Hello everyone. I have been playing Uplink for a few years now, and have thoroughly enjoyed the game in all of aspects, from mods to skinning to custom missions. Uplink has become one of the (increasingly) few games that presents itself in a simple format but somehow continues to captivate players and drive them to return to it.

This past summer, I made the jump and bought a Mac- a MacBook Pro to be specific. Ah yes, the joys of the new Mactels were abundant and obvious.

Having taken a break from Uplink for a while (since about just before I bought the Mac) I have recently decided to come back to it. Having nearly broken my addiction to the ever-popular WoW, I am looking to return to some of my old favorites, and Uplink is certainly one of them.

Oh yes, I installed it. Balls out, I installed it on my Intel Mac like a rebellious toddler. Yes, the intel mac will run it. Poorly. More so than the Linux version on my 5 year old linux box.

So the question remains, is there any chance that we (the late-comers to the Mac scene) will ever see a Universal binary for Uplink? I think that would be incredibly nice to have around.

I am wholly unaware of what difficulties one might face porting the old PPC version, but from what I have observed, I must say that it can't be THAT difficult. Please enlighten me on this matter. The Sims 2, for example, was fixed with a simple patch. Starcraft was fixed with a special installer one could download from Blizzard's site with little hassle.

This sort of quick response to the soon to be FULL (e.g. PPC macs will, eventually, be as sparse as working SNES's) migration to the Intel architecture is a good assurance to me (and should be to any other developers) that creating universal binaries, or fixes to make old applications universal, is a step in the right direction.

Please, take some time to consider the relief that many die-hard fans of this game will find in a Universal version of it.

Have you tried installing windows on your mac and running the pc version?

@foxwolf, on Feb 16 2007, 05:12 PM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

Have you tried installing windows on your mac and running the pc version?

Yessir.

I have attempted many games on a Windows XP partition on my Mactel. After much frustration (granted I was attempting to play many recent games that push a laptop to its limits) due to crashes, poor video drivers, etc., I completely erased the partition and installed a gentoo distro.

Windows is one thing, but a native Intel-mac binary is what I'm looking for.

@htmlgecko, on Feb 17 2007, 04:49 AM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

Yessir.
I have attempted many games on a Windows XP partition on my Mactel. After much frustration (granted I was attempting to play many recent games that push a laptop to its limits) due to crashes, poor video drivers, etc., I completely erased the partition and installed a gentoo distro.
Windows is one thing, but a native Intel-mac binary is what I'm looking for.

The problem with a native Intel version is that neither ASW nor IV did the original port -- that was done by Contraband, and Contraband seems to be more or less defunct. In order to make a new port IV or ASW would have to get permission from Contraband to do it, which might be hard given the lack of existence, and all.

xander

I spoke briefly to moki a couple days ago.

Basically, the man behind the one-man band which was Contraband now works for EA. And is no longer a he. And probably doesn't care anyway.

He also said that Ambrosia wouldn't fix it up, but if a 3rd party patched it up and sent it in they'd consider releasing it.

:raise eyebrows:

Interesting interesting.

@prophile, on Feb 19 2007, 07:12 PM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

He also said that Ambrosia wouldn't fix it up, but if a 3rd party patched it up and sent it in they'd consider releasing it.

Just wondering, how could it happen ? To do that you would need the source code, and from what I've read on the IV Uplink forums, Ambrosia is not willing to do so. How could a 3rd party create a UB patch without the source code ?

@kettch, on Feb 22 2007, 05:17 AM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

Just wondering, how could it happen ? To do that you would need the source code, and from what I've read on the IV Uplink forums, Ambrosia is not willing to do so. How could a 3rd party create a UB patch without the source code ?

By porting the PC code over to UB. The PC code is buyable.

Indeed, and it's already been re-ported to the Mac, courtesy the great and powerful andcarne. All it needs to do is be UBified and updated to the latest version of Uplink (1.50).

Didn't that IV guy say he could do it...? I seem to remember that in the conversation on #ev3...

John Knottenbelt was on #ev3?

Or do you mean our mutual friend Mr. Pinner (NeoThermic)?

@mrxak, on Feb 22 2007, 07:15 PM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

By porting the PC code over to UB. The PC code is buyable.

Ok, that's what I figured out when I found the Uplink Developer CD on the IV website, but I was wondering if someone already did that... Maybe I'll try and do it myself, just for the fun and learning benefit of it

Hah, good bloody luck.

The uplink code is somewhat akin to a bowl of spaghetti. Except without the bolognese sauce.

It's confusing as hell, approach with care.

It's not that bad, and you know it.

We re-ported the code ages ago, but I don't think we've tried the Intel set since.

I think I'll take a looky

@prophile, on Feb 22 2007, 04:54 PM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

John Knottenbelt was on #ev3?

Or do you mean our mutual friend Mr. Pinner (NeoThermic)?

NeoThermic, I believe. He mentioned that he would be able to do it.

Shenlon said:

NeoThermic, I believe. He mentioned that he would be able to do it.

NeoThermic doesn't own a Mac.

Miah Helpmann said:

It's not that bad, and you know it.

Yes, sir. mumblemumble

@prophile, on Feb 23 2007, 12:46 PM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

NeoThermic doesn't own a Mac.
Yes, sir. mumblemumble

What was he saying, then? Blah, I must have dreamed it. Maybe he said his friends could do it or something... never mind.

The Onlink team maybe? IE, Miah, andcarne and myself?

@darwinian, on Feb 18 2007, 04:24 PM, said in Uplink on Intel Macs:

The problem with a native Intel version is that neither ASW nor IV did the original port -- that was done by Contraband, and Contraband seems to be more or less defunct. In order to make a new port IV or ASW would have to get permission from Contraband to do it, which might be hard given the lack of existence, and all.

xander

what if they made it a freely available patch instead of a new, saleable, release, or did it from scratch (IE, port from windows to UB instead of from PPC to UB)? theoretically ASW/IV paid contraband to do the port, they didn't give them the rights to the game.

Windows -> UB was what I meant.