Preservation projects
"...So dawn goes down to day. Nothing gold can stay."
- Robert Frost (1874-1963)
Over the years, technology has been rapidly evolving. Things that were once considered "new" or "innovating" can quickly become "old" or "outdated" over time. These changes can happen in a lot of ways, but overall as time goes on all things are at risk of disappearing someday. While it may seem like an impossible (and sometimes pointless) task, that hasn't stopped many people from taking it upon themselves to preserve what others would consider to be not as important. While there are many aspects with respect to preservation in general, emulation plays a key role in preserving software by documenting and allowing old programs to run on modern devices (because what's the point of archiving a bunch of old games if you have no way of playing them!). Because emulation is often associated with preservation, this page is meant to highlight some other projects that have similar goals relating to video games and technology, some of which can even be used in conjunction with emulation.
Contents
Preservation projects
Name | Platform(s) | Latest version | Active | Recommended | Preserves the following software |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
eXoDOS | Windows | 5.0 | ✓ | ✓ | DOS games |
eXoWin3x | Windows | 2.0 | ✓ | ✓ | Windows 3x games |
Retro Learning Pack | Windows | ✓ | ✓ | MS-DOS & Windows 3.1 educational software | |
eXoScummVM | Windows | ✓ | ✓ | ScummVM games | |
eXoAppleIIGS | Windows | 1.0 | ✓ | ✓ | Apple IIGS games & apps |
Flashpoint | Windows | 13 "Dart Frog" | ✓ | ✓ | Flash and other web games |
instance_archive(); | Windows | 15/10/2021 | ✓ | ✓ | GameMaker games. |
Kahvibreak | Windows Linux |
1.6 | ✓ | ✓ | J2ME games |
Pleasuredome | Windows | 0.265 | ✓ | ✓ | MAME & Non-MAME romsets |
Emerson Arcadia 2001 Central | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Signetics 2650-based machines
(Interton VC 4000, Elektor TV Games Computer, et al.) |
INTV Funhouse | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Intellivision fun, facts, tips & pics! |
hShop | 3DS | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | The ultimate 3DS content website |
Ghost eShop | 3DS | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | The ultimate content for 3DS Website |
Myrient | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | A reenvisioning of video game preservation |
GameTDB | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Box art for GCN, NDS, 3DS, Wii, Wii U, and PS3 |
Flipnote Archive | Online | N/A | ✗ | ✓ | Nintendo's Flipnote Hatena |
Archiverse | Online | N/A | ✗ | ✓ | Nintendo's Miiverse |
Open Shop Channel | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Homebrew apps library for the Wii |
MarioCube | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Rare files for Wii/GCN. WiiWare/Virtual Console WADs from Wii Shop Channel |
Redump | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Database of checksums for disc-based games |
TOSEC | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Database of checksums for disc- and cartridge-based games |
No-Intro | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Database of checksums for cartridge-based games |
Hidden Palace | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Video game development media (such as prototypes, hardware, source code, artwork, and more) |
LostMediaWiki | Online | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | Pieces of lost or hard to find media (whether it be video, audio or otherwise) |
Revivial Projects
As the internet has become more readily available over time, a lot of people have experimented with adding online services to their products. However, because of how dependent these features can be on a single company or server they are at high risk of disappearing once the service gets shut down. MMOs are especially at risk as the entirety of the game is based on playing online. If the game has no way of allowing the user to host their own private server then once the service ends, so does the game. This will especially be a problem in the future as more and more games are becoming more dependent on online services. Depending on interest and importance, there has been a surprising amount of fans who have come together to keep a service alive, or even "revive" it, by creating their own functioning service.
