Quick update on the development of the tool. Slowly learning how to make a UI using Tkinter in Python. Still a long way to go, but at least it can now:
1) open and unpack a carset
2) user can scroll through all the drivers and look at all the .mips, including support for 40-car carsets
3) export the selected car to .bmp
Next step: add ability to reload a .bmp back into the tool, convert to .mip and pack the .dat. All these have been coded but I just need to plug it into the UI.
Other future ideas:
- Add ability to swap car positions including 3dos. I think for 3do editing, I might just create an editor to do it within the tool, but also add ability to import from a Paintkit pcx or the Reynard 3do tool pcx. Or as Bob suggested, embedded data inside a .gif.
- For Reynard carsets, the ability to swap helmets!!
- Performance estimator (based on the current drivers2 values, how would the drivers rank?)
- Copy/paste a car from one carset to another?
- Edit tires and engine textures (also copy/paste between different carsets)
03-24-2019, 01:42 PM (This post was last modified: 03-24-2019, 02:05 PM by checkpoint10.)
(03-24-2019, 12:46 PM)JR82 Wrote: Yep
By GP2 i meant in GP2 Edit, tho it'd be handy just to be able to edit performance in the editor.
I loved GP2Edit back in the day - that was the gold standard of modding tools - and I was thinking exactly of its grid/race visualizer. I will go through all the research everyone has done on the drivers2.txt performance values and see if I can come up with a good model. From what I recall, it's a matter of power, traction and drag affecting the qualifying positions, and aggression has something to do with the AI but possibly reversed.
More updates to the tool. Added:
- Ability to import a .bmp file into the carset
- Export changes to drivers2.txt
- Convert any updated car skins to .mip and pack the .dat file, with one button click
As a test run, I exported the Foyt car from samsepi0l's 1989 carset, and then put it into the 1999 carset as the user's car, and renamed the user A. J. Foyt. You can see some of the steps involved in the screenshots. Finally I loaded the game to see that the changes came through correctly.
This process does not include bringing over the correct .3do (body panels) so I need to work on that.
(03-24-2019, 12:46 PM)JR82 Wrote: Yep
By GP2 i meant in GP2 Edit, tho it'd be handy just to be able to edit performance in the editor.
I loved GP2Edit back in the day - that was the gold standard of modding tools - and I was thinking exactly of its grid/race visualizer. I will go through all the research everyone has done on the drivers2.txt performance values and see if I can come up with a good model. From what I recall, it's a matter of power, traction and drag affecting the qualifying positions, and aggression has something to do with the AI but possibly reversed.
More updates to the tool. Added:
- Ability to import a .bmp file into the carset
- Export changes to drivers2.txt
- Convert any updated car skins to .mip and pack the .dat file, with one button click
As a test run, I exported the Foyt car from samsepi0l's 1989 carset, and then put it into the 1999 carset as the user's car, and renamed the user A. J. Foyt. You can see some of the steps involved in the screenshots. Finally I loaded the game to see that the changes came through correctly.
This process does not include bringing over the correct .3do (body panels) so I need to work on that.
Have a squiz at the thread i posted of the Drivers2.txt files, my formula (which is the best i can think of based on season performance) is explained in there. More than happy to hear about the way others do them.
(03-24-2019, 06:39 PM)JR82 Wrote: Have a squiz at the thread i posted of the Drivers2.txt files, my formula (which is the best i can think of based on season performance) is explained in there. More than happy to hear about the way others do them.
I remember the thread where you did some tests on what the parameters do to qual and race lap times. I may try to build off that and run some experiments of my own too.
(03-24-2019, 06:39 PM)JR82 Wrote: Have a squiz at the thread i posted of the Drivers2.txt files, my formula (which is the best i can think of based on season performance) is explained in there. More than happy to hear about the way others do them.
I remember the thread where you did some tests on what the parameters do to qual and race lap times. I may try to build off that and run some experiments of my own too.
Go for it, the Drivers2.txt thread has files for carsets from '90-01 & i have explained the formula i have used in there, have a play around & keen to see what you find, i not too sure on exactly what aggression does tho.
Apologies for the lack of updates on this. I got stuck trying to add a few functionalities to the program and realized it's probably a larger project than I had the time and skill for (at least for now). However, I wanted to release a bit of what I have so far, especially the file conversion modules. This .zip file contains:
example.py = a script to demonstrate what it can do
dat.py = unpacking and repacking a .dat file
mips.py = various functions to convert between a .mip, .bmp and PIL (the last one being the format that enables further processing with the Python Pillow module)
I also included the (unfinished) IR18 carset with car model by Boblogsan + two IR18 cars for demonstration purposes.
Unfortunately, you will need Python installed and some knowledge of how to run Python code. I realize not everyone will be able to use this. However, I release it anyway in hopes that the code will be useful to someone, especially whoever wants to understand the file formats. Feel free to use the code/modify/incorporate into your own projects, etc. as long as I get credited.
To reiterate what is the point of this when we already have utilities that do the same thing - I just wanted there to be an open source version of these tools to help preserve the ability for us to mod the game in the future.
Disclaimer - the code is provided as-is, it may have bugs, and I am not responsible for any damages from the use of the code. I have only tested it on ICR2 and I do not know if it works on other Papyrus sims.
I will continue to work on this project but it may be on a very long timescale. Will try to release little parts of it as I get to them.
