Anyone modding combat sprites?

[Ryodan]

just wanted to throw this example up, mind you I do not care if my black soldiers are white in combat sprites but it is a very easy change. top left 2 are edited, took umm 45 seconds?

simple enough to use the magic wand in photo shop to select hands/faces holding shift to continually add the hand or ace to the selection. Then go under image, adjustments and select hue/saturation and just change the lightness down editing all the hands and faces on the page at the same time. You can miss a pixel here or there in the selection process, you cant see it when zoomed out to game play levels anyway.

I'm not interested in doing the work but its very doable. I't would however probably drive someone insane to actually do it all.

edit: I just realized using the forums upload process for an image you cant even see what I did LOL the top left 2 guys are in fact black skin tone in color. I don't have a photobucket account or I would upload there and show this.

Edited December 7, 2013 by Ryodan
addition comment

[outer]

Nice work man. Use http://imgur.com/ for image uploading, you dont even need to make an account to use it.

[Ryodan]

http://imgur.com/BMPWJtk' rel="external nofollow">

[outer]

Yea I see what you mean, deffo an instance of diminishing returns. Still, nice work. Ima start a new topic about creating sprites, theres a far easier way to go about this then hand editing the existing sprites.

[Gorlom]

Is it possible for one to create new characters, without certain animations? Like If I created a set of sprites for some heavy powerarmor, one that didnt run, vault, or crouch, just walked, shoots and dies - sorta like the panzerkleins from silent storm?

[video=youtube;-Shg1eGvYyU]

Whenever your soldier performs an action you don't have sprites for he would either revert back to some standard sprite available or become invisible depending on how you set it up. It will most likely be very jarring either way.

[Gauddlike]

Unless you are a VERY dedicated modder you really don't want to mess with the sprites by hand.

I did half of the Jackal armour sprites in a different colour for a single weapon and it took me hours.

It is a simple process just open, select section, shift hue, save for each file and move one but there are just so many files to adjust if you want to do it properly.

The best way would be to duplicate the original method.

Create a 3D model of the soldier in the new armour, set up some preset camera angles so your sprites are always viewed from the proper angle and then make sprites from the exported images.

If we are really lucky Chris may consider releasing the 3D models used assuming he has the rights to them and doesn't want to keep them for Xenonauts 2: Frightfully Damp.

Sample of what I was adjusting, different uniform colour for different weapon specialities so equipping someone with an assault rifle would give them a different coloured set of armour on the ground to someone equipped with a sniper rifle or machine gun.

http://www.goldhawkinteractive.com/forums/showthread.php/5120-Uniforms?p=64977&viewfull=1#post64977

[Chefsbrian]

If your doing more than a colour shift, it would be a little insane, there are 104 sprite sheets for the AK on basic armor, for example, with anywhere from 1(?) to ~65 characters. The workload multiplies as more weapons and armor happen...

However, if they released the tool they use to convert models to sprites instead of their models... Well that would be a massive boon for the community, I'd say.

[Gauddlike]

I was going to say that there is not really a specific tool used for it but then Chris went ahead and explained the process again in another thread here.

Thought I would link it to keep the info together for people who are interested.