This is fantastic. I consider iOS far superior in so many ways over Android. Except that it is locked down so much. If iOS becomes more open, there will be nearly no reason to get an Android.
ScummVM on the App Store
41–50 of 197 posts
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
ScummVM isn't an emulator, it's a collection of game engines based on reverse engineering and, on occasion, original source code donations.
I stand corrected, although from a policy-making perspective ScummVM allows users to run software acquired through ways not sanctioned by Apple (or owners of the original IPs), which I believe is the major part of why emulators are not allowed on App Store and thus bears a similarity to them in that particular aspect.
Is there any philosophical difference in playing your game using ScummVM versus playing a JavaScript game on some website using Safari for iOS?
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#43Is there a place where I can legally obtain images to run on the vm?
https://wiki.scummvm.org/index.php?title=Category:Freeware_G...
but hm, that category is larger than the category of supported games ... clicking through to the "where to get" link gives a more curated list.
There are 4 shipped in most Linux distros (probably more a matter of exact license than quality alone):
Flight of the Amazon Queen - everything you'd expect from a fantasy adventure; play this if nothing else
Beneath a Steel Sky - a good game, just not a happy one
Lure of the Temptress - this was buggy when I played it, managing to crash/freeze the VM
Drascula: The Vampire Strikes Back - cringeRe: ScummVM on the App Store
#44What is the appeal with games that are this old? Is the audience people that played them in their childhood? I struggle to see kids (who are used to super colourful, hyper interactive, animated games) play GBC games let alone something like this. Any ideas?
To turn it around on you: what's wrong with old games? Does anyone ask the same about books?: "What is the appeal with books that are this old?" Not very often from what I can tell. I do see the sentiment you've expressed regarding games much more often. Why is that? I'm not sure. Perhaps it's just a sign of the immaturity of games as a medium (compared to books, anyway).
There's a lot of user interface issues in playing an older game. Not so much the graphics -- people like "pixel" styling in modern games, though generally at much higher resolutions and with better color palettes than in old games -- but rather in how you interact with the games.
There's a lot of experimentation in old games about how to approach certain concepts, where eventually something won out and became the way we do it. So it's very strange to go back to e.g. an old first-person game and realize that WASD controls aren't used.
I recently saw this YouTube video ("How System Shock's Reboot Wrestles With Adapting Its Legacy" by Errant Signal) that talks a bit about this take on the issue, which might interest you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDQ24iAkh90
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#45What is the appeal with games that are this old? Is the audience people that played them in their childhood? I struggle to see kids (who are used to super colourful, hyper interactive, animated games) play GBC games let alone something like this. Any ideas?
They're still fun.
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#46What is the appeal with games that are this old? Is the audience people that played them in their childhood? I struggle to see kids (who are used to super colourful, hyper interactive, animated games) play GBC games let alone something like this. Any ideas?
To turn it around on you: what's wrong with old games? Does anyone ask the same about books?: "What is the appeal with books that are this old?" Not very often from what I can tell. I do see the sentiment you've expressed regarding games much more often. Why is that? I'm not sure. Perhaps it's just a sign of the immaturity of games as a medium (compared to books, anyway).
Well, technology has progressed quite far while humans are still humans with the same (but slightly better maintained) brain. I have a hard time watching old movies where the FX is crap
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#47What is the appeal with games that are this old? Is the audience people that played them in their childhood? I struggle to see kids (who are used to super colourful, hyper interactive, animated games) play GBC games let alone something like this. Any ideas?
While I don’t share the sentiment, I have an anecdote that might be relatable.
Some time around 2014 I finally got around to playing Castlevania: symphony of the Night. It was almost 20 years old, casykevania had long since moved to 3D graphics and stages. Even when it was released in the 90s it could have been considered outdated due to its small, sprite-based graphics.
It turns out, the game is a masterpiece. The control, the level design, the progression, the exploration, the freedom of item choice are all exceptional. Even the graphics are beautiful for what they are without needing a RTX 4090 and 4K display. I’ve replayed it several times since then and it opened up a new genre of games that I hadn’t previously considered liking.
Many of the Lucas Arts point and click adventures may or may not soar the same interest. They’re quirky, funny, clever games that can be played casually.
For kids who like games, the gameplay is enough. They might say how dopey it looks at the start, but if it hooks them, that reaction will fade away.
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#48hmmm I suspect this is because it is GPLv2 which doesn't require the freedom to RUN the program (which apple doesn't give you) apple seems to ship software with gplv2 (old bash, etc) but no GPLv3 software. ...even though they are technically in violation of the GPL by modifying and shipping bash binaries without full source - it is missing rootless.h (not the X11 file)
> GPLv2 which doesn't require the freedom to RUN the program It does. This is the first freedom of free software. I'm not sure the issues with distributing GPL software on the App store are specific to the GPLv3. I don't fully understand things on this, but [1] seems to be a good entry point. > apple seems to ship software with gplv2 (old bash, etc) but no GPLv3 software. This is an Apple policy / a choice that they…
Sued by whom? The bash people seem like they have better things to do than sue Apple.
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#49For those who don't recognize Scumm (since it's getting pretty old now...), it was an adventure game engine. Widely used for classic Lucasfilm Games/LucasArts titles. (edit fixed! See below comment) Here's the list of supported games: https://wiki.scummvm.org/index.php?title=Category:Supported_... If you're looking for recommendations... - Zork (the OG, and sequels): https://wiki.scummvm.org/index.php?title=Zork - Be…
For anyone who still hasn't seen the new Indiana Jones movie, but is thinking about it some time: Go play Fate of Atlantis instead.
Re: ScummVM on the App Store
#50hmmm I suspect this is because it is GPLv2 which doesn't require the freedom to RUN the program (which apple doesn't give you) apple seems to ship software with gplv2 (old bash, etc) but no GPLv3 software. ...even though they are technically in violation of the GPL by modifying and shipping bash binaries without full source - it is missing rootless.h (not the X11 file)
It's been a hot minute since I had to dig into the code Apple publishes for anything and since then they seem to have moved it all to Github. I don't have my mac handy to try building it, but I don't see any references to a rootless.h in the code they're publishing. I'm curious to know a bit more about what's missing.
They inlined the code here: https://github.com/apple-oss-distributions/bash/commit/9817a...