101
Releases / Re: [WIP] FFVII Battle Scene Enhancements
« on: 2013-07-25 03:38:31 »
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103
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2013-07-14 01:21:49 »Question...can your methods be adjusted to work for battle scenes as well?
Good question. Never looked into it but thought about it. My guess would be that it would be easier to do the battle scenes than the field backgrounds as far as resizing goes because of the number of ridiculous complexities involved in field backgrounds. I don't think battle scene textures are animated, which would also make it easier, but I could be mistaken. The driver may support pulling the new assets from external folders, and I also haven't checked that. I think anybody could take a crack at it and probably come up with something without too much time invested if they copied the photoshop filters from FacePalmer. These days I only have enough time to scratch my chin, unfortunately
104
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2013-07-14 00:41:54 »
Thanks Template!
First post updated with mirror and a little update message at the bottom.
First post updated with mirror and a little update message at the bottom.
105
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2013-07-13 05:45:20 »
Hey guys, been getting some PMs that the download link is down because of too much traffic. Bummer. Can someone upload the file somewhere else and provide a link? I'll update the first post with it--just don't have time these days unfortunately. Thanks in advance!
106
FF8 Tools / Re: [REL] PuPu - FF8 Field Importer/Exporter
« on: 2013-07-07 02:17:23 »
You must first extract the field.fs using Garden (linked in first post). Then place Pupu.exe into the newly extracted field folder.
107
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-09-22 23:12:00 »
I'm not sure I see what the problem is with that one (blin68_1). I compared the originals with the photoshops and it looks markedly improved. Originally it looked terrible, so there's only so much magic the fractals can work. I do notice a bit of a light clipping issue on the specimen cage, but that is likely present in the original game, similar to the door animation a few posts back. If its a bug in the original game, I can't fix it since its a bug in the order the textures are called by the kernel to be layered. If it is a problem with the lighting animation of the cage, that is an OpenGL driver issue that has yet to be hammered out.
As always, thanks for reporting it
As always, thanks for reporting it
108
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-09-20 16:24:04 »
I don't think Bootleg has been updated since I made my new release. This field pack has every texture in the game, so there's no longer a need to mix and match. So, just FacePalmer (manually install it, its just a drag and drop).
109
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-09-20 03:23:06 »The remove glitched textures in bootleg needs to be unchecked as I read. Personnaly, I checked it, before of course reading it, but didn't see a difference in game. When you tell about 'losing playable content' Omzy, what de you mean in particular ?I believe that option runs a batch script that deletes any texture with a lighting parameter, which may be more than a hundred textures. In-game, the backgrounds will look fine, but the lighting layers will be pixelated like in the original game. From what I've recently learned about the subject, some of the glitched textures may actually be missing an animation (which is hard to notice if they are). You aren't seeing a difference because those backgrounds with lighting layers are relatively uncommon. If anyone has more input on this, please let me know. I still have yet to do a playthrough.
Anyhow, my recommendation is still to not check it and sacrifice the few missing lighting animations for better quality lighting overall. I doubt it will be noticeable.
110
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-09-10 01:00:17 »None of the color cycling animations work with the .png textures.I've been wondering what exactly the problem with those was. Thanks for reporting that. Not a huge deal, in my opinion, but hopefully it gets worked out in the future.
It's a limitation of the OpenGL driver.
111
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-09-03 01:09:37 »Considering no one has posted information specifically about what would go into making this possible here it goes. Information from here: http://wiki.qhimm.com/FF7/Field_ModuleThis is pretty much spot on. It would be a big project indeed. There is no reason to use the original photoshops, however, since the converted files distributed in the release are of the same format that the game engine expects (16x16 blocks). You would have to add a header to each image file and index each color with palettes like bloodygood suggests. However, this would probably require a larger palette, among other things. Perhaps its a better idea to alter the driver of the re-release than to alter the game itself, but I lack knowledge in that area, unfortunately.
Due to the way the decompiled files store the backgrounds. The easiest method of re-inserting them was to have the driver pull the picture from somewhere else. Instead what you would have to do here is:
A. Update the Palette section of every file to make sure you have absolutely every colour that will be used in the background.
B. Update the section that tells the driver how to put together the pieces (16x16 pixels) in order. Since the new backgrounds are 4 times larger. That means completely updating it or finding a way to tell the driver to use 64x64 chunks instead. And also that would still mean re-writing where the top left pixel of each chunk is since that would change from using the larger images.
