ET RTCWLegacy Coming soon!

[RNGesus]

 

RTCW Legacy

A remastered engine for Return to Castle Wolfenstein Multiplayer

RTCW Legacy aims to be a fully compatible, modernized client and server for Return to Castle Wolfenstein Multiplayer, in the same spirit as ET: Legacy is for Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory.

Features

Engine Improvements

• SDL2 platform layer - Cross-platform window, input, and audio via SDL2 (replaces legacy Win32/X11 code)
• 64-bit support - Native x86_64 and ARM64 builds
• Modern CMake build system - Builds on Linux, Windows, and macOS
• PNG texture loading - Load .png textures alongside TGA/JPG (uses built-in DEFLATE decompressor, no libpng required)
• Persistent console history - Command history saved to rctwl-history and restored between sessions

Display & Rendering

• Extended video modes - 21 preset modes from 320x240 up to 4K (3840x2160)
• Desktop resolution mode (r_mode -2) - Borderless fullscreen at your native desktop resolution
• Custom resolution mode (r_mode -1) - Set any resolution via r_customwidth / r_customheight
• Borderless window (r_noborder 1) - Windowed mode without title bar or borders
• Window centering (r_centerWindow 1) - Centers the game window on screen
• Resizable window (r_allowResize 1) - Allow window to be resized at runtime
• Configurable JPEG screenshot quality (r_screenshotJpegQuality) - Default 90, range 1-100

Networking & Downloads

• 6x faster UDP downloads - Download window increased from 8 to 48 blocks in flight (~1 MB/s vs ~170 KB/s)
• Higher server tick rate - sv_fps defaults to 60 for non-dedicated (faster downloads), 20 for dedicated
• Pure server compatibility - PK3 validation for both 32-bit and 64-bit clients, compatible with original RTCW 1.41b servers

Compatibility

• Original server support - Connects to and validates against original RTCW MP 1.41b servers
• Mod DLL loading - Proper PK3 extraction and main/ directory fallback for mod DLLs
• Architecture-aware validation - Pure server checks use correct DLL names for x86, x64, and ARM builds

Console Variables (CVars)

Video / Display

CVar	Default	Description
r_mode	-2	Video mode. -2 = desktop resolution (borderless fullscreen), -1 = custom resolution, 0-20 = preset modes (see table below)
r_customwidth	1920	Custom resolution width (used when r_mode -1)
r_customheight	1080	Custom resolution height (used when r_mode -1)
r_customaspect	1	Custom pixel aspect ratio
r_fullscreen	1	1 = fullscreen, 0 = windowed
r_noborder	0	1 = borderless window (no title bar/frame)
r_centerWindow	1	1 = center the window on screen
r_allowResize	0	1 = allow resizing the game window
r_allowSoftwareGL	0	1 = allow software OpenGL renderers
r_sdlDriver	""	Force a specific SDL video driver (read-only)

Preset Video Modes (r_mode 0-20)

Mode	Resolution	Notes
0	320x240
1	400x300
2	512x384
3	640x480	Fallback mode
4	800x600
5	960x720
6	1024x768
7	1152x864
8	1280x1024
9	1600x1200
10	2048x1536
11	856x480	Widescreen
12	1280x720	720p
13	1366x768
14	1440x900
15	1680x1050
16	1920x1080	1080p
17	1920x1200
18	2560x1440	1440p
19	2560x1600
20	3840x2160	4K

OpenGL Extensions

CVar	Default	Description
r_ext_compressed_textures	1	Enable compressed texture support
r_ext_multitexture	1	Enable multitexture extension
r_ext_compiled_vertex_array	1	Enable compiled vertex arrays
r_ext_texture_env_add	1	Enable GL_EXT_texture_env_add
r_ext_gamma_control	1	Enable hardware gamma control
r_ext_NV_fog_dist	0	Enable NVidia fog distance extension
r_ext_ATI_pntriangles	0	Enable ATI PN triangles (TruForm)
r_ext_texture_filter_anisotropic	0	Enable anisotropic texture filtering

Screenshots

CVar	Default	Description
r_screenshotJpegQuality	90	JPEG screenshot quality (1-100). Higher = better quality, larger files

Screenshot commands:

• screenshot - Save a TGA screenshot
• screenshotJPEG - Save a JPEG screenshot (uses r_screenshotJpegQuality)

Sound (SDL2)

CVar	Default	Description
s_bits	16	Audio bit depth (8 or 16)
s_sdlDevSamps	0	SDL audio device buffer size (0 = auto)
s_sdlMixSamps	0	SDL audio mix buffer size (0 = auto)

Input

CVar	Default	Description
in_mouse	1	Enable mouse input
in_nograb	0	1 = don't grab the mouse cursor (useful for debugging)
in_joystick	0	1 = enable joystick/gamepad input

Server

CVar	Default	Description
sv_fps	20 / 60	Server frame rate. 20 for dedicated, 60 for listen servers (higher = faster downloads)

