DoBetterConfig

This is a supplementary program for the 2004 video game Cave Story, that allows greater flexibility with control settings.

Table of contents

• DoBetterConfig
  • Table of contents
  • What is this app?
  • How to use the app?
  • How does it work?
  • Compatibility
  • Pros and Cons
    • Pros
    • Cons
  • How to compile the app?
    • Requirements
    • Compilation
  • License

What is this app?

Have you been tired of trying to beat Cave Story with the annoying default settings it has? Does the default DoConfig.exe not provide the flexibility you want? Do other solutions online seem too complex to bother? Well, it's your lucky day! This app will hopefully solve your issues and make you forget about the days of confusing jumping and shooting using Z and X.

How to use the app?

To use this app, first either download the DoBetterConfig.exe or compile it yourself. Then, put it in the same folder where you have your Doukutsu.exe. Upon opening the app, you'll be greeted with a small window with a list of controls and keys responsible for them.

To change a certain key, find it on the list, press it (use mouse keys, ENTER or SPACE for that) and then press the key you want it replaced with. Certain keys are not supported. If you try to use them, the sound will play and the key will revert to its previous self.

You also cannot have the same key be responsible for more than one action, so if you want to run left using A, you'll need to set the action on A to be something else first (or disable that action first).

You can disable keys with BACKSPACE.

How does it work?

The app works by automating the binary patching method described in this Cave Story forum post

Compatibility

This program was written for the Windows operating system.

OS version	Works (.exe)	Compiles
Windows 11	Yes	[Not tested]
Windows 10	Yes	Yes
Windows 8	[Not tested]	[Not tested]
Windows 7	Yes	Yes
Windows Vista	[Not tested]	[Not tested]
Windows XP	[Not tested]	[Not tested]
Windows 2000	[Not tested]	[Not tested]

Pros and Cons

Pros

• PORTABLE : Just place this 45kb file in the same folder as Cave Story (right above DoConfig.exe where it belongs, lol).
• A ONE TIME DEED : As this app patches the .exe of the game, you only need to do this once. The patched executable will have the same settings wherever you decide to play the game (I, personally, carry my game on a USB drive and play on different computers).
• NO ADMIN ACCESS : One of the solutions I've found online was to install third-party keyboard hookers like GRebind or AutoHotKey. But installing them requires admin access, and I didn't have that on all the computers I was using. DoBetterConfig has no need for admin access.
• EASY TO USE : No need to worry about setting up scripts and stuff. It's a one-window program, similar to the original DoConfig.exe.
• NO ADDITIONAL INSTALLATIONS : GRebind in particular, requires having .NET installed. And there's a chance that you don't have it and don't want to install it.

Cons

• NOT ALL KEYS ARE SUPPORTED : Because of the nature of the executable file, there's no way (at least, in my understanding) for all keys to be supported. For example, such popular keys as LMB, RMB, Enter and Backspace cannot be applied, so you'll have to stick with other keys. On the other hand, if a key is not supported, the app will simply refuse to apply it, so you don't need to worry about realizing this while already in the game.
• NOT FULLY TESTED : You can trust the compatibility table I wrote further up in this document. But that means that not all Windows versions have been tested yet. I'll be trying to solve this, but that means that if you have an old Windows XP computer, and the app doesn't work yet, I'm sorry.
• FOR WINDOWS ONLY : Pretty self-explanatory. The app relies on the windows.h library and the structure of the executable file, which is created during compilation, is intended for the Windows operating system only.

How to compile the app?

Requirements

• GNU Make
• gcc
• comctl32.dll
• gdi32.dll

Compilation

In order to compile:

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/MavikBow/DoBetterConfig.git

2. In the DoBetterConfig directory run

   make launch

   After compiling, you should find DoBetterConfig.exe in the build directory

3. Clean the mid-compilation files by running

   make clean

License

This project contains parts of the Microsoft Windows SDK. They're licensed under Microsoft's EULA. To use it, you must read and agree to it.

The rest is licensed under the "Unlicense" license.