Private Platform Servers
Name | Platform(s) | Official Servers/Active | Revived? | Revive Group(s)/Communities | Revived Platform(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steam's online features multiplayer over LAN |
✓ | ✓ | Goldberg Emulator | ||
WiiConnect24 | ✗ On June 27, 2013, WiiConnect24 service features were globally terminated. |
✓ | RiiConnect24 | ||
WiiConnect24 and obscure out-of-region Wii Channels |
✗ On May 20, 2014, at 7:30 PM PT, Nintendo ended the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. |
✓ | WiiLink | ||
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection | ✗ On May 20, 2014, at 7:30 PM PT, Nintendo ended the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. |
✓ | Wiimmfi | ||
Flipnote Hatena | ✗ It was shut down on April 2, 2018. |
✓ | Sudomemo | ||
Nintendo Network | ~ On October 4, 2023, Nintendo announced the discontinuation of the service by early April 2024. |
WIP | Pretendo | ||
Miiverse Network | ✗ Discontinued on November 8, 2017. |
✓ | rverse | ||
Playstation Network | |
✓ | WIP | RPCN PSORG Revival |
|
Playstation Home and Sony Medius Servers |
✗ | WIP | Destination Home | ||
Xbox Live/Xbox network | ~ Xbox Live for the original Xbox was discontinued by Microsoft on April 15, 2010. On July 29, 2024, Xbox will stop supporting the ability to purchase new games, DLC, and other entertainment content from the Xbox 360 Store on the console and the Xbox 360 Marketplace. |
✓ | Insignia |
Private Game Servers
These shouldn't be confused with LAN tunneling or offline multiplayer gaming over a LAN (local area network) multiplayer games (e.g. System Link for XBOX home console systems or third party tools and services such as XLink Kai etc.)
Name | Platform(s) | Official Servers/Active | Revived? | Revive Group/Community | Revived Platform(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Avatar: Legends of the Arena | ✗ Servers closed in 2013. |
WIP | LegendsOfTheArena | ||
Battlefield 1942 | ✗ Battlefield 1942's master server shutdown in 2014. |
✓ | OpenSpy | ||
Battlefield 2 | ✗ On June 30, 2014, the multiplayer master server was shut down alongside other GameSpy-powered titles. |
✓ | BF2Hub OpenSpy |
||
Battlefield 2142 | ✗ In July 2014, all online components (including Singleplayer) of the game were deactivated following the shutdown of GameSpy. |
✓ | BF2142 Reclamation OpenSpy |
||
Battlefield 1943 | ~ Servers for Battlefield 1943 will be shut down on December 8, 2023. |
✗ | arcadia and Battlefield Modding#Frostbite 1 Discord Channel[1] |
? | |
Battlefield Vietnam | ✗ On June 30, 2014, the multiplayer master server was shut down alongside other GameSpy-powered titles. |
✓ | GameRanger OpenSpy |
||
Battlefield Bad Company | ~ Servers for Battlefield Bad Company will be shut down on December 8, 2023. |
✗ | arcadia and Battlefield Modding#Frostbite 1 Discord Channel[1] |
? | |
Battlefield Bad Company 2 | ~ Servers for Battlefield Bad Company 2 will be shut down on December 8, 2023. |
✗ | arcadia and Battlefield Modding#Frostbite 1 Discord Channel[1] |
? | |
Battlefield Heroes | ✗ Went offline on 14 July 2015, alongside fellow EA free-to-play titles Battlefield Play4Free, Need for Speed: World, and FIFA World. |
✓ | Rising Hub Phoenix Heroes |
||
Battlefield Play4Free | ✗ Went offline on 14 July 2015, alongside fellow EA free-to-play titles Battlefield Heroes, Need for Speed: World, and FIFA World. |
✓ | Phoenix Play4Free | ||
Calling All Cars! | ✗ The servers for Calling All Cars! were taken offline in January 2010. |
✓ | PSONE | ||
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare | ~ Home console versions multiplayer servers still active today. Steam/1.8 version needs downgrade or CoD4X to join most of the dedicated servers. If you have 1.7 version you can still join most of the dedicated servers though. |
✓ | GameRanger CoD4X |
||