Map Voting

CVar	Default	Description
g_mapVoteEnabled	0	Enable end-of-round map voting
g_mapVoteMaxMaps	6	Number of candidate maps to show
g_mapVoteTimeout	15	Seconds players have to vote
g_mapVoteMinAge	2	Minimum rounds before a map can appear again
g_mapVoteExcludedMaps	""	Comma-separated list of maps to exclude from voting

Engine

CVar	Default	Description
com_maxfps	85	Maximum client framerate
com_hunkMegs	56	Hunk memory allocation in MB
com_zoneMegs	16	Zone memory allocation in MB
con_notifytime	7	Seconds to display console notify messages
con_debug	0	Enable console debug output

Lua Scripting

RTCW Legacy includes a built-in Lua 5.4 scripting engine for server-side game logic, compatible with the ET Legacy Lua API. Lua is enabled by default.

Loading Lua Scripts

Lua scripts are loaded by the server via the lua_modules cvar. Set it in your server config (e.g. rctwl_server.cfg😞

set lua_modules "luascripts/myscript.lua"

 

To load multiple scripts, separate them with spaces:

set lua_modules "luascripts/script1.lua luascripts/script2.lua"

 

Alternatively, you can use the g_luaModuleList cvar to point to a text file containing one script path per line (if set, lua_modules is ignored):

set g_luaModuleList "luascripts/modulelist.txt"

 

Where to Put Lua Scripts

Lua scripts go in your game data directory under main/:

main/
├── luascripts/          # Your Lua scripts here
│   ├── myscript.lua
│   └── wolfadmin/       # WolfAdmin scripts (if installed)
│       └── main.lua
├── lualibs/             # Lua library modules
└── pak0.pk3             # Original RTCW game data

 

The game data directory location depends on your platform:

Platform	Default path
Linux	~/.wolf/main/ or alongside the executable
Windows	Alongside the executable in main/
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/RTCW/main/

Restricting Lua Modules

For security, you can restrict which Lua scripts are allowed to load using the lua_allowedModules cvar. Set it to a space-separated list of SHA-1 hashes of allowed scripts:

set lua_allowedModules "abc123def456 789abc012def"

 

When empty (default), all scripts are allowed.

LuaSQL (SQLite3)

RTCW Legacy bundles SQLite3 and enables LuaSQL by default. This allows Lua scripts to use SQLite databases for persistent storage (player stats, admin records, etc.):

-- Example: open a database in a Lua script
local luasql = require("luasql.sqlite3")
local env = luasql.sqlite3()
local db = env:connect("main/luascripts/mydata.db")
db:execute("CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS players (guid TEXT, name TEXT)")

 

To disable LuaSQL, build with -DFEATURE_LUASQL=OFF.

Lua CVars

CVar	Default	Description
lua_modules	""	Space-separated list of Lua scripts to load at map start
lua_allowedModules	""	Space-separated SHA-1 hashes of allowed scripts (empty = allow all)

WolfAdmin (Server Administration)

WolfAdmin is a Lua-based server administration suite providing player management, command permissions, and database-backed admin features. It is fully compatible with RTCW Legacy.

Automatic Install (Build Time)

Build with the INSTALL_WOLFADMIN option to download and install WolfAdmin automatically:

mkdir build && cd build
cmake .. -DINSTALL_WOLFADMIN=ON
make -j$(nproc)

 

This downloads WolfAdmin and places it in the build output:

build/main/
├── luascripts/wolfadmin/   # WolfAdmin Lua scripts
├── lualibs/                # WolfAdmin Lua libraries
└── wolfadmin.toml          # WolfAdmin configuration

 

Manual Install

1. Download WolfAdmin from https://dev.timosmit.com/wolfadmin/
2. Extract the archive
3. Copy luascripts/, lualibs/, and config/*.toml into your main/ directory

Enabling WolfAdmin

Add this to your server config:

set lua_modules "luascripts/wolfadmin/main.lua"

 

Then edit wolfadmin.toml in your main/ directory to configure admin settings, database path, and permissions.

Example Server Config

A default server config is provided at misc/main/rctwl_server.cfg. Copy it to your main/ directory and customize as needed:

cp misc/main/rctwl_server.cfg /path/to/main/rctwl_server.cfg

 

Then launch the server with:

./rctwlded +exec rctwl_server.cfg

 

Game Data

RTCW Legacy does not include any game data. You must have a copy of Return to Castle Wolfenstein installed. The original game data files are required:

• pak0.pk3 (and other pk3 files from the Main directory)

RTCW is available on Steam and GOG.

 

No longer will RCTW fans be neglected RCTWLegacy is coming soon! Complete with an RCTWLegacy mod similar to ETLegacy!

 

Credits

• id Software - Original RTCW engine and game
• ET: Legacy Team - Inspiration, reference implementation, lots of copy pasta LOTS.. seriously lots
• RTCW Legacy Contributors RNGesus - Modernization and maintenance

Edited April 4 by RNGesus

[-=HipKat=-]

Have you played Real RTCW off Steam?

