Windows Lunatic Dawn: Passage of The Book (English Patched) Windows

[CSmith327]

Game Description:​

Lunatic Dawn: Passage of The Book (ルナティックドーン 前途への道標) is an RPG video game published by Artdink and developed by Artdink released on 1997 for Microsoft Windows.

Official Description:

Nonlinear RPG

Your adventure takes place on a vast continent inspired by medieval Europe, Japan, and China. This world is governed by the four forces of Order, Chaos, Good, and Evil. Your actions will affect the balance of these forces and the future of this world.

Choose your own adventure

You are a free adventurer. Go to an inn and select your quest. From simple tasks like shopping and delivery to extermination and escort, and even smuggling. Depending on how you choose to live, you could become a great hero or a great villain, saving the world from darkness or helping to destroy it.

Translation Credits:​

Released by: MeshGearFox
Language: English
Status: Mostly Complete (missing the maps that the addendum patch translated)
Patch Version: 1-28-2018 Beta
Date: 28 Jan 2018

Source and details: https://romhack.ing/database/content/entry/kNNv5JQBNs8FWu0CunlA/

Addendum Patch Credits:

Released by: egooper
Language: English
Status: Fully Translated (translates the maps and fixes several localization issues and typos)
Patch Version: v1_May2026
Date: 9 May 2026

Source and details: https://romhack.ing/database/content/entry/KICwnZiwQJOx1YPfmi4OQA/

This is the second entry in a series of western computer style RPGs by Artdink Corporation. It has been fully translated and is widely considered by fans to be the best entry point to the series.

It's a complex open world sandbox RPG with a considerable level of depth for something from that time. While the world in the first game in the series was randomly generated, the world in this game is not and instead is nicely crafted and well polished.

Impressively, the world of the game is fully simulated: clearing monsters around a city will cause it to grow, nations will attack each other causing some cities to flourish or become ghost towns, special events like tournaments are held, rare item stores appear, and bounties will be placed on certain NPCs.

You can even marry other adventures/companions and settle down in a house and have a family in a town of your choosing. However, your alignment based on good/evil and order/chaos shifting due to your actions (i.e. murder or stealing) can cause your companions to leave you.

Moreover, the game continues even if your main hero dies, so you can start anew and hear that the widow of your previous hero killed one of the dungeon bosses.

A common complaint about this game (and games of a similar design) is that the UI of the game uses windows and looks more like a series of apps and tools instead of a game. IMO I think this style of interface is a unique design and is a computer-positive approach. It also looks nice when you get all your windows setup and arranged how you like.

Despite the positive stuff I just said beware that this game is not very casual player friendly at all and is pretty difficult. There also seems to be a permadeath feature in place when you reach game over and you'll have to create a new main hero.

There is a help index that probably helps explain how to play and get started, but it's only in Japanese. Since it can be confusing at what to do, it might be a good idea to find and consult a playthrough of this someone has made on YouTube.

To play the game simply run LD95_e.exe then you can create a new world and your characters to start.

Note: the map in screenshot 3 is translated in this. That screenshot is of one without the addendum patch.

Download Links​

• Lunatic Dawn: Passage of The Book (English Patched) Windows

 

[bab321]

Extracting to another folder won't work; it must remain in its original folder.

Post automatically merged: May 23, 2026

I am getting this error when I try to run the game. Anyone by chance know a solution?
View attachment 188615

Post automatically merged: May 23, 2026

Ok, I run all my older windows games and EMUs on a mapped network drive. All my games run just fine. This one prompted the network drive credential log in and I hit cancel to make sure I was running the right exe. Then when I ran it again the credentials pop-up didn't show and I got the error. Running it from my desktop it runs perfectly fine. So I am assuming I should have just entered in the network credential log in. So is there anyway to get windows to ask again the for the map drive credentials again for this exe? It seems like Windows remembers I canceled for this exe and doesn't prompt it again.

Post automatically merged: May 23, 2026

Extracting to another folder won't work; it must remain in its original folder.

