Cookie's Bustle situation summary

Your one-stop shop for the latest Bustle

A point-and-click adventure game produced and published by Rodik, Inc. in 1999, Cookie's Bustle follows the adventures of Cookie Blair, a 5 year old girl from New Jersey who thinks she is a teddy bear, as she travels to the South Pacific country of Bombo World to compete in their international sports tournament. Along the way, Cookie would uncover the secrets behind the aliens who crash landed in Bombo World 100 years ago, and the worsening terrorist activities that have arisen due to the Bombo government's collaboration with said aliens.

Cookie's Bustle was released only in Japan, and was considered almost lost media in the English-speaking world until a leak of 70 long-lost Japanese games from a collector in 2018. Since then, interest in the game has gradually increased, until December 2022 when uploads of the game itself and footage around it were summarily taken down by copyright strikes.

Contact (for amendments or additional information): CookiesBustlePreservation@airmail.cc

  1. Download links of game and game-related media
  2. How do I play this game
  3. Gameplay FAQ
  4. Legal documents on the game and its copyright situation
  5. Fan-translation project
  6. Theories on the copyright strikes
  7. Timeline of events

These are all magnet links, so you'll need a torrent client like qBittorrent to download them. Remember to seed! Do your part in preserving this game by helping one another and seeding.

How do I play this game

The methods below are sorted by least hassle first. Try the first one before you try the next.

  1. Just run it on Windows 10/11
    Cookie's Bustle actually runs pretty well on modern Windows.
    1. (Optional) Set your non-unicode locale to Japanese if you want to be able to read the text during installation and the error messages during game launch. Otherwise this isn't needed as the game itself doesn't render text.
    2. Mount the Cookie's Bustle .ccd or .iso (depending on which version you grabbed; the torrent above is the original rip, which is in ccd/cue/img format). If you have the .ccd rip, mount it (the CloneCD file, not the IMG file) with WinCDEmu and disc type as CD-ROM; if it's the .iso one, Windows should be able to mount it natively by just double clicking on the file.

    If you get a "Disc is corrupt" error when mounting, it's most probably that you've skimmed the instructions and tried to mount the .img file instead of the .ccd file.

    1. Run the setup on the mounted CD (just click the usual next button even if you can't read the text).
    2. Uninstall the bundled Quicktime and install Quicktime 6.5.2 (grab it from oldversion.com). This is important unless you want stuttering audio throughout the game. Beware however that installing old, outdated media players may constitute a security risk. If you do not want this you'll have to try the VM method below.
    3. Right-click on the Cookie's Bustle shortcut in your start menu, go into properties, and enable the "640x480 resolution" option under the Compatibility tab. You don't need any other compatibility options (and enabling them might actually cause problems, e.g. enabling the Windows 98 compat option might make the game keep asking you about the serial code).

    The resolution is important. The game will only run in older 4:3 resolutions, and for anything higher than 640x480, it'll just insert black bars around the game content. So please just use the 640x480 compat option instead of asking for a widescreen patch on the Discord.

    1. Run the game with the disc still mounted. Ignore the pop-up warning saying that the game is written for Windows 95/98/2000 only. Enter the serial code; one possibility is CB1W-30003-1007-66.
    2. Every time you run the game you'll need to mount the CD, i.e. step 2.
  2. Run it under Wine
    For the Linux/macOS/BSD/Solaris(?!) users, or Windows users who love WSL2 too much. See the WineDB page for configuration details. It pretty much works out of the box, but if you want a step-by-step guide:
    1. Install Wine. The instructions vary distro by distro, so check WineHQ for details. You don't really need the latest version so even the ones in your distro's repositories should work. On Ubuntu and WSL2 this would be sudo apt install wine. For macOS people, get Homebrew first, then brew install --cask wine-stable.
    2. Create a 32-bit prefix. WINEPREFIX=~/.wineprefixes/CB WINEARCH=win32 winecfg.

    On newer macOS versions you might encounter a Bad CPU type error. This is due to Apple deprecating support for 32-bit programs, in which case substitute winecfg with wine64 winecfg.

