CorsixTH
An open-source reimplementation of the 1997 business simulation game Theme Hospital, with modern OS support and new features.
What is CorsixTH?
CorsixTH is a faithful open-source recreation of Bullfrog's 1997 business simulation game Theme Hospital, rebuilt from the ground up to run on modern operating systems. It preserves the original's humorous hospital management gameplay, including the full single-player campaign, while adding quality-of-life improvements like high-resolution support, unlimited saves, and custom content creation. The project solves the problem of playing a classic game on contemporary hardware and expands creative possibilities for players and modders.
This project is for gamers and retro gaming enthusiasts who want to play Theme Hospital on modern Windows, macOS, Linux, or BSD systems, as well as modders interested in creating custom levels, campaigns, and maps. It also welcomes developers familiar with Lua and C++ who want to contribute to open-source game reimplementation.
Developers and players choose CorsixTH because it offers a legally compliant way to experience Theme Hospital with enhanced compatibility, including native support for high resolutions and modern OS features, while maintaining faithful gameplay. Its unique selling point is combining exact recreation of the original with expanded capabilities like custom content creation, improved game logic, and full hotkey control, all as a community-driven open-source project.
Overview
Open source clone of Theme Hospital
Use Cases
Best For
- Playing the original Theme Hospital campaign on modern Windows, macOS, Linux, or BSD operating systems without compatibility issues.
- Creating and playing custom levels, campaigns, and maps for Theme Hospital with built-in support for user-generated content.
- Experiencing Theme Hospital with quality-of-life enhancements like zooming, HD display options, unlimited saves, and 12 autosave slots.
- Modding or extending a classic game using accessible Lua scripting for game logic, supported by an active open-source community.
- Preserving retro gaming history through a faithful, legally compliant reimplementation that requires original game assets from sources like GOG.com or physical CDs.
- Contributing to open-source game development as a coder (Lua/C++) or non-coder via translation, documentation, or testing, with labeled 'Good First Issue' tasks available.
Not Ideal For
- Players who do not own or want to purchase the original Theme Hospital game for its assets.
- Gamers seeking multiplayer or LAN functionality for cooperative or competitive play.
- Users demanding 100% graphical accuracy and all original animations without any glitches or missing elements.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Faithfully recreates the full single-player campaign with all diseases, rooms, and events like emergencies and VIP visits, allowing a complete gameplay experience as confirmed in the README.
Offers native support for Windows, macOS, Linux, and BSD with high-resolution options, ensuring the game runs smoothly on modern operating systems without emulation.
Enables creation and playing of custom levels, campaigns, and maps, plus the ability to play your own music, greatly expanding replayability and creativity beyond the original game.
Adds features like zooming, unlimited saves, 12 autosave slots, and customizable hotkeys, improving usability and convenience over the 1997 release.
Cons
Lacks several elements from the original game, including multiplayer/LAN, AI hospitals, rats, and some videos, which are admitted as 'missing/needs improvement' in the README.
Admits to anomalies such as patients not falling in earthquakes, object glitches with walls, and incomplete graphics for diseases like Pregnancy and Alien DNA, affecting visual fidelity.
Requires users to own the original Theme Hospital from sources like CD or GOG.com, adding an extra cost and step before playing, which can be a barrier for new players.
Open Source Alternative To
CorsixTH is an open-source alternative to the following products:
Frequently Asked Questions
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