C2M
A C2M file (having the extension .c2m) is the file format which Chip's Challenge 2 individual levels are stored in.
The file is a binary file consisting of several sections one after the other, terminated by the END section. Each section begins with a section header, which is followed by the section's data.
All data in the file is little-endian.
FormatEdit
Section headerEdit
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 4 | Four character code identifying the section, see table below. Codes shorter than 4 characters (such as "END") are padded with spaces (making "END " in this case). |
| 4 | The length of the section's data |
Section typesEdit
| Section ID | Content Type | Content |
|---|---|---|
| CC2M | Null-terminated string | The file's version. The latest version is "7", but ranges from "3" to "7" in the levels supplied with CC2. |
| LOCK | Null-terminated string | Usually "Custom version for Chuck Sommerville", optional. Seems to be ignored |
| TITL | Null-terminated string | Level title |
| AUTH | Null-terminated string | Level author, optional |
| VERS | Null-terminated string | Version of the CC2 editor which created this level, optional |
| CLUE | Null-terminated string | Level clue (Only one allowed, but see below [1]) |
| NOTE | Null-terminated string | Plain text comments ([1]) |
| OPTN | See OPTN section table below | Various level options |
| MAP / PACK | See MAP section table below | The level's map. A MAP section is not packed, a PACK section is. |
| KEY | 16 bytes | Unknown, seems not required |
| REPL / PRPL | See REPL section table below | Solution replay, optional. A REPL section is not packed; a PRPL section is. |
| RDNY | No content (length is 0) | The presence of this section makes the level read-only so it can't be edited in the level editor. |
| END | No content (length is 0) | Signifies end of file |
OPTN sectionEdit
The size of the section can differ between file versions (and even between files with the same file version). Data beyond the size of the section is not read. (E.g. if the section size is 3, only the time and the view are stored.)
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 2 | Time |
| 1 | 0 - 10x10 view, 1 - 9x9 view, 2 - split view |
| 1 | 0 - no solution exists / solution not verified, 1 - a solution exists (in a REPL / PRPL section) and it works |
| 1 | 0 - show map in editor, 1 - hide it |
| 1 | 0 - map is editable, 1 - map is readonly |
| 16 | MD5 hash of the contents of the REPL section, or unpacked PRPL section. |
| 1 | "Hide Logic" option |
| 1 | "CC1 Boots" option |
| 1 | Blobs behavior: 0 - deterministic, 1 - 4 patterns, 2 - extra random |
Section packingEdit
The PACK and PRPL sections contain compressed versions of the MAP and REPL sections respectively. The compression scheme is as follows:
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 2 | Number of bytes in the uncompressed list. |
| Varies | A sequence of blocks which can each be either a Data Block or a Back-Reference Block.
The sequence continues until it covers all bytes in the uncompressed list. |
Data blockEdit
When encountered during decompression, the data block's N bytes of data are added to the list..
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 1 | The length of the data (N), must be between 0x00 to 0x7f (else, this is not a Data Block) |
| N | N bytes of data. |
Back-reference blockEdit
When encountered during decompression, COUNT bytes are copied from position (CURRENT - OFFSET) in the list to position CURRENT in the list. (Where CURRENT is the current position in the list, while COUNT and OFFSET are defined below)
Note that COUNT can be larger than OFFSET, allowing arbitrary pattern repetition to be efficiently encoded.
