Daniel LynchandClaude Opus 4.8
a72a79ad29
An independent reimplementation of Meta's libOVRPlugin ABI on top of OpenXR, so VrApi-era Meta Quest VR titles can run on non-Meta OpenXR runtimes (Monado, Steam Frame) instead of being locked to Meta hardware. Original code only — no Meta/Epic/Capcom binaries, headers, or assets. Includes a desktop harness that drives the shim against Monado headless. Scope/legal: interoperability; entitlement handling is out of scope. See README for the legal/scope section and docs/ for the research trail and design notes. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com> Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01D6sFYGXZPsq3v7xtcDES6g
Packaging — repack the RE4 VR APK with the shim
Produces an installable, re-signed APK with our OpenXR libOVRPlugin.so swapped in. The
original libovrplatformloader.so is kept untouched, so the platform's real entitlement
check runs unchanged — on Quest you own the title. Dump-your-own only; nothing here is
redistributed. Entitlement handling on hardware with no Meta backend is out of scope for
this project and is the user's responsibility. See ../TESTING.md for the on-device plan.
One-time setup
./build_openxr_loader.sh # builds libopenxr_loader.so (arm64) -> libs/arm64/
./make_debug_keystore.sh # debug.keystore for re-signing (repack.sh auto-runs it)
Also build the shim libs first: ../shim/build_android.sh.
Repack
./repack.sh [input.apk]
# example:
./repack.sh # ../dump/base.apk
Swaps only libOVRPlugin.so + bundles libopenxr_loader.so, and keeps the original
libovrplatformloader.so so the platform's real entitlement check runs unchanged.
Output: out/re4vr-shim.apk (zipaligned, v1+v2+v3 signed with the debug key).
Off-Quest port (Pico / Steam Frame / Monado-on-Android)
./steamframe_patches.sh [in.apk] [out.apk] # default: out/re4vr-shim.apk -> out/re4vr-steamframe.apk
Run AFTER repack.sh (which swaps in our shim). Needs apktool. Applies the Java/manifest
fixes a non-Quest target needs but a real Quest doesn't: spoofs Build.MANUFACTURER/MODEL
so UE takes the Oculus HMD path (else our shim is never called), neuters
AndroidThunkJava_ForceQuit, and strips Meta-only <uses-(native-)library> manifest entries
(keeps libopenxr.google.so). Rationale + the patches we deliberately skip:
../docs/research/related-work.md. Prepared for the bring-up; not yet hardware-validated.
⚠️ Do NOT install the output on a Quest — the manifest strip removes Meta libs the
Quest needs. The script warns + prompts for confirmation; pass NOT_QUEST=1 to bypass the
prompt in automation. On a Quest, install the plain repack.sh output (out/re4vr-shim.apk).
Install + run (Quest, dev mode)
adb install -r out/re4vr-shim.apk
# push the OBB you dumped (same versionCode 203):
adb push ../dump/obb/main.203.com.Armature.VR4.obb /sdcard/Android/obb/com.Armature.VR4/
adb push ../dump/obb/patch.203.com.Armature.VR4.obb /sdcard/Android/obb/com.Armature.VR4/
adb logcat | grep -iE 'xrr|openxr|OVRPlugin|Armature' # watch [xrr] logs
Manifest
./inspect_manifest.sh [input.apk] # confirms VR/OpenXR declarations are present
RE4 VR is already a shipping Quest VR app, so its manifest almost certainly already has the headtracking feature + VR intent category; switching vrapi->OpenXR usually needs no manifest change. inspect_manifest.sh reports any gaps; edit the decoded manifest + rebuild with apktool only if something's missing.
Notes
- Re-signing with our own key is unavoidable (we modify a lib). That's what risks the legit entitlement on Quest — see ../TESTING.md.
- Libs are added stored (-0) and the APK is
zipalign -p 4'd so native libs stay page-aligned (extractNativeLibs=false convention). - Tools used: tools/android-14 (build-tools 34: zipalign/apksigner), tools/apktool.jar, tools/jdk-21 (keytool), tools/android-ndk-r27c (loader build).