Namco 22 Decompile

Namco 2x Systems: Namco System 21 / 22 / 23 games for PC

Namco arcade games from the 1990s, rebuilt so they run on a normal computer. You need your own copy of each game's files (the MAME versions); they are not included here. A ROM set from MAME 0.271 or later is supported; the chip unpacker also accepts a few older chip-name spellings where a MAME set has since renamed one (see docs/ROM_CHECKSUMS.md).

System 22 / Super System 22

Game	Year	Status	Online play	Game files you need	Linux	Windows
Prop Cycle	1996	Playable, start to finish	no	propcycl.zip	yes	yes
Rave Racer	1995	Playable	yes, up to 8 (how)	raverace.zip + namcoc74.zip	yes	yes
Tokyo Wars	1996	Playable	no	tokyowar.zip	yes	yes
Dirt Dash	1995	Playable, all five stages; optional no time limit	no	dirtdash.zip	yes	yes
Armadillo Racing	1997	Playable; the mouse or a USB trackball is the trackball	no	adillor.zip	yes	yes
Time Crisis	1995	Playable; mouse or light gun	no	timecris.zip	yes	yes
Ace Driver	1994	Playable; force feedback, developer screens	no	acedrive.zip + namcoc74.zip	yes	yes
Cyber Commando	1994	Playable; Japanese version	no	cybrcomm.zip + namcoc74.zip	yes	yes

System 21

Game	Year	Status	Online play	Game files you need	Linux	Windows
Cyber Sled	1993	Playable; developer test mode, widescreen with the HUD at the edges	yes, 2 players (how)	cybsled.zip + namcoc67.zip + namcoc68.zip	yes	yes

System 23

Game	Year	Status	Online play	Game files you need	Linux	Windows
Time Crisis II	1997	Playable; mouse or light gun, gun recoil output, play either character (its own README)	yes, 2 players, LINK PLAY (how)	timecrs2.zip	yes	yes
Crisis Zone	1999	Playable; mouse or light gun, gun recoil output (its own README)	no	crszone.zip	yes	yes

Are you running the same ROMs as the authors? The checksums of every ROM file the games use are in docs/ROM_CHECKSUMS.md, with a list in md5sum format for each game.

No extra BIOS file. Earlier instructions asked for c71.bin or MAME's namcoc71.zip (the DSP's BIOS). The games have it built in now, so you never need it; if you have it, ignore it.

Pictures

Tokyo Wars:

Rave Racer:

Time Crisis:

Dirt Dash:

Ace Driver:

Cyber Commando:

Cyber Sled:

Time Crisis II:

Prop Cycle:

Tokyo Wars, the title screen:

Download (nothing to build)

Each release on the Releases page has ready-made packages. None of them contains game files: after installing, you put your own zips in a folder (the INSTALL.txt next to the packages says where).

Package	For	How to install
namco-2x-systems_VERSION_amd64.deb	Ubuntu 22.04 or newer, Linux Mint 21 or newer, LMDE 6, Debian 12 or newer	sudo apt install ./namco-2x-systems_*_amd64.deb
PropCycle-x86_64.AppImage, RaveRacer-..., TokyoWars-..., DirtDash-..., ArmadilloRacing-..., TimeCrisis-..., AceDriver-..., CyberCommando-..., CyberSled-..., TimeCrisis2-..., CrisisZone-...	The Steam Deck, and any 64-bit Linux without installing anything	chmod +x the file and run it (on a Deck: Desktop Mode, right-click it > Add to Steam)
windows-release-VERSION.zip	Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit	Unzip it anywhere, put the game zips in its roms folder, double-click the game's .exe

On Linux, start a game from the applications menu (or type propcycle, raveracer, tokyowars, dirtdash, armadilloracing, timecrisis, acedriver, cybercommando, cybersled, timecrisis2 or crisiszone). The first time, it makes the folder ~/.local/share/namco-2x-systems/<game>/roms, tells you which zip is missing and copies any it finds in ~/Downloads. To uninstall: sudo apt remove namco-2x-systems your game files, settings and scores stay in ~/.local/share/namco-2x-systems/. Upgrading from 0.6 or older: the package was called namco22; the new one replaces it, and the games keep using your old ~/.local/share/namco22/<game>/ folders (and namco22-data portable folders), so nothing has to be moved.

