The NetHack Home Page

Variants

This page lists variants, derived of various versions of NetHack. Note that this page has not been updated for quite a while. Hence, it contains only one variant for 3.2, and no variants for 3.3 at all. So shoot me.

Except where noted otherwise, all executables mentioned below are for Msdos. Sources are usually useable for more than Msdos only, but might need some twiddling before they work correctly. Also, note that Borland C is known not to compile ordinary NetHack, and will probably behave strange when compiling its variants as well.

NetHack +
NetHack + is a modified version of NetHack 3.1.3, with additional classes, monsters, items, etc. The program (874 kByte, there is a readme file) can be found at the win spoiler site. Note that this is just the compiled version; if you wish to compile NetHack + yourself, you will have to get the sources. The sources consist of several parts: you need both part 1 (1047 kByte) and part 2 (758 kByte), as well as the djgpp compiler (1450 kByte), which you need to compile the game. Have a look at readme files number one and two for more information. If you wish to compile NetHack + for OS2, you might want to download a file containing OS2-specific changes to the sources.
NetHack + has been compiled for the Macintosh (1095 kByte) and for OS2 (686 kByte) as well. There are also two Linux versions available. The first is the plain tty version (825 kByte, there is a readme file); the second is a version which supports both X11 and tty (956 kByte, there is a readme file). Also, there is a file describing the differences between NetHack + and NetHack 3.1.3, as well as two spoiler files ( file A and file B).
NetHack + was written by Stephen White.
NetHack, the Next Generation
NetHack, the Next Generation is a modified version of NetHack 3.1.3, with a nerdish twist to it. The program (899 kByte, there is a readme file) can be found at the win spoiler site. Note that this is just the compiled version: sources (326 kByte) are available as well. Have a look at the readme file if you wish. NetHack, the Next Generation has been compiled for the Macintosh as well (1284 kByte). There are also spoilers available.
NetHack, the Next Generation was written by Sebastian Klein.
NetHack --
NetHack -- is yet another variant, and one of the oldest, that must be said. This variant has more artifacts, more monsters, and more "stuff" than ordinary NetHack. Both the program (636 kByte, there is a readme file) and the sources (2236 kByte) can be obtained from the win spoiler site. Have a look at the readme file if you wish. There is also an OS2 version available (741 kByte).
NetHack -- was originally written by Yuval Oren and Tom Proudfoot. It was adapted from version 3.0 to version 3.1 by Chris Herborth.
Slash
Slash is NetHack 3.1.3's last variant. Again, this variant has more artifacts, more monsters, and more "stuff" than ordinary NetHack. The Msdos program (1025 kByte, there is a readme file) is available here. There is also an Irix version, which consists of two files: slash-hack.gz (1011 kByte: the executable) and slash-hackdir.tar.gz (275 kByte: the other files). Have a readme file for more information. The sources are available as well (2337 kByte, there is a readme file). Lastly, I can offer you the Unix version (1665 kByte of sources, have a look at the readme file first). By the way, Slash is an acronym for Super-Lotso-Added-Stuff-Hack, in case you were wondering... There is an alternative Slash Distribution Page.
Slash was written by Tom Proudfoot (who also had a hand in NetHack --).
C++ variant
This version of NetHack 3.1.3 is not really a variant, but a framework for redoing NetHack in C++ with a full object-oriented design. If you have that strange urge, please get the readme file first, and if you still cannot restrain yourself, get the archive containing the tips and tricks which could help you get on the way.
This file was written by Bill Foust.
Atari variant
This version of NetHack 3.1.3 gives you full-colour graphics, plus a full GEM user interface. Not to be confused with the hackfnt technique of simply changing the font, it gives you 16x16 pixel, 16 colour graphic icons for every object in the game - that's about 850 different icons. There is a sample screenshot for this version of NetHack. This version, nh313gemd (838 kByte), will work on an Atari ST/TT/Falcon: if you have a monochrome screen, you might want the B&W screens as well. By the way, you can configure this game to display only normal ASCII characters. If you do so, it will have exacty the same look and feel as standard NetHack.
The GEM version was written by Warwick Allison.
The monochrome screens were done by Eero Tamminen.
HackLite
HackLite is a much smaller program than ordinary NetHack, which can be run on computers with a more limited memory size, or with a smaller hard disk. It obviously has less features than normal NetHack, but also quite a lot of changes, which still make it a challenge! HackLite executables are currently available for the Amiga (version 2.8.1, 644 kByte, there is a readme file) and for Msdos (version 2.0.0, 333 kByte, there is a readme file). The author does not wish to make either sources or spoilers available: it is up to you to find things out yourself.
HackLite was written by Alan Beale.
Hack for Windows
Hack for Windows is a special version of Hack, modified to perform nicely with Windows (with some restrictions: get the readme file first). If you still want to download this, after reading this readme file, be my guest and get w_ohack.zip (129 kByte).
Hack for Windows was written by an author unknown to me. Please send me a potion of enlightenment...
JNetHack
JNetHack is a Japanese translation of NetHack 3.1.3. It has the same features as normal NetHack 3.1.3. JNetHack is currently available for both the PC and the PC-98, an Msdos machine popular in Japan. Sources, patch and binaries can supposedly be found at ftp://mitsuko.jaist.ac.jp/pub/nethack/. Unfortunately, I have not been able to contact the ftp site myself, so I cannot tell what size the files are.
JNetHack was written by Issei.
JNHTNG
JNHTNG is a Japanese translation of NetHack, the Next Generation (q.v.). It has the same features as the ordinary NetHack, the Next Generation. It can supposedly be found at ftp://ftp.keio.ac.jp/pub/doc/nethack/Variants/JNhTNG/. Unfortunately, I have not been able to contact the ftp site myself, so I cannot tell what size the files are.
JNetHack was written by an author unknown to me. Please send me a potion of enlightenment...
Data files
The original DATA file for NetHack 3.1.3 was lacking a lot of monster and item descriptions. Therefore, I added a lot of monsters and some items to this DATA file, and re-compiled it. If you wish, you can download a copy of this enlarged DATA file, and replace your old DATA file. There are three different versions of this file: the data.bas file (115 kByte) that can be used when you are compiling the game yourself, a data.dos file (119 kByte) for systems with Msdos-like EOLs (CR/LF to end lines), and a data.unix file (116 kByte) for systems with Unix-like EOLs (LF only to end lines). Just to give you an idea of how many entries were added: the old file was only about 25 kByte long. Please note that these additions have been copied into the standard data file for NetHack 3.2.1, so if you are running the latest version, you don't need these files.
The DATA file was enlarged by Boudewijn Waijers.
Qt NetHack
Qt NetHack is NetHack 3.2.0 with a different user interface, written using the Qt GUI toolkit. Source, binaries for Linux, and a screenshot are available on the Qt NetHack home page. This variant provides inventory icons and other interface improvements over standard NetHack for X11.
Qt NetHack file was designed by Warwick Allison.