Advanced Programming

Is DeHackEd really the only EXE editor you could want? I see a lot of advanced mods (railguns, trampolines, etc) and I'm not exactly sure if DeHackEd can do all that. I'm also interested in adding more weapons and seperate ammo to the game, to take up the other keyslots besides the 7 that are already there. Can DeHackEd allow that? Or do I need to use something more advanced?

I can see in one of the site's headers, a screenshot of code strings similar to what I worked with when I used to edit Wolfenstein. If DeHackEd can't do the thing's I have in mind, there are other ways to work with the source code in a compiler, right? What would I need to do that? And where may I find help with what I might want to accomplish?

I think much of what you're describing involves actually changing the source code of the game. I don't know if you're aware, but the source code for Doom was released in 1997 (correct?), so there's many ports of it and you can modify the game to do whatever you want really (assuming you have knowledge of C).

btw: the code header that you mention specifically deals with the behavior of the OUCHFACE.

Depending on the engine, you can do exactly what you said with different ways. For example, DECORATE which is used in Zdoom and most of it's spinoffs, allows you to create new monsters, projectiles, weaponry, which weapons occupy which slots, and many other things.

MikeRS said:
btw: the code header that you mention specifically deals with the behavior of the OUCHFACE. [/B]

I knew that, I just meant that seeing that image showed me that people do in fact edit the source code in ways other than DeHackEd.

I don't mean to double-post, since this is a later date...but I was wondering...

Does this site have a link to the raw source code for vanilla DOOM? I have a working knowledge of C++ and wanted to edit DOOM the old-fashioned way for my own entertainment and education. Can it be loaded into any compiler?

Also, are there any source ports that released their code for download so I can contrast and compare?

The original released version is here: http://www.3ddownloads.com/showfile.php3?file_id=7430 -- Although I don't think it compiles anymore in modern operating systems, so I don't recommend it. If you want a source port that acts like vanilla as closely as possible, try Chocolate Doom (use the SVN version though since 0.1.4 is very outdated)

Any source port based off of the GPL-licensed version (most of them) are required to release their source code anyway. IIRC, the original Doom Public License allowed closed source versions, so some of them don't have source code available.

You say it won't compile under modern OS's...are you sure it's the OS? Or the compiler? I think I can still compile Wolfenstein's code as long as I still use the old Borland 3.1 compiler from 15 years ago.

FRANKENDOOM said:

You say it won't compile under modern OS's...are you sure it's the OS? Or the compiler? I think I can still compile Wolfenstein's code as long as I still use the old Borland 3.1 compiler from 15 years ago.

Id didn't release the DOS source code, they released the source code of the Linux port of Doom, and none of the DOS code was included. You can compile and run the code on Linux, but it won't actually run on modern machines as it requires you to be running in 256 color mode.

In any case, you're really better off working with a source port than doing anything with the original source. Almost all of the source ports have fixed a ton of bugs in the original source, and even if you want something that just behaves like Vanilla Doom, there are differences between Vanilla Doom and how the source code behaves (there apparently were some changes made in the Linux port).

Depending on what you want to do, you might want to start with something like ZDoom or Prboom as a base and work from there, or if you want something that just provides what Vanilla Doom does, try Chocolate Doom.

It's worth pointing out that if all you want to do is more advanced special effects, you might find that something like ZDoom will offer the ability to do what you want without having to change the source code. Some of the more advanced ports are pretty flexible and will do a lot more than Dehacked ever could.

Also, are there any source ports that released their code for download so I can contrast and compare?

Almost all source ports have the source code available for download. Notable exceptions are the multiplayer ports like ZDaemon and Skulltag which have done this because it gives them the illusion of added security.