eXoDos Collection v5 retroexo@gmail.com ======================================================= ------------------------------------------------------- Contents ------------------------------------------------------- Description.......................................Sec01 Changes to 5.0....................................Sec02 Front-End.........................................Sec03 Setup.............................................Sec04 Emulators.........................................Sec05 Playing the Games.................................Sec06 Missing Games?....................................Sec07 Current & Future Volumes..........................Sec08 Troubleshooting...................................Sec09 Contact & Thanks..................................Sec10 Complete List of Added Games......................Sec11 ------------------------------------------------------- Description Sec01 ------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to eXoDOS Version 5.0! Please read eXoDOS Manual.pdf for detailed info on the new features. This pack includes 7,200 DOS games. The focus of the main project is on games that were either released in English or are fairly easy to play without a knowledge of it's native language. Language packs are in development for French & German packs. We are on the look-out for curators interested in assisting with other languages. While the project does not contain every DOS game ever made, it does have a very high percentage of all commercial releases. There are hundreds of freeware, homebrew, and shareware games that will continue to be added in future packs. The games have already been configured to run in DOSBox. Games which are supported by ScummVM will give you the option at launch as to which emulator you would like to use. Version 5.0 Adds 202 games. A Complete list of which can be found at the bottom of this text file. ------------------------------------------------------- Changes to 5.0 Sec02 ------------------------------------------------------- ? Download on Demand: A lite version of the pack is now available with just the front end. Games download as they are launched ? IPX \ Serial Networking: Games with IPX, LAN, and Serial connections have had options added to easily automate play ? Updater: Get eXoDOS updates downloaded and automatically applied to your collection ? Magazine Preservation: Browse print & digital magazines from the DOS era ? Alternate Names: Support for alternate game names has been added. Now you can search by multi-region naming ? Dynamic Installed Games Playlist: Powered by a custom LaunchBox plugin, it auto adds\removes games to the playlist as you install\uninstall them ? Even More Manuals & Higher Resolution Scans ? Gold Box Companion Support: D&D Games now offer to launch with a companion app that maps your progress in real time ? Unified launch\install files: files are now universal & variable based instead of hard coded, making it much easier to move things around ? New Folder Structure: Designed to support upcoming projects ? Bug Squash: Hundreds of bugs handled in our new github The eXoDOS Manual.pdf contains details on many of these new features. ------------------------------------------------------- Front-End Sec03 ------------------------------------------------------- The front end used is LaunchBox from Unbroken Software. The front ends website can be found at: https://www.launchbox-app.com/ LaunchBox goes way beyond a standard frontend by supporting direct steam library imports, a cloud games database for scraping metadata, and support for every emulator I have thrown at it. I highly recommend supporting their project and upgrading to the premium edition. I have taken time to mark some of the best DOS games as 'favorites' to help give people new to DOS a place to start. ------------------------------------------------------- Setup Sec04 ------------------------------------------------------- Run SETUP.BAT. The setup file will check for required files and warn you if any are missing. The eXoDOS collection can be run from any directory, as all launch files are designed to use relative paths to each other. Running the setup.bat file will extract all of the LaunchBox assets and the games front end assets/configs. It will also give you the opportunity to customize your set. This includes the option to remove Adult games from the LaunchBox menu. This removes games with sex or nudity from the LaunchBox XML file. This does not remove violent games. Please make use of the ratings category in LaunchBox if you would like to filter the games further. You will also be prompted as to if you would like your global defaults to be Fullscreen or Windowed and whether or not you would like to default to Aspect Ratio On or Off. If you choose windowed mode, you will have the option between 640x480 or 1280x960. Once it is complete, simply run LaunchBox.exe to dive right in. ------------------------------------------------------- Emulators Sec05 ------------------------------------------------------- This collection uses DOSBox, ScummVM, and Frotz to play the games. DOSBox and ScummVM reside in their respective folders at: \eXo\ScummVM \eXo\DOSBox These are *different* from the ScummVM and DOSBox folders in the root folder, which are used by LaunchBox. Multiple versions of DOSBox are used to make these games playable. This includes 0.74, ECE, SVN Daum, X, and a dozen or more custom builds built to support specific games. ------------------------------------------------------- Playing the Games Sec06 ------------------------------------------------------- After downloading the collection and running "Setup.bat", simply run the LaunchBox.exe file. You will be presented with a list of all included games. The first time you attempt to run a game it will ask if you want to install it. Subsequent runs will directly launch the game. Initial install may take some time depending on the size (a few of these games are upwards of 8 CDs!). During install you will be prompted to choose whether or not to enforce aspect ratio, full screen or windowed mode, and if you would like to apply a scaler. Scalers can smooth pixels, making older pixelated games look a bit more modern. The default setting is normal2x. If you run the install file a second time, it will ask if you would like to un-install the game. Choosing "yes" will erase the installed files from your disk, but keep the original ZIP file. You will loose any saved games, high scores, or other settings you have defined since the game was installed. If you choose not to un-install the game you will get the chance to choose full screen or windowed again and another opportunity to change the scaler. If the scaler refuses to change, you will have to rerun the Setup file in order to extract clean copies of each games conf file. To do this from LaunchBox, you may right click the game and select 'Configure'. ------------------------------------------------------- Missing Games? Sec07 ------------------------------------------------------- Yes, there are still games missing. Some may have never been released for DOS, while others may have never had an English release. Keep in mind several games had different names in different regions. If you can find the game you are looking for on MobyGames, there is a 99.9% chance it is in the collection. A maintained list of currently known missing titles can be found at the eXoDOS Discord. We also have a game submission suggestion channel. ------------------------------------------------------- Current & Future Volumes Sec08 ------------------------------------------------------- Current: eXoDOS Version 5 eXoWin3x Version 2: The Win 3.x Collection (renamed from Win3xO) Future: ????????? It's a secret! ????????? ------------------------------------------------------- Trouble Shooting \ F.A.Q. Sec09 ------------------------------------------------------- Q: When I run a game it says it is missing. A: If you downloaded the full set, then make sure you actually downloaded every file. If you downloaded the Download on Demand set, then it should ask if you want to download the game. Q: You're missing a game! A: See the section on missing games. Q: You're missing a manual/cover/extra/etc.... A: Please email me or join our discord and submit it in the proper channel. Q: I want my games on a different drive than my LaunchBox install. A: Use symlinks! ------------------------------------------------------- Contact & Thanks Sec10 ------------------------------------------------------- If you have questions, media, games to add, or other concerns, you can email me at retroexo@gmail.com You can join the eXoDOS Discord server at this link: https://discord.gg/x6fjPu Special thanks to the following groups: Unbroken Software - For all the great support in getting eXoDOS into LaunchBox Hargle & his team at Total DOS Collection - These guys have located countless rare games. MobyGames - For supporting the project with both data and accessibility to that data. Old-Games.ru - They became a very valuable resource for rare DOS games during this last cycle. Pleasuredom...
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