Solved Fixing the Signage

[Armada]

I've been playing Beta 2.5 for a bit now, and I'm compiling a list of small oddities and/or bugs as I go along, which I'll elaborate on later.
For now, I thought I'd share this: I quite like most of the signs in the game's towns, but there's at least one that ruins the immersion for me...

Spoiler: Show image

COMIC SANS? Seriously?! This font has no place in this game world.
Does anyone know which texture this sign uses? I found a different one with the same font, but it's not the same texture.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

I've been playing Beta 2.5 for a bit now, and I'm compiling a list of small oddities and/or bugs as I go along, which I'll elaborate on later.

Be sure to keep a very close hold on that; we'll be needing it! I've already been running into all sorts in the little bit I played myself.
But I don't want to go addressing them before the merge with Pirate_KK's work is done. It is becoming time to do that nasty bit of work soon.
But by all means, post them! Then I'll know what to keep an eye out for when I go through the code files.

COMIC SANS? Seriously?! This font has no place in this game world.
Does anyone know which texture this sign uses? I found a different one with the same font, but it's not the same texture.

AoP stock game texture!
Looks like SignboardsA.tga.tx .

 

[Armada]

Be sure to keep a very close hold on that; we'll be needing it! I've already been running into all sorts in the little bit I played myself.
But I don't want to go addressing them before the merge with Pirate_KK's work is done. It is becoming time to do that nasty bit of work soon.
But by all means, post them! Then I'll know what to keep an eye out for when I go through the code files.

That's more or less what I was thinking. These are all little things so far that don't affect gameplay, so I'm not expecting fixes as a priority.
Very much looking forward to seeing PirateKK's work in action!

AoP stock game texture!
Looks like SignboardsA.tga.tx .

A stock texture? I should have known.
What gets me is how well done all the others are, and then you see this one sticking out like a sore thumb... it's really strange.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

I quite like most of the signs in the game's towns, but there's at least one that ruins the immersion for me...

On that subject, there are two more that could use some adjusting:

- RESOURCE\Textures\Locations\ENGLAND\Hol_Signs.tga.tx
Responsible for putting Dutch signs in the wrong spots in English Grand Cayman.

- RESOURCE\Textures\wood_all.tga.tx
Unrealistic stock game town names, used (amongst others) in the Barbados jungles to point the way.
These signs are also in some spots on the newly added islands; not entirely sure how to sort those out just yet, but I'm sure we can figure something out.

Do you think you might be able to have a look at those too?

 

[Armada]

Hmm, can do. We'd better move this to a different thread, though.
What should we do with the Dutch signs on Cayman? Make them blank?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

Hmm, can do. We'd better move this to a different thread, though.

Done.

Hmm, can do. We'd better move this to a different thread, though.
What should we do with the Dutch signs on Cayman? Make them blank?

Indeed. They're all nothing. In fact, maybe we can just throw an alpha map at it and call it a day.
Edit: Yep, that'll about do it! See attached. Put in RESOURCE\Textures\Locations\ENGLAND and I see no sign of them anymore.
Get it? No sign!!!

 

[Armada]

Done.

There's no link to my post containing the fixed tavern sign... just sayin'.

Indeed. They're all nothing. In fact, maybe we can just throw an alpha map at it and call it a day.
Edit: Yep, that'll about do it! See attached. Put in RESOURCE\Textures\Locations\ENGLAND and I see no sign of them anymore.
Get it? No sign!!!

LOL. Simple does the trick once again.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

I've been searching for signs in the jungles and found the Oxbay/Greenford one in the following models:
Jungle_5
Jungle_3

These are re-used on the following other islands:
Guadeloupe
Hispaniola
Eleuthera
Nevis
Saint Martin
Turks
Antigua
Curacao

In other words: They're around a LOT! So what to do? I see a few options:

1. Give the other locations different texture folders to load from with an alpha-mapped sign
Problem: We have to copy ALL texture files used in the other folder

2. Make a copy of the location GM file and HEX-edit that one to use an alpha map for the sign
Problem: We have to copy the GM file AND its accompanying lighting files

3. Remove the sign from the GM model altogether, then make a separate model out of it that can be placed or not placed accordingly.
That would make it easy to put different signs on different islands, because we'd just need to set a different GM file to be used through code.
This would be a nice solution, but requires more work, including modeling work that I am not sure will even be successful.

4. Alpha-map the sign and leave it at that
Problem: No more guidance on Barbados either. I always quite liked that.

Anyone got any preferences?

There's no link to my post containing the fixed tavern sign... just sayin'.

Did you post a link? I definitely didn't get to download it yet. And I would've done if I had seen one, of course.

 

[Armada]

In other words: They're around a LOT! So what to do? I see a few options:

This is quite a tricky one. Ultimately it would be nice to go with the separate model route, provided that wouldn't cause reverse/no lighting like the BuildingSet.
But we have to deal with many different locations, and even varying town names based on the time period, so it sounds awfully tedious.
Then again, I DO like the signs on Barbados, as you said. So maybe we should go with making a copy of the location and having it use alpha mapped signs.

