"Lost" source code

[RussianNeuroMancer]

According to publisher[www.gamingonlinux.com] source code of this game is lost. However, if you google for "thief_2_service_release.7z" you will find archive with Dark Engine source code. Community even release fixed version of the engine based on this sources (google for "NewDark").

So why people and publisher keep repeating "source code is lost" (1, 2, 3) while source code and fixed version of the engine is available?

[ps47.3dfx]

well yes, they did not make the game nor the engine update - but without the release rights, the game would not be available for the masses today, so they did play an important part in this.

[3quarks]

fair enough. ofc you could just dl the "french" binaries though.

[lPaladinl]

It shouldn't be that hard to understand. The Source Code was lost. What was linked here was source code for the engine the game was mostly based on, but that doesn't mean it has all of the changes made by the team as they built the game.

The Source Code was reconstructed by people in their free time, but that doesn't mean the source code wasn't ever lost. It was.

[Sikobae]

last i heard, the source was pulled from some beta version of a dreamcast port that never saw the light of day. but what do i know

[ps47.3dfx]

you would know more if you'd have read the first page of this topic.

[Valet2]

But I would never believe that NewDark was made by reverse-engineering. There are a LOT, LOTS of things that would take a hundred years to implement by fans. And when I've read the NewDark's documentation it's obvious for me that whoever did it knew the engine, game and editor like the palm of his hand.

[Zolk Ironblood]

Originally posted by RussianNeuroMancer:

According to publisher[www.gamingonlinux.com] source code of this game is lost. However, if you google for "thief_2_service_release.7z" you will find archive with Dark Engine source code. Community even release fixed version of the engine based on this sources (google for "NewDark").

So why people and publisher keep repeating "source code is lost" (1, 2, 3) while source code and fixed version of the engine is available?

"source code lost" never laughed so hard, what a stupid thing to suggest. source code is a well guarded legal object. either EA or that insurance company that bought the rights from looking glass has the source code i forget which. just because theyre publishing the game doesnt mean they have rights to coding with the game. "lost source code" lmao the editor of that site doesnt even know irrational games developed the game originally and has nothing to do with the game coming to steam irrational games has nothing to do with system shock 2 when it came to steam/gog just look at the comments hes posted on that article hes clueless

[[THT]root]

..... They lost the source code package for like ten years. lost means nobody has it. has nothing to do with legality. they lost the archive. Is this not clear?

[Zolk Ironblood]

Originally posted by BFTNecrotic:

..... They lost the source code package for like ten years. lost means nobody has it. has nothing to do with legality. they lost the archive. Is this not clear? :dealwithit:

its not lost....

[[THT]root]

because they FOUND it. Have you even read anything anyone has posted at all? You seem to be missing literally the entire point of everything everyone is talking about. Heres the jist: we lost the source code for like 10 years, we found it. Thats the point people are making here. Problem? I mean techically the 'original' source is still lost, and we only have a theif2 source code, however, It has been reverse engineered- and now we have a native Linux port of the game and an updated engine. So the source code was lost. Arguing against that is like saying the sky isnt blue, because %country% doesnt own the color blue or the sky. Or am I making no sense?

[ps47.3dfx]

the linux version is not native, it's still wine, but it matters little. I don't think a native linux port will happen unless SquareEnix/Eidos officially releases the SS2 source code they have.

[Zolk Ironblood]

Originally posted by BFTNecrotic:

because they FOUND it. Have you even read anything anyone has posted at all? You seem to be missing literally the entire point of everything everyone is talking about. Heres the jist: we lost the source code for like 10 years, we found it. Thats the point people are making here. Problem? I mean techically the 'original' source is still lost, and we only have a theif2 source code, however, It has been reverse engineered- and now we have a native Linux port of the game and an updated engine. So the source code was lost. Arguing against that is like saying the sky isnt blue, because %country% doesnt own the color blue or the sky. Or am I making no sense?

are you dense or something? the source code isnt lost at all either EA or that insurance company who bought the rights from looking glass years ago have it. just because its not in a state where developers can use it doesnt mean its ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ lost. system shock is a whole mind ♥♥♥♥ of legalities and who owns what stuff 99% of people dont know the first thing about it so this is a pointless arguement and 100% of people other than ken levine/other looking glass devs. EA and that insurance company dont know the whole thing that article the OP had was made by one of those people who dont know the first thing about it. also the people who published the version of ss2 on steam and gog or whoever dont have the rights to dev the game just to publish it so anything regarding them is stupid theyre just publishers also the only dev rights the people who published the steam/gog version are to make it work on modern systems. the multiplayer co op udates etc were in the original release of ss2 or were patched in not that long after.

[ps47.3dfx]

is this guy for real? april the first ended half an hour ago. anyway, now that you made a complete fool out of yourself, maybe you could at least try to read the first page of this topic, where everything has already been explained.

[[THT]root]

all necroing annoyances aside, THE. SOURCE. CODE. ARCHIVE. WAS. LOST. The DEVELOPERS. SAID. THEY. LOST. THE. CODE. BECAUSE. OF. A. NETWORK. SYSTEM. CRASH.
Am I failing to get something critical here? ps47.3dfx would you please mediate here? wtf is going on?

[[THT]root]

btw yeah its just a crossover/wine wrapper, but same diff. with older games like that there is pretty much no point of a port. why would you compile commander keen for windows when you can dosbox? :P