[edit]

WORK IN PROGRESS, HELP NEEDED

If you want to contribute, send us a sample of text you'd write for the new manual, and we will consider adding you an account. You can work on the manual in the Wiki, but if you prefer, working on the DocBook version or supplying us with HTML or TeX sources is fine, too (we will then translate them for the Wiki and into DocBook).

Introduction

What is ScummVM?

ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the game, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!

Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more. You can find a thorough list with details on which games are supported and how well on the compatibility page. ScummVM is continually improving, so check back often.

Among the systems on which you can play those games are Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, Dreamcast, PocketPC, PalmOS, AmigaOS, BeOS, OS/2, PSP, PS2, SymbianOS/EPOC and many more.

At this time ScummVM should be considered beta software, and is still under heavy development. Be aware that whilst we attempt to make sure that many games can be completed with few major bugs, crashes can happen.

If you enjoy ScummVM feel free to donate some money to help us. This will help us buy utilities needed to develop ScummVM easier and quicker. If you cannot donate, help and contribute a patch!

Reporting bugs

To report a bug, please create a SourceForge account, then use our bug tracker to file a report (you can also reach it via the "Bug Tracking" link from our homepage. Please make sure the bug is reproducible, and still occurs in the latest daily build/current SVN version. Also check the bug doesn't already exist on the bug tracker, and have a look at the compatibility list on our website for that game, to ensure the issue is not already known.

Also, please do not report bugs on games that are not listed as being completable in Appendix: Supported games, or in the online compatibility list. We already know those games have bugs.

Please include the following information:

ScummVM version (PLEASE test the latest SVN/Daily build)
Bug details, including instructions on reproducing
Language of game (English, German, ...)
Version of game (talkie, floppy, ...)
Platform and Compiler (Win32, Linux, FreeBSD, ...)
Attach a save game if possible
If this bug only occurred recently, please note the last version without the bug, and the first version including

the bug. That way we can fix it quicker by looking at the changes made.

This should only take you a little time but will make it much easier for us to process your bug report in a way that satisfies both you and us.

Contacting the developers

The easiest way to contact the ScummVM team is by submitting bug reports (see reporting-bugs) or by using our forums. You can also join and email the scummvm-devel mailing list (see [1]). Or chat with us on IRC (channel #scummvm on irc.freenode.net).

Please do not ask us to support an unsupported game -- read our FAQ for an explanation.

Getting started

What you need to be able to use ScummVM, where to get it from, and how to install it

Running and using ScummVM

How to use ScummVM, including both graphical and command line usage

Configuration

Changing the options of ScummVM so that it runs games exactly the way you want it to

Appendix: Supported games

The list of games supported by the most recent stable version of ScummVM can be found on the Compatibility page, or the games supported by the current unstable version can be found on the SVN Compatibility page. The Engines page in the wiki also lists these things, along with the engines that are still work-in-progress.

Appendix: Tools

A list of the tools available for use with ScummVM (e.g. for compressing audio), along with a description of their usage

User Manual

Contents