N64 Hacks Archive.org

[Ling Baus]

Thisguide will walk you through everything you need to know about putting together a curation and submitting it to Flashpoint. If this is your first time contributing, be sure to follow our step-by-step tutorial.

Before taking time out of your day to curate, please make sure that your game/animation has not already been saved. Use our this tool to search the existing collection, and also check the curation submission channels in our Discord for newer games or animations that might have been curated recently. More options for searching the collection are available here if you need them.

Flashpoint is not just a collection of files; it is a museum of playable web games. As in any other museum, each item needs to be curated before it can be put on display. Curating for Flashpoint is more than downloading an SWF, dropping it off in the submission site and expecting it to appear in the next update. Instead, you'll need to put together an archive file (ZIP, 7Z, etc) called a curation.

To make a curation from scratch, first create a new folder with any name (preferably the name of the game you'd like to save, but it doesn't matter). Inside of that folder, you'll add a screenshot and logo, a meta file containing metadata about the game, and a content folder containing all of the files needed to run the game; all of these are required. The following sections will explain each of them in detail. You can download an example curation ZIP file to see what a completed curation folder looks like.

All content for each curation must be placed inside a content folder, then arranged in the same way that they would be placed in Flashpoint proper from the "Legacy/htdocs" folder - the best practice is to try and recreate the same structure that the game had on the internet. For example, if a game was hosted at _alien_booya202c.swf you would create the folders in the format shown in the top example in the image below. If you cannot find the full URL the game is hosted on, a secondary format is acceptable - a domain folder, a folder with the game's name, then the game files, displayed as the second example.

You might also notice that some games in Flashpoint use a domain called localflash instead of a website domain. While this used to be the protocol for games without a known URL, this is not to be used this way anymore. The localflash folder should only be used curations of offline media, including but not limited to CD-ROMs and personal projects.

If you do use localflash, make sure to contain the files within a folder that shares its name with the game or disc. This minimizes the risk of files clashing. For example, would be a valid launch command for a localflash curation.

Logos must be in PNG format. A good logo shows something that is representative of the game, like the game's main characters (from the title screen, for example) or other prominent art. Some game hosting websites display unique game logos made by the game's developers themselves, which can be used as-is if they meet these criteria. Such logos might accompany the game on it's webpage or might only be viewable when searching the game via the hosting website's built-in search tools, so be sure to check. Barring that, you can also use the entire title of the game as the logo, preferably including a visual element along with it. It can be found in the curation folder as logo.png. You can add a logo to a curation in Flashpoint's Curate tab by dragging it on to the left panel above Drop an image here to add it.

Recommended tools for grabbing logos include Snip & Sketch and Paint, both included in Windows 10/11 by default. You're free to use other tools, but remember, always save logos in PNG format. When possible, it is preferable to make logos more or less square-shaped.

Screenshots must be in PNG format. A good screenshot is a credible 'action shot' of the game (no menus or obvious tutorials). It can be found in the curation folder as ss.png. You can add a screenshot to a curation in the Curate tab by dragging it on to the right panel above Drop an image here to add it, or clicking Add Screenshot.

Recommended tools for grabbing screenshots include Snip & Sketch and Paint, both included in Windows 10/11 by default. You're free to use other tools, but remember, always save screenshots in PNG format.

The metadata for a curation is stored in a file named meta.yaml or meta.yml in your curation folder. Only edit metadata with the Curate menu, never directly edit the metadata file.

The table below shows all of the fields that you can type into Infinity. All fields should be included if they are applicable. Pay special attention to fields marked with * - they are required fields. If a field is not applicable and not required for your curation, either omit it or leave it blank.

Some fields have only a few possible values to choose from. If this is the case, they'll be shown in the table as a bulleted list, with the default value in italics. If you omit this type of field, it will take on its default value automatically.

If a game has been hacked, and missing assets make it impossible to finish the game, its status would be Hacked; Partial. If a game is playable from beginning to end, but missing assets impact the player's experience, then its status would be Playable; Partial.

A list of all languages that the game supports, including the languages supported by any alternate versions. Use ISO 639-1 language codes and separate each code with ; . For example, if a game supports English and Spanish, you would say en; es. Defaults to en. If the curation uses a language without an ISO 639-1 code, ISO 639-3 language codes are acceptable.

If the work is executable/downloadable, use the webpage where the work can be downloaded. Otherwise, provide the name/title of the offline source, along with the medium of the source. Ex: Dora the Explorer Click & Create! CD-ROM. Tags exist for both of these sources also, so use any applicable Source Tags.

To test a curation in Infinity, locate the respective curation in the "Curate" tab and press the "Run" button at the bottom of it. Make sure you physically play through part of the game when testing it.

After you have uploaded your curation to the website, a Curator will check it. This can take some time, so please be patient. You will be pinged in #fpfss-notifications about whether or not your submission was approved, and if any changes need to be made.

The Additional Applications metadata field can be used to add Messages, Extras, or Alternates to a curation. You can add these through the "New App", "Add Extras", and "Add Message" buttons at the bottom of each curation in the "Curate" tab. Each of these items is explained in detail below.

Use the Message sub-field to add a short, one-line message that pops up before a game runs. You'll want to use this if there's something that Flashpoint users need to know before playing a game. If you have less-important information about the game, use the Notes field instead. You can only have one message per curation.

Extras allow you to include a folder of bonus materials with your curation. If you would like to include files related to a game that are not required to play it, such as source code or unlockable items, this is how you can do it:

As you can see, the Extras field specifies the name of the Extras folder when it is imported into Flashpoint. That means that you cannot use special characters like colons (:) or slashes (/ \). We recommend using only alphanumeric characters.

Alternates allow you to add alternate versions of a game into the same curation. This is commonly used to add older versions of a game, alternate languages of a game, or hacked versions from sites like Arcade Prehacks. Note that all of the files required to run an Alternate should be included in the content folder of your curation, along with the files for the main version.

In the curate tab of Infinity, you can use the "New App" button at the bottom of the curation to add alternates. Provide a short name for the alternate version in the "Heading" field. For example, you might say Hacked Version or Version 0.5b. Be sure to fill out the Application Path and Launch Command fields, then test the alternate thoroughly.

Hack Showcases and RPG Hack Showcases are a series where I show off various game and rpg hacks. I try to stick with hacks that improve gameplay or add quality of life features, completely or partially change the plot and characters, along with additional content, dialogue, graphical and sound improvements. Non-rpgs I try to give a full run to, or at least enough for a solid review. Rpgs I will stick with titles that have enough changes in the beginning to show off, and when I can, show parts later in the games where more differences appear. There may be spoilers in the reviews and videos. Some of these I may stream fully in the future or play on my own. Reviews are open to later revisions due to bug and content updates or me playing them and finding anything new I wish to bring up.

Working Designs was well known for bringing amazing rpgs and adventure titles to the US for the Sega CD, Saturn, and PSX. They loved games and took a lot of time translating and making the titles they ported. Most people now have a love-hate relationship with them: They either love what they did and their translations, or love what they did and hate their translations due to many of the jokes and pop culture references made throughout the games. Besides their translations, they tended to make games more difficult then their Japanese counterparts for some reason and added other new mechanics that made no sense (needing magic pts to save in Lunar 2).

Supper reworked the 4 Sega CD Working Designs title (Popful Mail, Vay, Lunar 1 & 2) back to something more like their Japanese counterparts in way of difficulty and mechanics, and even changed the fonts for text in some cases, and more. Check out his website and writeups on TCRF for more details. Ms Tea took the improvements to Lunar Eternal Blue a few steps further with improving load times and a few other fixes too.

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