The source code for Ubisoft’s 2004 open-world first-person shooter Far Cry has leaked online. Since source codes for video games seem to leak all the time, tell me, y’all, who could’ve seen this leak coming?
Prominent dataminer Vinícius Medeiros, who’s known for their Duke Nukem mods, tweeted on June 30 that Far Cry’s source code, the skeletal instructions for the game to function, was uploaded to the Internet Archive late last month.
“Out of nowhere, the full source code for Far Cry 1 just dropped on the Internet Archive,” Medeiros said. In a reply to someone, they said the code compiles, which means the written code is translated into machine code so a computer can execute it (if it’s written correctly, of course). And although assets weren’t included, having access to the game’s source code means that folks can make modifications and fixes to things like enemy AI in Far Cry’s engine.
The game’s source code was posted on the Internet Archive on June 24 by a user name Llaetha.ro. The Internet Archive is a digital library that gives you free access to tons of books, movies, music, software, and other cultural artifacts. The upload contains six files, all of which are labeled “Far Cry 1.34 complete,” suggesting this may be the 34th patch for the decades-old sandbox shooter. While Medeiros said it compiles, some commenters on Internet Archive clarified that they ran into some snags when working with the source code.
“From my educated guess, this is some source tree leak for the PC version of the game to add support for the Ubisoft game launcher/DRM,” said user MobCat. “It does contain some .exes, but no Xbox code and no game assets. The code that is there doesn’t compile without 332 errors. (I could have the dev env setup wrong too.) So, I think you could get some debug PC version of this game running if you put in the effort and learned the code base.”
The source code also made its way to the subreddit r/GamingLeaksAndRumors, a popular Reddit forum for gaming gossip. Folks cheered the upload, imagining all the possibilities with the OG Far Cry.
“Someone will probably raytrace it xD,” said redditor epd666.
“Maybe someone can fix the hacking AI lmao,” redditor BaldingThor hoped.
“If possible, someone use this to mod/remake 1-3 in the Far Cry 6 engine, please, and demonstrate to Ubisoft that it would be worthwhile to release a 1-3 remaster/remake and how cool it’d look if done correctly,” begged redditor WutIzThizStuff.
“Can’t wait for someone to port [this] on every console possible like Wii U, PSVita, 3DS or even Zeebo like Doom, Super Mario 64, and OpenLara,” said redditor MoonieSarito.
Kotaku reached out to Medeiros and Ubisoft for comment.
Far Cry isn’t the first game to have its source code pop up online. Mortal Kombat II’s code was available to earlier this year until publisher Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment pulled it offline. League of Legends’ code also leaked this year, with Riot Games refusing to pay the blackmailer who threatened to upload it. There’s also Half-Life 2 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s source codes, both of which leaked years ago. While leaks are a bummer, this is a boon for game preservation, as it gives folks savvy enough to tinker with the code the ability to drag old games into modern times. And that’s cool shit.