mirror of
https://github.com/jkdansereau/goldeneye-pc-port.git
synced 2026-10-24 00:02:45 +02:00
Merge branch 'main' into feat/linux-ci-compile
This commit is contained in:
commit
05b89374e8
7 files changed
+362
-18
No files matched your search
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
|
||||
*A case study in AI-agent collaboration on a large, low-level codebase. A
|
||||
GoldenEye 007 Nintendo 64 → desktop port, taken from "builds a ROM" to
|
||||
"playable front end" in about two weeks — driven mostly by two coding agents (a
|
||||
local open-weight model, Qwen 3, on a single RTX 5090, and a hosted frontier
|
||||
local open-weight model, Qwen 3.8, on a single RTX 5090, and a hosted frontier
|
||||
model, Claude / Claude Code), handing work back and forth through shared
|
||||
written notes under one person's part-time direction. This is the goal, the
|
||||
method, the timeline, and an honest read on what did and didn't work.*
|
||||
|
||||
@@ -0,0 +1,244 @@
|
||||
# Release plan — "drop in your ROM and play"
|
||||
|
||||
Status: proposal / not yet scheduled. Owner: TBD.
|
||||
|
||||
## Goal
|
||||
|
||||
An end user downloads the GitHub release zip, unzips it, drops their
|
||||
legally-owned GoldenEye 007 N64 ROM (`.z64`, big-endian) into a folder,
|
||||
double-clicks the exe, and plays. No Python, no MSYS2, no manual
|
||||
asset-extraction, no command line.
|
||||
|
||||
## Where we are today
|
||||
|
||||
The Windows bundle produced by `tools_pc/bundle-win.sh` (and uploaded by the
|
||||
`windows-build` CI job) already contains only: the engine exe, its MinGW /
|
||||
SDL2 / zlib DLLs, a README, and licenses. It deliberately ships **no** ROM and
|
||||
**no** game assets. That part is fine.
|
||||
|
||||
The gap is everything the runtime needs *alongside* the ROM before a level
|
||||
will render:
|
||||
|
||||
| Dependency | Produced today by | Consumed at runtime by |
|
||||
|---|---|---|
|
||||
| `port/src/romassets_<region>.s` — absolute cart-address symbols for every obseg/ramrom/music asset + `ge007.ld` segment markers | `python3 scripts/gen_romassets.py <u\|e\|j>`, compiled **into** the exe | linker; `&symbol` + `romCopy()` in game code |
|
||||
| `data/pcmodels-<region>/{pcmodels.bin,manifest.csv}` (~1.3 MB) — every model file re-laid-out to PC struct layout, RZ-compressed | `python3 tools_pc/d43_emit.py <region>` | `port/src/pcmodels.c` (`pcmodelsReserveSize`/`LoadSidecars`/`PatchTable`) |
|
||||
| `data/pccg-<region>/{pccg.bin,manifest.csv}` (~3.6 MB) — every stage `bg/*.seg` + `Tbg_*_stanZ` re-laid-out to PC layout | `python3 tools_pc/d69_emit.py <region>` | `port/src/pccg.c` |
|
||||
| ROM present at `data/ge007.<region>.z64` (or `baserom.<r>.z64`) | user copies it | `port/src/romdata.c` maps it at `0x10000000` |
|
||||
|
||||
Without the two sidecar trees the game shows the intro logos and then crashes
|
||||
in `modelPromoteNodeOffsetsToPointers` (finding D179).
|
||||
|
||||
The full decomp asset-extraction toolchain (`scripts/extract_baserom.u.sh`,
|
||||
`tools/extractor`, MIPS binutils) is **not** on the runtime path and never
|
||||
needs to reach an end user — it only regenerates the committed `assets/**`
|
||||
`.inc.c` / `.bin` metadata that a plain `git clone` already has.
|
||||
|
||||
### Important facts established while writing this plan
|
||||
|
||||
1. **`gen_romassets.py` does not need the ROM.** It resolves every symbol for
|
||||
`u`, `e`, and `j` from committed files (`scripts/filelist.<r>.csv`,
|
||||
`assets/obseg/file_resource_table.inc.c`, `assets/ramrom/ramrom.s`,
|
||||
`assets/music/*.s`, `ge007.ld`). The ROM is only opened to size the
|
||||
trailing `images` segment, and there is already a CSV-derived fallback when
|
||||
it is absent. So all three `romassets_<r>.s` files can be generated in CI
|
||||
with no ROM. (`docs/building.md` claims PAL/JP need "region-specific
|
||||
prop/font offsets from that region's ROM" — the current generator code
|
||||
shows no such ROM read; treat that sentence as stale, but verify before
|
||||
relying on it — see Open questions.)
