"Present" Trapped and normal Chests (with a special version on Christmas day)
Rain turns to Snow (sorta)
Ideas:
Pumpkin face turns to star
Animated Christmas lights on Spruce leaves.
Rose/Poppy turns to Poinsettia
I don't want to do anything that makes the identity of a block unclear-- like turning grass to snow, but i'm open to other ideas you guys have-- though i'm probably not going to add a ton of things.
Sorry, I don't like replying to something without trying to contribute something. Criticism, explanations, etc. I think "Hey nice pack" is kind of a useless comment to make. It shows appreciation for the pack, but no pack is perfect, so why not reply with something useful instead?
No problem. I thought it was worth explaining why i wouldn't take your suggestion.
I don't think I've ever gotten any feedback from any texture pack creator about "things they'd like to see change to make texture packs better". It would certainly be helpful since we modders don't really see that side of the equation.
My previous experience with modders is similar to Alvoria. I posted a screenshot and brief notification on about 5 mod's topics that i'd added support for them. Most of these were mods of moderate to lesser fame, so it's not like getting included in a texture pack would be old hat to them. I got absolutely no response from any except Poersch of Better Grass and Leaves (who i would point to as a great example of a modded engaging with texture artists). So i quit notifying the mod-makers after that. Obviously those participating in this thread have a different opinion, but it seems that most mod makers are entirely indifferent to texture pack artists. Of course that is their right.
But that gives those of you modders who do care an opportunity. You can stand out and attract texture-pack support by showing that you are not indifferent. Having a spoiler on your main post with info for texture pack artists is one way. But an even more powerful statement is to link to texture packs that support your mod, and to solicit more packs.
@CovertJaguar: I really appreciate how you overlay ore textures over the vanilla stone, it's something small but very considerate.
That is a huge way to make a mod texture-pack friendly. It's not so much about saving artist's work, but improving the appearance of the ore blocks- when the player uses a texture pack that doesn't have support for the mod.
And, you probably won't have to wait hours/days for someone to see what you posted and think of something to say about it, like you so often do on forum threads.
Why do you think that? I thought we established that few people ever went on that channel.
I really don't see IRC becoming a more popular place for artists to hang out. I used to use it extensively when I worked on Battle for Wesnoth. But when I did stuff of interest mainly to art devs, we used the forums. One more click per image adds up, and if you are going to comment on it, read other responses to it, and refer back to it to see if you agree, (a common scenario) you need to switch back and forth between windows. Not an impossibility, but a distinctly less convenint experience, when images are core to the conversation.
I think the "bloody" is more because of the design rather than the color of the redstone. If you use some imagination, it looks more like a blood spray or something than just dust on the ground in a line. All the extra pixels on the side kinda do that. Not a big deal or anything, just pointing it out.
I tried my own at making a redstone texture. I always preferred the redstone that looked more like a line, rather than spread out.
Everybody may have a different preference, but what I'm trying to do here is an essentially faithful pack-- deviating from vanilla when vanilla is IMHO bad. This doesn't look to me to be one of those times.
I've not used a vast amount of texture packs yet, but of the six or so I've downloaded, I like this one the best. It's a vast improvement, and I look forward to whatever you decide to add to it in the future.
The only thing I've come across that I wished were different were less prominent lines on clear glass blocks -- darker, semi-translucent, etc.
Thanks!
I haven't done any CTM on glass yet, in part because how transparency is treated is in flux, but that's something on my radar, and I'd likely go in a direction like you describe.
Regarding payment, I would say instead all parties should be up front regarding their expectations on what they get out of the collaboration. Feel free to refuse work that doesn't meet your expectations for what you get out of the deal.
I agree. I've done work for free and for a fee both for open-source projects and closed. There's no one-size-fits all solution, though it is much more reasonable to ask artist to work for free on mods that don't make the coder any money.
Question 1: Thoughts on modders including "source files" for their base art assets? Reason I ask is that for myself, I try to include the GIMP files corresponding to each art asset that I include by default with the mod.
Opinions may vary on this, but for most thing i've seen in MC mods, i'd just remake it from scratch. But for complex graphics, like for instance a mob, a layered file with each face on its own layer clearly labeled would be very welcome.
Question 2: Regarding textures that use multiple render passes. I have an item (root of them are located here https://github.com/p.../textures/items) that uses a few render passes to "build" the file product. This item is the Alchemical Bag. It has two "states" (closed and open) and each state has the bag portion of the texture, and then the drawstring portion of the texture. The item is dynamically coloured in game in much the same way as leather armor is (players can custom dye them to whatever they like). For this reason the default texture is meant to be white.
