellismakingdailysnapshotsofScummVMforWindowsavailablefordownload.KudosgoouttoTravis.Also,thereisalinkforaWindowsSDLversionofScummVM.ThisversiondoesnotrequiretheCygwindll.WehavealsoplacedaCompatibilityPageonlinetohelpanswerthemostcommonquestion,"Whichgameswork".Wewillkeepthispageupdatedasdevelopmentcontinues.
TheScummVMteamisbusyscratchingawaygettingmoreofyourfavoriteclassicLucasArtsgamestowork.Takeaganderatthislittlescreenshottowetyourappetite.Morescreenshotsandinfowillflowthiswayasithappens.
ThankstoJeremyNewman(laxdragon)fordesigningandmaintainingournewwebsite.Feelfreetohammerhimwithwebsitecommentsandsuggestions.
WelcometotheScummVM!ScummVMisaSCUMM(ScriptCreationUtilityForManiacMansion)interpreterforLinuxandwindows.