Extending the Life of Halo Modding

[Sparky]

This archive contains every version of Halo PC's executable file, between 1.0 and 1.09. It also contains every Halo Mac's application files (courtesy of nil). It also contains a dump of each Halo PC executable version using the following command:

Code: Select all

dumpbin /disasm /out:"C:\Documents and Settings\Robert\Desktop\Halo Reverse-Engineering\other versions\1\halo_dump" "C:\Documents and Settings\Robert\Desktop\Halo Reverse-Engineering\other versions\1\halo.exe"

derr... ignore that name ok?

The following web sites were used for the collection of PC version patches:
http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx ... 1#22898186 -- where I learned that version "0615" actually meant version "1.0.7.0615"
http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Halo:_Combat ... C)_patches -- where I got a better idea of which versions were available (this also basically describes the changes in each version)
http://legacy.the-junkyard.net/files-ha ... category=8 -- versions 1.01 through 1.04 available here
http://www.worthdownloading.com/game.php?page=0&gid=412 -- three pages of versions between 1.04 and 1.09
http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/patc ... patch.html -- versions 1.06 through 1.09 available here

http://www.xfire.com/forums/182646/topic/1312525/ -- where I found this sig:


LOL ok that last one was in response to people making icons / logos.

Download from HDM: The Halo Mac and Halo PC Application Collection
which also includes the hacked executable for Halo PC.

Note: nil, I added the PC versions to your "Old versions" upload, also fixing the line in the read me file to say

2. Halo 1.03 <-> Halo PC 1.031

because you had it saying the wrong pc version as 1.03.

I incorporated your collection of apps for Mac since this is basically the same thing, but for PC. It's also simpler to compare the hex code when all the related applications are right there (except the commercial Halo Full UB which is still not appropriate to distribute). So I put all these together into a single collection.

Also:

Halo owners who have not upgraded to an Intel-based Mac do not need to upgrade their version of Halo. They will still be able to play network games against owners of the Universal version.

And Mgal, the application should be called "Halo Demo UB" not "Halo demo Multiplayer". Also, the background idea is nice. I suggest simplifying all that illegible text to:
"Halo Demo Universal Binary"
"Drag to your folder of choice"
"Modded by Modzy and nil"
"MacGamingMods.com"

The rest can be included inside a readme file that Modzy and nil would write. (By the way, they can write this together using http://www.collabedit.com/ .)

Don't mention yourself or me, since it's basically their ideas and an MGM-hosted Halo group project.

[Mgalekgolo]

Yeah yeah, fine.

[kiddten]

Just my opinion, but I think the dmg should go something like this (albeit with a readme enclosed)

The best part of this is that I don't have a mac, so I had to do all this with photoshop.
Also, I have barely any idea of design.

[Mgalekgolo]

800X400 or something, doesn't need the bar in photoshop. Also I found that text... boring. Hard to look at. MAKE MOAR INTERESING!

[kiddten]

I chose that one because it's the default osx text, and I couldn't be bothered trying to find a better one.
The idea with the bar is that it is a mockup, so what it /should/ look like in osx.

[Mgalekgolo]

Alright I can use that one but remove the applications folder and halo app thing. I'll put those in.

[Sparky]

So nil and Modzy, did you see my post at the top of this page?
Did you compare the text files between versions? It should be really easy to see how they removed about 8,000 (if I remember correctly) bytes of code when they removed the CD check from the executable in version 1.08.
You can also see where the network code is, since each version changes basically only the network code part of the app.

TextWrangler which is free does a great job of finding differences. Go under the Search menu.

EDIT: I noticed that the versions without the CD Key check have the stxt371 and stxt774 removed from the summary. That's the hacked 1.01 and 1.08 versions.
So the secure text is removed... so there is no hash being used? Eh.. I need to research assembly code. Anyway, try comparing the hacked version with the version 1.08 and see which similarities you find.

[nil]

So nil and Modzy, did you see my post at the top of this page?
Did you compare the text files between versions? It should be really easy to see how they removed about 8,000 (if I remember correctly) bytes of code when they removed the CD check from the executable in version 1.08.
You can also see where the network code is, since each version changes basically only the network code part of the app.

TextWrangler which is free does a great job of finding differences. Go under the Search menu.

Yeah I saw the post. Thanks for uploading the files. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how to make of them. The cracked version and the original seem to be quite different (as one can tell with a simple glance at both files). Also the cracked version removes 8,000 or so bytes from the end as you say which bugs me. I was hoping the cracked version would only modify a few instructions. Oh, and it's not true that each version only changes the network code (plus you can have different compiler settings, too)

[EDIT]: Just read your edit. That kind of makes more sense, now. 1.08 is more similar to the cracked versions. By the way, one would think there should be a way for dumpbin or some kind of tool to output symbol information for the dissembled code.

[Sparky]

Assembly code is quite nifty. Do you know how to read it?

I'd use TextWrangler to compare the files. And a hex editor to cross-compare the assembly code with the hex data.

I'm back to my original thought: why don't we just ask for the source code for the game and explain what we intend to do with it? Tell them all the things we intend to do with it, and at the very least they will be impressed and motivated to do what we're doing, or let us do what we want to do with it. It cannot hurt to ask for the source code. Perhaps they'll do what id software did with Doom 3 and give us the source code without the intellectual property rights to it.

In short, we just have to tell them that we will submit all our work to them so they can publish it; but that MGM and HDM would not retain any IP rights to the software, original or modified. Basically, it's no different than what we do here, except that we credit modders for what they do. Let's try to push this, because it's either we ask them for the source code or we end up going out of our way to reverse-engineer this thing like we're doing now.

After all, that's how it's been with the map files until Halo Custom Edition was released. The developers saw how enthusiastic the gamers were and saw they wanted to mod the software, so they released their in-house map-making programs. But of course, we as the people who are actually using the software can do much better. I'm not saying to expect Microsoft/Bungie/Gearbox/Westlake to make the game open-source, but to work with us idealists here at MGM and HDM to make the software better than it already is. Optimization and improvement, what is being done with Halo Anniversary, is what we're after. But our ideas have never been met in the commercial paths of the game. Maybe it's because we're not out to make money, but to make the game better?

So let us as a community -- signing all our names -- write to these companies to request the source code for the Halo Universal Binary so that we can make a demo version as was made with Halo PPC. And if you don't see the value in this, then you're not on the front lines of this modding community.

[nil]

Assembly code is quite nifty. Do you know how to read it?

I'd use TextWrangler to compare the files. And a hex editor to cross-compare the assembly code with the hex data.

A little bit.

I've a few things to lay out about this thread:

Source code request - stupid idea, see other thread as to why.
Icons - don't discuss about it, it is spamming the thread.
DMG - does not matter. likewise, see about icons above ^.
Releasing/packaging stuff - Only me and Modzy will handle that unless we ask for outside help.

What this thread is for - contributing information that may help us to hack this game.
Other discussion goes in other threads if you wish.

[Mgalekgolo]

Ok I shall stop distributing the demo then.

[Modzy]

In some news a bit related, I was successfully able to use the Key from my PC version of Halo (bought several years ago) to create a server:

[Mgalekgolo]

H-how?

[Modzy]

Put in a fake key, then used a memory editor to find the key in memory, edited it to be my PC key, and Halo saved it and did the rest.

[Dead Site]

Smart.

If anyone wants I am very good at using PackageMaker and Disk Utility in terms of making a .pkg file for such(an attractive Installer, ReadMe and all) or a mounted disk image.