Saro on 10/4/2011 at 21:32
Great work indeed!
I "re-discovered" my copy in a dark and dusty corner behind/under my closet :eek: (I was actually looking for it since I read about a possible 4th part of the series.) Of course I had to immediately install it since my pc-specs have changed more often than I care to remember since I played it shortly after it came out.
I knew it wasn't going to be blazing eye-candy with the slightly outdated engine but the vanilla graphics and textures were just unbearable IMO. Back then I didn't bother to look for mods or stuff but now I do because I know how much they may add gameplay/gfx-wise.
Hmm, quite the waffle there... anyhow I have John P.'s marvelous Texture Pack plus the Minimalist-Mod 1.4.1. installed and they work quite well together. Both combined really add to immersion and visual quality. :thumb: (I do buy the notion of you giving Eidos extra sales ;) )
Still I found the removal the MechEyeOverlay-Texture and sounds a pity since it added quite some immersion IMHO.
No biggie, I thought and started fiddling with the mecheye-settings a bit.
I brought back the zoom-sounds by "hexediting" the
SchemaMetafile_HardDrive.csc
in
\CONTENT\T3\Sounds\. You will have to search for stringtext that says "eye" or better "echanical". The "M" that formerly belonged in front of "echanical" were replaced by underscores { _ }, just revert the underscores back to "m" and the zoom-sounds are re-enabled.
There should be four relevant entries you need to change. Remember you are using a hexeditor, in the wrong hands it may cause quite some trouble.
And since the standard filter-settings for the mech-eye-overlay were simply eye-cancer-inducing I had to change them to my liking, too. I tried to document the functions as well as I could but honestly my scripting/coding expertise is surpassed by yoghurt. So after I started tweaking I ended up tweaking more than i was playing. :nono:
To change settings look for the
DEFAULT.ini in your
\Thief - Deadly Shadows\System folder and search for:
Code:
[CameraOverlays]
EnableCameraOverlays=TRUE ;was False
CameraOverlay_0__t=MechEyeOverlay
[MechEyeOverlay] -> white, broad scan-lines running from top to bottom, medium/fine grain
;Texture=BotBaseOverlay.dds ;not in use/disfunctional (employs very bright backgound?)
Texture=VisionBiomodBaseOverlay.dds ;actual filter that is applied during zoom
Tint_R=0.96 ;colorscale in percent of red-filter
Tint_G=1.00 ;colorscale in percent of green-filter
Tint_B=0.98 ;colorscale in percent of blue-filter ;1.0 equals 100 percent
Tint_Ratio=0.25 ;function not clearly visible
PanRate_Y=-0.35 ;speed of vertical scan-lines ;negatives go from TOP to BOTTOM & vice versa
ScaleMin_Y=4.5 ;defines the the minium y-scale for "scan-lines" in zoomed-mode
ScaleMax_Y=5.5 ;defines the the maximum y-scale for "scan-lines" zoomed-mode; large thresholds equal less defined edges for scan-lines ;amount defines the size of scan-lines; smaller numbers make broader scan-lines
PanRate_X=-0.5 ;couldn't specify function, neither influences noise nor scan-lines
ScaleMin_X=4.5 ;apparently not used in {Texture=VisionBiomodBaseOverlay.dds}
ScaleMax_X=5.5 ;apparently not used in {Texture=VisionBiomodBaseOverlay.dds} ;suspect to make scan-lines move in a horizontal manner ;doesn't activate even if PanRate_y etc. are commented out
NoiseMin_X=16.0 ;defines the minimum x-scale for "tv-grain" in eye-overlay
NoiseMin_Y=16.0 ;defines the minimum y-scale for "tv-grain" in eye-overlay
NoiseMax_X=24.0 ;defines the maximum x-scale for "tv-grain" in eye-overlay
NoiseMax_Y=24.0 ;defines the maximum Y-scale for "tv-grain" in eye-overlay ;noisemin/max controls size as well as spread/movement of "tv-grain" ;too small thresholds equal little to no movement ;smaller numbers make for bigger grain
Fullbright=False ;true=full lightmaps on all textures ;false=environmental lightmaps are applied to textures ;doesn't seem to work properly
Gamma=2.25 ;defines the gammasetting for zoomed-mode ;very high values may lead to a IMO unpleasant shift in colors to a green-ish scale
;FOV=100 ;suspect to work in conjuction with {Texture=BotBaseOverlay.dds}? ;otherwise view is locked at the given angle
So much for documentation... I had to do quite a lot of Trial&Error to get a result that I found pleasing. Again: backup the files you are editing or copy/paste & save the sections you edit in a adequate place like texteditor of sorts...
