Fun with LucasArts Classic Games: Make a Super Installer!

Make a super installer for all your classic LucasArts adventure games! Why? I have no idea!  

LucasArts Classic Adventures has five games. Monkey Island 2 and Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis are not included, but both use the same installer format. So, we can add them to the Classic Adventures installer! Why? Why not?!?

This can be done just by modifying the original installer from LucasArts Classic Adventures:

Note the following is is all done in DOS (i.e., DOSBox or similar if there is no vintage machine available!).

Grab install.exe from Classic Adventures Disk 1. We are going to remove the installation data at the end of the file so we can provide our own.  To do this, we need to use two DOS utilities:

lzexe.exe - Compresses exe files and appends a loader to automatically decompress when run.

unlzexe.exe - Decompresses exe files that have been compressed with LZEXE.

At a DOS prompt, run:

unlzexe install.exe
lzexe install.exe

There should now be:
INSTALL.OLZ - The original install file with install data.

INSTALL.OLD - Decompressed install file with no install data. 
INSTALL.EXE - Recompressed install file with no install data.

Now copy the updated the install.txt (contexts at end of this article) into same directory. Installation now works for all seven classic games, given all the archive files are present.

The install data can now be appended and install.txt deleted (install.old and install.olz can also be deleted). Append in DOS with:

type install.txt >> install.exe

Run install.exe and you should now see:

If you have all of the original archive files available, installation will work for all 7 games.

MANIAC_A XXX            401,060 26-08-1992  9:36

ZAK____A XXX            633,717 26-08-1992  9:33

LOOM___A XXX            394,088 08-09-1992 10:35

LOOM___B XXX            874,101 08-09-1992 10:35

INDY___B XXX            571,088 28-08-1992 10:00

INDY___C XXX          1,454,088 28-08-1992 10:00

INDY___D XXX          1,454,088 28-08-1992 10:00

INDY___E XXX             73,054 28-08-1992 10:00

MONKEY_E XXX          1,384,088 08-09-1992  9:41

MONKEY_F XXX          1,454,088 08-09-1992  9:41

MONKEY_G XXX            697,641 08-09-1992  9:41

PCV10__A MI2          1,426,088 21-11-1991 12:33

PCV10__B MI2          1,454,088 21-11-1991 12:33

PCV10__C MI2          1,454,088 21-11-1991 12:33

PCV10__D MI2          1,454,088 21-11-1991 12:33

PCV10__E MI2          1,445,727 21-11-1991 12:33

PCVIQA_A ND4          1,419,388 21-05-1992 10:11

PCVIQA_B ND4          1,454,088 21-05-1992 10:11

PCVIQA_C ND4          1,454,088 21-05-1992 10:11

PCVIQA_D ND4          1,454,088 21-05-1992 10:11

PCVIQA_E ND4          1,451,010 21-05-1992 10:11

INSTALL  EXE             24,927 05-11-2023 15:57

Have fun!

Contents of the new install.txt:

pcvdev_a.nd4

LucasArts(tm) Classic Adventures Archive 

GameDir

Please insert floppy disk #

Press any key to continue

Cannot find

Insert correct disk and press any key

Reading file

Installation Complete.

Extracting file

Cannot write file

Installation program for

Space needed for install

Space available on drive

Ignored unknown chunk:

Not enough space to install

Error!

(or A to Abort)

Hard drive on which to install program  (Use Arrow keys):

Floppy drive to read installation disks (Use Arrow Keys):

-----------------------------------------------------

Installation completed for this game

Press Any Key

-----------------------------------------------------

No disk in drive

Cannot find specified drive

Cannot create directory

Creating directory

TM & (c) 1992 LucasArts Entertainment Company.  All rights reserved.

-----------------------------------------------------

Error During Installation

Press Any Key to exit to Dos

-----------------------------------------------------

Select game(s) to install

(press number of game(s) to install, return when done)

                                                      

1) Maniac Mansion                                        

2) Zak McKracken                                         

3) Loom                                                  

4) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade                    

5) The Secret of Monkey Island                           

6) Monkey Island 2: LeChucks's Revenge                   

7) Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis                

maniac   maniac_a.xxx   1 //directory, filename, beginning disk#

zak      zak____a.xxx   1

loom     loom___a.xxx   1

indy     indy___a.xxx   2

monkey   monkey_a.xxx   5

mi2      pcv10__a.mi2   1

indy4    pcviqa_a.nd4   1

30 95 78 0 

Lucasfilm Games Archive Format

Byte offset Length Description
-- ALL ARCHIVE FILES --------------------------------------------------------------
0000 4 'LFG!'
0004 4 Length of this part of archive file.*

-- FIRST ARCHIVE FILE ONLY --------------------------------------------------------
0008 14 Archive filename, zero terminated. 
Max 12 characters; last byte ignored.
0016 2 Number of disks (archive files) that make up the  total archive. Valid range is 1-10. 
Upper byte ignored.*
0018 4 Total space needed for all expanded files.*

-- FILE DATA, REPEATED FOR EACH FILE IN ARCHIVE -----------------------------------
4 'FILE'
4 Length of data that follows for the compressed  file, until next 'FILE' marker or archive end.*
14 Filename, zero terminated. Max 12 characters; 
last byte ignored.
4 Final length of this file when expanded.*
2 2 - Meaning unknown. May be version numbers  (major/minor/build, etc.). Ignored.
2 1 - See above. Ignored.
2 0 - See above. Ignored.
variable ... Compressed File Data, using PKZ 'implode' ...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*All multi-byte values are stored least-significant byte first. All lengths are in bytes.

(This table was a result of the work in Adventures in Useless Reverse Engineering, I just never posted it.)