Dark Forces Launcher

UPDATE DEC 2022

This project was superseded by The Force Engine . Please download it here --> https://theforceengine.github.io/

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This is an all-in-one Dark Forces Launcher.

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TLDR

1. DOWNLOAD THIS --> Dark Forces Launcher[df-21.net].
2. EXTRACT CONTENTS TO ANY FOLDER
3. DOUBLE CLICK ON StartLauncher.bat
4. PRESS YES (Y) IF PROMPTED FOR EXECUTION POLICY

Watch this Quick Tutorial to play in under 60 seconds --> https://youtu.be/MZfUa3rXXiU

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Detailed Instructions

It's intended for new players who want to play the game and custom missions with modern controls ASAP.

Here is a short list of the basic features:

• Launch Dark Forces in GOG, Steam, Origin or in a Standalone Folder.
  
• Install Community Patch with multiple fixes and improvements.
  
• Launch Custom Missions that are automatically updated
  
• Launch Mouselook & KeyBinds and Crosshair Utility with Automated Setup
  
• Watch Video Walkthroughs for the game and custom missions
  
• Run the game in a Window or Fullscreen (for streaming)
  
• Ability to Restore DosBox settings
  
• Ability to Repair Dark Forces directory (Steam Only)

Please support the Dark Forces Modding Community by visiting www.df-21.net. Enjoy =)

Get help on Discord! --> https://discord.gg/6T9NvMh2MC

Note: The Launcher was designed and tested only on Windows 10 64-bit systems.

Download the Dark Forces Launcher

The Dark Forces Launcher is hosted on the Dark Forces 21 Net site.



TLDR Video Tutorial
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STEP 1

Download the launcher script here --> Dark Forces Launcher[df-21.net].

Open the zip and Extract the DarkForcesLauncher.ps1 and StartLauncher.bat anywhere you wish.

Note: If you do not have Steam, GOG or EA - simply place the script in the same folder where DARK.EXE is located.

Important: Make sure you Exit Dark Forces before running this script!

STEP 2

Double Click on the StartLauncher.bat



If you get prompted for Execution Policy Change just choose Yes.

STEP 3

Upon start simply choose TLDR to automatically install mouselook, community patch and set up the game to run in a window.

Main Menu

You will see the Main Menu of the Launcher.

Note:
If this is your first time using the launcher you should press M to setup Mouselook.

New - April 2022 You can now install the community patch from the Main Menu by pressing P

The options here are pretty self-explanatory.:

• You can play Dark Forces
  
• Play from a list of Custom Maps . These are automatically updated.
  
• Play the game in Full Screen or in Windowed Mode
  
• Load the Help Menu
  
• Set up Mouselook - this launches the Mouselook program.
  
• Watch the Walkthrough on Youtube
  
• Install the Dark Forces Community Patch
  
• Check the Acknowledgements
  
• Exit the Launcher

Custom Missions

In the Custom Missions page you can browse the map catalog and watch Walkthroughs

Custom Missions are updated automatically as they become available from www.df-21.net

Your options are.

• Select the map you want to play by pressing the Index # from the list.
  
• You can press N or P to change pages
  
• Or you can press W to watch the Walkthroughs
  
• Press M to go to back to the Main Menu
  
• Press Q to Exit the Launcher

Do note that once you choose the map it will launch immediately!

Personally, I recommend you try Dark Tide : Episode I - Wasteland Survivor Check it out!

If you get stuck stuck on the missions I've included a helpful Walkthrough list. Choosing the map will launch Youtube with a Custom Walkthrough video.


Your options are.

• Select the map you want to see a Walkthrough for
  
• You can press N or P to change pages
  
• You can press M to go to back to the Main Menu

Window Resolutions Menu

You can either play the game in Full Screen or in a Window



Simply choose a resolution option and it will be applied immediately. Do note that the original game was released at 320x200 and some aspect ratios will cause it to look stretched.

Help

The Help Menu allows you to see some troubleshooting information.


Take a look at the YouTube tutorial https://youtu.be/MZfUa3rXXiU

Here you can..

