Dark Earth (demo)
Kalisto / MicroProse, 1997. Registered as dark_earth_demo.
Fixture and install (headless)
test/binaries/win98-games-a-d/Dark_Earth_demo-NeedMountedCD-SW: a MODE1/2048 BIN + cue of the demo CD (label DARKEARTH). The cue names the image in upper case;dark-earth.cuebeside it matches the file and is what the registry entry mounts.run.js --iso=<bin> --iso-exe='DKEDEMO\SETUP.EXE' --tick-ms-per-batch=5 --capture-launch=cap: the 16-bit InstallShield 3 launcher WinExecs_ins0432._mp -fD:\DKEDEMO\SETUP.INS -z1 -cx -xC:\WINDOWS\TEMP\. Keep only the capturedwindows/temp(the capture also copies the whole CD).- Run the engine with
--iso=<bin>still mounted,--exe-guest-path,--vfs-tree=<temp tree>,--args=...,--cwd=D:\DKEDEMO, frozen--control; Next x3, step to "Setup is complete".C:\DARKDEMO(dkedemo.exe + per-level DLLs, 778 files, 26 MB) is kept atinstalled/. The game data stays on the CD: without D: it stops with "Fatal error 4".
What it needed (2026-10-06)
ValidateRgn(54b72963): not an API before.
Route
Boot shows the controls page; it waits on a WM_CHAR key queue
(exe+0x4862a0 fills it from the wndproc's WM_CHAR case,
exe+0x47cd30 waits on it), so on the CLI use keypress (keydown alone is
not translated to WM_CHAR here: the host sends WM_CHAR itself, as the
browser's keypress does). Space -> monitor settings; Enter -> main menu;
click NEW (150,62) -> Arkhan in his room; hold Up -> he walks out to the
domed hall (fixed-camera cut). Evidence: scratch/runs/20261006-dark-earth-demo-walk.
Open
Audio, FPS, browser route.