Get rid of data.win

[saahy]

Hi everyone,
Recently I just looking to Spelunky installation directory and they have no any data.win file inside!
So as far as I know gamemaker Studio 2 will compile the game into a data.win file + a virtual machine executable to run the game!

So How can have my game file structures like Spelunky and with custom formats without any archive which has everything together in one file like data.win?

Simply compile the game with VS will do the job?

and one more question, is it possible to use my own file format archive or encrypt all my game resources?

Thanks a lot and have lovely day

 

[TsukaYuriko]

Hi everyone,
Recently I just looking to Spelunky installation directory and they have no any data.win file inside!
So as far as I know gamemaker Studio 2 will compile the game into a data.win file + a virtual machine executable to run the game!

So How can have my game file structures like Spelunky and with custom formats without any archive which has everything together in one file like data.win?

Simply compile the game with VS will do the job?

Spelunky was made with GameMaker 8.

You're using GameMaker Studio 2.

The two use entirely different structures for exported games. 8 bundles everything into a single file, Studio 2 does not. As of recently, whether you use the VM or YYC export makes no difference in this regard.

Why do you want to get rid of this file?

and one more question, is it possible to use my own file format archive or encrypt all my game resources?

Yes, both of these are possible.

 

[YellowAfterlife]

In GMS1 and GMS2 versions before 2.2.2 (IIRC), when compiling with YYC, data.win was added as a resource file to the executable, thus embedding it inside.

On YYC you could still embed it with some tricks, but I'd reconsider whether it's worthwhile the effort.

 

[2DKnights]

In GMS1 and GMS2 versions before 2.2.2 (IIRC), when compiling with YYC, data.win was added as a resource file to the executable, thus embedding it inside.

On YYC you could still embed it with some tricks, but I'd reconsider whether it's worthwhile the effort.

How?

 

[saahy]

Spelunky was made with GameMaker 8.

You're using GameMaker Studio 2.

The two use entirely different structures for exported games. 8 bundles everything into a single file, Studio 2 does not. As of recently, whether you use the VM or YYC export makes no difference in this regard.

Why do you want to get rid of this file?


Yes, both of these are possible.

Thanks for the answer,
There is some reasons for me personally, I do not know how GameMaker handle archive files! but I don't like to have a big archive file and an executable!
I just want to have some folders which files are stored on those folder and game just using them. I have no problem with data.win in my game but have problem with put all of my data in a single file!
If I have a big game then I have 500MB or more data.win file which I don't like that! in case of HD or 4K games it will be worse and maybe cause of some performance problems! (don't know, as I already told I do not know how GameMaker will handle archive files - read them as a single file and load whole things in memory or not!)
Also there is another problem which I have with this sort of compiling, in my opinion one big file and an executable seems the game is not serious!
and at the end there is a lot of data.win de-compilers out there! so I believe if I have my own file format or encryption method at least make de-compiling my game hard to all non programmers or non experienced editors!

In spelunky game we have folder based structure for files and assets. I hate single files!

This means all I want is to use encrypted assets in my game as external resources and not archive them in data.win at the end.
I want only scripts, rooms, meshes (if exist in GameMaker) and objects and all other GameMaker engine files, stored in data.win but assets. (sounds, musics and png's or videos)
Renaming the data.win will file make me happier ))

Thanks a lot

 

[Lonewolff]

It's funny, I am the direct opposite. I love building everything into one true single executable (pre-requisites, assets, you name it). I'm not talking about these fake single executables that go and unpack in some temp directory, I mean true single executable. There's no excuse for it not to run on the target system. One file.

Games that go and make you install VC runtimes, DirectX runtimes, dot net framework. Gah! Nasty!

That's my little ramble, not trying to convert you or anything. Just my random thoughts for the day.


But if you are trying to get rid of data.win, it's not gonna happen. Data.win is your game.

 

[TsukaYuriko]

I just want to have some folders which files are stored on those folder and game just using them. I have no problem with data.win in my game but have problem with put all of my data in a single file!

If you want to have resources in sub-folders, add them as included files. You can define any folder structure you want there. Make sure to pre-render and organize them as texture pages so you won't destroy your game's performance more than necessary.

If you don't want everything to be loaded into memory at once, selectively unload and load it with the provided functions draw_texture_flush, sprite_flush, sprite_flush_multi, sprite_prefetch, sprite_prefetch_multi, texture_prefetch and texture_flush.

and at the end there is a lot of data.win de-compilers out there! so I believe if I have my own file format or encryption method at least make de-compiling my game hard to all non programmers or non experienced editors!

If you're doing any of this in an attempt to prevent decompilation, that's not going to help much. It will not change the decompilability of data.win, graphics can be extracted through various tools either way and audio can be recorded.

As far as I can tell, renaming data.win would require tampering with the runner, which would break the EULA, so that's probably not going to happen too.

 

[saahy]

Thanks
And Can I see them in the IDE before compile the game if I import them as included files?
Because Everything will be in Code! and I need some visual experiences too.

Thanks a lot

 

[TsukaYuriko]

Not if you only add them as included files.

If you want visual representations in the IDE, you will have to add them as sprites. You can make a special texture group only for "IDE visualization" on which you put all of these sprites, mark the texture group to not export to any target (this way they will not need to be packed at compile time), then load and draw the included files as usual.

 

[GMWolf]

Yeah of you are thinking of security, then there is 100% no point.
I could just open any game (short of those with anti cheat/DRM) using a tool like render doc and extract your textures, meshes, even the order in which rendering commands are issued.


As for having a bug archive file: it's actually far more efficient that way. A single file means the data is laid out in a friendly manner on disk. If it where multiple files seek time would kill performance.
The entire data file isnt loaded at once. It is loaded but by bit. (I presume, would be the sensible thing anyways)

 

[SnortySnoopy]

Could it be because of those exploits they managed to do using Undertail that makes you want to do away with it? I'm not sure if the guys who made Undertail or YoYo are aware, but their NSX port was exploited and some managed to inject GMS made games to play on the NSX using the loophole they found in that title (details can be found in GBATemp forum). As a fellow dev I sure find it disturbing.