https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2023/08/developer-rewrites-original-wipeout-from-abysmal-leaked-windows-source/ Skip to main content * Biz & IT * Tech * Science * Policy * Cars * Gaming & Culture * Store * Forums Subscribe [ ] Close Navigate * Store * Subscribe * Videos * Features * Reviews * RSS Feeds * Mobile Site * About Ars * Staff Directory * Contact Us * Advertise with Ars * Reprints Filter by topic * Biz & IT * Tech * Science * Policy * Cars * Gaming & Culture * Store * Forums Settings Front page layout Grid List Site theme light dark Sign in Better living through code reduction -- Leaked Wipeout source code leads to near-total rewrite and remaster "Either let it be, or shut this thing down and get a real remaster going." Kevin Purdy - Aug 24, 2023 7:53 pm UTC Screenshot from Wipeout Rewrite Enlarge / Do you remember how fast Wipeout was in 1995? It's just as fast now. You, however, may not be as fast. Just saying. Psygnosis / Dominic Szablewski reader comments 97 with There have been a lot of Wipeout games released since the 1995 original, including Wipeout HD and the Omega Collection, but only the original has the distinction of having its Windows port source code leaked by (since defunct) archive Forest of Illusion. Dominic Szablewski grabbed that code before it disappeared and set about creating a version that's not just a port. He rewrote the game's rendering, physics, sound, and generally "everything everywhere." He documented the project, put his code on GitHub, and has some version of a justification. "So let's just pretend that the leak was intentional, a rewrite of the source falls under fair use and the whole thing is abandonware anyway," Szablewski writes. Most of the code seemed to come from Wipeout ATI 3D Rage Edition, a "lackluster port for Windows" that was bundled with ATI GPUs, Szablewski wrote. It is a mess. There are fragments of code versions from DOS, PlayStation, Windows 95, and Windows 98, with lots of things shakily patched in, including some kludgey 25-to-30 frames-per-second physics calculations in moving from European PAL to North American NTSC. The result was bad geometry, sluggish performance, and even goofed text rendering. Not that he doesn't have sympathy. "The code may not be pretty, but the result justifies it all," he wrote. The PSX launch title braved unseen hardware and 3D models and physics and holds up today. But this pack-in version "is some caffeine-induced nightmare code written under immense time pressure. The 5000 lines of if else that handles the menu state is a striking witness to this insanity." Advertisement * The menu seems so simple, you'd never guess it was once 5,000 lines of code. Psygnosis / Dominic Szablewski * Cruising along, hearing someone in a British voice mutter "Missile" at me, as if he was shopping for one at Tesco. Psygnosis / Dominic Szablewski * The first-person view in Wipeout is like a little difficulty boost. Psygnosis / Dominic Szablewski * Your author will not be completing this game for full review, as it is both nearly 30 years old and also he is bad at it. Psygnosis / Dominic Szablewski As he digs into the specifics of his work, Szablewski takes the reader on a tour of PSX dev kits and how they handled Z-levels, how to translate yesterday's triangles to today's OpenGL, breaking the 30 FPS cap on a game that explicitly forbade that, and more. He takes the code from 40,699 lines to 7,731 and notably loved an excuse to work in C. "I had an absolute blast cleaning up this mess!" Szablewski's Wipeout rewrite can be compiled for Windows, Linux, Mac, and WASM (Web Assembly). You can even play it in your browser on his server (please be gentle). I spent some time in it this morning, and let me tell you: I am not ready for anti-gravity racing in the year 2052. It was a struggle to even get to fourth place, but those struggles were due entirely to skill, not system. The web version feels buttery smooth, even when you're continually clunking into walls. I had misremembered this game as having a lot more to it, but it's all feel: the trance/prog music, the physics, the controls, and the sense that you're always just slightly out of control. What about Sony and their legions of lawyers? Szablewski writes that Sony has "demonstrated a lack of interest in the original" Wipeout, so he doesn't expect to hear much. "If anyone at Sony is reading this, please consider that you have (in my opinion) two equally good options: either let it be, or shut this thing down and get a real remaster going. I'd love to help!" reader comments 97 with Kevin Purdy Kevin is a senior technology reporter at Ars Technica, covering a variety of technology topics and reviewing products. He started his writing career as a newspaper reporter, covering business, crime, and other topics. He has written about technology and computing for more than 15 years. Advertisement Channel Ars Technica - Previous story Next story - Related Stories Today on Ars * Store * Subscribe * About Us * RSS Feeds * View Mobile Site * Contact Us * Staff * Advertise with us * Reprints Newsletter Signup Join the Ars Orbital Transmission mailing list to get weekly updates delivered to your inbox. Sign me up - CNMN Collection WIRED Media Group (c) 2023 Conde Nast. All rights reserved. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 1/1/20) and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement (updated 1/1 /20) and Ars Technica Addendum (effective 8/21/2018). Ars may earn compensation on sales from links on this site. Read our affiliate link policy. 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