Steam Deck: download the AppImage of each game you want, put your ROM zips in ~/.local/share/namco-2x-systems/<game>/roms/ (Desktop Mode: Dolphin > Ctrl+H shows the hidden .local folder; zips in ~/Downloads are found automatically), then in Desktop Mode right-click the AppImage > Add to Steam (or Steam > Add a Non-Steam Game) and start it from Game Mode. The AppImages use the Deck's own SDL2, so Steam Input works: the menu opens with R3 or by holding Start for a second. Each AppImage uses the same folders as the .deb, so the ROMs and settings are shared. If an AppImage will not start, run it from a terminal (./DirtDash-x86_64.AppImage) and read the message; on a system without FUSE, --appimage-extract-and-run works.

The AppImage names carry no version number, so updating is overwriting the file and a Steam shortcut keeps working. ROM zips placed next to the AppImage (or in a roms folder beside it) are found too. Portable mode: make a folder named namco-2x-systems-data next to the AppImages and each game keeps everything there (namco-2x-systems-data/<game>/: its roms, the unpacked chips, settings, scores and recordings) instead of ~/.local/share/namco-2x-systems -- one disk, e.g. a microSD card, then works the same on a Steam Deck and another PC. The AppImage standard's own portable folder works too: a folder named after the AppImage plus .home (TimeCrisis-x86_64.AppImage.home, or TimeCrisis-x86_64.home) keeps that game's data inside it. The Windows zip is portable already (everything lives in its folder).

Once extracted by the app after a first run, ROM zips are no longer needed and can be removed.

How it was made

Each game's original program was taken apart with Ghidra (the NSA's free reverse-engineering tool) and checked, piece by piece, against the arcade machine running in MAME.

• Prop Cycle: Ghidra's output was turned into C and fixed by hand.
• Rave Racer: the program is translated to C by a tool of this project (raverace/gen/rr_lifted.c is its output), and parts are being rewritten by hand.
• Tokyo Wars: the program is translated to C by the same tool (tokyowar/gen/tw_lifted.c); its master DSP and sound programs are turned into C when you build, from your own copy of the game files.
• Dirt Dash: the program is translated to C by the same tool (dirtdash/gen/dd_lifted.c); its master DSP and sound programs are turned into C when you build, from your own copy of the game files.
• Armadillo Racing: the program is translated to C by the same tool (adillor/gen/am_lifted_NN.c, 16 parts) and matches MAME instruction for instruction through the attract; its master DSP and sound programs are turned into C when you build (the sound notes match MAME's).
• Time Crisis: the program is translated to C by the same tool (timecris/gen/tc_lifted_NN.c, 16 parts); its master DSP and sound programs are turned into C when you build, from your own copy of the game files. It is the newest game here: the program's code was checked against MAME's own coverage of the real game, and the DSP and sound translations against the interpreters they were made from; it has not yet been compared with MAME frame by frame or note by note, so expect small differences.
• Ace Driver: the same board as Rave Racer, so it runs on Rave Racer's code with one table of its own (acedriver/src/ad_game.c); its program is translated by the same tool (acedriver/gen/rr_lifted.c), its master DSP and sound programs are turned into C when you build. Both translations were checked against the interpreters they were made from; the picture was checked against MAME's on MAME's own video state. The Debug page of its menu launches six developer screens the shipped game never reaches (object, sprite and character viewers, a results-screen test); they run while the test switch is on (F2 leaves).
• Cyber Commando: the Rave Racer board again, one table (cybrcomm/src/cc_game.c) plus a twin-stick mode in the shared code; its program (cybrcomm/gen/rr_lifted.c) was checked instruction by instruction against MAME over a whole played game (162 million instructions), and its DSP and sound translations against the interpreters they were made from.
• Cyber Sled: a Namco System 21 board (two 68000s, five C67 DSPs for the 3D, a 6809 sound CPU, a C68 I/O controller). Both 68000 programs are translated by the same tool (cybsled/gen/cm_lifted.c, cs_lifted.c) and were checked instruction by instruction against MAME's; the five DSP programs, the sound program and the I/O program are turned into C when you build, each checked against the interpreter it was made from. The sound chip (YM2151) is this project's own code. Online play links two cabinets the way the arcade's own cable did.
• Time Crisis II: a Namco System 23 board (a MIPS main CPU, an H8 sound / sub CPU, an H8 on the gun I/O board). The MIPS program is translated to C (tc2/gen/tc2_lifted_*.c) and was checked instruction by instruction against MAME's; the two H8 programs are turned into C when you build. The 3D chips, the text layer, the C352 sound chip and the JVS link are its own code (tc2/, a self-contained tree: see tc2/README.md).
• Crisis Zone: a Namco System 23 Evolution 2 board, run on the same System 23 code as Time Crisis II. Its MIPS program is translated to C the same way (crszone/gen/crszone_lifted_*.c) and its two H8 programs are turned into C when you build (crszone/: see crszone/README.md).
• The sound programs of all the games are turned into C when you build, from your own copy of the game files.

