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A source port is a software project based on the source code of a game engine that allows the game to be played on operating systems or computing platforms with which the game was not originally compatible.
Source ports are often created by fans after the original developer hands over the maintenance support for a game by releasing its source code to the public (see List of commercial video games with later released source code). In some cases, the source code used to create a source port must be obtained through reverse engineering, in situations where the original source was never formally released by the game's developers. The term was coined after the release of the source code to Doom. Due to copyright issues concerning the sound library used by the original DOS version, id Software released only the source code to the Linux version of the game. [1] [2] Since the majority of Doom players were DOS users the first step for a fan project was to port the Linux source code to DOS. [3] A source port typically only includes the engine portion of the game and requires that the data files of the game in question already be present on users' systems.
Source ports share the similarity with unofficial patches that both don't change the original gameplay as such projects are by definition mods. However many source ports add support for gameplay mods, which is usually optional (e.g. DarkPlaces consists of a source port engine and a gameplay mod that are even distributed separately [4] ). While the primary goal of any source port is compatibility with newer hardware, many projects support other enhancements. Common examples of additions include support for higher video resolutions and different aspect ratios, hardware accelerated renderers (OpenGL and/or Direct3D), enhanced input support (including the ability to map controls onto additional input devices), 3D character models (in case of 2.5D games), higher resolution textures, support to replace MIDI with digital audio (MP3, Ogg Vorbis, etc.), and enhanced multiplayer support using the Internet.
Several source ports have been created for various games specifically to address online multiplayer support. Most older games were not created to take advantage of the Internet and the low latency, high bandwidth Internet connections available to computer gamers today. Furthermore, old games may use outdated network protocols to create multiplayer connections, such as IPX protocol, instead of Internet Protocol. Another problem was games that required a specific IP address for connecting with another player. This requirement made it difficult to quickly find a group of strangers to play with — the way that online games are most commonly played today. To address this shortcoming, specific source ports such as Skulltag added "lobbies", which are basically integrated chat rooms in which players can meet and post the location of games they are hosting or may wish to join. Similar facilities may be found in newer games and online game services such as Valve's Steam, Blizzard's battle.net, and GameSpy Arcade.
If the source code of a software is not available, alternative approaches to achieve portability are Emulation, Engine remakes, and Static recompilation.
| Original name | Port |
|---|---|
| Aliens versus Predator | icculus.org/avp |
| Arx Fatalis | Arx Libertatis |
| Blake Stone: Aliens Of Gold | BStone |
| Blake Stone: Planet Strike | BStone |
| Blood | BloodGDX, NBlood, Raze |
| Carmageddon | Dethrace |
| Catacomb | CatacombSDL |
| Catacomb 3D | Reflection Keen, CatacombGL |
| Call to Power II | Apolyton Civilization Site: Call to Power II: Source Code Project |
| Commander Keen | Commander Genius |
| Descent/Descent II | DXX-Rebirth, D2X-XL, DXX-Retro |
| Diablo/Hellfire Expansion | DevilutionX, Diablo 1 Mod (Belzebub) |
| Doom/Doom II | See List of Doom source ports for a detailed list. |
| Doom 64 | Doom64EX, Doom64Ex+ |
| Doom 3 | dhewm3, RBDOOM-3-BFG |
| Duke Nukem II | Rigel Engine [5] |
| Duke Nukem 3D | EDuke32, DukeGDX, JFDuke3D, Rancidmeat Port, xDuke Port, nDuke Port, hDuke Port, Rednukem, Raze |
| FreeSpace 2 | FreeSpace 2 Source Code Project |
| Heretic | Chocolate Heretic, ZDoom, Doomsday, GLHeretic for Linux, Heretic for Linux, HHeretic |
| Hexen | Chocolate Hexen, ZDoom, Doomsday, GLHexen, HHexen, WinHexen |
| Hexen II | jsHexen 2, UQE Hexen 2, Hammer of Thyrion |
| Homeworld | Homeworld SDL |
| Ken's Labyrinth | LAB3D/SDL |
| Jagged Alliance 2 Wildfire | Stracciatella/SDL |
| The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time | Ship of Harkinian |
| Marathon 2 | Aleph One, Aleph One/SDL |
| Myth II | Project Magma |
| PowerSlave | PowerSlaveGDX, PCExhumed, PowerSlaveEX |
