LEGO Island Wiki - User contributions [en]

LEGO Island Rebuilder

2024-02-11T15:21:18Z

Screensocialist: Updating image

[[LEGO Island Rebuilder]] is a [[LEGO Island]] modification tool and the flagship project of this wiki. The documentation on this wiki can be seen primarily a side-effect of developing it.

<center>[[File:LEGO_Island_Rebuilder.png]]</center>

<center>[[File:Become a patron button.png|link=https://www.patreon.com/mattkc]]</center>

==Features==
* Makes modifications without altering files permanently.
* Adjust turning speed for better maneuverability on modern PCs.
* Run LEGO Island in windowed mode without needing administrator privileges and editing the registry.
* Redirect LEGO Island's save data to %APPDATA% so it can save games without needing administrator privileges.
* Keep LEGO Island active even when it's unfocused (windowed mode only)
* Music extraction and insertion
* Change/uncap FPS limit

==Upcoming Features==
The following features are currently being researched for inclusion in LEGO Island Rebuilder:
* Native high resolution
* Field of view adjustment

==System Requirements==
LEGO Island Rebuilder is extremely lightweight and will run on any computer that can run LEGO Island that has Windows 98+ and .NET Framework 2.0+ installed.

==Downloads==
* [https://github.com/itsmattkc/LEGOIslandRebuilder/releases/download/continuous/Rebuilder.exe Download LEGO Island Rebuilder]
* [https://github.com/itsmattkc/LEGOIslandRebuilder LEGO Island Rebuilder on GitHub]

File:LEGO Island Rebuilder.png

2024-02-11T15:20:53Z

Screensocialist:

Mindscape

2024-02-11T00:08:44Z

Screensocialist: /* External Links */Wikipedia link is a disambiguation page, no page for the developer exists

[[Mindscape]] was a video game developer and publisher that throughout its history had several parent companies and was based in several geographical locations. From 1995 to 1997, Mindscape developed [[LEGO Island]], then under educational company {{Wikipedia|Pearson plc}} and based in {{Wikipedia|Novato, California}}.

In later years, Mindscape was sold to {{Wikipedia|The Learning Company}}, and then French executive Jean-Pierre Nordman, at which point Mindscape moved to {{Wikipedia|Boulogne-Billancourt}}, {{Wikipedia|France}}. They continued to publish video games until 2011 when the company was dissolved.

== ''LEGO Island'' ==

As LEGO began to feel threatened by the rapidly growing video game industry around the early to mid-1990s, they started to invest in LEGO-related video games. Mindscape was one of the first companies contracted to create licensed LEGO video games, the first of which was LEGO Island.

Development was notoriously tumultuous, largely due to toxic management "politics". Ultimately, LEGO decided to rescind the licensing rights from Mindscape after LEGO Island and Mindscape fired the entire team the day before release to dodge paying bonuses that were promised based on the game's success. A planned sequel/spinoff entitled "Beneath the Phanta-Sea" based on the same engine developed for LEGO Island was cancelled.

== Dissolution ==

In 2011, Mindscape exited the gaming industry and was dissolved having been sold to various companies and moved to different countries over the years. Some regional branches continue to operate solely as game retailers with seemingly no relation to the original company besides the branding.

== External Links ==
* [http://archive.is/aLwQn Information From The Lead Programmer of LEGO Island (Interview with Dennis Goodrow)]
* [http://archive.is/U76rn An Interview with Wes Jenkins the Creative Director of LEGO Island]

Pre-Alpha (October 1996)

2024-02-11T00:04:02Z

Screensocialist: /* History */Moving ref

On October 31 2023, a prototype build of ''[[LEGO Island]]'' was leaked by YouTuber '''R.R. Slugger'''.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc7eALXaHbw</ref> Colloquially, this build is usually referred to as "'''the pre-alpha'''".

== History ==

The existence of a pre-alpha build has been known for some time,<ref>https://twitter.com/BenDaviesOrg/status/1239248521968132097</ref> however it had been kept private by a select few members of the community for years. It is currently not known what this release was made for, how it was acquired by the community, or how it was leaked.

The build files are dated between October and November 1996, predating the final release by roughly 11 months.

== Installer ==

The pre-alpha features a completely different installer from the final release. Comparing side-by-side, it's clear that they repurposed the same installer from ''[[Chessmaster 5000]]''.

<center>
<gallery>
File:Cmautorun.png|Autorun comparison
File:Cmdirselect.PNG|Directory selection comparison
File:Cmreq95.PNG|Attempting to launch the installer on Windows 3.1
</gallery>
</center>

This installer is 16-bit only, meaning it will not work on modern 64-bit Windows systems. The installer also requires DOS mode which can cause issues in Wine, despite its ability to load 16-bit executables. As such, it's recommended to use an [https://github.com/Ramen2X/adventures-installer alternate installer] for those platforms.