My questions are; (1) thoughts on this approach, (2) how would you expect modders to leave "notes" explaining the reasoning for why they went a particular way with an item, or what the item is meant to be? Would it help to hear the origin of the item, what "theme" its meant to follow?
(1) Sounds reasonable and not overcomplicated for what it does. I guess automatically recolored assets are something of an exception to my first point, though drawing the hue from a PNG palette would still be a good idea (if it is a 16 color palette).
(2) Mostly i'd like to see the files clearly organized and labeled. Some some modders do well at this others don't. "Theme" & "Origin" would be something i would only expect if i was the artist making the original asset-- not a texture pack, otherwise i'd consider it "going above and beyond." The point is, an artist reasonably familiar with a mod in action should be able to go through the asses folder and see how all the .PNGs are used. If that would require overly long filenames, then consider a list of what the non-obvious files are for.
As a mod-maker, I'm always *dying* for artists to help with textures and sprites because by nature I'm a programmer and not an artist (and I don't think I'm alone in this).
I thew together the following, but i expect other artists have other things to add, or clarifications, or disagreements with certain points. I thought it was worth starting a new topic for. Maybe we can post the results in the modding forums.
Never hard-code colors for anything. Have the mod pull the color from a .PNG so a texture artist can easily change it.
Avoid using the same texture for multiple things, even if that means you have the same image saved under different names. Vanilla for instance, uses the same cobble texture for cobble walls, switches, and cobble stone. That may work fine with the original low-res texture, but it throws a wrench in many plans for themed packs, HD packs and/or packs with a higher attention to detail.
When it is less than super-obvious it would be nice to have a section on your mod's page that explains what all the .PNGs are for. Sometimes, even with mods i've used a lot there are textures i've never seen in game, and i can't really tell what they are supposed to be.
The way you wrap a texture around an entity is very important. It should be logical and flexible, and generally avoid using the same segment in multiple places
Feel free to ask questions, & make requests in texture pack discussion. Credible modders rarely appear who can coherently explain what they want.
I wouldn't be opposed to limiting the scope of competitions. As a mod-maker, I'm always *dying* for artists to help with textures and sprites because by nature I'm a programmer and not an artist (and I don't think I'm alone in this).
We could limit the scope of texture packs to particular mods, or just vanilla. We could increase the length of time for the competition and offer more points for submissions made earlier than the deadline.
Vanilla contains nearly 1000 graphics files, some of which still contain a lot of images. As others have already said that's way too much for anything but a long term project, unless you are happy with producing complete junk.
A specific subset of vanilla or a reasonable mod could make a much more reasonable competition. For instance "Vanilla Nether", or Vanilla Trees & Flowers" are in the ballpark of reasonable. On the plus side such entries would be much easier to showcase and judge.
I also think mod makers would also want to know what we can do to enable more customization for resource pack makers (I would for sure).
At the risk of going off-topic:
Never hard-code colors for anything. Have the mod pull the color from a .PNG so a texture artist can easily change it.
Avoid using the same texture for multiple things, even if that means you have the same image saved under different names. Vanilla for instance, uses the same cobble texture for cobble walls, switches, and cobble stone. That may work fine with the original low-res texture, but it throws a wrench in many plans for themed packs, HD packs and/or packs with a higher attention to detail.
When it is less than super-obvious it would be nice to have a section on your mod's page that explains what all the .PNGs are for. Sometimes, even with mods i've used a lot there are textures i've never seen in game, and i can't really tell what they are supposed to be.
The way you wrap a texture around an entity is very important. It should be logical and flexible, and generally avoid using the same segment in multiple places
Feel free to ask questions, & make requests in texture pack discussion. Credible modders rarely appear who can coherently explain what they want.
I was wondering if there was any chance of seeing a Christmas Present single/double chest texture? It could easily be a separate thing on it's own given how resource packs can overlap now. It can be the only texture in the pack, and simply placed above the main one as an addon. Just wondering. If not, I can always make one myself.
Still an awesome texture pack though. My favorite vanilla styled pack.
Thanks.
Actually the last release included Christmas themed chests. They activate when you computer's clock is set to Dec 24 or 25 (which doesn't have to correspond to the actual Dec 24-25).
So you edit it in raw BBCode for the most part.... Conveniently the PMC submission editor does not have a raw BBCode mode, and pasting over doesn't work correctly….
Only if you want to. Under "Markup Type" you can choose between 5 different formats.
Also, how long before people start downloading? Or if they are, when will the number update? It's been almost an hour, no downloads, but not surprising as I don't exactly "rake in" downloads.
