# God Hand Recompiled **God Hand (PS2, 2006) running natively on PC. Not an emulator: the game's own code, rebuilt as a Windows program.** > [!WARNING] > **Work in progress.** Tested from the start of the game into stage 3, past the Gorilla Mask and Mad Midget Five boss fights, played > side by side with the original game on a real PlayStation 2 (the tester's own console and disc). > The rest of stage 3, later stages, the final bosses and the ending have not been played yet. Expect bugs, and please report them > (see [Reporting bugs](#reporting-bugs)). ![God Hand running natively, the title screen](assets/title-screen.png) You need your own copy of the game (God Hand, USA version). **No game files are included here.** --- ## Progress (last updated October 20, 2026) How far the game has been played on this port so far (each part compared side by side with a real PS2): | Part of the game | Status | |------------------|--------| | Opening, title menu, Clover logo movie | ✅ Played | | Stage 1 (all areas and the boss) | ✅ Played | | Stage 2 (all areas, the sepia flashback, the boss) | ✅ Played | | Stage 3 (the amusement park) | 🟡 Gorilla Mask and Mad Midget Five beaten | | Stages 4 to 8 and their bosses | ⬜ Not played yet | | Ending and credits | ⬜ Not played yet | | Coliseum and the other extras | ⬜ Not played yet | | Game feature | Status | |--------------|--------| | Fighting, combos and the Tension gauge | ✅ Works | | God Reel (ability roulette) | ✅ Works | | Dying and continuing | ✅ Works | | Story cutscenes | ✅ Works | | Saving and loading (memory card) | ✅ Works | | Casino minigames | ✅ Works | | Pirate ship cannon minigame (shows your buttons) | ✅ Works | | Movies other than the Clover logo (ending, staff roll, trailers) | ⬜ Not seen yet | --- ## What works - **The game itself:** fighting, bosses, dying and continuing, story cutscenes and movies, the casino, the God Reel, saving and loading. Tested through stage 2 and stage 3 past Gorilla Mask and the Mad Midget Five. - **60 FPS at 3x resolution** (1536x1344, shown in the original 4:3) on a modern graphics card. - **Windowed or full screen** (F11). - **Keyboard, mouse and controllers**, all rebindable in game with **F1**. - **Button prompts show your keys:** if "Action" is on the F key, the game shows "F" instead of the PS2 circle. With an Xbox-style controller it shows A, B, X, Y; a PlayStation controller keeps the PS2 symbols. - **Minigames show the proper buttons too:** the crates in the pirate ship cannon minigame show the buttons you actually press. Prompts switch the moment you change between keyboard and controller. ![The pirate ship cannon minigame with a PlayStation controller, the keyboard and an Xbox-style controller](assets/minigame-buttons.jpg) ## Known issues - **First start is slow:** the graphics are prepared for your graphics card the first time. The very first start can sit on a black screen for a couple of minutes. After that it starts in seconds. - **Short pauses the first time an effect appears**, while its graphics are prepared. They do not come back once seen. - **Freezes:** the ones found so far (disc reads, cutscene effects) are fixed. If you still see one, please report it. - **Not played yet:** the rest of stage 3 and everything after it, the ending and its movies. They may crash or misbehave. --- ## Screenshots All captured from this port running on PC. | | | |---|---| | ![Title menu](assets/title-menu.jpg) | ![Warning screen](assets/warning-screen.jpg) | | Title menu | Opening warning screen | | ![Opening cutscene](assets/cutscene-faces.jpg) | ![Saloon fight](assets/saloon-fight.jpg) | | Opening cutscene | Fighting inside the saloon | | ![Story cutscene close-up at 3x](assets/cutscene-2k-1.jpg) | ![Story cutscene close-up at 3x](assets/cutscene-2k-2.jpg) | | Cutscene at 3x resolution | Cutscene at 3x resolution | ![A grab with a button prompt at 3x](assets/fight-3x.jpg) --- ## How to set it up ### What you need 1. **Windows 10 or 11** and a reasonably modern graphics card. 2. **Visual Studio 2022 Build Tools** with "Desktop development with C++" (free from Microsoft). 3. **Python 3.10 or newer**. 4. **Your own God Hand (USA) disc image** (`.iso`, serial SLUS-21503). It must be this exact version: check it against [DISC_HASHES.md](DISC_HASHES.md). The port refuses any other disc. ### Build it Open a terminal (PowerShell) and run these one at a time: ```powershell git clone https://github.com/LasVola/godhand-recomp.git cd godhand-recomp copy "D:\path\to\God Hand (USA).iso" game\ python -I build.py generate python -I tools\snr2\snr2.py extract --iso "game\God Hand (USA).iso" python -I tools\snr2\gen_modules.py python -I build.py modules python -I build.py build ``` - The middle steps turn the code from your disc into C++ and can take a while. - The last step downloads a few libraries the first time and then compiles everything (expect 10+ minutes). ### Play Double-click **`Start-God-Hand.cmd`**. Remember the first start can take a couple of minutes (see [Known issues](#known-issues)). Your saves are in `build\port\bin\memcards\`. Your control settings are in `build\port\bin\controls.ini`. --- ## Controls Press **F1** in game (or **Back + Start** on a controller) to change any key or button. Changes save right away. ![The in-game Controls screen](assets/controls-screen.png) | Action | Keyboard | Controller | |--------|----------|------------| | Move / step back | W A S D | Left stick | | Duck / back flip / sidestep | (not set, choose one with F1) | Right stick | | Attack / OK | K | A | | Action / prompt | L | B | | Combo | J | X | | Attack / cancel | I | Y | | Turn around / God Reel | Q / E | LB / RB | | Taunt / God Hand | 1 / 3 | LT / RT | | Pause menu / Select | Enter / Backspace | Start / Back | | Menus | Arrow keys | D-pad | | Key | What it does | |-----|--------------| | F1 | Controls screen | | F11 | Full screen on / off | | F12 | Developer debugger | To quit, close the window. --- ## Troubleshooting | Problem | What to do | |---------|------------| | "Wrong disc" message | Your image is a different version. Compare it with [DISC_HASHES.md](DISC_HASHES.md). | | Black screen on the very first start | Wait: the graphics are being prepared. Later starts are fast. | | 3D scenes or cutscenes run slowly | See [Faster 3D](#faster-3d-for-developers) below. | | The game crashes or freezes | Please report it with the log file (next section). | ## Reporting bugs Open an issue and attach the log of your last session: `build\port\bin\logs\play_last.log` (the session before that is kept as `logs\play_