# Command & Conquer: Generals — Zero Hour on Android [](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/actions/workflows/android-ci.yml) [](LICENSE) [](CONTRIBUTING.md) [](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/discussions) > *A 2003 Direct3D 8 real-time-strategy game, running **natively** on an Android phone — no emulator, no > cloud streaming. The real engine, its D3D8 calls translated to Vulkan on the phone's own GPU.* An **Android (arm64) port** of *Command & Conquer: Generals — Zero Hour*, running the original game engine natively on a phone through [**GeneralsX**](https://github.com/fbraz3/GeneralsX) (the GPLv3 cross-platform fork of the engine source EA released in 2025), **SDL3** for windowing/input, and **DXVK** translating the game's Direct3D 8 calls to **Vulkan** on Mobile GPUs (tested on Mali‑G57). It reaches the main menu, plays skirmish and the single‑player campaigns, renders terrain, units, water, shadows, the HUD, the minimap and the in‑engine/​video cutscenes — with a touch‑first control scheme designed for a phone. > **This repository contains only source code and documentation, licensed under the GPLv3.** > It does **not** include any game data. The `.big` archives, movies, maps and other art/audio > are Electronic Arts' copyrighted content — you must supply your own from a retail copy of the > game. See [docs/GAME-FILES.md](docs/GAME-FILES.md). --- ## Status | Area | State | |---|---| | Boot → main menu | ✅ working, native 1640×720 fullscreen | | Skirmish (all factions) | ✅ playable | | Single‑player campaigns (USA / GLA / China) | ✅ playable, intro cutscenes play | | Rendering (terrain / units / water / shadows / HUD) | ✅ correct on Mali‑G57 | | Minimap / radar | ✅ (campaign always‑on, skirmish/MP radar‑gated as on desktop) | | Audio (music / SFX / speech) | ✅ via OpenSL ES | | Video cutscenes (Bink via FFmpeg) | ✅ decodes on device | | Touch controls | ✅ full custom scheme (see below) | | LAN multiplayer | 🚧 in progress | --- ## Screenshots & demo Running on a Redmi (Mali‑G57), landscape, at native resolution. > 📸 **Got it running?** A short gameplay clip or a screenshot is the single most useful thing you can > contribute to help this project reach people — post yours in > **[Show and tell](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/discussions/7)** > (media only — never a built APK or game data). Standout shots can feature right here. --- ## Touch controls The game was mouse+keyboard only; this port adds a purpose‑built multi‑touch scheme: | Gesture | Action | |---|---| | 1‑finger tap | select / press a UI button | | 1‑finger drag | drag‑box select / drag a slider | | 2‑finger drag | pan the camera | | 2‑finger pinch | zoom the camera | | 2‑finger tap | right‑click (move / attack order) | | On‑screen **☰** button (top‑left, in‑game) | opens the pause/ESC menu | | On‑screen **▶▶** button (top‑right, during a video) | skip the cutscene | Camera pan/zoom speed is adjustable and **persisted** via **Options → Scroll Speed**. --- ## Quick start (play now) 1. Get an **arm64 Android** device with **~5 GB free**. 2. Install the **self‑contained APK** (bundles the game data and unpacks it on first launch). *(The self‑contained build is not hosted in this repo — it embeds copyrighted game data. Build your own from your retail files.)* 3. First launch shows *"Installing game data…"* for ~1–2 minutes, then the game starts. 👉 **New here? Follow [docs/SETUP-GAME-FILES.md](docs/SETUP-GAME-FILES.md)** — a step‑by‑step guide to configuring your own Generals files into a playable APK (find your install → copy the `.big` files + `Data/` → one packaging command → build → install). If you already have the game data deployed to the app's storage, the small engine‑only APK boots straight into the game. --- ## Build it yourself Full instructions are in **[BUILDING.md](BUILDING.md)**. In short: - Cross‑compile the engine for `arm64-v8a` with the Android NDK + CMake (vcpkg pulls SDL3, OpenAL, FFmpeg; DXVK is built separately). - Package