Preservation projects

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"...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 Things that were once considered "new" or "innovating" can quickly become "old" or "outdated" over time.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 6.0 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 12.1 "Salamander" Flash and other web games
instance_archive(); Windows 15/10/2021 GameMaker games.
Kahvibreak Windows
Linux
1.6 J2ME games
Pleasuredome Windows 0.264 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!
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
hShop 3DS N/A The ultimate 3DS content website, shouldn't be confused with revivial projects.
Ghost eShop 3DS N/A The ultimate content for 3DS Website, shouldn't be confused with revivial projects.
Flipnote Archive Online N/A Nintendo's Flipnote Hatena
Only for archiving of Flipnote animations posted to Flipnote Hatena before it closed, shouldn't be confused with revivial projects.
Archiverse Online N/A Nintendo's Miiverse
Only for archiving of Miiverse data before it closed, shouldn't be confused with revivial projects.
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)
Rchive Online N/A Downloadable Roblox games from 2006-2017.
The Roblox Lost Media Project Online N/A Pieces of lost or hard to find media relating to Roblox (whether it be video, audio or otherwise)
Valve Archive Online N/A Pieces of lost or hard to find media relating to Valve (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 (see Early Online Services). 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    
Game Center
Achievements, Challenges, Leaderboards etc.
  N/A N/A
Google Play Games
Google Play Services
Achievements, Challenges, Leaderboards etc.
    N/A N/A
WiiConnect24 and channels  
On June 27, 2013, WiiConnect24 service features were globally terminated.
On January 30, 2019, Nintendo shut down the Wii Shop Channel and removed all WiiWare, Virtual Console games, and other Wii Channels from sale or initial download.
RiiConnect24
(Which is part of WiiLink project)
 
Nintendo eShop       ~
The ability to purchase, download, and play new content on the Nintendo eShop for the Wii U and the Nintendo 3DS was discontinued for the rest of the world on March 27, 2023.
Servers only active for Switch platform at the moment.
N/A N/A
Nintendo Zone     ~
This application has been discontinued worldwide, but all other Nintendo Zone functionality remains.
SatellaZone  
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection    
On May 20, 2014, at 7:30 PM PT, Nintendo ended the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service.
Wiimmfi
WiiLink WFC (WIP)
Kaeru WFC
   
Flipnote Hatena      
An online service, titled Flipnote Hatena, allowed users to download flipnotes created by other users and to post stills from flipnotes to the sharing site Miiverse.
It was shut down on April 2, 2018.
Sudomemo  
Flipnote Gallery: World
for Flipnote Studio 3D
 
kaeru gallery
kaeru
 
GameSpy Various
It was shut down on May 31, 2014.
OpenSpy Various
Nintendo Network     ~
On October 4, 2023, Nintendo announced the discontinuation of the service by early April 2024.
WIP Pretendo    
Miitomo    
It was ultimately discontinued on May 9, 2018.
Kaerutomo    
Miiverse Network    
Discontinued on November 8, 2017.
rverse  
Nintendo Switch Online   Raptor Network (Offline) N/A
PlayOnline       ~
The termination date for Final Fantasy XI and PlayOnline on PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360 was March 2016, with only the PC version of Final Fantasy XI still supported.
N/A N/A
PlayStation Broadband Navigator  
Service for PlayStation 2‘s Broadband Navigator end in Japan on March 31 2016, Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Asia announced.
N/A N/A
PlayStation Network      
 
WIP RPCN
PSORG Revival
clank
 
Playstation Home   WIP Destination Home  
PlayStation Mobile    
The service completely shutting down on September 10, 2015.
Games were available to devices via the PlayStation Store.
N/A N/A
VTech Learning Lodge ? ? N/A N/A N/A
Wireplay  
The service endured for a time but was finally shut down in 2014.
N/A N/A
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.
WIP Insignia
Xenia WebServices
   

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)
(Only online multiplayer supported ones)
Official Servers/Active Revived? Revive Group/Community Revived Platform(s)
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa       ? N/A N/A
Avatar: Legends of the Arena  
Servers closed in 2013.
WIP LegendsOfTheArena Discord channel  
Batman: Arkham Origins      
On December 4, 2016, the online services for Arkham Origins were officially retired. Despite this, the servers remained available for PC and Playstation.
As of January 2021, it appears that you can no longer find matches on PC or Playstation matchmaking.[1][2]
Arkham: Revived  
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 2: Modern Combat      
Multiplayer on Xbox was shut down on April 15, 2010. All Xbox, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 2 servers are offline.
Cristian   [1]
Battlefield 1943        
Servers for Battlefield 1943 will be shut down on December 8, 2023.
WIP Various[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.
WIP Various[1] ?
Battlefield Bad Company 2        
Servers for Battlefield Bad Company 2 will be shut down on December 8, 2023.
Project Rome  
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 2    
Game online infastructure is P2P-based on Xbox 360[3] and PC so it's playable.
Xenia WebServices  
Call of Duty 3        
Game online infastructure is P2P-based on seventh-gen home consoles[4] so it's playable, but it needs custom server for authentication process[5] so it's incompatible with emulators at the moment.
For sixth-gen home console versions you need to use revive projects.
Cristian or Bobz
Insignia
   