C. Updating the actual background data with the new data and making sure every pixel grabs its colour from the correct palette.
Now I am in no way saying this is an impossible feat, I am only saying it will take a lot of work. But who knows, the members of this forum have always surprised me with their accomplishments so I believe someone will figure this out. I personally have been wrapping my head around this very idea since the re-release came out.
112
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-08-21 20:22:11 »Arg I've spent hours toiling away... seems there IS a loss of quality when going to 2x. It's very slight, but its there...
If you're using Photoshop, when you are reducing to 2x are you using Bicubic Sharper (best for reduction) or Nearest Neighbor (preserve hard edges)? Bicubic sharper will sharpen the image whereas nearest neighbor will simply resize it without any filters.
Note: Could anyone who downloads the new pack please post how the download speed is for them? Its using Google Drive, which I have little experience with.
113
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-08-21 05:28:21 »Thanks Omzy, reducing the images to 2X does not come at a loss of quality. I'm in the process of optimizing everything.Great and thanks--once you have a link, ill put it in the main post.It should not take me to long, I work very fast.
114
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-08-21 00:55:47 »
Thanks for the feedback guys. I just posted a new link to the updated 3gb pack on Google Drive. Hopefully the download speed is fast enough. I will fix errors over time as I see them and upload them to the drive. Diehards can install them individually on top of the field pack. Right now there are no extra fixes.
I also am preferring quality over portability here. If someone else wants to downscale or further make more efficient this mod and provide an alternate download link, that is totally fine with me.
I also am preferring quality over portability here. If someone else wants to downscale or further make more efficient this mod and provide an alternate download link, that is totally fine with me.
115
FF8 Tools / Re: [REL] PuPu - FF8 Field Importer/Exporter
« on: 2012-08-20 03:43:01 »
Haha, its all good, I guess its just easier to learn anything when you really care about it and have fun doing it.
116
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-08-19 23:17:17 »Work!Aha, now that is interesting. I checked it out and apparently those animations are broken even without my pack. The foreground is being drawn on top of the closed door animations. That is either a problem with the original game or with the OpenGL driver, so there's nothing I can do from my end to fix it.
Unfortunately, to see the doors open (right) is not good.
117
FF8 Tools / Re: [REL] PuPu - FF8 Field Importer/Exporter
« on: 2012-08-19 22:54:48 »
I remember trying to learn programming in high school. A big mess. The best way to learn is to teach yourself. Pretty much every project I do, I have to learn a new programming language and new concepts. I learned if/then statements and loops in a classroom years ago, but I learned how to work with binary/hex files from my ff7 modding.
118
FF8 Tools / Re: [REL] PuPu - FF8 Field Importer/Exporter
« on: 2012-08-19 22:27:40 »Programming seems to be a bit more complicated than I thought @_@.Thanks for the support--you definitely didn't come off as rude. Asking questions is the only way any of us learn
Nevertheless, you have done several great things, and I for one am extremely grateful.
I didn't mean to pass off as rude, if that was the case. I was genuinely curious
I eagerly await any and all updates that are sure to come!
119
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-08-19 21:56:50 »
Here's another background that was pointed out to me. Apparently, the door in Aeris' house was closed all the time, even if the door was supposed to be open. ealin_2.
I'm going to include both itown1b and ealin_2 in the new download. Let me know if you guys find any other messed up or missing scenes
I'm going to include both itown1b and ealin_2 in the new download. Let me know if you guys find any other messed up or missing scenes
120
FF8 Tools / Re: [REL] PuPu - FF8 Field Importer/Exporter
« on: 2012-08-19 21:06:11 »Might I ask why the openGL driver (which I assume is Aali's) doesn't work? It seems like a curious problem :O.OpenGL is a different beast, which I have no knowledge of. Aali is the developer of the OpenGL driver for FF7/FF8 and his hard work has paid off for all of us. It is apparently a lot tougher to read backgrounds into OpenGL in FF8 than in FF7, so for now, there is no driver support. When that eventually comes around, however, we'll be ready for it.
121
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-08-19 20:57:15 »Hi Omzy,Hmm, that is odd, must've been overlooked somehow. Sorry EQ2Alyza for misleading you. For now, here's just itown1b.
thank you very much for that cool texture packs.
I download the 3gb pack two days ago but the file "itown1b" was not included.
Shortly, I will make a new download containing everything.
122
Releases / Re: [REL] Omzy's FFVII Field Pack (dramatically improved backgrounds!)