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 1 | 0x80 + The number of items this block decodes to (COUNT). Must be between 0x80 to 0xff (else, this is not a Back-Reference Block) |
| 1 | The offset from the current position in the list (OFFSET) |
MAP / PACK sectionEdit
This section contains the map data. If this is a PACK section, it must be unpacked using the above compression scheme first. The contents of this section is as follows:
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 1 | The level's width (W) |
| 1 | The level's height (H) |
| Varies | A sequence of tile specifications for each tile in the level, arranged in left-to-right, top-to-bottom order. |
Tile specificationEdit
The tile specification consists of 1 or more bytes. The first byte is always the tile value, decoded as follows:
| Value | Tile | Additional data, if any | Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0x1 | Floor | Wires | |
| 0x2 | Wall | ||
| 0x3 | Ice | ||
| 0x4 | Ice corner (SW) | ||
| 0x5 | Ice corner (NW) | ||
| 0x6 | Ice corner (NE) | ||
| 0x7 | Ice corner (SE) | ||
| 0x8 | Water | ||
| 0x9 | Fire | ||
| 0xa | Force floor (N) | ||
| 0xb | Force floor (E) | ||
| 0xc | Force floor (S) | ||
| 0xd | Force floor (W) | ||
| 0xe | Green toggle wall | ||
| 0xf | Green toggle floor | ||
| 0x10 | Red teleport | Wires | |
| 0x11 | Blue teleport | Wires | |
| 0x12 | Yellow teleport | ||
| 0x13 | Green teleport | ||
| 0x14 | Exit | ||
| 0x15 | Slime | ||
| 0x16 | Chip (the hero) | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x17 | Dirt block | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x18 | Walker | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x19 | Ship | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x1a | Ice block | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x1b | Thin wall (S) (used in CC1 levels) | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x1c | Thin wall (E) (used in CC1 levels) | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x1d | Thin wall (SE) (used in CC1 levels) | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x1e | Gravel | ||
| 0x1f | Green button | ||
| 0x20 | Blue button | ||
| 0x21 | Blue tank | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x22 | Red door | ||
| 0x23 | Blue door | ||
| 0x24 | Yellow door | ||
| 0x25 | Green door | ||
| 0x26 | Red key | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x27 | Blue key | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x28 | Yellow key | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x29 | Green key | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x2a | IC Chip | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x2b | Extra IC Chip | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x2c | Chip socket | ||
| 0x2d | Pop-up wall | ||
| 0x2e | Appearing wall | ||
| 0x2f | Invisible wall | ||
| 0x30 | Solid blue wall | ||
| 0x31 | False blue wall | ||
| 0x32 | Dirt | ||
| 0x33 | Ant | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x34 | Centipede | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x35 | Purple ball | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x36 | Blob | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x37 | Angry teeth | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x38 | Fire box | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x39 | Red button | ||
| 0x3a | Brown button | ||
| 0x3b | Cleats | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x3c | Suction boots | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x3d | Fire boots | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x3e | Flippers | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x3f | Tool thief | ||
| 0x40 | Cherry bomb | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x41 | Open trap (unused in main levels) | ||
| 0x42 | Trap | ||
| 0x43 | Clone machine (used in CC1 levels) | Clone direction (?) | |
| 0x44 | Clone machine | Clone direction | |
| 0x45 | Clue | ||
| 0x46 | Force floor (random) | ||
| 0x47 | Gray button | ||
| 0x48 | Swivel door (SW) | ||
| 0x49 | Swivel door (NW) | ||
| 0x4a | Swivel door (NE) | ||
| 0x4b | Swivel door (SE) | ||
| 0x4c | Time bonus | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x4d | Stopwatch | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x4e | Transmogrifier | Wires | |
| 0x4f | Railroad track | Tracks (see below) | |
| 0x50 | Steel wall | Wires | |
| 0x51 | Time bomb | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x52 | Helmet | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x53 | (Unused) | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x54 | (Unused) | ||
| 0x55 | (Unused) | ||
