MGP21 MotoGP 21 Modding Tutorial

IMPORTANT: Following a recent umodel update, it is now possible to export models from the game.

This thread will teach you the very basics of modding the MotoGP games, I am going to try and explain more things this year but to start with we'll just stick to the basics.

Requirements:
1) Download these tools: https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/motogp-21-modding-tools.42020/
2) You need Umodel (a.ka UE Viewer): https://www.gildor.org/en/projects/umodel
3) You need Unreal Engine Editor 4.25:
https://www.epicgames.com/unrealtournament/download
4) Also make sure you have Python 2.7 installed:
https://www.python.org/download/releases/2.7/

Text tutorial:
First of all we'll start with a bike skin as it's the main thing people want to edit and it's super easy, but once you understand the process you can try with something else.

Section 1: Export
-Launch Umodel
- Copy the path to MotoGP 21 into the text box (Normally it is: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\MotoGP™21 or wherever you have installed it).
- Don't try to navigate to it as you'll have issues, just copy the path directly into the text box.
- Select "Override Game Detection"
- Select "Unreal Engine 4" And "Unreal Engine 4.25 Plus"

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Then hit OK.
- You'll now have a window with all the directories of the game. Navigate to: motogp21\Content\assets\graphics\vehicles\bikes\cat001\chassis\chassis101'

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If you're unsure of the ID of the bike you want to edit click on textures and then on "livery001.uasset".
This will load the first texture of the bike so you can see if this is the bike you want to edit.

It will display something like this:

unknown.png


If you want to return to the previous screen press "O" and it will exit the preview.

- Once you have found the texure you want to edit click on "Tools->Export current object" and Umodel will export the texture currently being viewed.
-Umodel will automatically create a folder called "UmodelExport" located where Umodel.exe is.
You can now find the texture (.tga format) and edit it!

Section 2: Import back in game
Part 1: Prepare your modded textures.
Basically we need to convert our modded .tga texture to .uasset.
- Launch Unreal Engine editor.
- Select Games.
unknown.png


- Select Blank Project.
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- Select no starter content, choose a path to save the project to and then you can name it whatever you want. I'm going to call mine "Tutorial".
- Click on Create Project.
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- Drag your modded texture here:
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- Double Click the texture and change the Mip Gen setting to "NoMipmaps", this is so the texture doesn't appear blurry in game before loading fully.
unknown.png


- Click on File->Save all. This way you will not need to create a new project next time.
- Close texture window to return to the previous screen.
- Click on File->Cook content for windows. Wait till it finishes. You can close Unreal Engine now!
Part 2: Repack.
Go into "MotoGP 21 Modding Tools" folder from the rar. There you will see a folder called "motogp21". Inside it, you need to create the same Directory where you extracted the file from in Umodel:
"motogp21\Content\assets\graphics\vehicles\bikes\cat001\chassis\chassis101\textures"
Create the missing folders.
- Go to the location you saved the project to earlier (by default it will be "Documents\Unreal Projects\Name")
- Then from there go to "Saved\Cooked\WindowsNoEditor\Name\Content" here you will find the files Unreal Engine cooked for you. You should have 2 files. Copy BOTH of them into "motogp21\Content\assets\graphics\vehicles\bikes\cat001\chassis\chassis101\textures".
We're almost done!
- Now go back to the “MotoGP 21 Modding Tools” folder and double click repack command.bat
Once it's done (it's quick), you will have a file called "pakchunk0-WindowsNoEditor_X_P.pak". Replace the X with something else, like "pakchunk0-WindowsNoEditor_MyMod_P.pak"
Copy the pak file you created and paste into:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\MotoGP™21\motogp21\Content\Paks
or wherever you have installed the game. Make sure you copy it where all the other pak files are.
You're done! Check your mod in game.
 