Code:
[MechEyeOverlay]
Texture=VisionBiomodBaseOverlay.dds
Tint_R=0.04
Tint_G=0.92
Tint_B=0.35
Tint_Ratio=1.0
PanRate_Y=-0.4
ScaleMin_Y=16.0
ScaleMax_Y=17.0
PanRate_X=0.0
ScaleMin_X=0.0
ScaleMax_X=0.0
NoiseMin_X=16.5
NoiseMin_Y=16.5
NoiseMax_X=21.5
NoiseMax_Y=21.5
Fullbright=False
Gamma=2.15
another optional setting i found rather nice was:
[MechEyeOverlay]
Texture=VisionBiomodBaseOverlay.dds
Tint_R=0.04
Tint_G=0.92
Tint_B=0.35
Tint_Ratio=1.0
PanRate_Y=-0.4
ScaleMin_Y=2.5
ScaleMax_Y=3.5
PanRate_X=0.0
ScaleMin_X=0.0
ScaleMax_X=0.0
NoiseMin_X=15.5
NoiseMin_Y=15.5
NoiseMax_X=23.5
NoiseMax_Y=23.5
Fullbright=True
Gamma=2.25
That's a green tint for the zoom and I understand not everybody appreciates the same colorscheme but I trust you will manage to set up RGB in percentages somehow.:joke:
The upper version is thin/medium scanlines, the latter one are very broad scan-lines appearing to be only a few dark scan-lines.
Noise-Filter-Effect is displayed as fine/medium grain in both versions, though the latter one has bigger (better visible) grain that still remains fairly defined, meaning it doesn't blur out so bad it makes your eyes bleed.
The lines I removed didn't seem to be in use by the engine, so I assume they can be deleted without any repercussions on the T3 install. Can't hurt to back up your
default DEFAULT.ini in order to be able to revert to standard.
Gamma-settings may be too high/low for some users since that pretty much depends on the user's end so altering might be in place. I altered the contrast-settings of my picture which is rather of cosmetic nature but i found it strange I couldn't adjust contrast & gamma aswell as brightness and my settings make the scenery quite more vivid at least on my old crappy 17" CRT. :o
Also found in the DEFAULT.ini.
Code:
[GammaBrightnessContrastList]
GammaMin=0.70
GammaMax=2.0
BrightnessMin=0.75
BrightnessMax=2.0
ContrastMin=0.5
ContrastMax=2.25
I think that's all... nope...
My machine had the problem with choppy performance in some areas, too. My rig is well capable of running the Unreal 2 engine and John P.'s Texture Pack shouldn't put that much of a strain on my pc.
I found several suggestions about turning VSync off and I think it does work. I had horrible performance in areas with water or "moving" static objects such as the Hammerite Factory, dropping from a nice clamped 45 FPS to a sluggish 7-15 FPS in those areas.
The thing here is, it wasn't quite enough for me to disbale VSync in-game. Open your DEFAULT.ini and look for:
Code:
[T3OptionsDefaults]
VSynch__x=0
VSynch__p=0
I changed both values to equal zero (turning it off). I can only suspect that VSynch_x is for Xbox and VSynch_p is for PC.
I had my VSynch disabled in-game, still crappy, laggy and not goodsies! Then I checked the values in the .ini and found the VSynch_p=1.
I suspect the in-game options-menu only overwrites the Xbox-Vsync but leaves the PC alone.:erg:
Seemed to do the trick for me, all is well, running smooth @ 1600x1200.
Maybe someone will find this info useful. :idea:
I see that the Minimalist Mod is a discontinued project, still I value it highly and found further documentation couldn't hurt too much. (Is there a full documentation for what the function of the particular line is?)
