Spent some time digging into how Monster Truck Madness 2 handles localization, using AI to speed up the binary analysis. Sharing results here since this might be useful for modding / translations in the future, and maybe do a proper update to the Spanish-LOC project (last version was released in 2008...)
Goal
Figure out whether UI\MTM2.loc is embedded inside MONSTER.EXE (possibly inside a POD), or if it's external — and if possible, reconstruct a base LOC file directly from the EXE.
What we found
- No embedded POD or hidden LOC inside the EXE
- UI\MTM2.loc is just a hardcoded path string in the binary
- The EXE contains the original English strings compiled directly into it
- The LOC system works as a runtime override layer:
Code: Select all
@@TAG = original English string (from EXE)
@@STRING = replacement (from LOC file)
The EXE itself is basically the source message catalog.
The LOC file only maps/replaces those strings, it doesn’t store the originals.
What we built
- Scanned the EXE for all relevant English UI/message strings
- Matched them against known LOC files
- Reconstructed a base LOC file directly from the executable
- Added extra UI/HUD/loading strings found only in the EXE (separated with comments)
- Included offsets for traceability/debugging
A working LOC file you can use as:
- a baseline for translations
- a starting point for mods
- a way to fix missing or broken localization
- No need to search for hidden resources or embedded PODs
- Full control over localization externally
- Makes creating new language packs straightforward
https://fromsmash.com/MTM2-BASELOC