| 0x56 | Melinda | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x57 | Timid teeth | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x58 | Explosion animation (unused in main levels) | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x59 | Hiking boots | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x5a | Male-only sign | ||
| 0x5b | Female-only sign | ||
| 0x5c | Logic gate | Gate type and direction (see below) | |
| 0x5d | (Unused) | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x5e | Pink button | Wires | |
| 0x5f | Flame jet (OFF) | ||
| 0x60 | Flame jet (ON) | ||
| 0x61 | Orange button | ||
| 0x62 | Lightning bolt | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x63 | Yellow tank | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x64 | Yellow tank button | ||
| 0x65 | Mirror Chip | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x66 | Mirror Melinda | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x67 | (Unused) | ||
| 0x68 | Bowling ball | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x69 | Rover | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x6a | Time penalty | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x6b | Custom floor | Style (see below) | |
| 0x6c | (Unused) | ||
| 0x6d | Thin wall / Canopy | Panel/Canopy bitmask (see below), Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x6e | (Unused) | ||
| 0x6f | Railroad sign | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x70 | Custom wall | Style (see below) | |
| 0x71 | Letter tile (space) | Glyph type (see below) | |
| 0x72 | Purple toggle floor | ||
| 0x73 | Purple toggle wall | ||
| 0x74 | (Unused) | ||
| 0x75 | (Unused) | ||
| 0x76 | 8-bit Modifier (see Modifier section below) | 1 modifier byte, Tile Specification for affected tile | N/A |
| 0x77 | 16-bit Modifier (see Modifier section below) | 2 modifier bytes, Tile Specification for affected tile | N/A |
| 0x78 | 32-bit Modifier (see Modifier section below) | 4 modifier bytes, Tile Specification for affected tile | N/A |
| 0x79 | (Unused) | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x7a | 10 point flag | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x7b | 100 point flag | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x7c | 1000 point flag | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x7d | Solid green wall | ||
| 0x7e | False green wall | ||
| 0x7f | Not allowed marker | Modifies tools/keys. Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x80 | 2x points flag | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x81 | Directional block | Direction byte, Directional Arrows Bitmask, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x82 | Floor mimic | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x83 | Green bomb | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x84 | Green chip | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x85 | (Unused) | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x86 | (Unused) | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x87 | Black button | Wires | |
| 0x88 | ON/OFF switch (OFF) | Wires | |
| 0x89 | ON/OFF switch (ON) | Wires | |
| 0x8a | Key thief | ||
| 0x8b | Ghost | Direction byte, Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x8c | Steel foil | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x8d | Turtle | ||
| 0x8e | Secret eye | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x8f | Thief bribe | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x90 | Speed boots | Tile Specification for lower layer | |
| 0x91 | (Unused) | ||
| 0x92 | Hook | Tile Specification for lower layer |
Direction byteEdit
The direction byte comes after enemy tiles and some others:
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0 | North |
| 1 | East |
| 2 | South |
| 3 | West |
Thin wall/Canopy bitmaskEdit
Any number of these bits can be combined:
| Bitmask | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x1 | Thin wall (N) |
| 0x2 | Thin wall (E) |
| 0x4 | Thin wall (S) |
| 0x8 | Thin wall (W) |
| 0x10 | Canopy |
Directional block arrows bitmaskEdit
Any number of these bits can be combined:
| Bitmask | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x1 | North |
| 0x2 | East |
| 0x4 | South |
| 0x8 | West |
Tile modifiersEdit
The modifier "tiles" (0x76, 0x77, 0x78) affect the tile specification that they carry in their additional data. The meaning of the modifier value depends on the type of tile they affect.
The size of the modifier is irrelevant, and modifiers default to zero. That is, if a tile is expecting a 16-bit modifier but the high byte is zero, an 8-bit modifier works as well. If a tile is expecting an 8-bit modifier which is zero, the modifier may be omitted entirely.