the Android app (`android/`) with Gradle; drop the built `libmain.so` into `app/libs/arm64-v8a/`. - Supply your own retail game data (see [docs/GAME-FILES.md](docs/GAME-FILES.md)). --- ## How it works / what was fixed Getting a 2003 Direct3D 8 RTS to run on a mobile Vulkan driver took a long series of fixes. Each is written up in detail under **[docs/](docs/)**, and summarized in **[CHANGELOG.md](CHANGELOG.md)**. Highlights: - **[Rendering bring‑up on Mali (DXVK → Vulkan)](docs/fixes/rendering-dxvk-mali.md)** — reaching the menu and in‑game. - **[The Mali shader‑compiler crash](docs/fixes/mali-shader-cmpbe-crash.md)** — root‑caused to D3D9 user clip planes (`gl_ClipDistance`) crashing the Mali‑G57 shader compiler. - **[True fullscreen at native resolution](docs/fixes/fullscreen-native-resolution.md)**. - **[Magenta terrain / software BC (DXT) decode](docs/fixes/terrain-textures-bc-decode.md)**. - **[Minimap / radar rendering & availability](docs/fixes/minimap-radar.md)**. - **[Audio via OpenSL ES](docs/fixes/audio-opensl.md)**. - **[Cutscene playback + the on‑screen Skip button](docs/fixes/cutscenes-video.md)**. - **[Touch control scheme](docs/fixes/touch-controls.md)**. - **[Self‑contained APK packaging](docs/fixes/self-contained-packaging.md)**. See **[docs/PORTING-NOTES.md](docs/PORTING-NOTES.md)** for the full technical journal, and **[docs/DISCOVERIES.md](docs/DISCOVERIES.md)** for in-depth engineering write-ups of the non-obvious findings — the `__linux__`-includes-Android audio trap, the 10-bit-swapchain black radar, the 16-bit sorting-buffer heap corruption, the touch→RTS input synthesis, and more. --- ## Community & contributing This is a volunteer, non-commercial community project — help is very welcome, especially with **GPU compatibility** (Adreno/PowerVR/Xclipse), **LAN multiplayer**, controls, and performance. - 💬 **Questions, ideas, show-and-tell:** [Discussions](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/discussions) — start with the [👋 welcome thread](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/discussions/1), the [🎮 get-it-running guide](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/discussions/2), or post your hardware in [🧭 device compatibility](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/discussions/4). - 🐛 **Bugs & feature requests:** [open an issue](https://github.com/molotovgit/CnC-Generals-ZeroHour-Android/issues/new/choose) - 🛠️ **Want to contribute code?** Read **[CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md)** and the **[ROADMAP.md](ROADMAP.md)** — the "Help wanted" section lists good first areas. - 🤝 We follow a **[Code of Conduct](CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md)**. - 🔒 Security issues: see **[SECURITY.md](SECURITY.md)** (please report privately). - ❓ Need help getting it running? **[SUPPORT.md](SUPPORT.md)**. > **One hard rule:** never post, attach, or link game data (`.big`/`.bik`/maps/ISOs) or a built > self-contained APK. Everyone brings their own retail files. See > [docs/GAME-FILES.md](docs/GAME-FILES.md). **⭐ If a native *Generals* on Android sounds cool, star the repo** — that's the main way other C&C fans and Android tinkerers find it, and it's the biggest single thing you can do to help. --- ## Credits & license - **Engine:** [GeneralsX](https://github.com/fbraz3/GeneralsX) by fbraz3 and contributors — the GPLv3 cross‑platform fork this port builds on. - **Original source:** *Command & Conquer: Generals* / *Zero Hour*, released by **Electronic Arts** under **GPLv3** in 2025. - **Libraries:** [SDL3](https://libsdl.org), [DXVK](https://github.com/doitsujin/dxvk), [OpenAL Soft](https://github.com/kcat/openal-soft), [FFmpeg](https://ffmpeg.org). This project is licensed under the **GNU General Public License v3.0** — see [LICENSE](LICENSE). *Command & Conquer, Generals, Zero Hour and all game assets are trademarks/copyright of Electronic Arts. This is an unofficial, non‑commercial, community port of the GPLv3 engine source. No game assets are distributed here.*