== Launcher ==

The pre-alpha features a crude launcher called '''STARTUP.EXE''' which launches the available rooms:

<center>[[File:Startup.png]]</center>

This makes sense because [[MAIN.EXE]] does not load anything by default without command line arguments.

== Config ==

[[CONFIG.EXE]] exists as an MFC dialog, much like the final release, however no work has been done on it:

<center>[[File:Dec96config.png]]</center>

Instead, a limited subset of graphics settings are located in the [[#Launcher|launcher]].

== Build Sections ==

The game features incomplete but functional implementations of all four build sections from the final game (helicopter, dune buggy, race car, and jetski).

<center>
<gallery>
File:Dec96jetski.png
File:Dec96racecar.png
File:Dec96heli.png
File:Dec96dunebug.png
</gallery>
</center>

Notable differences include:

* Missing parts are wireframe instead of solid.
* Coloring doesn't appear to work.
* Different music. All stages feature a crude loop of "''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwn9L6-Yc-I Legomania]''", an ultimately unused cue composed by [[Lorin Nelson]].
* Different sound effects.
* Many of the animated sprites glitch and flicker when you click them.

=== Unused Background ===

If you use [[MAIN.EXE]] to load <code>build.si</code> and load the <code>StartUp</code> action, you can find the following screen:

<center>[[File:Dec96buildscreen.png|320px]]</center>

The buttons are functional and indeed jump to each build section.

=== Glitches ===

Likely the reason these buttons weren't used (and the above [[#Launcher|launcher]] was created instead) is because the buttons frequently have a habit of persisting after loading a new section. Clicking them further can lead to two or more build sections being inexplicably merged, and often causes crashes:

<center>[[File:Dec96btnglitch.mp4|320px]]</center>

== Island ==

The island has progressed significantly since [[Source Code (July 1996)|July 1996]], now closely resembling the layout of the island in the final game. It's still almost entirely unpopulated though, with no trees, NPCs, and very few buildings. The gas station, which was present in the July 1996 build, is present though, as well as three houses in the residential area.

<center>
<gallery>
File:Dec96isle1.png
File:Dec96isle2.png|
File:Dec96isle3.png|Full island shot
File:Dec96hiddenracetrack.mp4|Sections of the race track can be seen at some perspectives
</gallery>
</center>

Collision/path detection is still not implemented, allowing players to walk through buildings and on the grass. Ramps are also not correctly implemented, meaning players must manually adjust their height up or down using the U and D keys (which persisted in the final game's [[Debug Mode]]) to reach higher and lower areas.

== Miscellaneous ==

The main game executable is still [[MAIN.EXE]] and all of its development/debugging functionality is present here.

Turning is noticeably jerky in this version, always turning by a minimum of several degrees at a time. This too is tied to the frame rate and runs too fast on modern computers.

The disc contains both release and debug versions of multiple executables, including [[LEGO1.DLL]]. It '''does not''' however contain symbols. The [[Microsoft Visual C++]] compiler places symbols in sidecar PDB files, not in the executable itself, and no PDB files are present on the disc. That being said, the debug binaries contain much less optimized code and retain debugging features like [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assertion_(software_development) assertions] which may help significantly in the [[decompilation]] effort.

== Free Fonts ==

The pre-alpha contains an option to "register" for an array of free fonts. The registration is obviously not possible anymore, however the fonts can be installed by running <code>MSREG\MSFREE.EXE</code> on the CD:

<center>[[File:Freefonts.png]]</center>

== References ==
<references />

== External Links ==

* [https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IpbBqWDVnAYz0VIb-JeDD1lLvzWrauq8 Download from Google Drive]
* [https://archive.org/details/lego-island-alpha Download from Internet Archive]
* [https://github.com/Ramen2X/adventures-installer Alternate Installer for Wine and 64-bit Windows]

Pre-Alpha (October 1996)

2024-02-11T00:03:44Z

Screensocialist: No longer a current event

On October 31 2023, a prototype build of ''[[LEGO Island]]'' was leaked by YouTuber '''R.R. Slugger'''.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc7eALXaHbw</ref> Colloquially, this build is usually referred to as "'''the pre-alpha'''".

== History ==

The existence of a pre-alpha build has been known for some time<ref>https://twitter.com/BenDaviesOrg/status/1239248521968132097</ref>, however it had been kept private by a select few members of the community for years. It is currently not known what this release was made for, how it was acquired by the community, or how it was leaked.

