Little Big Adventure 2 Classic Community

Little Big Adventure 2 (aka Twinsen's Odyssey) is the sequel to Little Big Adventure (aka Relentless: Twinsen's Adventure) in 1997.

This repository is the community fork of the classic source release — a source port maintained with preservation in mind while improving portability and long-term maintainability. Game assets aren't included; you need a legitimate copy of LBA2 to play.

For a history of project changes, please see the CHANGELOG.md.

About this repository

The original LBA2 engine source is the lba2-classic codebase: it is mostly assembly, with C++ for game logic, and is the canonical historical release. lba2-classic-community is a community fork for evolving and modernizing the code: ports of assembly to C++, SDL3 for graphics/audio/input, libsmacker for FMV, native Linux/macOS/Windows/Android builds, and player-facing additions such as widescreen support, gamepad play, and an always-on debug console. The goal is to preserve the history and culture of the original while making the codebase easier to build and extend. See ASM_TO_CPP_REFERENCE.md for which modules have been ported from ASM to C++ in this fork.

Playing

Pre-built binaries for Linux, macOS, and Windows.

Stable — the latest tagged release. A milestone build with less churn than rolling. Pre-1.0 — bugs are still being ironed out, and full-playthrough testing isn't part of the release criteria yet (see the 1.0 bar for what changes at 1.0).

Bleeding edge — the rolling latest pre-release. Rebuilt from main on every push, may contain unreleased changes, and sometimes carries artifacts not yet in the latest stable tag (newly added platforms land here first). Useful for verifying a fix landed or chasing the freshest feature; not play-tested.

All releases: Releases page.

Game data

You need a legitimate copy of LBA2 (GOG, Steam, or your retail CD) — the engine doesn't ship assets.

On first launch a folder picker opens; point it at the directory containing lba2.hqr (alongside music/, video/, vox/, …, or under a Common/ / CommonClassic/ subfolder for Steam/GOG re-releases). Your choice is remembered.

To skip the picker, pass an explicit path:

./lba2cc --game-dir /path/to/game
LBA2_GAME_DIR=/path/to/game ./lba2cc

To re-pick later: ./lba2cc --pick-game-dir. See docs/GAME_DATA.md for the full discovery order and override precedence.

Linux

Grab lba2cc-<version>-anylinux-<arch>.AppImage, then:

chmod +x lba2cc-*-anylinux-*.AppImage
./lba2cc-*-anylinux-*.AppImage

On distros without FUSE, or for packagers wrapping the binary, a static lba2cc-<version>-linux-<arch>.tar.gz is published alongside the AppImage — extract and run lba2cc.

macOS

Download lba2cc-<version>-macos-arm64.dmg, open it, drag LBA2 Classic Community.app to Applications. First launch needs right-click → Open (macOS Gatekeeper blocks unsigned apps on double-click). The DMG ships its own README covering this — read it before the first launch.

Windows

Download lba2cc-<version>-windows-x64.zip, unzip anywhere, run lba2cc.exe. Portable build: no installer, no DLLs needed.

Android

Download the lba2cc-<version>-android-arm64-v8a.apk (or armeabi-v7a). Requires Android 7.0 (API 24) or later. You must provide your own retail game data (see Game data and docs/ANDROID.md for setup).

Building from source quick start

Prerequisites

• CMake 3.23+
• Ninja (for make build and presets)
• A C/C++ compiler with C++98 support (GCC, Clang)
• SDL3 (shared library)
• GNU Make — only required for the make shortcuts; plain CMake works without it
• Optional: UASM — only required for ENABLE_ASM=ON workflows

On macOS, install with brew install ninja sdl3.

First clone

1. make or make help — lists convenience targets (build, run, clean, test, …).
2. make build — configures build/ (Ninja, Debug) and compiles lba2cc. Or plain CMake: cmake -B build && cmake --build build.
3. Point the engine at your game data — export LBA2_GAME_DIR=/path, ./data/ (gitignored), --game-dir, or bounded automatic discovery (the lba2.hqr marker is the only special-cased file). See docs/GAME_DATA.md.
4. make run or ./scripts/dev/build-and-run.sh — build if needed, then run. make run sets LBA2_GAME_DIR automatically if ./data or ../LBA2 contains lba2.hqr; otherwise pass --game-dir /path/to/classic/install to the binary.
5. make test — host-only tests (path resolution, parsers, ABI bounds, version checks); no retail files or Docker required.

Windows: Use MSYS2 (recommended; see docs/WINDOWS.md). Discovery and the game work the same (LBA2_GAME_DIR, --game-dir, paths with \ or /). The root Makefile and scripts/dev/*.sh need a Unix-like shell (MSYS2 UCRT64, Git Bash, or WSL); alternatively run cmake and build/SOURCES/lba2cc.exe from cmd.exe / PowerShell and set the env var with set LBA2_GAME_DIR=....

CMake presets

For platform-specific builds, use the presets in CMakePresets.json (all use the Ninja generator, so ninja must be on PATH):

• Linux: cmake --preset linux && cmake --build --preset linux
• macOS: cmake --preset macos_arm64 && cmake --build --preset macos_arm64 (or macos_x86_64)
• Windows: cmake --preset windows_ucrt64 && cmake --build --preset windows_ucrt64 — see docs/WINDOWS.md
• Cross-compile Windows from Linux: cmake --preset cross_linux2win && cmake --build --preset cross_linux2win. To skip the preset, use the toolchain file directly: cmake -B build -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=cmake/mingw-w64-i686.cmake.