Did you post a link? I definitely didn't get to download it yet. And I would've done if I had seen one, of course.

I was just on about the post containing the screenshot, but indeed it seems I didn't upload the texture.
See attached for that.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

varying town names based on the time period, so it sounds awfully tedious.

Good call! Even if we do fix Barbados to use the proper town names, it won't be right in the Early Explorers time period.
The only way to fix that properly is with a sign-less GM model and separate sign GM files. That might be a bit tedious to do for all islands, but it is not impossible.
Even if we'd start out with Barbados first, we can do other islands later on as time permits.

My main question would be: CAN we edit existing location files and re-export them properly?
To answer that (if you care to do so), perhaps you could re-export the Sewer location?
That one has its camera collision detection messed up since we lowered the whole thing to flood it.
So if that works, it'll be one more thing fixed and proves that we can do the jungles too.
And if not, oh well, we'll have to sort it out some other way then.

 

[Armada]

My main question would be: CAN we edit existing location files and re-export them properly?
To answer that (if you care to do so), perhaps you could re-export the Sewer location?
That one has its camera collision detection messed up since we lowered the whole thing to flood it.
So if that works, it'll be one more thing fixed and proves that we can do the jungles too.
And if not, oh well, we'll have to sort it out some other way then.

The Sewer is in RESOURCE\MODELS\Locations\Inside, right? I could try re-exporting it, yes.
Was it lowered using TOOL, and that messed up the camera?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

Yep, it's in RESOURCE\MODELS\Locations\Inside\Sewer .
And indeed lowering it in the TOOL messed up the camera.

We originally put it on Barbados, but the camera issue was so bad that we had to remove it despite it being a fun change from the usual.
But we didn't completely want to lose it, so moved it to... Saint Martin I think it was? Still buggy though.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

I know you're busy with bigger and greater things now Armada, but any chance you could swap out the stock game town names with the corrected ones on the signs?
Hopefully I can get those signs removed from the non-Barbados islands today and I was intending to upload my latest changes before tomorrow if I can make it.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The sign-removal is done. I made a new location texture folder named "JUNGLES" and made all non-Oxbay versions use that instead.

 

[Armada]

I know you're busy with bigger and greater things now Armada, but any chance you could swap out the stock game town names with the corrected ones on the signs?
Hopefully I can get those signs removed from the non-Barbados islands today and I was intending to upload my latest changes before tomorrow if I can make it.

I'll see what I can do... It's easy enough for Oxbay and Greenford, but what are we going to do about the others?
How many of them have varying town names depending on the period?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

Has anyone even SEEN those other town names on any signs in the game? I don't remember seeing them, that's for sure.

These are the stock game ones that have differing town names:

            case "Conceicao":
                switch(GetCurrentPeriod())
                {
                    case PERIOD_REVOLUTIONS:            ret = "Saint George"; break;
                    case PERIOD_NAPOLEONIC:                ret = "Saint George"; break;
                    ret = "Sao Jorge";
                }
            break;
            case "Douwesen":
                switch(GetCurrentPeriod())
                {
                    case PERIOD_EARLY_EXPLORERS:        ret = "Palo Brasil"; break
                //    case PERIOD_THE_SPANISH_MAIN:        ret = "Palo Brasil"; break;
                    ret = "Kralendijk";
                }
            break;
            case "Oxbay":
                switch(GetCurrentPeriod())
                {
                    case PERIOD_EARLY_EXPLORERS:        ret = "São Luis"; break;
                    ret = "Speightstown";
                }
            break;
            case "Greenford":
                switch(GetCurrentPeriod())
                {
                    case PERIOD_EARLY_EXPLORERS:        ret = "Santa Inês"; break;
                    ret = "Bridgetown";
                }
            break;
            case "Redmond":
                switch(GetCurrentPeriod())
                {
                    case PERIOD_EARLY_EXPLORERS:        ret = "Villa de la Vega"; break;
                    case PERIOD_REVOLUTIONS:            ret = "Kingston"; break;
                    case PERIOD_NAPOLEONIC:                ret = "Kingston"; break;
                    ret = "Port Royale";
                }
            break;

I think we should go ahead and just not care. Can't fix it properly without re-modeling the locations and separating those signs anyway.
That's a big project that just isn't worth it.

 

[Armada]

I don't recall seeing any other signs in the game, either, so we might as well leave those sign names alone.

Seeing the changes for Speightstown and Bridgetown in the Early Explorers period, is it possible to get that location to use a different sign texture based on the period?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

Seeing the changes for Speightstown and Bridgetown in the Early Explorers period, is it possible to get that location to use a different sign texture based on the period?

Yes, it is. Just required us making another folder copy. But that can be arranged.

 

[Armada]

How's this?

Spoiler: Show image

"S'town" will have to do since "Speightstown" definitely ain't gonna fit.
Do you like the font? I know it looks very slightly blurry, but that's because of the texture resolution.
I'll do another version for the Early Explorers town names as well.

 

[Armada]

Here's a version for the earlier town names:

Spoiler: Show image