    1. Tweak the configuration a bit. Go to the Graphics tab, enable Emulate a virtual desktop, and set the resolution to 640x480. Then, in the Desktop Integration tab, uncheck Manage file associations.
    2. If you downloaded the CCD/IMG/CUE rip, convert the .ccd rip into an .iso. ccd2iso cookiesbustle.ccd cookiesbustle.iso. (If you don't have ccd2iso installed just install it. sudo apt install ccd2iso.)
    3. Mount the ISO. sudo mount -o loop /path/to/cookiesbustle.iso /mnt
    4. Wrangle two symlinks so that Wine will present the mounted ISO as an actual CD.
      1. cd ~/.wineprefixes/CB/dosdevices
      2. rm d: d::
      3. ln -s /mnt d:
      4. ln -s /path/to/cookiesbustle.iso d::
    5. Install the game. WINEPREFIX=~/.wineprefixes/CB LC_ALL=ja_JP.UTF-8 wine /mnt/setup.exe

    On newer macOS versions you might encounter a Bad CPU type error. This is due to Apple deprecating support for 32-bit programs, in which case substitute wine with wine64.

    1. Run the game! WINEPREFIX=~/.wineprefixes/CB LC_ALL=ja_JP.UTF-8 wine ~/.wineprefixes/CB/drive_c/Program\ Files/cb1/CB1W.exe
    2. Serial: CB1W-30003-1007-66. Every time you play the game you need to mount the CD, i.e. step 5.
  3. Run it under a VM
    If you really want to, you can try running Cookie's Bustle under a VM. Technically, the game was written for Windows 95/98/2000, but it runs on XP as well. Try XP first because no VM software is going to give you a good Windows 9x experience unless you are already familiar with all the quirks and specific drivers you need to hunt for.
    I will not incude a step-by-step tutorial on how to use each VM software and how to install Windows 98/2000/XP using each. If you do not already know how to install older versions of Windows and properly configuring a VM from the ground up for them, just use the pre-configured VMs in the download section above. Download the whole torrent, and read the README for instructions.
    The choice of guest OS and virtualisation software (VMWare, VirtualBox, QEMU) is up to you. Different people have reported different and conflicting results on which combination runs best — it depends on your system and YMMV.
    There's also the possibility of running the Mac version under SheepShaver. It works, but again, YMMV. The Mac version requires a serial beginning with CB1M instead of CB1W. One possibility is CB1M-30003-5011-50.
    Common errors when running in a VM:
    1. I'm running a Windows 95/98/ME VM and explorer.exe or some .dll keeps crashing.
      You wouldn't have this problem if you're using Windows XP instead. The issue is your CPU is too new for Win9x. If you insist on using Win 9x, you'll need this patch: https://github.com/JHRobotics/patcher9x Download the floppy .img, attach it to your VM, boot from it, and follow the instructions on GitHub in running the patcher.
    2. Cookie's Bustle just wouldn't run. An error pops up and I don't read Japanese.
      You need to set your resolution to 640x480, and mount the CD correctly (look into your VM's settings; you shouldn't mount the disc within the guest OS when you can do it at the hypervisor level). Learn how to use your VM software of choice, or just use the pre-configured VMs.
    3. I'm trying to install Windows 95/98 and it won't even boot into the installation CD.
      In the old days you'll need to boot from a floppy that has CD drivers, format your harddisk, copy the setup files from the CD to your harddisk, then run the actual setup. Seek out a boot floppy and the relevant instructions on basic DOS operations. Be willing to learn and search around for step-by-step tutorials. Vogons is a good forum for people running old Windows versions.
  4. Can I use DOSBox(-X)?
    Unfortunately a bug prevents Quicktime from functioning correctly under DOSBox-X. So until that bug is fixed you'll have to try other options.
  5. Use an actual period-accurate PC or Mac
    I mean you could if you have such a machine? With the trend of "retrogaming" through the prices are going through the roof from how it used to be.

Gameplay FAQ

Many of these are covered by the in-game tutorial (accessed via the "?" button on the main menu).