Last edited:
I managed to do everything except the last part. I have all my files in correct folders and when I click on repack command.bat a black window flashes on my screen and that's all. I don't see my "pakchunk0-WindowsNoEditor_X_P.pak" file created. I tried launching that .bat file through right click -> run as admin, but still no luck


EDIT: Scratch that, I had Python 3.10 installed. Downloaded 2.7.16 and now it worked

EDIT2: Nothing shows up ingame even though I sorted my files in the same way as the author of the mod I have been using so far. I get default emoticons and flags instead of logos. One thing that confused me in Unreal Editor though. When I have my textures all imported in (Flag_001.tga ... Flag_045.tga for example) do I have to drag each of them to the center of the screen where scene is, or is it enough to just have them all imported in and then go to File - Save All before cooking them?. When I cook the files I get for example Flag_001.uasset and Flag_001.uexp. And I get that for every file. Though .uasset files are all just 1KB in size

And another thing is that I tried to open .pak file that I have created with Umodel and everything shows up in there. I compared it to the mod file I have been using and it is the same. But for some reason it doesn't work
 
Last edited:
I managed to do everything except the last part. I have all my files in correct folders and when I click on repack command.bat a black window flashes on my screen and that's all. I don't see my "pakchunk0-WindowsNoEditor_X_P.pak" file created. I tried launching that .bat file through right click -> run as admin, but still no luck


EDIT: Scratch that, I had Python 3.10 installed. Downloaded 2.7.16 and now it worked

EDIT2: Nothing shows up ingame even though I sorted my files in the same way as the author of the mod I have been using so far. I get default emoticons and flags instead of logos. One thing that confused me in Unreal Editor though. When I have my textures all imported in (Flag_001.tga ... Flag_045.tga for example) do I have to drag each of them to the center of the screen where scene is, or is it enough to just have them all imported in and then go to File - Save All before cooking them?. When I cook the files I get for example Flag_001.uasset and Flag_001.uexp. And I get that for every file. Though .uasset files are all just 1KB in size

And another thing is that I tried to open .pak file that I have created with Umodel and everything shows up in there. I compared it to the mod file I have been using and it is the same. But for some reason it doesn't work
Yeah it's enough to just import them and then save all before cooking so it sounds like you've done everything correctly there.

I assume it'll be an issue with one of the folder names or the pak file name.

Try changing the number of the pak file (e.g. change it from pakchunk0 to pakchunk4) because sometimes the game overrides the modded paks and this should give your mod priority.

If that still doesn't fix it, attach a screenshot of the folder structure of your pak and I'll see if I can spot anything. :)
 
Changing the number of pak file didn't help. I also had a "I didn't?!" thought in the morning thinking I may have both my and mod file together at the same time, but after checking I saw I did remove the original one.

Folder structure was based on what I saw in game's original pakchunk0 file as well as in modded one.

I have also sent you a private message with a link to both the mod file that works fine for me and my file that doesn't work as maybe that way you'll be able to better see what could be wrong
 

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Changing the number of pak file didn't help. I also had a "I didn't?!" thought in the morning thinking I may have both my and mod file together at the same time, but after checking I saw I did remove the original one.

Folder structure was based on what I saw in game's original pakchunk0 file as well as in modded one.

I have also sent you a private message with a link to both the mod file that works fine for me and my file that doesn't work as maybe that way you'll be able to better see what could be wrong
I see your issue, the folder called “Game” should be called “motogp21”
 
It is called "Game" in the file that I downloaded here and works. It is also in game's default pakchunk0 structured like that, those flags and emoticons are under that folder structure
 
It is called "Game" in the file that I downloaded here and works. It is also in game's default pakchunk0 structured like that, those flags and emoticons are under that folder structure
It isn't, umodel just reads it as that, there is a reason the modding tools has the motogp21 folder.

So keep the folder named "motogp21", otherwise it'll never work.

The reason it still isn't working is because there is an issue with your folder structure, you're missing some of the assets because there is no "UHDDynamicRes" folder.
 
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Just to let everyone else know if they run into the same problem that I had, it was something so stupid I can't believe I couldn't see it until @BIKER7202 pointed it up to me. Folder "assets" has to be put inside folder "Content" and everything then shows up in game.
 
Hello guys

First of all i would like to thank you for making this tutorial it helped me to start modding in this game

I would like to know how we could transfer riders to other teams

Thank you very much and sorry for my bad english
 
so changing the bike models from MGP21 into Ride4 naked bikes is now possible?
It always was, there was a version you could use to work around the issue for GP21 and Ride4 never had any issues.

The problem with importing custom models is that you have to build a special unreal engine version from the source code.

Oh and the Ride4 bikes come in parts so you’ll have to extract the chassis, rims, tyres, exhausts all separately and then put them all together to import into GP21.
 

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