Hollowtip on 21/11/2006 at 05:44
While looking through the data files for SS1 I realised that the save game files and other data files are exactly the same format. Infact, the savegames simply overwrite some of the data in the other files. So, my curiosity got the better of me and i copied over the file containing the map data (archive.dat) with one of my save games (save games create a copy of all the mapping data). When I started a new game, I still started in the healing suite and had no weapons or items (the ones in the "general" tab, i.e. batteries, access-cards or "blue smarties"), but I had all of the hardware, software, grenades, ammo, patches (detox, med, beserk, etc), health and energy from the saved game. So i was running around lvl 1 with jumpjets, v4 shield, v3 enviro, pulser 8, etc.
Just a word of warning to those who want to attempt this. All objects in the world (including doors, enemy corpses, weapons, switches, and basically anything that the player isn't carrying) will be set to the same state as in the saved game. So if u drop a plasma gun in the healing suite, save the game and then overwrite "archive.dat" with the saved game file, then when you start a new game, the plasma gun will be sitting at your feet. Also, due to the fact that items you pick up before the save won't appear in the new game, you have to play with plot difficulty at 0 or 1 in the new game, otherwise you can't leave the healing suite (you need the std access card).
Before doing this, make sure you backup the "archive.dat" file, otherwise you won't be able to restore ss1 to its proper condition (unless you resinstall ss1).
Bomb Bloke on 22/11/2006 at 00:35
You could start a new game, pick up that access card, then save it. Compare the file with "archive.dat", and hey presto, you know which byte(s) handle the location of the card.
Meaning that you could put it back if you wanted to.
Hollowtip on 22/11/2006 at 04:10
There isn't a set area for where the card location is stored. All of the SS data files contain sub "files" (kind of like in a 'zip' or 'rar' file) and these "files" contain information ranging from textures to level geometry to specific objects (the geometry refers to which objects it contains, and the the object "files" contain thier precise location within that geometry). Due to the way games are saved, you would basically need to rewrite the entire save file yourself to add just one item (you would need to change the size of one "file", which would ruin the format of the save game, and you would need to move all the other data down, and change the references throughout the file to be correct, and then if its compressed, its about a million times more difficult). That said, it MIGHT be possible to turn the briefcase or some other item into an access card.