The build files are dated between October and November 1996, predating the final release by roughly 11 months.

== Installer ==

The pre-alpha features a completely different installer from the final release. Comparing side-by-side, it's clear that they repurposed the same installer from ''[[Chessmaster 5000]]''.

<center>
<gallery>
File:Cmautorun.png|Autorun comparison
File:Cmdirselect.PNG|Directory selection comparison
File:Cmreq95.PNG|Attempting to launch the installer on Windows 3.1
</gallery>
</center>

This installer is 16-bit only, meaning it will not work on modern 64-bit Windows systems. The installer also requires DOS mode which can cause issues in Wine, despite its ability to load 16-bit executables. As such, it's recommended to use an [https://github.com/Ramen2X/adventures-installer alternate installer] for those platforms.

== Launcher ==

The pre-alpha features a crude launcher called '''STARTUP.EXE''' which launches the available rooms:

<center>[[File:Startup.png]]</center>

This makes sense because [[MAIN.EXE]] does not load anything by default without command line arguments.

== Config ==

[[CONFIG.EXE]] exists as an MFC dialog, much like the final release, however no work has been done on it:

<center>[[File:Dec96config.png]]</center>

Instead, a limited subset of graphics settings are located in the [[#Launcher|launcher]].

== Build Sections ==

The game features incomplete but functional implementations of all four build sections from the final game (helicopter, dune buggy, race car, and jetski).

<center>
<gallery>
File:Dec96jetski.png
File:Dec96racecar.png
File:Dec96heli.png
File:Dec96dunebug.png
</gallery>
</center>

Notable differences include:

* Missing parts are wireframe instead of solid.
* Coloring doesn't appear to work.
* Different music. All stages feature a crude loop of "''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwn9L6-Yc-I Legomania]''", an ultimately unused cue composed by [[Lorin Nelson]].
* Different sound effects.
* Many of the animated sprites glitch and flicker when you click them.

=== Unused Background ===

If you use [[MAIN.EXE]] to load <code>build.si</code> and load the <code>StartUp</code> action, you can find the following screen:

<center>[[File:Dec96buildscreen.png|320px]]</center>

The buttons are functional and indeed jump to each build section.

=== Glitches ===

Likely the reason these buttons weren't used (and the above [[#Launcher|launcher]] was created instead) is because the buttons frequently have a habit of persisting after loading a new section. Clicking them further can lead to two or more build sections being inexplicably merged, and often causes crashes:

<center>[[File:Dec96btnglitch.mp4|320px]]</center>

== Island ==

The island has progressed significantly since [[Source Code (July 1996)|July 1996]], now closely resembling the layout of the island in the final game. It's still almost entirely unpopulated though, with no trees, NPCs, and very few buildings. The gas station, which was present in the July 1996 build, is present though, as well as three houses in the residential area.

<center>
<gallery>
File:Dec96isle1.png
File:Dec96isle2.png|
File:Dec96isle3.png|Full island shot
File:Dec96hiddenracetrack.mp4|Sections of the race track can be seen at some perspectives
</gallery>
</center>

Collision/path detection is still not implemented, allowing players to walk through buildings and on the grass. Ramps are also not correctly implemented, meaning players must manually adjust their height up or down using the U and D keys (which persisted in the final game's [[Debug Mode]]) to reach higher and lower areas.

== Miscellaneous ==

The main game executable is still [[MAIN.EXE]] and all of its development/debugging functionality is present here.

Turning is noticeably jerky in this version, always turning by a minimum of several degrees at a time. This too is tied to the frame rate and runs too fast on modern computers.

The disc contains both release and debug versions of multiple executables, including [[LEGO1.DLL]]. It '''does not''' however contain symbols. The [[Microsoft Visual C++]] compiler places symbols in sidecar PDB files, not in the executable itself, and no PDB files are present on the disc. That being said, the debug binaries contain much less optimized code and retain debugging features like [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assertion_(software_development) assertions] which may help significantly in the [[decompilation]] effort.

== Free Fonts ==

The pre-alpha contains an option to "register" for an array of free fonts. The registration is obviously not possible anymore, however the fonts can be installed by running <code>MSREG\MSFREE.EXE</code> on the CD:

<center>[[File:Freefonts.png]]</center>

== References ==
<references />

== External Links ==

* [https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IpbBqWDVnAYz0VIb-JeDD1lLvzWrauq8 Download from Google Drive]
* [https://archive.org/details/lego-island-alpha Download from Internet Archive]
* [https://github.com/Ramen2X/adventures-installer Alternate Installer for Wine and 64-bit Windows]