|
||||
|
||||
2. **`d43_emit.py` / `d69_emit.py` are pure-stdlib Python 3.** They read only
|
||||
the ROM plus committed repo files, and their output is a deterministic
|
||||
function of the ROM. Both carry extensive built-in round-trip validation
|
||||
(re-parse the emitted image, check every field against the N64 source) and
|
||||
exit non-zero on any mismatch. `d43_emit.py` also runs a battery of
|
||||
buffer-fit cross-checks.
|
||||
|
||||
3. **The engine is region-locked at compile time.** `REGION_DEFS` in
|
||||
`CMakeLists.txt` differ per region (`VERSION_US/EU/JP`, `BUGFIX_*`,
|
||||
`LEFTOVERDEBUG`, …) and are used in 60+ game files. One exe cannot serve
|
||||
all three ROMs; the release must ship three exes (or one launcher that
|
||||
dispatches to three).
|
||||
|
||||
4. **Data/config location is already sane.** `sysResolvePath()` maps `$S/` to
|
||||
`./data/` (next to CWD if present, else next to the exe). `ge007.ini`,
|
||||
`ge007.eep`, and the sidecar trees all live under `$S/`. First launch
|
||||
already writes `ge007.ini` there. The sidecar loaders already search
|
||||
`$S/`, `$E/`, and `./`.
|
||||
|
||||
5. **ROM identity checking already half-exists.** `port/src/romdata.c`
|
||||
validates magic / title / cart-ID / country byte. `tools_pc/romverify.c`
|
||||
goes further (recomputes the `n64cksum` 6102 checksum over
|
||||
`[0x1000,0x100000)` using `tools/n64cksum.c`). Canonical SHA-1s for all
|
||||
three regions are in the README requirements table.
|
||||
|
||||
## Recommended approach
|
||||
|
||||
**Two-part: (A) fold the ROM-independent piece into CI now, and (B) add a
|
||||
native first-run converter to the engine so the sidecars are generated on the
|
||||
user's machine from their own ROM.**
|
||||
|
||||
### Part A — ship all three regions, pre-generate all `romassets`
|
||||
|
||||
Small, low-risk, unblocks a "download three exes, pick the one for your ROM"
|
||||
release even before Part B lands.
|
||||
|
||||
- CI `windows-build` becomes a 3-way matrix (`ntsc-final`, `pal-final`,
|
||||
`jpn-final`). Each leg runs `gen_romassets.py <u|e|j>` then `build-pc.sh`.
|
||||
- `bundle-win.sh` collects all three exes (`ge007.ntsc-final.exe`,
|
||||
`ge007.pal-final.exe`, `ge007.jpn-final.exe`) into one bundle, with shared
|
||||
DLLs.
|
||||
- Add a tiny **launcher** `ge007.exe` (≈150 lines C, its own CMake target):
|
||||
reads `data/*.z64` (and `baserom.*.z64`), checks the header country byte +
|
||||
SHA-1 against the three known-good hashes, then `CreateProcess`es the
|
||||
matching region exe. On no ROM / unknown ROM it shows a message box naming
|
||||
the accepted versions and hashes and the folder to drop the ROM in.
|
||||
- Alternative if a separate launcher is unwanted: make each region exe, on
|
||||
detecting a ROM whose country byte is for a different region, re-exec its
|
||||
sibling. Slightly hackier; avoids a fourth binary.
|
||||
|
||||
### Part B — native first-run sidecar converter
|
||||
|
||||
Port `d43_emit.py` and `d69_emit.py` to C as a new engine module
|
||||
`port/src/pcconvert/` (files: `pcconvert.h`, `d43.c`, `d69.c`,
|
||||
`pcconvert.c` orchestrator). On startup, `romdataInit()` (after it has the
|
||||
mapped ROM and region) calls `pcconvertEnsureSidecars(region)`:
|
||||
|
||||
1. If `$S/pcmodels-<region>/pcmodels.bin` **and** `$S/pccg-<region>/pccg.bin`
|
||||
exist and their embedded format-version tag matches the build → return
|
||||
immediately (the common case after first run).
|
||||
2. Otherwise show a "Preparing game data from your ROM (one-time, ~5 s)…"
|
||||
splash / log line, run the two converters, write the four output files
|
||||
into `$S/`, then continue boot. Cache a `pcconvert.stamp` with the ROM
|
||||
SHA-1 + converter version so a ROM swap or engine upgrade re-runs it.
