Alright, I spent at least 15 hours getting this game to work on (Arch) Linux, essentially to learn how to run games with very old dependencies (like DirectX 3D calls).
So, I’d like to share how I did it for Wine users, in case it might be helpful for some. As mentioned, I use Arch Linux, but I assume this will work for Mac as well (though you'll need to find the right wrapper, like Kegworks, to save you a headache). I use Lutris + Winetricks. It works for every game from Mike Velesk (including Total Seduction 1). Let's open Lutris:
- Add the game (top left "+")
- Game Info: Runner Wine
- Game options: Add the .exe in the executable path, and the Wine prefix to install the necessary interface: ~/lutrisprefix/[FolderName]
- Runner options: I use the latest version of Wine-GE (wine-ge-8-26-x86_64, but the version doesn’t matter). With DXVK and dgvoodoo enabled, but without VKD3D (don’t dismiss it, it’s important for games using DX9).
Unfortunately, this might be enough for many Unity or recent games, but not for this one. You’ll need to install the dependencies manually in the prefix folder, and in my case, Wine Tricks handles that for me. You’ll have to read the crashlog errors and the readme that Mr. developer kindly wrote for us (which no one reads, let’s be honest)
- Open Wine Tricks directly in Lutris (or elsewhere).
- Select the default wineprefix > Install a Windows DLL or component > install one by one (don’t choose them all at once, because Winetricks isn’t the most intuitive wrapper and it can install things incorrectly): d3dx9, dotnet35 (not sure, but just in case), dotnet40, mdx (the one I forgot that wasted the most time), vcrun2010.
- Once everything is installed, go back to Wine Tricks.
- Select the default wineprefix > Wine CFG > This will open a new window. Go to the Libraries tab and add the following one by one: Microsoft.DirectX - Microsoft.DirectX.Direct3D - Microsoft.DirectX.DirectDraw. Make sure they are set to "native then builtin," but they should be by default.
- The game will launch after lots of dark magic.
It might seem tedious if you're not familiar with it, but it’s not really that complicated once you know which dependencies to grab. If this helps at least one person, I’m happy. Thanks for the sharing, and thanks to the developer for this game, I can finally play it on my steam deck!