Introducing EDuke16, the official name for EDuke32's new builds targeting 16-bit 80x86 CPU architectures.
After a significant investment of my time studying the original DOS source code of the game and the engine, I was able to write the necessary code to allow EDuke32 to compile and run under MS-DOS. The primary changes, which I will commit after some more testing, are the introduction of doslayer.c to bridge our engine code and the DOS-based VGA, VESA, and serial port drivers, the new driver_dos.c in audiolib (which supports Adlib, Sound Blaster 1/2/Pro/16/AWE32, Gravis Ultrasound, and Roland SC-55), integration of DOS/32A to give us Protected Mode access [use of DOS/4GW is incompatible with the GPL], and various tweaks throughout the code to optimize the game's operation when running a command-line operating system, some of which you can see in my screenshot of the startup sequence. Preliminary network integration over IPX (supporting play over modem and serial) is included but remains a stub until the main networking code is finished.
These were some of my motivations for embarking on this project:
- Popular demand
- Duke comes home: kicking ass like it really is 1996
- Say thanks to our dedicated supporters in the MS-DOS community
- Give the DOSBox team a significant stress-testing and bug-finding asset
- Provide a drop-in replacement for the Atomic Edition
When it's done, you will need to use Open Watcom to compile a 16-bit executable. A full wiki article with further instructions is in progress.