This repository has only the code. It has no game files and no Ghidra project or tools. Everything the games show or play is read from your own zips.

What you need to build it yourself

• Your own copy of each game's zip (see the table at the top). They are needed while building, not only while playing: each game's sound program and DSP program is turned into C from them.
• Linux (64-bit): a C compiler (gcc), make, CMake, pkg-config, the SDL2, OpenGL (Mesa) and zlib development files, and Python 3 with numpy. ./install-deps.sh installs all of these on Debian / Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, openSUSE, Alpine, Void and Gentoo.
• Windows programs are built from Linux (./build-windows.sh): the MinGW-w64 cross compiler (x86_64-w64-mingw32-gcc), CMake, make, curl, 7z (p7zip) and Python 3. The first run downloads SDL2, zlib and Mesa (the fallback OpenGL for computers with no graphics driver), so it needs the internet.
• Building the .deb, AppImages and Windows zip the way a release is made is done by the author with a script that is not part of this repository (it needs Podman for the Ubuntu container); you do not need it to build or play.

Linux

Open a terminal in this folder. First, once:

./install-deps.sh

This installs the tools the games need. It asks for your password.

Then build each game you have. Change the paths if your zips are somewhere else:

./build.sh ~/Downloads/propcycl.zip                                       # Prop Cycle
raverace/build.sh ~/Downloads/raverace.zip ~/Downloads/namcoc74.zip        # Rave Racer
tokyowar/build.sh ~/Downloads/tokyowar.zip                                 # Tokyo Wars
dirtdash/build.sh ~/Downloads/dirtdash.zip                                 # Dirt Dash
adillor/build.sh ~/Downloads/adillor.zip                                   # Armadillo Racing
timecris/build.sh ~/Downloads/timecris.zip                                 # Time Crisis
acedriver/build.sh ~/Downloads/acedrive.zip ~/Downloads/namcoc74.zip       # Ace Driver
cybrcomm/build.sh ~/Downloads/cybrcomm.zip ~/Downloads/namcoc74.zip        # Cyber Commando
cybsled/build.sh ~/Downloads/cybsled.zip ~/Downloads/namcoc67.zip ~/Downloads/namcoc68.zip   # Cyber Sled
tc2/build.sh ~/Downloads/timecrs2.zip                                                    # Time Crisis 2 (then tc2/launch.sh)
crszone/build.sh ~/Downloads/crszone.zip                                                 # Crisis Zone (then crszone/launch.sh)

Rave Racer's, Tokyo Wars', Dirt Dash's, Armadillo Racing's, Time Crisis', Ace Driver's, Cyber Commando's and Cyber Sled's first builds take a few minutes (Cyber Commando's needs about 4.5 GB of free memory).

Then play:

./launch.sh prop      # Prop Cycle
./launch.sh rave      # Rave Racer
./launch.sh tokyo     # Tokyo Wars
./launch.sh dirt      # Dirt Dash (`./launch.sh dirt jungle` starts in a stage: city, jungle, hill, mountain, snow)
./launch.sh armadillo # Armadillo Racing (the mouse is the trackball)
./launch.sh tc        # Time Crisis (the mouse is the gun)
./launch.sh ad        # Ace Driver
./launch.sh cc        # Cyber Commando
./launch.sh cs        # Cyber Sled
./launch.sh           # the list of games and options

Windows

All the games run on Windows. The Windows version is built from Linux. Type:

./build-windows.sh

This makes a windows-release folder. Copy it to the Windows computer. Put the game files in its roms folder: propcycl.zip for Prop Cycle, raverace.zip and namcoc74.zip for Rave Racer, tokyowar.zip for Tokyo Wars, dirtdash.zip for Dirt Dash, adillor.zip for Armadillo Racing, timecris.zip for Time Crisis, acedrive.zip and namcoc74.zip for Ace Driver, cybrcomm.zip and namcoc74.zip for Cyber Commando, cybsled.zip, namcoc67.zip and namcoc68.zip for Cyber Sled, timecrs2.zip for Time Crisis II, crszone.zip for Crisis Zone. Then double-click PropCycle.exe, RaveRacer.exe, TokyoWars.exe, DirtDash.exe, ArmadilloRacing.exe, TimeCrisis.exe, AceDriver.exe, CyberCommando.exe, CyberSled.exe, TimeCrisis2.exe or CrisisZone.exe.

