Games

I have recently developed a small library and command-line utility in Rust that opens and creates GXT files from older Grand Theft Auto games. GXT files (description of format) are binary-based lists of localizable text strings that are used both by the game’s executable and all the game/mission scripts. Since the games are meant to be released in different languages, using a separate format for storing strings makes sense.

The program supports, and was tested on, files from GTA III, Vice City and San Andreas, and should also work with the “Stories” games, which are based on Vice City’s engine.

I’ve decided to write a little script using JS that reads a Japanese notation for a move in shogi and tries to convert it into English.

Out of all PC games that have been around for decades, id Software’s DOOM is probably one with the largest longevity. People still make new levels for it, write new engines and modifications for it, and do speedruns for it under a variety of conditions, with new records still being broken every now and then. For almost every piece of hardware which can output graphics and run code, there have been attempts to port or clone DOOM, with “It runs Doom” becoming a popular internet meme.

As a kid, I didn’t have any 16-bit consoles, and at best, my experience with them was restricted to playing them for a short while when hanging out with my family’s old friends and their kids. Out of the games I got to experience that way, I played Sonic 1 and 2, Columns, Tom & Jerry: Frantic Antics and other games, but not any of the Streets of Rage games. Instead, the first time I discovered this games was when I discovered emulators.

Trying to preserve an old page that I had a hard time finding online.

One of my big interests is things relating to riichi mahjong (リーチ麻雀): a variant of the Chinese tabletop game “mahjong” invented in Japan. It’s a rather complicated, but fun game where the players take turns picking and discarding tiles (which function similar to cards in a game like poker) in order to build a winning hand.

Occasionally I play the old multiplayer action-RPG “Phantasy Star Online: Blue Burst”. On Windows, it works fine, but to make it work better on Linux (via Lutris), some extra steps may be needed.