Add: First post and I'm kinda thread-necromancing. Good thing it's stickied :cheeky:
Have a good one,
Saro
Edit: I also changed Garret's default walkspeed to be walking instead of running. To do this look for your saved game folder:
\Thief - Deadly Shadows\SaveGames\User Options and change the useroptions.ini to look like this:
Code:
W=MoveForwardBackward 0.550000
S=MoveForwardBackward -0.550000
D=StrafeRightLeft 0.450000
A=StrafeRightLeft -0.450000
Additionally you should change the walk/creepmutlipliers in your DEFAULT.ini...
Code:
WalkMultiplier=1.45
CreepMultiplier=0.35
...walkmultiplier is my "sprintkey" now, creep has been downtuned a bit compared to Minimalist Mod whereas Garret should run a bit faster and still not straight outrun his enemies... also it's way more convenient with that set up to plainly walk around with the mechanical eye activated without cramping your fingers on three different keys...
(Running is sooo uncool...:sly:)
Another question: I turned on the 3rd-person camera on again in the T3Camera.ini, is there anything else that Minimalist Mod changes in the behaviour of the camera? since i sometimes can see Garret from 3rd person and sometimes the game just refuses to go into 3rd person when I press the corresponding button.
Thx 4 reading ...
Saro on 11/4/2011 at 12:01
Quote Posted by Beleg Cúthalion
About the last thing: 3rd person isn't available while aiming with the bow and sometimes in narrow spaces when the camera doesn't leave Garrett's head by much. Otherwise, no idea, but thanks for all the work. :thumb:
You're always welcome. :D I actually intended to change it just for myself.
But since I had found a tweak to get rid of the crappy FPS in places I thought it might be postworthy. Many threads that dealt with the performance issue didn't explain the process of turning off Vsynch thoroughly enough. I guess nobody really cares for an old game anymore...
About the camera... Is it in a vanilla install of T3 the same? Are there spaces in which you cannot see Garret from a third person perspective? I don't really know since I haven't played T3 without mods so far. :laff: And I can't quite remember from back in the day when it came out, nor do I mind to reinstall it just to see whether it was true...:mad:
Those are my T3camera.ini settings for the 3rd person:
Code:
CameraMode ThirdPerson
LookAt Actor
SpinWith Stick
AnchorOffset ActorHeight 0.50
Stiffness 0.80
PitchLimit 55 -75
YawLimit 0 0
Distance 5
DollySpeedForwardBackward 10 6
EndCameraMode
CameraMode WallCam
InheritsFrom ThirdPerson
YawLimit 0 0
Distance 5
EndCameraMode
Those are basically the vanilla settings I plainly copy pasted back to original values.
It might be just that the Pagan Tunnels don't work to well with the standard settings, I'll check that later...
Have good one,
Saro
Update: Camera-settings do seem to work. It might be you have to reload your map from the beginning to make it work properly. Even worked in quite narrow spaces like the starting area of "Pagan Tunnels" mission. I just gazed at Garret's (green) mechanical eye from 3rd person, looks nice. :D
Can anyone maybe tell me what RGB the 3rd person perspective uses for his eye? Or where I can look for it myself?
snobel on 8/8/2012 at 19:33
Assuming you mean The Minimalist Project in combination with the patch linked to below: It works for the most part, if you install it something like this:
* Install Minimalist
* Install the Sneaky Upgrade. This will undo the changes to the exe done by the Minimalist installer, so...
* Use this (
http://www.sendspace.com/file/v844aw) tweak tool to change frob colour and get rid of loot percentage again. It has to be that version, you can't use the one bundled with TDS Tweaker. (But you can replace the bundled version with the new one, then it will work)
* Make sure all the settings in the Tweaks section of the SneakyUpgrade.ini file are commented out
Some issues remain:
* If you play in widescreen the custom menu will be cropped, so the text will be misaligned
* One of the Minimalist HUDs uses a custom font, which is not supported
* At least with one of the HUDs, picked up junk items appear in a slightly strange position on the screen
The next version of the patch (coming in a few months, hopefully) will have better support. At the very least the menu cropping will be fixed. Full support is on the to-do list, unfortunately there's a lot of stuff on that list...
