Project CARS Modding Questions & WIP

maxx2504 · Mar 1, 2016

Hi !

Ehm the unpacked files are over 200MB ? The files for patch 9.0 were much smaller ? Seems the files are not unpacked ? I see many BFF files there. They totally different from Autoprophet-ZR files ?

Edit: Well think i must sort them out and use the same directories as the old ones right ? Ill try that out...

JDougNY · Mar 1, 2016

maxx2504 said:
Hi !

Ehm the unpacked files are over 200MB ? The files for patch 9.0 were much smaller ? Seems the files are not unpacked ? I see many BFF files there. They totally different from Autoprophet-ZR files ?

Edit: Well think i must sort them out and use the same directories as the old ones right ? Ill try that out...

Autoprophet's bootfiles is used if you only want to add cars.
My unlocker is for adding cars, modding original game content, etc. That's why it's much larger in size. I also include the 32bit and 64 bit versions in the same package.

We unlock the game differently.

If you're more comfortable using Autoprophet bootfiles, then wait for them to provide an update.

maxx2504 · Mar 2, 2016

Hi !

So...if you use different mods, not only cars, it would be more make sense if you use the complete unpacked boot files ? Because i have my own mod. What happened when i pack it with your boot files and the ppl wondering why they bigger than autoprophets. They will getting confused maybe.

As a modder i think its necessarily to use the complete unpacked files ?

PS: What about all those *.bin files in it ? Are they really needed ?
PSS: If i upload my mod, can i give a link to your files ? Or can i upload the complete bootfiles toe MEGA ? Because i wanna seperate them from my mod.

JDougNY · Mar 2, 2016

@maxx2504
I refer to my offering as a "modding unlocker", because that is the function. I open up a good portion of the game (original game assets) for modding, along with allowing the ability to add in new cars. When SMS stops with the patching, my unlocker will open up almost the entire game for modding.

Some people are running the 32bit executable, which is why it's packaged in the rar. However, you would just copy in either the 32bit or 64bit version, depending upon which executable you use. You don't want to go in a pick and choose files to use, based upon what files might be used in the Autoprophet Bootfiles. Everything I have included needs to be in there for my unlocker.

The offering by Autoprophet is more basic...it allows one to add cars, but doesn't do much for opening up the actual game for modding.

maxx2504 · Mar 2, 2016

Hi !

So....if i upload my own mod for PCars...all the players who use mods maybe better use the complete bootfiles instead of just Autoprophets bootfiles right ? I mean to be prepared for other mods not only cars.

So can i upload your bootfiles to my MEGA account ? Or should i use your link to your bootfiles ? I wanna seperate the boot files from my mod ZIP file....

Maybe you understand the problem i mean...

JDougNY · Mar 2, 2016

If you make a mod, you would supply only your edited files as a package for people to add to JSGME. Then, you would instruct them to either use Bootfiles by Autprophet or my Unlocker...whichever provides them the ability to use your mod.
Simply provide a link to either Autoprophet page... http://autoprophets.weebly.com/
or my public folder for pCars.. https://www.mediafire.com/folder/cy3jl6679k7i1/Public_for_PCARS
Let them download from where we are hosting the packages. You shouldn't take our work and host it elsewhere.

maxx2504 · Mar 2, 2016

JDougNY said:
If you make a mod, you would supply only your edited files as a package for people to add to JSGME. Then, you would instruct them to either use Bootfiles by Autprophet or my Unlocker...whichever provides them the ability to use your mod.
Simply provide a link to either Autoprophet page... http://autoprophets.weebly.com/
or my public folder for pCars.. https://www.mediafire.com/folder/cy3jl6679k7i1/Public_for_PCARS
Let them download from where we are hosting the packages. You shouldn't take our work and host it elsewhere.

Ok JDoug no problem ! So i know what to do now. Uploading my mod and set a link to your files.

Thanks for your time ! I really appreciate your work on PCars to make it moddable !

Cryomancer J · Mar 3, 2016

A long time ago I made a TVR Sagaris mod for shift that I'd like to port over to pCARS. Can I use Zmodeler? or is pCARS picky like Shift 2 so I'll need to use 3DSimed?

JDougNY · Mar 3, 2016

Cryomancer J said:
A long time ago I made a TVR Sagaris mod for shift that I'd like to port over to pCARS. Can I use Zmodeler? or is pCARS picky like Shift 2 so I'll need to use 3DSimed?

Pcars is worse than either NFS Shift or S2U. If you already have the Mebs from NFS Shift, you will just need to hex edit the various data sections to match the manner in which pCars uses for the same body/cockpit parts. If you go back a page or so in this thread, I explain in general what data sections exist in the various mebs.

All materials will need to change for pCars. Visit my public site, where you'll find easy to edit MTX material files. Also, you will find common textures for Pcars and another texture package of prior games (NFS Shift, S2U and TDFRL). Link to public folder... https://www.mediafire.com/folder/cy3jl6679k7i1/Public_for_PCARS

Hobbnob · Mar 3, 2016

I have a slight problem with my car duplication process. I have a car running under a new name with it's own csd, crd and physics, but it's reading the old rcf file. Is there a way to read a new rcf without going through the whole meb/mtx renaming process?

crowtrobot · Mar 3, 2016

Hobbnob said:
I have a slight problem with my car duplication process. I have a car running under a new name with it's own csd, crd and physics, but it's reading the old rcf file. Is there a way to read a new rcf without going through the whole meb/mtx renaming process?