« on: 2012-08-19 18:30:35 »MISSING SCENE
I have found a scene that looks to be untouched even with the latest patches. It is Mideel after the Lifestream has wiped it out. You can view it in my video here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijIbfnJpFCY#t=0m20s
Hopefully it's a quick fix for Omzy
Hi EQ2Alyza (everquest name?). I playtested that field scene and it looks fine on my machine. Here's what I think the problem is. You had the field pack installed via Bootleg and you used the option to remove glitched textures. That option removes many files that actually look fine in game. After that, you installed the fix packs. So, the remedy is to reinstall the base FacePalmer without removing any glitched textures, then install the fix packs on top. That should get you a complete game. If you just want to replace the one folder, that field is named 'itown1b'. Soon I'll just release a new download for the field pack that includes everything to avoid more confusion.
*To clarify, 'itown1b' is part of the original release, not part of the fix packs, so it will be located in the big 3gb pack you had to download.
123
FF8 Tools / [PSX/PC] Field Importer/Exporter - PuPu (v2.1)
« on: 2012-08-17 03:43:13 »
PuPu
FF8 Field Importer/Exporter
This tool allows you to:
I) View the individual layers of each field file that the game reads to synthesize a background
II) Export these layers to PNGs so they can be manipulated in image-editing programs (batch enabled)
III) Import resized versions of these layers back into a format that can be played in game with Tonberry (batch enabled)
--> Get Tonberry
Instructions:
1. Use Qhimm's Garden or Mirex's Unmass to extract the contents of FF8 field
2. Unzip PuPu_v2.1.rar
3. Place PuPu.exe in the same directory as the extracted 'mapdata' folder (changed from previous release)
4. Run the program and it will automatically load all field files contained in the 'mapdata' folder
5. Select one or multiple field files in the left box (CTRL + click for multiple or SHIFT + END to select all)
6. Select the layer you want to view in the right box
7. Use the 'Export' button to save the selected files as PNGs
8. Use the 'Import' button to convert the selected files back to the game format
Download: PuPu_v2.1.rar
Credits:
-Aali for writing Palmer, which inspired this tool
*Known issues:
Not memory-perfect (may mistakenly report 'Missing import files...' after a long run of files) - Close, re-open, and restart where it left off if this happens
FF8 Field Importer/Exporter
This tool allows you to:
I) View the individual layers of each field file that the game reads to synthesize a background
II) Export these layers to PNGs so they can be manipulated in image-editing programs (batch enabled)
III) Import resized versions of these layers back into a format that can be played in game with Tonberry (batch enabled)
--> Get Tonberry
Instructions:
1. Use Qhimm's Garden or Mirex's Unmass to extract the contents of FF8 field
2. Unzip PuPu_v2.1.rar
3. Place PuPu.exe in the same directory as the extracted 'mapdata' folder (changed from previous release)
4. Run the program and it will automatically load all field files contained in the 'mapdata' folder
5. Select one or multiple field files in the left box (CTRL + click for multiple or SHIFT + END to select all)
6. Select the layer you want to view in the right box
7. Use the 'Export' button to save the selected files as PNGs
8. Use the 'Import' button to convert the selected files back to the game format
Download: PuPu_v2.1.rar
Credits:
-Aali for writing Palmer, which inspired this tool
*Known issues:
Not memory-perfect (may mistakenly report 'Missing import files...' after a long run of files) - Close, re-open, and restart where it left off if this happens
124
Bootleg Questions / Re: [Tutorial] Bootleg Configurator and FF7 Mod Installation
« on: 2012-07-19 18:20:12 »That said, are the parts of the game like the bridge in Jeunon and the library under the Shinra mansion fixed now, too? I had it in mind that those were gonna be hard to work around.
The Special Cases fix pack addresses those (the algorithm won't work so I did them by hand). If players notice any others broken and report them, I'll update the fix packs.
125
Bootleg Questions / Re: [Tutorial] Bootleg Configurator and FF7 Mod Installation
« on: 2012-07-18 18:15:57 »Even with Omzy's FacePalmer Fix Packs, there are still some glitched textures:
When you say glitched textures, what you mean of course, is that they throw an error on screen. They do not, however, have any visual defect. Those screens look perfectly fine, animations, lighting, parallax layers, and all. Now its your choice whether or not you'd rather suppress that error message or throw out the backgrounds. That choice is easy for me.