• Enable or disable Debug Mode which will show more information about the game
  
• You can enable a Log which is useful for identifying bugs
  
• The Game Information will show important variables such as your Dark Forces folder path
  
• You can also display your current DosBox Configuration
  
• Fully Restore Dark Forces using the Validate/Repair tool (Steam Only)
  
• Uninstall the Community Patch
  
• If your DosBox is corrupted you can Update the settings to the defaults

Troubleshooting

While the Dark Forces Launcher was tested on multiple configurations it is likely certain systems may cause it to fail. If you want to be safe and sound I recommend you make a backup of your Dark Forces directory.

Important: Most issues are usually due to to you not having a clean Dark Forces install directory. If you placed your own mods or made custom changes it is highly likely to break this launcher

Important While the script was tested on dozens of different systems there is no guarantee there are no bugs.

Script Fails to Launch

• Make sure you have a supported Windows 10 64-bit system or higher
  
• Make sure you gave full permissions to execute the script.
  
• Make sure you white-listed the software by your AntiVirus
  
• Make sure that Dark Forces uses a supported store (Steam Origin, GOG Galaxy, Origin)
  
• Make sure you launched it by right clicking on it and chose "Run With Powershell"

Script is really Slow

Make sure you do not have logging turned on. Some Anti-Virus software inspects every message and slows down the processing

Game won't Start

Make sure you haven't made any changes to your Dark Forces directory, and if you have, restore it to the original settings. Also, please make sure you do not already have the game (or Dosbox) running as this will cause issues. Make sure you do not have Anti Virus blocking your processes.

Custom Missions won't Start/Crash

Try to restore your dosbox.conf settings (from the Help Menu). Go to your Temp directory (Type %TEMP% in your file explorer) and delete the bad mission (ex: assassin_modern.zip) .

Known Issues

• Launcher will freeze if you start Dark Forces while already running a Steam game. Just restart it

How to get Help

I can't promise I will be able to fix your issue but what would help is if you either send me the logs with debug information or a screenshot of the error.

To turn on debug messages go the Help menu and press D.
To enable logging press L from the Help Menu.
If you press G for Game Information, it should show you where the log is written to.

If the script crashes before the main menu. Open the script in Notepad and change these DEBUG and WRITE_LOGS values to $true

Example:
$global:DEBUG=$true
$global:WRITE_LOGS=$true

And run the script again to generate the logs.

ADVANCED

If you don't want to bother with always right clicking on the script you can create a shortcut by right clicking on it and choosing Create Shortcut. And if you edit the Target section to include this line in front and saving it. Then you can just run the shortcut.

C:\Windows\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File


You can send me the logs (or screenshots of the errors) by reaching out on Discord @ https://discord.gg/6T9NvMh2MC

[robocracker3000]

THIS LOOKS AMAZING it was hurting my eyes before

[sonderkraftfahrzeug]

@iluvkorn Correct - this launcher officially works on Windows 10 (And likely Windows 11). The reason Windows 7 is deprecated is because it no longer supports modern encryption standards (such as TLS 1.3) and therefore can no longer download configuration files .

Keep in mind that Microsoft ended Windows 7 support on January 14th 2020, almost 3 years ago.... https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-7-support-ended-on-january-14-2020-b75d4580-2cc7-895a-2c9c-1466d9a53962

[criss_ki]

This Launcher works pretty good on my Windows 11 System. The Game with this launcher is more fun than before. Nice work :D

[iLuvKoЯn]

the batch script apparently only works for windows 10

[Goodguy3]

Good stuff; Modern controls make this game much more playable, especially these days. I was prepared to slog through this game using the arrow keys, but this changed that real quick!

[sci-fi Lone Wolf]

thank you mate I am enjoying them very much good to see a classic game like dark forces getting love from mods

[sonderkraftfahrzeug]

Did you really finish all the 50 missions already? I will add more - they will automatically update. No need to do anything on your end =)

[sci-fi Lone Wolf]

I more they add more mods to the list :)

[sci-fi Lone Wolf]

thank you this is great

[Seraphim1313]

Fantastic guide, worked like a charm!