Call of Duty: World at War | ~ Home console versions still have multiplayer enabled. For physical windows or steam version if you have already a profile registered with keys you can still join dedicated servers using master server list. Unfortunately physical windows and steam versions ran out of keys for profile registering so you can not play multiplayer with creating new profiles anymore. |
✓ | Plutonium | ||
Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood | ~ The servers were shutdown in September 2016. However according to recent reddit user report "ranked matches" still works. |
✓ | GameRanger | ||
CityVille | ✗ CityVille was shut down on April 30, 2015. |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Club Penguin | ✗ On January 30, 2017, it was announced that the game would be discontinued on March 29, 2017, later shut down its servers on March 30, 2017, at 12:01 AM PDT. |
✓ | New Club Penguin | HTML5 version is currently WIP. | |
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 | ✓ In 2005, control of online play for Red Alert 2 and a number of older C&C games was passed over from EA to XWIS, a community-run server. |
✓ | CnCNet | ||
Dead Space 2 | ✗ Electronic Arts is shutting down the online servers for a number of older titles including Dead Space 2 multiplayer by the end of the 2023. |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Demon's Souls | ✗ Discontinued worldwide in February 2018. |
✓ | The Archstones | ||
Fantasy Tennis Fantasy Tennis 2 |
✗ Alaplaya shut down Fantasy Tennis/Fantasy Tennis 2 on February 8th 2013. |
✓ | JFTSE | ||
EverQuest Online Adventures | ✗ Shut down on March 29, 2012, after nine years of operation. |
✓ | Sandstorm | ||
Far Cry | ✗ Multiplayer online functionality dropped by Ubisoft in August 2015. |
✓ | LRv3 | ||
Far Cry 2 | |
~ The online functions for PC version ended in June 2021 when Ubisoft closed down servers for its older titles. Xbox servers down in late-2023 according to recent user reports on reddit. |
✓ | fc2mp | |
FishVille | ✗ The game was discontinued on December 5, 2012. |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Fish with Attitude | ✗ The game was discontinued on the 31st of December 2017. |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Free Realms | ✗ The game's servers were shut down on March 31, 2014 in a closure of three other SOE MMOs that year. |
WIP | Free Realms Sunrise | ||
Grand Theft Auto IV GTA IV: Episodes from Liberty City GTA IV: Complete Edition |
~ Multiplayer was removed from the "Complete Edition" version when Microsoft ended its Games for Windows Live support. Unpatched/previous versions and home console versions still have multiplayer enabled. Although on Windows you need a valid GFWL key. Otherwise you need revivial projects to play multiplayer. |
✓ | GTA Connected HappinessMP |
||
Grand Theft Auto V | |
~ Seventh gen home console versions of GTA Online were shut down on December 16th, 2021. As well as GTA Online, services for LA Noire and Max Payne 3 are shutting down on seventh-gen consoles. The eighth and ninth gen home consoles and Windows are now the only platforms the game can be played on. |
✓ | GTA:OG | |
Gun Bros | ✗ Before servers shut down, players could fight with two players online via GameSpy (shut down) and Game Center (shut down). |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Halo 3 | ✗ January 13 marks the server shutdown date for Halo 3 and other classic Halo games. |
✓ | Sunrise | ||
Happy Aquarium | ✗ 101XP shut down this game June the 15th in 2021. Unfortunately you can no longer play Happy Aquarium. |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Happy Wars | ~ Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows servers shut down on December 17, 2018. The Xbox One and Xbox Series home console versions is now the only platform the game can be played on. |
WIP | Happy Wars Hell#Revival Channel | ||
Flatout 2/Ultimate Carnage | ~ Flatout 2 servers were down. However FlatOut Ultimate Carnage multiplayer still works in 2022 and will likely work forever since it uses P2P for connecting/hosting servers. Also GFWL has merged with Xbox Live and still works with FlatOut Ultimate Carnage.[2] |
✓ for Flatout 2 |