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Reflex Edition
        ~
Home console versions multiplayer servers still active today.
Steam/1.8 version needs CoD4X to join most of the dedicated servers. If you have physical copy and updated to 1.7 version you can still join some of the compatible vanilla dedicated servers.
You need gecko code to play on Wii[6] but servers down[7] and because the game uses different servers, WFC revival projects are incompatible.
GameRanger
CoD4X
CoD Nintendo[2]
 
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 but if you try to register new profile there is no way to play multiplayer anymore due to physical windows copies and steam versions ran out of keys so you need to use revive projects.
You need gecko code to play on Wii[8] but servers down[9] and because the game uses different servers, WFC revival projects are incompatible.
Plutonium
CoD Nintendo[2]
 
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  
Crew, The         ~
On December 14, 2023, Ubisoft announced that the servers will shut down after March 31, 2024.[3]
N/A N/A
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
Destiny    
   

See this page for PS3 and Xbox 360, this page for PS4 and Xbox One.
WIP V4NGUARD  
Demon's Souls  
Discontinued worldwide in February 2018.
The Archstones  
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls    
   
     
 
WIP DiIiS Project  
Fantasy Tennis
Fantasy Tennis 2
 
Alaplaya shut down Fantasy Tennis/Fantasy Tennis 2 on February 8th 2013.
JFTSE  
Dragalia Lost    
Service for Dragalia Lost ended on November 29, 2022, at 10 PM PT.[10]
Dawnshard
Orchis
   
EverQuest Online Adventures  
Shut down on March 29, 2012, after nine years of operation.
Sandstorm[4]  
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
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.
[5]

for Flatout 2
OpenSpy    
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
OSFR
 
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.
3TA Online
GTA:OG (Offline)
 
Guitar Hero Live            
GHTV game mode's servers were shut down on December 1, 2018, making over 500 streamable songs no longer playable in Guitar Hero Live.
GHTV Reloaded      
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 2      
Xbox version servers down due to Xbox Live for the original Xbox was discontinued by Microsoft on April 15, 2010.
PC/Vista version servers down in July 2015.
Project Cartographer
Insignia
   
Halo 3      
January 13, 2022 marks the server shutdown date for Halo 3 and other classic Halo games.
WIP 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 Discord channel    
Juiced      
GameSpy.
Cristian
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  
Mario Kart Wii  
Online multiplayer was supported until the discontinuation of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in May 2014.
Wiimmfi
WiiLink WFC
 
Matrix Online, The  
SOE shut down operation of the game on July 31, 2009.
MxoEmu  
Max Payne 3         ~
The online multiplayer mode and Social Club support for the game were discontinued in September 2021.
As well as Max Payne 3, services for LA Noire and GTA Online are shutting down on seventh-gen consoles.
But servers for PC is still active.
N/A N/A
Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault  
Gamespy.
OpenSpy  
Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence
(incl. Metal Gear Online)
 
The official servers for the original Metal Gear Online were shutdown in 2007.[11]
Cristian
MGO
 
Metal Gear Online
Metal Gear Online 2
 
Metal Gear Online's North American and European servers were shut down on June 12, 2012.
SaveMGO  
MUD: FIM Motocross World Championship        
The game requires Gamespy servers on PC for online play and servers were permantly turned off 31st May 2014.
Console versions servers might be unstable and unreliable?[12]
N/A N/A N/A
Motor City Online  
Servers for MCO have been shut down on August 29, 2003[13]
However there is a way to play offline mode.
N/A N/A[14] N/A
Need for Speed: Carbon      
Online services for NFS Carbon have been shut down on September 1, 2021.
Although there is a work-in-progress unofficial mod called "NFSCO", which will bring online play back.
WIP NFSCO  
Need for Speed: Most Wanted (2005)    
 
 

The online multiplayer lobby was shut down on August 1, 2011.
Although it is still possible to play the game in multiplayer, but through an unofficial mod called "Most Wanted Online".
Most Wanted Online  
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  
OGame
(v0.84 version with old design)
  ~
Servers up but there is no official way to play the older version.
WIP ogame-opensource  
Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis
ARMA: Cold War Assault
Operation Flashpoint: Elite
   
