A project called demoscene-recomp has brought classic PC demo scene productions, including Second Reality and Unreal, to run directly in a web browser. It currently features four demos, which can be played in full or viewed section by section, with more planned for the future. via reddit.com/r/thisweekinretro
A GitHub project called Ultima7_Decomp has produced an AI-assisted decompilation of Ultima 7: The Black Gate and Ultima 7 Part Two: Serpent Isle. The rebuild is byte-verified against output from Borland C++ 2.0, the original compiler, with much of the preserved logic including original assembly code, enabling the game to be built natively for Windows, Mac and Linux. via github.com
The Undocumented Behavior YouTube channel has posted a video titled "AI Game Decompilation: A Deep Dive," looking at the process of decompiling games. via YouTube
An EA producer has reportedly found the original FMV source tapes for Wing Commander 3 in the company's archives, leading to plans for a 30th Anniversary Edition remaster. The restored footage would improve on the compressed video quality of the original 1994 release. The plans were revealed at the Portland Gaming Expo. via pcgamer.com
A physical packet transmitted using RFC 1149, the joke internet standard for carrying data by homing pigeon, is being auctioned. The packet originates from a real-world test carried out by a group of Norwegian hackers who implemented the protocol. via hackster.io
Protoweb is a community-run proxy service that rebuilds and hosts historical websites to recreate the look and feel of the internet circa 1995. Users connect by pointing a proxy-capable browser at Protoweb's servers, giving old computers access to period weather, news, music and game sites without needing registration. The service is in public beta with its library of restored sites growing daily. via protoweb.org
mdk-sdl is a new engine reimplementation of MDK, the 1997 Shiny Entertainment PC game, allowing it to run natively on Windows, Mac and Linux. The project rebuilds the original engine using SDL rather than relying on emulation. via reddit.com/r/thisweekinretro
Stewart Russell has uploaded the first six issues of Just Amiga Monthly (JAM), a magazine that was produced entirely on the Amiga, to archive.org for preservation. via amiga-news.de
A YouTube video from the Electric Adventures channel covers rare games for the Spectravideo SV-318/328 that were published by Mr Micro. via YouTube
A member of the SHIRO! Discord community has solved the online functionality of Dragon's Dream and Habitat II, two Japan-exclusive, online-only Sega Saturn titles previously thought lost. The project is now seeking translators to help with the next stage of the preservation effort. via segasaturnshiro.com
Games That Weren't has published a feature on Tricks 'N' Treasures, a cancelled third-person action/platform game developed by Hammerhead for Psygnosis around 1999-2000. The title appeared under several slightly different names in contemporary magazine coverage, and little beyond that coverage has survived publicly. via gamesthatwerent.com
The ScummVM project has announced that Dungeon Master, the influential first-person dungeon crawler, now runs through its engine and is included in nightly builds for public testing. via reddit.com/r/thisweekinretro