Wire modifierEdit
This is an 8-bit modifier that affects floors, steel walls, ON/OFF switches, transmogrifiers, and blue and red teleports. It adds wires to the tile it affects. Any number of these bits can be combined:
| Bitmask | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x1 | Wire (N) |
| 0x2 | Wire (E) |
| 0x4 | Wire (S) |
| 0x8 | Wire (W) |
| 0x10 | Wire tunnel (N) |
| 0x20 | Wire tunnel (E) |
| 0x40 | Wire tunnel (S) |
| 0x80 | Wire tunnel (W) |
Letter tile modifierEdit
This is an 8-bit modifier that affects letter tiles by adding a symbol (usually an ASCII symbol) to them:
| Values | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x1c | Up arrow |
| 0x1d | Right arrow |
| 0x1e | Down arrow |
| 0x1f | Left arrow |
| 0x20 through 0x5f | Corresponding ASCII character (' ' through '_') |
Clone machine arrow modifierEdit
This is an 8-bit modifier that affects clone machines by specifying their direction. The values can be combined and will show up on the clone machine appropriately, but the game will only clone in one direction.
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x1 | Arrow (N) |
| 0x2 | Arrow (E) |
| 0x4 | Arrow (S) |
| 0x8 | Arrow (W) |
Custom floor/wall modifierEdit
This is an 8-bit modifier that affects custom walls or floors by replaces their style:
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x0 | Green |
| 0x1 | Pink |
| 0x2 | Yellow |
| 0x3 | Blue |
Logic modifierEdit
This is an 8-bit modifier that affects an inverter gate by replacing it with another gate. Modifiers outside of the ranges specified below will produce voodoo tiles.
Most logic gates have 4 assigned values instead of just 1; unless otherwise specified below, the face direction of the logic gate is determined by its index, stored in the order: North, East, South, West.
| Values | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x0 through 0x3 | Inverter gate |
| 0x4 through 0x7 | AND gate |
| 0x8 through 0xb | OR gate |
| 0xc through 0xf | XOR gate |
| 0x10 through 0x13 | Latch gate (clockwise arrow) |
| 0x14 through 0x17 | NAND gate |
| 0x1e through 0x27 | Counter gate (0 through 9) |
| 0x40 through 0x43 | Latch gate (counterclockwise arrow) |
Track modifierEdit
This is a 16-bit modifier that affects the railroad track tile. The low byte specifies which tracks exist; any number of bits can be combined:
| Bitmask | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x1 | Turn (NE) |
| 0x2 | Turn (SE) |
| 0x4 | Turn (SW) |
| 0x8 | Turn (NW) |
| 0x10 | Horizontal |
| 0x20 | Vertical |
| 0x40 | Track switch |
The high byte is comprised of two nybbles. The lower nybble specifies which track is active. For tiles with a track switch, the active track is the only one that can be used; the others are shown in red.
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x000 | NE track is active |
| 0x100 | SE track is active |
| 0x200 | SW track is active |
| 0x300 | NW track is active |
| 0x400 | Horizontal track is active |
| 0x500 | Vertical track is active |
The upper nybble is the tile's initial "entered" direction. When an actor starts the level already on top of this tile, it's treated as though it entered by moving in this direction. (If there are no tracks corresponding to that direction, the actor will be unable to move.)
REPL / PRPL sectionEdit
This section contains the replay data. If this is a PRPL section, it must be unpacked first (see Section Packing). However the hash for the replay and the valid solution bit-flag is set in the OPTN section and not here
The contents of this section are as follows:
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 1 | Usually 0; function unknown |
| 1 | Random force floor initial direction |
| 1 | Randomness seed (used by blobs) |
| Varies | A sequence of input changes; optionally terminated by 0xff |
Input changeEdit
Specifies a change in input:
| Bytes | Content |
|---|---|
| 1 | Number of frames to wait before inputting the new input. The last input is still held while the new input is pending. Always <= 0xfc. Larger delays are specified via multiple input changes |
| 1 | An input bitmask specifying the new input |
Input bitmaskEdit
Specifies which keys are pressed, any number of bits can be combined:
| Bitmask | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0x1 | Drop item |
| 0x2 | Down |
| 0x4 | Left |
| 0x8 | Right |
| 0x10 | Up |
| 0x20 | Switch character |
| 0x40 | Cycle items |
| 0x80 | If set, this input is for player 2 in a split-screen game |