restoHack is a full-blooded resurrection of Hack, the 1984 roguelike that spawned NetHack. Not a remake. Not a reboot. This is software preservation with a blowtorch and a scalpel.
The goal: make the original code compile, run, and dungeon-crawl exactly as it did when floppy was King.
Think resto-mod: the soul stays vintage, the internals get a precision rebuild.
Philosophy: "Fix what breaks, preserve what works" - authentic 1984 gameplay with modern build system and safety improvements.
📜 Read the Complete History of Hack →
From Rogue (1980) to NetHack's rise, through decades of digital decay, to restoHack's 2025 resurrection
Luck and death, in that order.
- Modern Build System – CMake replaces Makefiles. Clean builds on Linux, FreeBSD, and other Unix systems.
- Authentic Systems – Over a dozen original systems restored from source, untouched in design.
- Complete K&R Modernization – Entire codebase converted to ANSI C (~250 functions updated).
- Unix/Linux Fixes – No more hardcoded BSD paths or FS quirks.
- Cross-Platform Verified – Works on Linux (glibc/musl) & FreeBSD; CI-tested.
- Tiny Executable – 479KB of pure roguelike, with save/load intact.
Tested on: Arch, Alpine, FreeBSD 14.2. macOS support pending. Arch users can install via the AUR.
yay -S restohackDownload from Releases and extract:
mkdir -p ~/Games/restohack
cd ~/Games/restohack
tar -xzf restoHack-static-YYYYMMDD-linux-x86_64.tar.gzRequirements: git, cmake, a C compiler, ncurses
git clone https://github.com/Critlist/restoHack.git
cd restoHack
cmake -S . -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build build
./build/hackAlternative (if your system supports CMake presets):
cmake --preset=release && cmake --build buildIf you just want to try it immediately without building from source:
./run-hack.sh(static binary, no dependencies required)
For BSD systems, development builds, IDE integration, and troubleshooting: see 📋 Build Instructions
Current Development: v1.1 - Hardening and Safety
The current work-in-progress focuses on introducing comprehensive hardening and safety parameters that the original 1984 code lacked. This version emphasizes stability improvements including:
- Enhanced memory safety and bounds checking
- Improved error handling and recovery mechanisms
- Compiler warning elimination and code hardening
- Environment-specific adaptations for varying systems
- Robust input validation and sanitization
This was the guiding philosophy of 1984. While undoubtedly brilliant, the original Hack was held together with duct tape, raw struct dumps, and a healthy dose of ’80s-era K&R magic.
Stability was a suggestion, not a guarantee.
- Version 1.1 looks to fix that: modern hardening, memory safety, and input validation — while keeping the authentic 1984 gameplay intact.
- Modern Locking – Replaced
link()locks withflock()for clean recovery. - NetBSD/pkgsrc Builds – Fixed curses detection and RNG seeding via CMake feature checks.
- Tombstone Crash – Fixed segfault in RIP screen by patching buffer overflow in name centering.
Fix what breaks, preserve what works. The original 1984 gameplay, balance, and feel remain untouched—only the infrastructure has been made reliable for modern systems.
restoHack is built from verified original source code with complete provenance documentation:
The original 1984 Hack source code was preserved in the FreeBSD games collection, which maintained Andries Brouwer's final Hack 1.0.3 release from 1985. This represents the canonical version of historical Hack.
Our preservation methodology ensures authenticity:
- Automated retrieval:
docs/historical/original-source/download_hack.sh - Verification: SHA-256 checksums and cross-reference validation
- Documentation: Complete chain of custody from 1984 → FreeBSD → restoHack
- Integrity: Every original file preserved unchanged in
docs/historical/original-source/
- 100% behavioral authenticity: Every game mechanic functions exactly as in 1984
- Save file compatibility: Original 1984 save files work in restoHack
- Statistical verification: Random number sequences match the original precisely
- Cross-platform consistency: Identical behavior on all supported systems
Every change from the original 1984 code is meticulously documented:
/**
* MODERN ADDITION (2025): Brief description
* WHY: Problem being solved
* HOW: Technical implementation
* PRESERVES: Original 1984 behavior maintained
* ADDS: Modern functionality provided
*/No original code is deleted—it's preserved in comments alongside modern equivalents.
Hack 1.0.3 represents:
- Andries Brouwer's masterpiece: The mathematical peak of 1980s roguelike design
- The bridge: Between Rogue's simplicity and NetHack's complexity
- Software archaeology: A preserved artifact of computing history
- Gaming heritage: The foundation of an entire genre
For the complete story of Hack's creation, evolution, abandonment, and resurrection, see The Complete History of Hack.
You’re the @, diving into the Mazes of Menace to steal the Amulet of Yendor.
Expect monsters, magic, cursed loot, and permadeath. Controls are Vi-style (hjkl). Survival is… unlikely.
Bug fixes, portability patches, packaging help—welcome. Want to port to Plan 9? Go for it. Just document changes and respect the code.
3-Clause BSD. Do what you want, just don’t sue us. See LICENSE.