 

[CSmith327]

I am getting this error when I try to run the game. Anyone by chance know a solution?
View attachment 188615

Post automatically merged: May 23, 2026

Ok, I run all my older windows games and EMUs on a mapped network drive. All my games run just fine. This one prompted the network drive credential log in and I hit cancel to make sure I was running the right exe. Then when I ran it again the credentials pop-up didn't show and I got the error. Running it from my desktop it runs perfectly fine. So I am assuming I should have just entered in the network credential log in. So is there anyway to get windows to ask again the for the map drive credentials again for this exe? It seems like Windows remembers I canceled for this exe and doesn't prompt it again.

I would try looking in the registry and find the entry relating to when you cancelled it. Then delete that entry and try it again to see if it prompts and don't cancel it.

 

[Tzelanit]

I was 100% sure this was an addition by Alma. Thanks for this CSmith!

 

[dropsmegamega]

I had heard of the Lunatic Dawn series, but didn't know there was a translated entry. Looks very ambitious!

 

[5thWolf]

I am getting this error when I try to run the game. Anyone by chance know a solution?

Post automatically merged: May 23, 2026

I am getting this error when I try to run the game. Anyone by chance know a solution?

Ok, I run all my older windows games and EMUs on a mapped network drive. All my games run just fine. This one prompted the network drive credential log in and I hit cancel to make sure I was running the right exe. Then when I ran it again the credentials pop-up didn't show and I got the error. Running it from my desktop it runs perfectly fine. So I am assuming I should have just entered in the network credential log in. So is there anyway to get windows to ask again the for the map drive credentials again for this exe? It seems like Windows remembers I canceled for this exe and doesn't prompt it again.

 

[brazilian_yuyuko]

I've had this game for a while, and I've never been able to clear a single dungeon of it lmao

still, this is one of my favorite obscure crpgs, mainly because of the UI, it reminds me of the PC port of Wizardry Llylgamyn Saga that also looks like a 90s company software (also an interesting piece to post here in my opinion!!)

 

[Wirlog]

How much stuff do you want on your game's UI?
Director: YES!

 

[Viviana Santos]

Man, this looks amazing! I love the aesthetic and the art style/graphics

 

[RetroDKCN]

I really love when japanese devs dip their toes on western-style gameplay.

The results sometimes are amazing, like Etrian Odyssey for example

 

[vgavlan36]

As a console kid in the 90's, this is what I imagined as a "PC Game" for the time lol.

Such a cool addition, I'm both fascinated and intimidated by these screens.

 

[therabidfrog]

I've been waiting for this.

 

[otogirisou]

How many windows do you need?
Yes

 

[lalalal]

Yeah, this a hidden japanase classic with features that make you not stand as the main character of the world (unless you train and fight for it).

Each character are their own person and will not join your party for free. Money from rewards are divided and equipment is earned by playing a "blackjack" style game. Expect a magic oriented char to keep that rare sword you found in a dungeon for their own. Since their earn their pay, each one of them take care of their equipment and training (stats don't grow on their own and you need to spend money in training facilities for that). I remember one of my companions spent all their savings on a weapon and the moron almost starved to death when we arrived to the next town (I had to give some spare money to the poor chap).

Expect to form a bond with someone, buy a property and marry so you can spend a year of two as the children come out so you can pay them their education. It will take a long time but is possible to die of old age and then choose one of your children to follow your steps in traversing the world of this game.

Did I mention the bard can sing the exploits of your actions?

This game has no deep story and no clear path but so does life. Grow stronger, learn the school of magic that suits you best and live the best you can to see how the world changes around you.

If you survive long enough, who knows. Maybe you'll be the force who can stop a rising devil from the shadows.

 

[null.problem]

Artdink is so cool. They modeled little minis to make images like the one on the cover art. There's a lot of heart in their janky little games.

 

[CSmith327]

Elf Lady: (Plays lute like shit)
Dude with crossed arms: Ma'am, this is a Wendy's.

 

[RageBurner]

You know, this kind of concept of a classically designed, but incredibly open and modular RPG would work very well with a modern coat of paint, I think.

"Open World" is such a tiresome buzzword in the industry these days, and I tend to eye-roll whenever it is mentioned, but this here? seems genuinely open in actually interesting ways.