Build options

Option	Values	Default	Description
SOUND_BACKEND	null, miles, sdl	sdl	Sound backend. Use sdl for audio via SDL3. miles requires the proprietary Miles Sound System SDK. See docs/AUDIO.md.
MVIDEO_BACKEND	null, smacker	smacker	Motion video backend. Use smacker for FMV playback via the bundled open-source libsmacker.
DEBUG_TOOLS	ON, OFF	OFF	Enable original Adeline developer debug tools: overlay, FPS counter, screenshots, collision visualization, benchmarks, cheat codes, bug save/load, command-line scene selection. See docs/DEBUG.md.
LBA2_BUILD_TESTS	ON, OFF	OFF	Build CTest targets (ASM equivalence + host tests such as test_res_discovery).
LBA2_BUILD_ASM_EQUIV_TESTS	ON, OFF	ON	ASM↔CPP equivalence suite (needs objcopy). Set OFF for host-only tests (e.g. macOS CI, make test).

Minimal build (no audio/video): -DSOUND_BACKEND=null -DMVIDEO_BACKEND=null. When MVIDEO_BACKEND=smacker, video audio routes through the active sound backend (SDL: real audio; NULL/MILES: silent). See LIB386/SMACKER/README.md and LIB386/AIL/MILES/README.md for details on the proprietary SDKs and their open-source replacements.

Debug console

This source port includes a Quake-style drop-down debug console. It is always available (no build flag), designed to be minimally invasive — normal gameplay is unchanged unless you open and use it. See docs/CONSOLE.md for commands, usage, and integration details.

Project structure

lba2-classic-community/
├── CMakeLists.txt            # Root build configuration
├── CMakePresets.json         # Cross-platform preset builds (linux/macos/windows/...)
├── Makefile                  # Convenience targets (build/run/test/format)
├── cmake/                    # Toolchains and CMake helpers
├── scripts/                  # Dev and CI helper scripts
├── SOURCES/                  # Main game logic and app entrypoints
│   ├── CONSOLE/              # Always-on debug console module (core + state)
│   ├── 3DEXT/                # 3D extensions (terrain, sky, rain, decor)
│   ├── CONFIG/               # Input/config UI and bindings
│   └── *.CPP, *.H, *.ASM     # Gameplay systems (AI, physics, save/load, etc.)
├── LIB386/                   # Engine libraries
│   ├── 3D/                   # Projection, rotation, matrices
│   ├── AIL/                  # Audio abstraction (SDL/Miles/null)
│   ├── ANIM/                 # Animation system
│   ├── OBJECT/               # 3D object rendering
│   ├── pol_work/             # Polygon fillers/rasterization
│   ├── SVGA/                 # Text/sprite/dirty-box rendering paths
│   ├── SYSTEM/               # Platform/system/input/timer abstractions
│   ├── H/                    # Shared legacy headers/types
│   └── libsmacker/           # Open-source Smacker decoder (LGPL 2.1)
├── tests/                    # Host tests + ASM↔CPP equivalence test wiring
├── docs/                     # Project documentation index and subsystem docs
└── run_tests_docker.sh       # Docker wrapper for ASM↔CPP test workflows

Documentation

Engine reference (terms, lifecycles, scene index): GLOSSARY, LIFECYCLES, SCENES.

Build, debug, preservation, and porting docs are in docs/.

Preservation notes

This codebase is a window into 1990s game development at Adeline Software International in Lyon, France. Beyond the technical content, the source files contain original developer artifacts worth exploring. The ASCII art and French comments documented below are from the original Adeline / lba2-classic codebase (same files or content preserved when porting ASM to C++ in this fork).

• ASCII art banners -- The developers decorated their source files with elaborate text banners in two distinct styles. See ASCII_ART.md for a full catalog.
• French comments -- The code is written with French comments throughout, many of which are informal, humorous, or expressive in ways that reflect the personality of the team. See FRENCH_COMMENTS.md for a curated selection with English translations.

License

This source code is licensed under the GNU General Public License.

Please note this license only applies to Little Big Adventure 2 engine source code. Little Big Adventure 2 game assets (art, models, textures, audio, etc.) are not open-source and therefore aren't redistributable.

How can I contribute?

Read our Contribution Guidelines and the Code Style reference.

Links

• Official Website: https://twinsenslittlebigadventure.com/
• Discord: https://discord.gg/jsTPWYXHsh
• Docs: https://lba-classic-doc.readthedocs.io/

Buy the game

• GOG
• Steam

Original development team

• Direction: Frédérick Raynal
• Programmers: Sébastien Viannay / Laurent Salmeron / Cédric Bermond / Frantz Cournil / Marc Bureau du Colombier
• 3D Artists & Animations: Paul-Henri Michaud / Arnaud Lhomme
• Artists: Yaeël Barroz, Sabine Morlat, Didier Quentin
• Story & Design: Frédérick Raynal / Didier Chanfray / Yaël Barroz / Laurent Salmeron / Marc Albinet
• Dialogs: Marc Albinet
• Story coding: Frantz Cournil / Lionel Chaze / Pascal Dubois
• Video Sequences: Frédéric Taquet / Benoît Boucher / Ludovic Rubin / Merlin Pardot
• Music & Sound FX: Philippe Vachey
• Testing: Bruno Marion / Thomas Ferraz / Alexis Madinier / Christopher Horwood / Bertrand Fillardet
• Quality Control: Emmanuel Oualid

Use the credits command in the console to see the full original credits.

Copyright

The intellectual property is currently owned by [2.21]. Copyright [2.21] Originally developed by Adeline Software International in 1994