Building on Windows itself, and what in the code is there for Windows only: docs/WINDOWS.md.

How to play

Prop Cycle. You fly a pedal-powered glider and pop balloons.

Key	What it does
5	Put in a coin
Enter	Start
Arrow keys	Steer and tilt
Space	Pedal
Esc	Menu (restart, exit, sound, levels, screen)
P	Pause. While paused, the arrow keys turn the camera around the rider and + / - zoom
F12	Take a picture

Rave Racer. A street race against the clock.

Key	What it does
5	Put in a coin
X (or Up)	Gas
Z (or Down)	Brake
Left / Right	Steer
A / S	Shift down / up
V	Change the view
F2	Test mode on / off (press again to leave it)
9	Service
P	Pause
Esc	Menu
F12	Take a picture

Playing online (Rave Racer, Cyber Sled, Time Crisis II). Up to eight players can race together in Rave Racer (two in Cyber Sled and Time Crisis II: the arcade linked two cabinets -- in Time Crisis II the two of you play LINK PLAY together, the first player as Richard (Left / Red), the second as Keith (Right / Blue)), each on their own computer. Open the menu with Esc and go to the Online page, then Host / join a game...:

• Local LAN: one player picks Host a LAN game; everyone else picks Find LAN games and clicks the game it finds.
• Internet game: type the address of a server (host or host:port, UDP 27750 by default) and Connect. Anyone can run such a server on a machine that is always on: server/ (nmn-server) is a small Rust program for exactly this, one server for every game's online play (see its README; the wire protocol is docs/NETPLAY.md). It still accepts older Rave Racer releases.

Everyone in the lobby then picks Ready, and anyone can start the race once all players are ready. When the race begins the game turns free play on for you and gives everyone a moment to step on the gas; choose your car and wait for the others at the course select. Your name on the Online page is what the other players see. Chat in the lobby stays on the server for a while: whoever joins later sees the game's last 50 lines.

Playing the other side alone (Time Crisis II). Esc > Cabinet picks which of the two linked cabinets your machine is: Left / Red plays as Richard, Right / Blue as Keith. It takes effect from the next game.

Tokyo Wars. You command a tank in a city battle.

Key	What it does
5	Put in a coin
Enter	Start
Left / Right (or A / D)	Steer
Up / Down (or W / S)	Forward / backward pedal
X / Z	Right / left trigger
9	Service
F2	Test mode on / off
Esc	Menu (screen, sound, keys)
P	Pause
F11	Full screen
F12	Take a picture

Dirt Dash. An off-road race against the clock.

Key	What it does
5	Put in a coin (a game costs two)
Left / Right (or A / D)	Steer
X	Gas
Z	Brake
Q / E	Shift down / up
C	Select (change the view, confirm)
M	Motion stop
9	Service
Esc	Menu (screen, sound, keys)
P	Pause
F11	Full screen
F12	Take a picture

No time limit: Esc > Dirt Dash > Time limit OFF stops the clock, so you can drive a course as long as you like (checkpoints and new stages still set the time; ON is the arcade).

A game controller works in all the games. In Rave Racer the keys can be changed in raverace/rr_controls.cfg; in Tokyo Wars and Dirt Dash, in the menu (Controls) or in tokyowar/tw_controls.cfg / dirtdash/dd_controls.cfg.

Armadillo Racing. Roll the trackball to run. The mouse is the trackball: it is captured while you play (Esc releases it), and a USB trackball is a mouse, so it works as is. The arrow keys and a pad's left stick / D-pad roll the ball too. 5 coin (a game costs four), left click / 1 / Enter start, 9 service, F2 test mode, Esc menu. Controls has the trackball sensitivity and orientation (natural or direct). Settings live in adillor/am_controls.cfg.

Ace Driver. The keys are Rave Racer's: 5 coin (a game costs two), X / Up gas, Z / Down brake, Left / Right steer, A / S shift down / up, V view change, F2 test mode, Esc menu. A force-feedback wheel works as in Rave Racer (Controls: FFB strength and direction). Holding **Serv