|
||||
|
||||
The converters need, besides the ROM:
|
||||
|
||||
- `scripts/filelist.u.csv`
|
||||
- `assets/obseg/file_resource_table.inc.c`
|
||||
- `assets/**/ModelFileHeader.inc.c` (NS/NT per model)
|
||||
- the stage `bg` / `stan` `.inc.c` metadata `d69` reads
|
||||
|
||||
These are committed text/CSV, a few hundred KB total. **Embed them into the
|
||||
exe at build time** via a CMake codegen step (`file(READ ...)` →
|
||||
`.byte`/`const char[]`), so the release stays "exe + DLLs" with nothing loose.
|
||||
A build-file change is required here (new `add_custom_command` + generated
|
||||
source) — out of scope for this doc, but noted as the one unavoidable
|
||||
`CMakeLists.txt` edit.
|
||||
|
||||
Reuse: `zlib` is already linked (RZ = `0x11 0x72` + raw deflate — the exact
|
||||
codec `pcmodels`/`pccg` already decompress). The engine already has robust
|
||||
byte-swap helpers in `romdata.c`. The Python round-trip validators should be
|
||||
ported too and run in debug builds / behind an env flag.
|
||||
|
||||
**Effort estimate:** `d43_emit.py` is ~1000 lines of intricate model-graph
|
||||
simulation (LOD/SWITCH rewire, BSP splice, marker-expansion bounds, DFS
|
||||
placement) + validation; `d69_emit.py` ~500 lines. Call it a 2–4 week
|
||||
focused task with careful diffing of C output against the Python output
|
||||
byte-for-byte on all three ROMs before trust. This is the single biggest
|
||||
work item.
|
||||
|
||||
### Interim option (faster Part B, if timeline pressure)
|
||||
|
||||
Freeze the two emit scripts with **PyInstaller / Nuitka in the Windows CI
|
||||
job** (the runner has Python) into one `ge007-convert.exe`, ship it in the
|
||||
bundle, and have the engine `CreateProcess` it on first run when sidecars are
|
||||
missing. Pure-stdlib scripts freeze into a single clean exe with no user
|
||||
Python. Downsides: ~8–15 MB added to the bundle, Windows-only, and it is a
|
||||
second binary to sign / trust. Recommend this **only** as a stopgap that buys
|
||||
time for the real C port; it satisfies "no user-visible Python/MSYS2" but not
|
||||
"single native binary" or non-Windows.
|
||||
|
||||
### Rejected options
|
||||
|
||||
- **Precompute and ship the sidecars.** They are ROM-derived copyrighted game
|
||||
data (`data/pcmodels-*`, `data/pccg-*` are gitignored precisely for this).
|
||||
Redistribution is not acceptable. Rejected.
|
||||
- **Region-independent sidecars.** `d43`/`d69` output is a function of the
|
||||
ROM; there is no region-independent form to precompute, and even if there
|
||||
were it would still be ROM-derived data. Rejected.
|
||||
- **Bundle CPython + the .py scripts loose.** Meets the letter of "no MSYS2"
|
||||
but not "no Python", ages badly, and is bigger than a frozen exe for no
|
||||
gain. Rejected in favour of the interim freeze if a stopgap is needed.
|
||||
|
||||
## CI / release changes
|
||||
|
||||
1. `windows-build` → matrix over the three ROMIDs; each leg generates its
|
||||
`romassets_<r>.s` and builds.
|
||||
2. Commit all three `port/src/romassets_{u,e,j}.s` (or generate in each CI
|
||||
leg — committing is simpler and lets non-CI builds skip the generator).
|
||||
Add an `e`/`j` regen + `git diff --stat` check to the `validate` job
|
||||
mirroring the existing US one.
|
||||
3. `bundle-win.sh`: bundle all three region exes + the launcher; keep the
|
||||
"no ROM / size ≤ 60 MB" guards (raise the limit only if the interim frozen
|
||||
converter is included).
|
||||
4. `release` job: unchanged shape (draft pre-release); update
|
||||
`.github/release-notes.md` with the drop-in-ROM instructions + the
|
||||
requirements/hash table.
|
||||
5. Add a CI check that runs `d43_emit.py --check-only` / a `d69` equivalent
|
||||
against a **CI-only** ROM if one can be provided via encrypted secret;
|
||||
otherwise this stays a manual pre-publish smoke test (the release job is
|
||||
already a human-gated draft).
|
||||
6. Once Part B lands: a CI step that builds the C converter, runs it and the
|
||||
Python converter on the same ROM (secret), and `cmp`s the outputs.