| Quake | QuakeSpasm, QuakeDS, DarkPlaces, FitzQuake, GLQuake, Project: Twilight, Telejano, Tenebrae, WinQuake, QuakeWorld, ezQuake, fodQuake, FreeQuake, vkQuake |
| Quake II | vkQuake2, KMQuake II, q^2, Q2PRO, Yamagi Quake II |
| Quake III | ioquake3, Quake3e, OpenMoHAA, Q3Base, Quake III: Arena for FreeBSD, Spearmint |
| Quake 4 | Quake4Doom, gbQuake4 |
| Redneck Rampage | RedneckGDX, Rednukem, Raze |
| Return to Castle Wolfenstein | iortcw |
| Rise of the Triad | WinROTT, GLROTT, icculus, rottexpr, NakedTriad |
| Savage: The Battle for Newerth | Savage: Rebirth |
| Serious Sam: The First Encounter / Serious Sam: The Second Encounter | icculus, [6] Ray-Traced, [7] Serious Sam Classic, Serious Sam Evolution |
| Shadow Warrior | JFShadowWarrior, SWP, VoidSW, Raze, WangGDX |
| SimCity | Micropolis |
| Spelunky | Spelunky ClassicHD [8] |
| Star Control II | The Ur-Quan Masters |
| Star Trek: Voyager – Elite Force (holomatch) | iostvoyHM, [9] cMod, [10] Lilium Voyager [11] |
| Star Wars: Dark Forces | The Force Engine [12] |
| Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II / Star Wars Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith | OpenJKDF2 |
| Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast / Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy | OpenJK |
| Strife | Chocolate Strife, Vavoom |
| Super Mario 64 | Super Mario 64 PC Port |
| System Shock | Shockolate [13] [14] |
| System Shock 2 | NewDark |
| Thief: The Dark Project | NewDark |
| Thief II: The Metal Age | NewDark |
| Tomb Raider | OpenTomb, [15] OpenCroft, OpenLara, [16] CroftEngine, TR1X [17] |
| Tyrian | OpenTyrian |
| Warzone 2100 | Warzone Resurrection |
| William Shatner's TekWar | BuildGDX |
| Witchaven | BuildGDX |
| Wolfenstein 3D | ECWolf, NewWolf, Wolf4SDL, Wolfenstein 3-D Redux, WolfGL, WolfGL-3D |
| Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory | ioWolfET, ET: Legacy |
Quake II is a 1997 first-person shooter video game developed by id Software and published by Activision. It is the second installment of the Quake series, following Quake. The game's storyline is continued in its expansions, including one tying in Quake II and the first game, and Quake 4.
Doom 3 is a 2004 survival horror first-person shooter video game developed by id Software and published by Activision. Doom 3 was originally released for Microsoft Windows on August 3, 2004, adapted for Linux later that year, and ported by Aspyr Media for Mac OS X in 2005. Developer Vicarious Visions ported the game to the Xbox, releasing it worldwide on April 4, 2005.
Catacomb 3-D is a first-person shooter video game, the third in the Catacomb series, the first of which to feature 3D computer graphics. It was developed by id Software and originally published by Softdisk under the Gamer's Edge label, released in November 1991. The player takes control of the high wizard Petton Everhail, descending into the catacombs of the Towne Cemetery to defeat the evil lich Nemesis and rescue his friend Grelminar.
Nexuiz is a free first-person shooter video game developed and published by Alientrap. The game was released under the GNU General Public License (GPL) and uses the DarkPlaces engine, a modified Quake engine. A remake, also called Nexuiz, was released for Steam and Xbox 360 using CryEngine 3. The original game was released on May 31, 2005.
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Timothée Besset is a French software programmer, best known for supporting Linux, as well as some Macintosh, ports of id Software's products. He was involved with the game ports of various id properties through the 2000s, starting with Quake III Arena. Since the development of Doom 3 he was also in charge of the multiplayer network code and various aspects of game coding for id, a role which had him heavily involved in the development of their online game QuakeLive. Since departing id in January 2012 he has worked as a software contractor, including for Valve Software.
Xonotic is a free and open-source first-person shooter video game. It was developed as a fork of Nexuiz, following controversy surrounding the game's development. The game runs on a heavily modified version of the Quake engine known as the DarkPlaces engine. Its gameplay is inspired by Unreal Tournament and Quake, but with various unique elements.
Oil Rush is a tower defense real-time strategy game developed by UNIGINE Holding S.à r.l. using their Unigine engine technology. Set in a flooded, post-apocalyptic world, the game consists of players fighting over control of the world's last remaining oil reserves. The game was released as a digital download for Microsoft Windows, Linux, and OS X.
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