OpenSpy | ||
LittleBigPlanet | ✗ Online functionality was discontinued on 13 September 2021, alongside services for LittleBigPlanet 2, LittleBigPlanet PS Vita, and the PlayStation 3 version of LittleBigPlanet 3. |
WIP | Project Lighthouse | ||
Matrix Online, The | ✗ SOE shut down operation of the game on July 31, 2009. |
✓ | MxoEmu | ||
Need for Speed World | ✗ Went offline on 14 July 2015, alongside fellow EA free-to-play titles Battlefield Heroes, Battlefield Play4Free, and FIFA World. |
✓ | SoapBox Raceworld | ||
Order & Chaos Online | |
✗ The game was permanently closed by Gameloft on 16 February 2023 on all platforms. |
✗ | N/A | N/A |
Pac-Man 99 | ✗ The game was discontinued on October 8, 2023, though the game will remain playable offline for those who have purchased the "Unlock Mode" or "Unlock All" DLCs before they were delisted the month prior. |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Phantasy Star Online Blue Burst | ✗ Game is no longer supported by Sega and the Sega servers. |
✓ | Ultima Ephinea |
||
Phantasy Star Online | ✗ Sega decommissioned the last official servers in 2010. |
✓ | Schthack PSO Sylverant |
||
PlanetSide | ✗ On July 1, 2016, at 4:00pm PT, Planetside servers went offline permanently. |
✓ | PSForever | ||
Respawnables, The | ✗ On January 13th, 2022, Multiplayer is shutdown, the game will no longer recognize Wi-Fi. |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
RockFree | ✗ Acclaim shut down its client-based online games in August 2010 including titles like 9Dragons and Chronicles of Spellborn. However, the company's Flash-based games including Kogamu and RockFree was ported to Facebook Games platform before being discontinued.[3] |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
R.U.S.E. | ✗ You will be unable to play multiplayer, link Ubisoft accounts in-game or use online features. (Ubisoft decommissioning the online services for older games). |
✗ | N/A | N/A | |
Super Mario Bros. 35 | ✗ Its servers were shut down on April 1, 2021, following the official end of the anniversary. |
✓ | SMB35 | ||
Sims Online, The | ✗ EA announced that the game would shut down all activity on August 1, 2008. |
✓ | FreeSO | ||
Test Drive Unlimited | ✗ TDU1 server has been shut down in September 2012. |
✓ | Project Paradise TDU: Platinum |
||
Test Drive Unlimited 2 | ✗ The game's online servers went offline in November 2018, disabling online multiplayer and the TDU2: Casino Online expansion. |
✓ | Project Paradise 2 TDU World TDUniverse |
||
Toontown Online | ✗ Various servers hosting Toontown Online were shut down throughout the game’s tenure, with the US servers and the game itself closing in September 2013. |
✓ | Toontown Rewritten | ||
Warhawk | ✗ Sony shut down Warhawk's online servers on January 31, 2019, providing notice by email to PlayStation Network members. |
✓ | PSONE |
References for this list can be found in Talk:Preservation projects.
External links for Revivial Projects
- "How do communities revive online features in old games without the server files?" (Useful if you want to learn basics about reverse engineering the private servers.)
- Mystic: Reverse Engineer Introduction - PSOne Group
LAN Tunneling Programs
These kind of programs usually allows for online play of video games with the help of support LAN multiplayer modes. (e.g. System Link feature on Xbox home consoles or LAN tunneling feature on PlayStation home consoles)
Name | Active | Recommended |
---|---|---|
XLink Kai | ✓ | ✓ |
pLAN Revive | ✓ | ~ |
Proxy Projects for Retro Web Browsing
These kind of projects usually retrieves pages from the Internet Archive Wayback Machine or OoCities and delivers them in their original form, without toolbars, scripts and other extraneous content that may confuse retro web browsers.[4] These are quite useful especially for retro web browsing with DOS-based, Windows 1.0x/2x/3x series, Windows 9x series, Windows NT series and MacOS emulators or Hypervisors.
Name | Active | Recommended |
---|---|---|
ProtoWeb | ✓ | ✓ |
WaybackProxy | ✓ | ~ |