It's a pretty sweet remastered mod for RTCW

 

Edited April 4 by -=HipKat=-

[80sDUDE]

Há 15 horas, -=HipKat=- disse:

Você já jogou Real RTCW pela Steam?

É um mod remasterizado muito bom para RTCW.

 

I have this, very good.

[RNGesus]

 

 

Preview video! If you watch carefully @Shoresy makes a guest appearance! 

 

Forgive terrible game play have not setup key binds so my brain was broken!

 

Also features a new RCTW bot!! FAbot aka fab bot a mod independent bot build right into the server directly and complete mod independent! 

Edited April 4 by RNGesus

[Shoresy]

[-=HipKat=-]

6 hours ago, RNGesus said:

 

 

Preview video! If you watch carefully @Shoresy makes a guest appearance! 

 

Forgive terrible game play have not setup key binds so my brain was broken!

 

Also features a new RCTW bot!! FAbot aka fab bot a mod independent bot build right into the server directly and complete mod independent! 

Could do without the annoying rap music...

[RNGesus]

12 minutes ago, -=HipKat=- said:

Could do without the annoying rap music...

So what your saying make that song loop on unmuteable max volume if player names themselves hipkat XD

[Shoresy]

4 minutes ago, RNGesus said:

So what your saying make that song loop on unmuteable max volume if player names themselves hipkat XD

[mraw435]

 

Me when I get this downloaded

[-=HipKat=-]

10 hours ago, RNGesus said:

So what your saying make that song loop on unmuteable max volume if player names themselves hipkat XD

How about no music?? Are you demoing a new mod/release or making a frag video?? I mean, I'm trying to see how the game is coming along not listen to some shit music that I can't stand which is WAY too loud and overbearing

[D..X]

57 minutes ago, -=HipKat=- said:

How about no music?? Are you demoing a new mod/release or making a frag video?? I mean, I'm trying to see how the game is coming along not listen to some shit music that I can't stand which is WAY too loud and overbearing

Wow must you always b*** and whine about everything if you haven't figured out nobody wants to here it  i don't care for it myself but not gonna cry on the internet about it just sad

[RNGesus]

2 hours ago, -=HipKat=- said:

How about no music?? Are you demoing a new mod/release or making a frag video?? I mean, I'm trying to see how the game is coming along not listen to some shit music that I can't stand which is WAY too loud and overbearing

The video was meant to be a lighthearted Christmas joke, and I wanted to poke a little fun at Shoresy around the 0:55 mark, which is why that song felt fitting. If the concern is about the in-game audio, the game sounds themselves are the same sounds used in RTCW. I do not have a large budget to record entirely new audio assets. As for the hit sounds, those can already be cycled between PUBJ, ETPro, or ET: Legacy.

Rather than using the same sounds I have been hearing for the last 20 years, I chose to have some fun with it and make it into a Christmas joke. DaX fit the tone because of the stripper pole line, and the whole point was simply to make something entertaining. At the end of the day, that is the reason I code for this game and even continue to play it.  (pro tip you can mute youtube videos and still watch)

If RTCW or ET is no longer making you smile when you pull off something cool, or when you are in Discord with friends saying, “Got that guy, got another, holy crap, got all five,” then it has stopped being fun. At that point, you are spending limited hours of your life on something that is no longer bringing you any joy.

 

“No valid plans for the future can be made by those who have no capacity for living now.” -Alan Watts. (I suggest you research him it might do your soul good really ) 

Edited April 5 by RNGesus
typo PUBG XD meant PUBJ

[-=HipKat=-]

16 hours ago, D..X said:

Wow must you always b*** and whine about everything if you haven't figured out nobody wants to here it  i don't care for it myself but not gonna cry on the internet about it just sad

It was a question. Not sure why you give a crap what I say anyway. I wasn't talking to you. Sorry if it offended you, but who's bitching now?

 

 

15 hours ago, RNGesus said:

The video was meant to be a lighthearted Christmas joke, and I wanted to poke a little fun at Shoresy around the 0:55 mark, which is why that song felt fitting. If the concern is about the in-game audio, the game sounds themselves are the same sounds used in RTCW. I do not have a large budget to record entirely new audio assets. As for the hit sounds, those can already be cycled between PUBJ, ETPro, or ET: Legacy.

Rather than using the same sounds I have been hearing for the last 20 years, I chose to have some fun with it and make it into a Christmas joke. DaX fit the tone because of the stripper pole line, and the whole point was simply to make something entertaining. At the end of the day, that is the reason I code for this game and even continue to play it.  (pro tip you can mute youtube videos and still watch)

If RTCW or ET is no longer making you smile when you pull off something cool, or when you are in Discord with friends saying, “Got that guy, got another, holy crap, got all five,” then it has stopped being fun. At that point, you are spending limited hours of your life on something that is no longer bringing you any joy.

 

“No valid plans for the future can be made by those who have no capacity for living now.” -Alan Watts. (I suggest you research him it might do your soul good really ) 

Dude, I'm a fan of you trying to keep RTCW alive and build new mods and styles of game play. 

Edited April 6 by -=HipKat=-