Not sure, but it's a pretty straight-forward process - just do a Find and Replace for '\oldvehicle\' and replace with \newvehicle\ in the .vhf.

JDougNY · Mar 3, 2016

@Hobbnob
Grab the 3 vhf.bml files....there is one in each of the following BFFs, exterior, cockpit and gui.
Rename the BML filenames to match your car name, keeping in mind that the bml from the gui is xxxx_ultra.vhf.bml.
So, your bml file names would look like this..
MyCarName.vhf.bml
MyCarName_Ultra.vhf.bml (the bml from the the GUI BFF)
MyCarName_Cockpit.vhf.bml

Then, edit the CRD entry "Vehicle Render Model" to use the renamed BMLs

Hobbnob · Mar 4, 2016

JDougNY said:
@Hobbnob
Grab the 3 vhf.bml files....there is one in each of the following BFFs, exterior, cockpit and gui.
Rename the BML filenames to match your car name, keeping in mind that the bml from the gui is xxxx_ultra.vhf.bml.
So, your bml file names would look like this..
MyCarName.vhf.bml
MyCarName_Ultra.vhf.bml (the bml from the the GUI BFF)
MyCarName_Cockpit.vhf.bml

Then, edit the CRD entry "Vehicle Render Model" to use the renamed BMLs

Thanks for the help doug and crow! I actually must have had a brainfart that day, I went through your process doug and got nowhere with the RCF loading but not the actual model as the game claimed it couldnt' see the bml I had directed it to. Instead I just cleaned the files out and copied the car's vhf and renamed that and put the rcf's in, worked a treat lol

JDougNY · Mar 4, 2016

@ hobbnob
I think our approach with cloned cars is different. I don't unpack the BFFs and include any of those files, with the exception of the BMLs. Instead of using typical dummy bffs for the cloned car, I use the BFFs of the car I'm cloning as the dummies. Therefore, when I tell the CRD to load a bml, the mebs called out by the BML exist, because they exist the BFFs I used for the cloned car. I only have a handful of files in the vehicle folder for the car (no meb files, no material files). Also, I don't need any textures in the texture folder. Very simple really.
Only if you intend to edit mebs, or edit materials, or edit a texture would there be a need to include any of those files in a cloned car.

The VHF is just a text version of the vhf.bml. So, renaming the vhf, then telling the CRD to load it has the same effect, as I explained in my prior post, of renaming vhf.bml and having the CRD load it.

Hobbnob · Mar 4, 2016

JDougNY said:
@ hobbnob
I think our approach with cloned cars is different. I don't unpack the BFFs and include any of those files, with the exception of the BMLs. Instead of using typical dummy bffs for the cloned car, I use the BFFs of the car I'm cloning as the dummies. Therefore, when I tell the CRD to load a bml, the mebs called out by the BML exist, because they exist the BFFs I used for the cloned car. I only have a handful of files in the vehicle folder for the car (no meb files, no material files). Also, I don't need any textures in the texture folder. Very simple really.
Only if you intend to edit mebs, or edit materials, or edit a texture would there be a need to include any of those files in a cloned car.

The VHF is just a text version of the vhf.bml. So, renaming the vhf, then telling the CRD to load it has the same effect, as I explained in my prior post, of renaming vhf.bml and having the CRD load it.

Yeah we're on pretty much the same process it sounds like (I only take the CSD from the bff's, I mostly work with physics), the game simply wasn't loading the vhf.bml's render model files at all, only referencing the rcf's livery names. Oh well, at least we both have a method that works now

JDougNY · Mar 7, 2016

Revised Chassis translation to V1.1, due to mis-interpretation made by Shiimis in code for Bump Stop Spring... https://www.mediafire.com/folder/cy3jl6679k7i1/Public_for_PCARS

nsss · Mar 9, 2016

Hi

Does anyone knows what does the .cgp files change? I have tried changing the light color and I have succeeded by replacing .cgp file with one from another car but does it change anything else? will it mess up something?

JDougNY · Mar 9, 2016

nsss said:
Does anyone knows what does the .cgp files change? I have tried changing the light color and I have succeeded by replacing .cgp file with one from another car but does it change anything else? will it mess up something?

That file is loaded up with some driver camera settings, such as....
Bumper
Bonnet
Cockpit Center
Roof
Chase
So, when you swap files, some of the camera positions may be off a bit.

nsss · Mar 9, 2016

Okay, thank you

I think I found quite a good replacement. Replaced Audi R8 LMS (MDMT) file with one from M3 GT2. Cameras are a bit different but they still look great.

Cryomancer J · Mar 10, 2016

Does anybody know of a site or wiki where there are formulas I can use to determine values like inertia and spring/damper rates? I have my physics book from last semester in school but I'm still a little lost at the moment.