# decompile roller coaster tycoon?



## Chyrio (Feb 23, 2010)

hey guys i have taken it upon myself to start this awesome project. i want to convert roller coaster tycoon over to android app. what i figured i would have to do is decompile all the files and convert them over to python or java then turn them into a flash app or a java game. then create a touchscreen interface. does that sound good? and what is a .dat file? and what do i do with it? i tried opening it in notepad ++ and it just gives me those little boxes with letters in them. by the way i know very little about programming so any help would be great.


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## Ninjaboi (Dec 27, 2010)

Hello Chyrio.

Firstly, I'd like to say that decompiling any commercial program is illegal, so we are unable to help you with the project itself. Please read the Rules page here at TSF. Even if the program your trying to decompile isn't commercial, it can still be illegal if:

*1.* The creator ( usually a programmer or programming company ) doesn't give you permission to do so.
*2.* The license the program is under specifies that it's illegal to reverse engineer or decompile their software.

As for your question of what is a .dat file, please check these two links:

Answers.com - What are .dat files
Answers.com - What is the dat file extension

I'd also like to tell you that ( for the most part ) it's impossible to decompile a program, even relatively simple ones. Unless you know what programming language(s) were used, what libraries were included, the compiler, the compiler build version, and many other factors, you won't be able to do it. Even if you had all that information and did try it, you'd get *extremely* sloppy and unorganized code, that would be almost impossible to translate into a readable format. Upon that, converting it into another language of choice would be a task on its own. So to tell you the truth, you won't be able to do what your wanting to do as of yet.

Since you mentioned you aren't a programmer, I'd like to tell you that you'll not be able to just copy the code into a converter and convert it into say Java from C. In other words, you'd have to do it entirely manually, going through each line of code ( which for even small commercial products could easily be in the hundreds of thousands of lines ).

You also said that you'd like to convert it into an android game. We'll, since your not a programmer, you'd probably be shocked to know that a program made to say do addition for Windows 7 won't work directly from Windows to say Mac ( unless your talking about languages such as Java, and even then some code needs adjusting ). In other words, you'll have to learn the SDK + hardware of the android, and be able to program directly to manipulate the features it provides in order to accomplish this.

Sorry if this all sounds rude or mean, but this is all the absolute truth with no sprinkles on top.

Now, if your wanting to create an application for the android similar to Roller Coaster Tycoon in several of the features it contains now, I'd suggest:

1. Learning a programming language.
2. Learning the platform SDK for the android.

Those are just to be able to make applications for the android, making a game will take far more. Anyways, we are unable to help you with the project in the way you've specified. If your still interested in becoming a programmer ( or have assembled a programmer or two ) and want to make it the right way, just say so here and I'll see if I can provide any more information on the matter.

Regards,

Ninjaboi


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