Crevasse
惡名昭彰
TL;DR: We have recreated a "real" 7.8+ clone by manually upgrading the decompiled leaked binary. Looking for some people to come and playtest!
Knightwatch
When @fusion32 released the decompiled binary, I assumed there would be a lot of interest in iterating on it to build “ultra-accurate” versions of earlier eras of the game. While I enjoy “super old school” servers as much as the next guy, I didn’t want to make another 7.6 clone (especially when servers like Project Fibula already exist and fill that role nicely).
Personally, I’ve always liked the 7.8 era of the game. To me it feels like a bit of a “Goldilocks” period: creature comforts like item hotkeys had been introduced, but the skills and formulas were still essentially the same as 7.6. Most item and creature sprites remained unchanged between 7.6 and 8.0, but a significant amount of new content was added during that time.
Noticing the lack of accurate 7.8-era servers, some friends and I decided to take the decompiled binary in a different direction. Instead of targeting an earlier version, we began upgrading it forward, starting with 7.8, and later 7.92, and eventually 8.0.
Since the leaked game files only include data up to 7.7, nearly all of the newer content had to be recreated manually. This involved introducing the updated client/server protocols, implementing new functions to support mechanics introduced in later versions (such as expiring quest values), adding support for addons and outfits, incorporating new towns and houses, and recreating the 7.8+ NPCs, monsters, and quests. Recreating the content from scratch has been a lot of work, but it’s also been very satisfying to see the mechanics and monster behavior feel nearly identical to how they originally did.
Beyond the protocol and content updates, we also made significant security improvements. The early-2000s security protocols used by the leaked binary are extremely outdated, and since the original client source code isn’t available, we opted to overhaul the security model on the server and build our own compatible client.
So what are we looking to test?
Versions 7.8 through 8.0 include a large amount of content, and we’re looking for people willing to help play through parts of the game to make sure everything works smoothly and that there are no issues with the client.
The server is open and online now, and anyone is welcome to join and explore. Just keep in mind that this is currently a beta/playtest, and the world will be wiped before the official launch. For more information about the server itself and our overall vision, check the About page on the Knightwatch website.
If you enjoy this era of the game and are interested in helping test an authentic approach to it, we’d love to have you join us.
Knightwatch
When @fusion32 released the decompiled binary, I assumed there would be a lot of interest in iterating on it to build “ultra-accurate” versions of earlier eras of the game. While I enjoy “super old school” servers as much as the next guy, I didn’t want to make another 7.6 clone (especially when servers like Project Fibula already exist and fill that role nicely).
Personally, I’ve always liked the 7.8 era of the game. To me it feels like a bit of a “Goldilocks” period: creature comforts like item hotkeys had been introduced, but the skills and formulas were still essentially the same as 7.6. Most item and creature sprites remained unchanged between 7.6 and 8.0, but a significant amount of new content was added during that time.
Noticing the lack of accurate 7.8-era servers, some friends and I decided to take the decompiled binary in a different direction. Instead of targeting an earlier version, we began upgrading it forward, starting with 7.8, and later 7.92, and eventually 8.0.
Since the leaked game files only include data up to 7.7, nearly all of the newer content had to be recreated manually. This involved introducing the updated client/server protocols, implementing new functions to support mechanics introduced in later versions (such as expiring quest values), adding support for addons and outfits, incorporating new towns and houses, and recreating the 7.8+ NPCs, monsters, and quests. Recreating the content from scratch has been a lot of work, but it’s also been very satisfying to see the mechanics and monster behavior feel nearly identical to how they originally did.
Beyond the protocol and content updates, we also made significant security improvements. The early-2000s security protocols used by the leaked binary are extremely outdated, and since the original client source code isn’t available, we opted to overhaul the security model on the server and build our own compatible client.
So what are we looking to test?
Versions 7.8 through 8.0 include a large amount of content, and we’re looking for people willing to help play through parts of the game to make sure everything works smoothly and that there are no issues with the client.
The server is open and online now, and anyone is welcome to join and explore. Just keep in mind that this is currently a beta/playtest, and the world will be wiped before the official launch. For more information about the server itself and our overall vision, check the About page on the Knightwatch website.
If you enjoy this era of the game and are interested in helping test an authentic approach to it, we’d love to have you join us.
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anyway good luck with it
i love that people wants to take this realots engine even more far
