3 ms·

I can't help but wonder for old closed-source utilities and games like this: whatever happened to the original source code? Is it still around, stashed in a va

I can't help but wonder for old closed-source utilities and games like this: whatever happened to the original source code? Is it still around, stashed in a vault a MSFT, or is it lost for ever? Do you know? And what would it take to convince a large corp. like MSFT to actually release the original under some open source license ... not like the thing has much value by now other than historical.

davidst 5y ago
The rights belong to Electronic Arts today. They acquired Maxis who had acquired us (Cinematronics.) Microsoft may still have rights to continue publishing a version with the Windows operating system. Microsoft, if you're reading this, we would be glad to provide assistance in getting 3D Pinball running again on the latest Windows OS.
- leeter 5y ago
  Given that the reason it was removed was IA-64 which isn't a thing anymore... this should be plausible. But also given where MS has gone with games as late I'd be surprised if they do. EA should just release all of Full Tilt! Pinball on steam or GoG if they haven't already.
  - JonathonW 5y ago
    It was removed for Vista, because it couldn't transition to AMD64. This was after Microsoft had essentially completely ditched Itanium. (I'd love to see a GOG or Steam or even Origin release of Full Tilt Pinball, though. The Full Tilt version of Space Cadet is better-- higher-resolution graphics plus some gameplay tweaks.) [edit] Digging a little deeper, that might not be entirely true. The first consumer version of Windows it didn't appear in was Vista, but it sounds like the decision to drop Pinball was made during the XP era (even though it shipped with x86 Windows XP). So issues with the IA64 port (or with another architecture) might've been the reason it was dropped, then that decision was not revisited for Vista even if Pinball might've worked under AMD64 Windows.
    - leeter 5y ago
      Actually 3d Pinball is available in the AMD64 Window XP 64 bit versions. It was not available (sort of... it's there but not actually installed from media) on IA-64 versions. There was a youtuber that dug into it (probably at the cost of far too much of their own sanity). So there is no "might have" it works (albeit with some rendering issues).
      - JonathonW 5y ago
        Was it compiled as a 64-bit executable on AMD64 Windows XP?
        leeter 5y ago
        Yes... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EPTfOTC4Jw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EPTfOTC4Jw Warning contains a youtuber bashing their head firmly against the pain of Itanium to test this.

davidst 5y ago

The rights belong to Electronic Arts today. They acquired Maxis who had acquired us (Cinematronics.) Microsoft may still have rights to continue publishing a version with the Windows operating system. Microsoft, if you're reading this, we would be glad to provide assistance in getting 3D Pinball running again on the latest Windows OS.

leeter 5y ago
Given that the reason it was removed was IA-64 which isn't a thing anymore... this should be plausible. But also given where MS has gone with games as late I'd be surprised if they do. EA should just release all of Full Tilt! Pinball on steam or GoG if they haven't already.
- JonathonW 5y ago
  It was removed for Vista, because it couldn't transition to AMD64. This was after Microsoft had essentially completely ditched Itanium. (I'd love to see a GOG or Steam or even Origin release of Full Tilt Pinball, though. The Full Tilt version of Space Cadet is better-- higher-resolution graphics plus some gameplay tweaks.) [edit] Digging a little deeper, that might not be entirely true. The first consumer version of Windows it didn't appear in was Vista, but it sounds like the decision to drop Pinball was made during the XP era (even though it shipped with x86 Windows XP). So issues with the IA64 port (or with another architecture) might've been the reason it was dropped, then that decision was not revisited for Vista even if Pinball might've worked under AMD64 Windows.
  - leeter 5y ago
    Actually 3d Pinball is available in the AMD64 Window XP 64 bit versions. It was not available (sort of... it's there but not actually installed from media) on IA-64 versions. There was a youtuber that dug into it (probably at the cost of far too much of their own sanity). So there is no "might have" it works (albeit with some rendering issues).
    - JonathonW 5y ago
      Was it compiled as a 64-bit executable on AMD64 Windows XP?
      - leeter 5y ago
        Yes... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EPTfOTC4Jw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EPTfOTC4Jw Warning contains a youtuber bashing their head firmly against the pain of Itanium to test this.