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LolHacksRule, posted Fri Feb 05, 2021 3:01 am (61875)

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On Windows, the game executables were packed and somewhat easy to extract from wrappers, they later went for external executable encryption which prevents direct extraction without execution but kept the same flaw.

On Mac, the game executables were super easy to get from the packaged wrappers even when lacking Mac experience, but as of 2007 (I think), a new form of DRM was used where the executable is a dummy with just a text line for a temporary directory to put it but the game executable is the .payload file. The file is not encrypted in any way but the bytes in it are swapped, making it not possible to pop into a disassembler. After the trial loader "decrypts" it, bytes are fixed and the file can be retrieved from the Mac as a proper executable.

The reason why I want the Mac executables is because all the Windows executables I can find (except ONE due to leaving a symbol file) have all programming symbols stripped while Mac builds often do not and/or leave developer files, which will make it easier to RE a game which I can relate it's code to the Windows ver.

Samples compressed with 7-Zip ZStandard.

Any way to fix these files without busting out a Mac to get them "disassembler-ready"?