  1. How do I access Cookie's inventory? / How do I save?
    Double-click to exit walk mode, and then click and hold.
  2. How do I run?
    Click and hold when your mouse is in walk mode.
  3. How do I talk to people / interact with things?
    Just walk into things/people's faces.
  4. How do I check Cookie's hunger/fatigue/toilet/etc. status?
    Double-click to exit walk mode, then hover your mouse over Cookie so the cursor becomes a "kiss" icon.

Fan-translation project

As of 14/2, we're nearing completion (90% of all voice lines, and 100% of all in-game movies) of a first draft of English translated subtitles for the game. There are also some early prototypes for injecting subtitles into the game via modding the code (written in Lingo, as this is a Macromedia Director game).
We still need transcribers to double-check our Japanese lines, translators to proofread our English lines, coders to improve the subtitle code, and other language speakers to produce translations for languages other than English. Drop a note in the #translation-project channel of the Discord!

  1. Is the copyright striker a collector scum who wanted to have his copy all by himself/artificially increase its scarcity?
    It is unlikely that the original collector who got his collection leaked back in 2018 is behind these copyright strikes. Both the collector and the leaker joined the Discord server, and the former explained that he is fine with the leak.
  2. Who is behind the copyright strikes?
    TL;DR: The true identity and motivation behind these strikes is still unclear. There is not enough information to paint a definite picture. What follows is partly conjecture.
    If we go by the earliest names attached to the takedowns, then the most probable culprits are Brandon White, the person who submitted several copyright listings on Interoco related to Cookie's Bustle between July 2021 and Jan 2022, and Graceware, a company registered in Andorra and the name under which some of the initial copyright strikes are made in Sept 2022 (a longplay by sebmal, a vid by MelodyBurst, and a walkthrough by WordsHere).
    From Oct 2022 onwards, the UK trade association Ukie has issued the majority of strikes, including Internet Archive uploads, sometimes in the name of other companies, including the aforementioned Graceware and sometimes even Nintendo. Since 14 Feb, another company, Web Capio, a member of Ukie, has started issuing strikes as well, sometimes under the name of its director, Mumith Ali.
    Since 10 Feb, the password to the encrypted RARs is discovered, and their contents have given rise to a number of competing interpretations:
  • Claim: Someone got hold of the remnants of Rodik's intended English localisation (as evidenced by the multiple subtitled screenshots of gameplay within the encrypted RARs) and has been planning for a re-release in 2022 (as evidenced by a line stating such in the Gameplay Concept document), which then got delayed due to COVID or other reasons.
    • Counter: There has been zero mention of a re-release in any marketing or hiring news. The only mention is in this publicly inaccessible Gameplay Concept document within the encrypted RARs submitted to Interoco in Dec 2021-Jan 2022. Plus, the "English subtitled screenshots" in the RARs are 640x580, an exact 100 pixels taller than Cookie's Bustle's running resolution. It also makes zero business sense to antagonise an existing fanbase prior to re-releasing an obscure and old game.
  • Claim: All the character diagrams and maps are just made by a person unaffiliated with Rodik. The metadata of the various documents show that they are made in GIMP and Libreoffice. With enough effort a person could forge the contents of the RARs and pass them off.
    • Counter: The 3D model renders of Cookie Blair are really high quality. Plus there are Japanese comments in the partial Lingo source code — which, though incomplete, is something that we couldn't extract from decompiling the game.
  • Claim: Brandon White, or whatever he is representing, was the person/team contracted by Rodik to make the English localization back in the 90s. Rodik's intention to release an English version is apparent from the existence of an English version of the Cookie's Bustle product website back in 1999.
    • Counter: There has been zero documentation supporting this in all Rodik material we could find. Even if the archived Rodik website made it quite clear that they planned an international release of the game, we have no idea who they contracted the localisation to, and it doesn't make sense that it'll pop up in late 2022 all out of a sudden after so many years of silence.
  • Claim: Keisuke Harigai, the creator of Cookie's Bustle, is behind all of this. He was the one who filed the trademark in 27 May 2022.
    • Counter: We have no concrete information on whether he actually moved to the UK and filed that trademark. The address of the "Keisuke Harigai" listed on the trademark is a front/PO Box.
  • Claim: Cookie Blair's voice actor was actually Harigai's daughter, and the family is deleting the game from existence because of privacy issues.
    • Counter: There's really just no data supporting this claim.
  • Claim: Alien EBEs are real and they're shutting the game down for exposing their IRL operations. Cookie's Bustle is actually Harigai's allegorical warning to humanity about an alien invasion.
    • Counter: Drowned God is not a prequel to Cookie's Bustle.
  1. What happened to Rodik?
    Judging by website archives, To Gen Kiko was transferred to comdoors and EMPNEO at around 2003 (comdoors is now the developer/publisher of many divination apps in the same vein as To Gen Kiko). We aren't sure of what happened to the rest of Rodik. If you do, please let us know via the contact email above.