|
||||
|
||||
## Code to be written
|
||||
|
||||
| File(s) | Rough scope | Notes |
|
||||
|---|---|---|
|
||||
| `port/src/launcher/ge007_launch.c` + CMake target | ~150 lines | ROM detect, SHA-1 match vs 3 known hashes, `CreateProcess` region exe, message-box on failure |
|
||||
| `port/src/pcconvert/d43.c` | ~1000–1300 lines | C port of `tools_pc/d43_emit.py` incl. graph sim + validation |
|
||||
| `port/src/pcconvert/d69.c` | ~500–700 lines | C port of `tools_pc/d69_emit.py` |
|
||||
| `port/src/pcconvert/pcconvert.c` + `.h` | ~200 lines | orchestrator, stamp file, splash text, wired into `romdataInit()` |
|
||||
| CMake codegen for embedded metadata | ~40 lines CMake + generated `.c` | embeds `filelist.u.csv`, `file_resource_table.inc.c`, `ModelFileHeader.inc.c`, bg/stan `.inc.c` |
|
||||
| `tools_pc/bundle-win.sh`, `.github/workflows/ci.yml` | edits | matrix, 3 exes, launcher, notes |
|
||||
| SHA-1 helper (or reuse a vendored small SHA-1) | ~100 lines | for launcher + `pcconvert.stamp`; `romverify.c`'s n64cksum path is an alternative identity check |
|
||||
|
||||
## ROM SHA-1 / region handling
|
||||
|
||||
- Accept a ROM at `data/ge007.<region>.z64`, `data/*.z64` (any name — sniff
|
||||
the header), or `baserom.{u,e,j}.z64`.
|
||||
- Verify: N64 magic + "GOLDENEYE" + "GE" + country byte (already done), then
|
||||
SHA-1 against the README table. On a header-valid but hash-mismatched ROM
|
||||
(bad dump, byte-swapped `.n64`/`.v64`, ROM hack): warn but allow a
|
||||
`--skip-rom-check` / ini opt-out; byte-swapped images should be detected and
|
||||
the user told to supply a true big-endian `.z64`.
|
||||
- Region is taken from the country byte (`E`→ntsc-final, `P`→pal-final,
|
||||
`J`→jpn-final), which already drives `pcmodelsRegionForCountry()`.
|
||||
|
||||
## Config / data location
|
||||
|
||||
No change needed. `$S/` = `./data/` (or `<exedir>/data/`). First run creates
|
||||
`ge007.ini`; Part B additionally creates `pcmodels-<region>/`,
|
||||
`pccg-<region>/`, and `pcconvert.stamp` there. Document that the user makes a
|
||||
`data/` folder next to the exe and drops the ROM in it (the launcher can
|
||||
offer to create it).
|
||||
|
||||
## Open questions
|
||||
|
||||
1. **Does PAL/JP `romassets` generation truly need nothing from the ROM?**
|
||||
`docs/building.md` says it needs region-specific offsets; the code says
|
||||
otherwise. Generate `e` and `j` in CI and diff against a
|
||||
locally-ROM-generated copy to confirm before committing them.
|
||||
2. **Does `d43_emit.py` really use `scripts/filelist.u.csv` for all three
|
||||
regions?** It hard-codes `FILELIST = "scripts/filelist.u.csv"` even when
|
||||
`REGION` is `pal-final`/`jpn-final`. Either model file offsets are
|
||||
US-identical across regions (plausible — models live in obseg which may not
|
||||
shift) or PAL/JP model conversion is currently untested. Confirm before
|
||||
promising PAL/JP support in the release.
|
||||
3. **Launcher vs self-re-exec vs three shortcuts** — pick one UX.
|
||||
4. **Splash UI for the first-run convert** — reuse the SDL window / a simple
|
||||
progress line, or a pre-SDL Win32 dialog? ~5 s is short enough that a log
|
||||
line + busy cursor may suffice.
|
||||
5. **Non-Windows.** Part B's C converter is portable; the launcher and
|
||||
bundling are Windows-only today. Out of scope but the C port keeps the
|
||||
door open.
|
||||
6. **Signing.** Unsigned exes + a "reads your ROM" first-run step will trip
|
||||
SmartScreen. Not blocking, but worth a release-notes note.
|
||||
|
||||
## Suggested milestone ordering
|
||||
|
||||
1. Part A (3-region matrix + pre-generated `romassets` + launcher) — days.
|
||||
2. Interim frozen `ge007-convert.exe` wired to first-run — days, optional.
|
||||
3. Part B C port of `d43`/`d69` + embedded metadata + output diffing — weeks.
|
||||
4. Drop the interim binary; single-binary drop-in experience complete.
|
||||
Reference in new issue
Block a user