On June 30, 2014, the multiplayer master server for PC was shut down alongside other GameSpy-powered titles.
Also for Xbox version servers down due to Xbox Live for the original Xbox was discontinued by Microsoft on April 15, 2010.
OFPMonitor
Insignia
   
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  
Pop'n Music Puzzle-dama Online  
Online service ended on March 31st, 2005.
N/A N/A
Respawnables, The    
On January 13th, 2022, Multiplayer is shutdown, the game will no longer recognize Wi-Fi.
N/A N/A
Rock Band 2       ?
Game has online multiplayer and co-op support, but current server status is unknown.
GoCentral      
Rock Band 3       ?
Game has online multiplayer and co-op support, but current server status is unknown.
GoCentral      
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.
[6]
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
Sacred  
Official multiplayer servers were shut down as Ascaron Entertainment went bankrupt and ultimately ceased to exist. Community matchmaking server software was created in the 2020s, but the original instance is currently down.
~ Sacred Ancaria Connection  
Saints Row (2006)   ~
Clan/gang servers down. But ranked, casual and coop are up.
WIP Xenia WebServices  
SimCity (2013)     [15] N/A N/A
SimCity 2000 Network Edition   [16] Nightfire Launcher  
Skate    
The multiplayer of the game was shut down in July 2011.
Hall of Meat N/A
Skate 2    
The multiplayer of the game was shut down.
Hall of Meat N/A
Skate 3    
Servers still active.
Hall of Meat N/A
Super Mario Bros. 35  
Its servers were shut down on April 1, 2021, following the official end of the anniversary.
SMB35  
Super Mario Maker     ~
On November 25, 2020, Nintendo formally announced that course upload support and the bookmark portal site would be discontinued on March 31, 2021.
Sale of the game on the Wii U's Nintendo eShop would be discontinued on January 12, 2021.
The remaining online services for the game, such as playing existing levels already uploaded to the server, will be discontinued by April 8, 2024.
WIP Pretendo    
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      
Trials Evolution     ~
Trials Evolution shutting down in January 2024.
N/A N/A
UFC Undisputed 2009    
Both the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game utilize a Peer-to-Peer online infrastructure, which allows continued online play[17]. However, similar to Call of Duty 3 situation on seventh-gen home consoles, it appears to require a custom server for authentication[18][19], rendering it currently incompatible with emulators.
N/A N/A
UFC Undisputed 2010     ?
There is a OpenSpy Online canary patch for RPCS3 but it's untested at the moment.
? OpenSpy (Untested)   (Untested)
Warhawk  
Sony shut down Warhawk's online servers on January 31, 2019, providing notice by email to PlayStation Network members.
PSONE  
WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw  
GameSpy.
Cristian
OpenSpy
 
Whacked!  
Servers down due to Xbox Live for the original Xbox was discontinued by Microsoft on April 15, 2010.
Insignia  
WWE WrestleMania 21  
Servers down due to Xbox Live for the original Xbox was discontinued by Microsoft on April 15, 2010.
Insignia  

References for this list can be found in Talk:Preservation projects.

External links for Revivial Projects

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
ZeroTier
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.[7] 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. Otherwise you can still use pure HTML websites on the internet such as; DreamPipe, thebaratusii, toastytech, TheBlueOSMuseum, LuxuryAerozona, DreamProject Legacy,DOSBox Deathmatch Club, GuidebookGallery, MDGx, Ralf Brown's Interrupt List, Doom2.net, PowerDVD3000.

Name Active Recommended
ProtoWeb
WaybackProxy ~
  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Members of the Battlefield modding-Frostbite 1 discord channel are working on keeping of Battlefield 2: Modern Combat (Xbox 360 version), Battlefield 1943 and Battlefield Bad Company titles alive past the shutdown, also see this reddit thread if you want to test arcadia project using RPCS3 emulator. Insignia project do not support Battlefield 2: Modern Combat for OG Xbox currently. There is a FrostbiteServer project for being built specifically for STAR WARS Battlefront II, but can be somewhat easily adapted to other games running on the engine in the future.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Join the "CoD Nintendo" discord group to stay up-to-date on news about Call of Duty revival projects for the Wii version.
  3. SomeOrdinaryGamers: You Are Being Scammed
  4. EQOA Revival discord channel
  5. NiteVelocity1's comment about FlatOut Ultimate Carnage multiplayer
  6. Wikipedia: Acclaim Games
  7. https://github.com/richardg867/WaybackProxy#waybackproxy