Super SCI Game Engine?

[MKruer]

I was wondering if at some point in the future you will release a Super SCI game engine. The idea is to have a single file/engine that I could just throw into the game directory and run the game. I am sure that most people realize that the older version on the original SCI have problems under Windows NT Dos emulation particularly with the sound. If a new engine could be designed that could run natively on future NT systems I believe this would eliminate all compatibly issues with running the older games. I know that a group call

[Chris Cromer]

There are different sound drivers for SCI games, just change the drivers to one that will work with your system. And if you can't find the specific driver you are looking for, check in other SCI games directories because sometimes you can find other graphics/sound drivers that "might" work with the other games.

[Mkruer]

I think you are missing the larger picture. Eventuly that will not work. M$ is not going to keep supporting DOS games through an Emulator. and eventuly we will require a new "engine" to be able to play the games.

BTW your trick does not work with QfG4 nor PQ4. is the Engine itself that is flawed, and was never fixed regardless of sound

[Chris Cromer]

Well all I can say is wait for freesci, because they are the ONLY people making a new SCI interpreter.

[Mkruer]

Yeah I know, i was just hoping that more people would be willing to support developing a new engine. I guess after SCI Studios is able to rip every type of SCI version then the next logical step is to have some way to play the games you make with SCI Studio.

[Chris Cromer]

I wouldn't bet money on anyone making a new SCI interpreter unless they just wanted to do it for the fun of it in their spare time... especially since freesci works so well. Personally I don't see a need for another new SCI interpreter, freesci can be ported to alot of OS's, and it works about as good as the original interpreter, plus it adds new features that the original interpreter never even had.

Do you dislike freesci or something?

I guess after SCI Studios is able to rip every type of SCI version then the next logical step is to have some way to play the games you make with SCI Studio.

That's what the original interpreter and freesci is for.

[Paladinlover]

Eventuly that will not work. M$ is not going to keep supporting DOS games through an Emulator. and eventuly we will require a new "engine" to be able to play the games.

I'm sure that there are many people who will work to make an emulator. Given the sheer amount of abandonware on the internet, and the fact that very few companies care for their old game anymore. We are going to need emulators for sound and playing.

Sorta like the Nintendo and arcade emulators, even though they're technically illegal, the arcade game scene is changing so much that no arcade or company can profit from their older games anymore.

In 5 to 10 years from now, only a hand full of people will remember the 'old' days and the next generation of gamers will probably look at classic games as primitive and stupid, and never even play them.

Till next time stay cool

[JesseJames]

Do you dislike freesci or something?

FreeSCI is good at playing the games it does support but unfortunatly it only supports and handful of games and it has no interface for loading games which is bad. I have been in contact with some of the people working on FreeSCI recently and they are currently working on support for newer SCI games but they are still not playable yet.
I have recently created a frontend for FreeSCI to load the games which can be found on the mailing list @ http://mail.gnu.org/archive/html/freesci-develop/2003-10/msg00000.html

BTW Chris: Why dont you come on the subspace channel anymore? It has been ages since I last saw you on there...

[JesseJames]

I think you are missing the larger picture. Eventuly that will not work. M$ is not going to keep supporting DOS games through an Emulator. and eventuly we will require a new "engine" to be able to play the games.

I forgot to mention this in my previous post but you could try using DosBox to play your old dos games. Compatibility in DosBos has greatly increased recently. The DosBox homepage is located @ http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/

Enjoy

[DOS 4.evr]

I don't give half a rat's poop whether or not m$ will add DOS compatibility to their future systems - I will never use a OS without it. Right now, I have Linux and W98SE (the only MS system that is actually good, stable and worth anything) installed on two different partitions, I'm not the least bit interested in xp, and I probably won't switch systems (unless a LinuxXL comes out )

[Chris Cromer]

BTW Chris: Why dont you come on the subspace channel anymore? It has been ages since I last saw you on there...

Everytime I come there people always seem to want to be an ass towards other people. I understand it's just the personality of some of the members, but it does drive off other people from the board. Just way too much flaming in my opinion.

I still read the board sometimes, but lately there isn't anything I want to post about.

[Kemp]

W98SE (the only MS system that is actually good, stable and worth anything)

I used to think that too, but I have XP now and it is a lot more stable than 98 ever was. People say it's slower, but it's easy to fix that, just turn off all the unneccesary services etc. If you want the old 98 interface you can also turn off themes which gives you a huge performance boost as a bonus.

[Brian Provinciano]

FreeSCI is virtually perfect, and there is absolutely no need for anyone to create a new one. Though the main release still only supports EGA games, they have background work on SCI even up to SCI32. It will take time to finish it, as it is also a free service/hobby project that has no funding. That being the case, the developers can't focus 100% of their time to it--they need to focus on their school and work and keep that as their priority. However, the developers at work on it are the programming elite with top notch skills, and they are doing a fantastic job. What it boils down to though is that it's a free open source project, so if you want it done sooner, you should join the team.