Timeline of events

17/2/1994

  • Rodik, Inc. is founded

1994

  • Rodik releases 金高慎一郎・姓名学事典 Kanetaka Shinichiro Seimeigaku-Jiten, a fortune-telling software that analyses names by applying numerology to the number of strokes.

15/10/1996

  • Rodik releases 桃源紀行 To-Gen-Kiko, another fortune-telling software that analyses people's names.

1/10/1997

  • Rodik files application for Cookie's Bustle trademark

18/3/1999 (this date is taken from a news post on Rodik's website; another source, an interview with Keisuke Harigai, has Dec 1999 instead)

  • Rodik releases Cookie's Bustle.

16/2/2000

2/2000

15/4/2000

2001

  • Rodik transitions into an R&D company.

Somewhere in 2003 or earlier

  • To-Gen-Kiko copyright transferred to comdoors and EMPNEO.

Somewhere between 2003-2005

  • Rodik closes doors.

13/9/2008

  • Rodik's trademark registration on Cookie's Bustle cancelled due to failure of timely filing of Section 8 Declaration (i.e. trademark has been in use continuously for a period five years)

6/2018

  • Cookie's Bustle resurfaces on the Internet alongside other obscure Japanese games in a leak, including Labyrinthe.

2-4/4/2019

  • YouTube channel Classics of Game uploads 8 videos showcasing Cookie's Bustle gameplay footage.

7/12/2021

  • 3D model render and game "source code" filed on Interoco under Brandon White

23/1/2022

  • "Gameplay Concept" filed on Interoco under Brandon White

27/5/2022

  • Trademark for "Cookie's Bustle" filed at the UK Intellectual Property Office under a "Keisuke Harigai"

8/9/2022

  • Earliest known DMCA takedown, issued by Graceware, of Youtuber Sebmal's longplay and MelodyBurst's videos of Cookie's Bustle. Contact email in the strike, however, is Ukie's.

10/2022

  • First round of summary copyright strikes by Ukie begin, taking down almost all online hosted copies of the game and videos of gameplay footage.

1/12/2022

  • Graceware files multiple applications for trademark on Cookie's Bustle

13/1/2023

  • Graceware changes legal address to the same address

22/1/2023

  • Streamer Vinny Vinesauce streams Cookie's Bustle.

29/1/2023

  • Youtuber patbytes uploads video detailing the takedown situation on Cookie's Bustle

10/2/2023

  • Japanese Twitter user "C. Blair" uploads rip of Cookie's Bustle "Special Sound Tracks" CD.
  • Password to RAR archives on Interoco listing discovered.

14/2/2023

  • Web Capio, member of Ukie, begins issuing copyright strikes.

17/2/2023

  • Mumith Ali, Director of Web Capio and IP Coordinator at Ukie, begins issuing copyright strikes.

23/2/2023

  • Cookie's Bustle Gameplay Concept filing on Interoco changed to private, requires contacting copyright holder to access.

25/2/2023

  • Brent Sausser, legal representative of Graceware, begins issuing copyright strikes.

25/2/2023 0114 UTC

  • Discord sends out warning DMs and emails to a number of users regarding the distribution of materials which violate intellectual property or other rights.

26/2/2023

  • Youtuber SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) uploads video detailing the takedown situation on Cookie's Bustle
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Pub: 25 Feb 2024 17:49 UTC
Edit: 25 Feb 2024 18:55 UTC
Views: 1904
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