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Internet Archive Makes a Bunch of Apple II Games Playable

We’re here for "Muppetville."
Image: Archive.org

The Internet Archive just debuted a collection of vintage games made popular on Apple II computers, including Frogger and Spy Hunter.

The games are not only bizarre (apparently Curious George Goes Shopping existed?), but how the Internet Archive obtained these games using a method called "cracking." To ensure that the games weren't copied to other floppy discs, Apple placed copy protection on the discs.

That presented a challenge to programmers, so they scoured the code and figured out a way to make the games easy to copy. Jason Scott (remember him?) of the Internet Archive explained that programmers would essentially tag the games with their names.

"Along the way, pride would ensue, with 'crack screens' consisting of who cracked the program added to the front," he wrote. "The ballast of inconvenient parts would also be discarded, with title screens, program functionality, and even entire program assets thrown over the wall."

(In terms of copyright issues, Scott told Motherboard that if those problems arise, they will "work with the persons who contact us to work through them," meaning they're asking for forgiveness rather than permission.)

In this case, a person that goes by 4am unlocked these games. Enjoy.