Colonization port v0.1.13

Sid Meier's Colonization for Windows (1995), ported to modern systems from its byte-matched
reconstruction. No game files are included: you need your own copy of the game -- either
Colonization for Windows (1995, patched or not), or Steam's or GOG's Colonization, whose
disc image (COLONIZE.ISO, COLONIZE.GOG) carries the Windows edition.

What's new in v0.1.13

• New World maps (#5): a generated map put mountains on nearly every square next to the
  sea. One step of the generator reads the memory just past the four world options. The
  original always finds 0 there, so the step runs 800 times. The port read a different value
  from that spot and ran the step millions of times. It now runs 800 times, like the original,
  and the land is mostly flat again. America's map was never affected.
• When the game stops responding, the log now says where it stopped. Windows marks a window
  "Not Responding" after five seconds without a message, and closing it then ended the game with
  0xCFFFFFFF and nothing in the log, which the launcher called "a crash". Now the stalled code's
  stack goes into the log as hang lines, a colonize-port-hang.dmp is saved next to it, and
  the launcher calls that exit a hang. The log's header also lists the CD drives: the music is
  CD audio, and the game waits on the drive.

Download	Platform	Start
colonization-port-windows-x86.zip	Windows (32-bit program; runs on 32- and 64-bit Windows)	Colonization.exe
colonization-port-linux-i386.zip	Linux (a Winelib program: needs Wine with its 32-bit part)	./colonization
colonization-port-macos.zip	macOS (the 32-bit Windows program under Wine: needs Gcenx's Wine, not Apple's Game Porting Toolkit)	./colonization

How to run

1. Unzip the kit into the folder of your game:
   • Colonization for Windows: the folder with COLONIZE.EXE (for example C:\MPS\COLONIZE);
   • Steam's Colonization: its install folder, the one with COLONIZE.ISO
     (Steam: right-click the game > Manage > Browse local files);
   • GOG's Colonization: its install folder, the one with COLONIZE.GOG.
2. Start the launcher from the kit's folder: Colonization.exe on Windows, ./colonization in a
   terminal on macOS and Linux (install Wine first: on macOS brew install --cask wine@devel; on
   Debian/Ubuntu sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386 && sudo apt install wine wine32).

The launcher finds the game in the folder it was unzipped into (or one it is given: Colonization.exe "D:\Games\Colonization", ./colonization /path/to/game), checks COLONIZE.EXE's SHA-256, and
remembers the folder. It looks in the current folder, its own folder and the one above it, and
the folder used last time; failing those it asks, with a folder dialog, until one holds the game.

• Colonization for Windows: the game runs in its own folder, reads its pictures, sounds and
  data there and saves there, as the original did.
• Steam or GOG: the launcher unpacks the Windows edition from COLONIZE.ISO or COLONIZE.GOG
  once (a few seconds) into a game folder inside the kit's folder, and the game runs and saves
  there. Nothing goes into your user profile. To update, unzip the new kit over the old one: the
  game folder and your saves stay.

If it does not start or stops: colonization-port.log beside the launcher says why, and a crash
leaves colonization-port.dmp there too; please send both.

How it was tested (status/*.json at this release)

• Windows x86 program: 757 of 757 checkpoints in lockstep with the original game over 7 scenarios
• Linux program: 757 of 757 checkpoints in lockstep with the original game over 7 scenarios
• The rules: the port plays the same saved games turn for turn with the original, compared
  at every step of every turn; the screens: 9 scripted UI sessions.
• On a real Windows machine: Windows 6.1 build 7601 SP1, 64-bit, v0.1.1 windows-x86 (2026-10-11).

Known limits

• A Steam or GOG copy (the original 1995 release) lacks the patch's COLDATA9.DLL: the Jukebox's
  Control Panel and the Cheat menu's dialogs crash. Everything else plays.
• The Windows game plays its music from the CD's audio tracks; a disc image has none.
• The macOS and Linux kits run through Wine; they are not native programs.

Version v0.1.13. Checksums: SHA256SUMS.txt.