I think it updates around once an hour. My experience was that i needed to drive downloads externally until my pack ranked high enough on curse to get significant downloads from people browsing on Curse.
If you have enough levels in PMC you can direct your downloads to your curse page.
Also, don't like a few things about this already.... the description doesn't have formatting (well, maybe it does, but there's no editor for it if there is), and you have to edit the submission to add 1 screenshot, and I'm not seeing how to manage (delete or change order) those, either.....
They aren't as smooth as we might wish, but some of those "power" features are hidden under the "project site" link on your pack's page.
Let me rephrase that.
I am trying to stack textures on-top of some packs but it wont let me, even with the exact same file structure and everything it still prioritises ctm from the pack at the bottom...
I haven't payed attention to it, but IIRC there has been discussion on how CTM should stack in the MCPatcher thread.
Does anyone of you know if anyone has done textures of these mods for their resource packs?
I very much doubt it. Try Vattic's Faithful and Sphax, which are probably the best for mod support. Or you might try cobbling together a personal pack out of multiple other packs.
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Features implemented:
- "Present" Trapped and normal Chests (with a special version on Christmas day)
- Rain turns to Snow (sorta)
Ideas:- Pumpkin face turns to star
- Animated Christmas lights on Spruce leaves.
- Rose/Poppy turns to Poinsettia
I don't want to do anything that makes the identity of a block unclear-- like turning grass to snow, but i'm open to other ideas you guys have-- though i'm probably not going to add a ton of things.No problem. I thought it was worth explaining why i wouldn't take your suggestion.
0
0
My previous experience with modders is similar to Alvoria. I posted a screenshot and brief notification on about 5 mod's topics that i'd added support for them. Most of these were mods of moderate to lesser fame, so it's not like getting included in a texture pack would be old hat to them. I got absolutely no response from any except Poersch of Better Grass and Leaves (who i would point to as a great example of a modded engaging with texture artists). So i quit notifying the mod-makers after that. Obviously those participating in this thread have a different opinion, but it seems that most mod makers are entirely indifferent to texture pack artists. Of course that is their right.
But that gives those of you modders who do care an opportunity. You can stand out and attract texture-pack support by showing that you are not indifferent. Having a spoiler on your main post with info for texture pack artists is one way. But an even more powerful statement is to link to texture packs that support your mod, and to solicit more packs.
That is a huge way to make a mod texture-pack friendly. It's not so much about saving artist's work, but improving the appearance of the ore blocks- when the player uses a texture pack that doesn't have support for the mod.
0
Why do you think that? I thought we established that few people ever went on that channel.
I really don't see IRC becoming a more popular place for artists to hang out. I used to use it extensively when I worked on Battle for Wesnoth. But when I did stuff of interest mainly to art devs, we used the forums. One more click per image adds up, and if you are going to comment on it, read other responses to it, and refer back to it to see if you agree, (a common scenario) you need to switch back and forth between windows. Not an impossibility, but a distinctly less convenint experience, when images are core to the conversation.
0
Everybody may have a different preference, but what I'm trying to do here is an essentially faithful pack-- deviating from vanilla when vanilla is IMHO bad. This doesn't look to me to be one of those times.
Thanks!
I haven't done any CTM on glass yet, in part because how transparency is treated is in flux, but that's something on my radar, and I'd likely go in a direction like you describe.
0
I agree. I've done work for free and for a fee both for open-source projects and closed. There's no one-size-fits all solution, though it is much more reasonable to ask artist to work for free on mods that don't make the coder any money.
Opinions may vary on this, but for most thing i've seen in MC mods, i'd just remake it from scratch. But for complex graphics, like for instance a mob, a layered file with each face on its own layer clearly labeled would be very welcome.
(1) Sounds reasonable and not overcomplicated for what it does. I guess automatically recolored assets are something of an exception to my first point, though drawing the hue from a PNG palette would still be a good idea (if it is a 16 color palette).
(2) Mostly i'd like to see the files clearly organized and labeled. Some some modders do well at this others don't. "Theme" & "Origin" would be something i would only expect if i was the artist making the original asset-- not a texture pack, otherwise i'd consider it "going above and beyond." The point is, an artist reasonably familiar with a mod in action should be able to go through the asses folder and see how all the .PNGs are used. If that would require overly long filenames, then consider a list of what the non-obvious files are for.
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WHAT TEXTURE ARTISTS WISHED MODDERS KNEW
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I thew together the following, but i expect other artists have other things to add, or clarifications, or disagreements with certain points. I thought it was worth starting a new topic for. Maybe we can post the results in the modding forums.
1
Vanilla contains nearly 1000 graphics files, some of which still contain a lot of images. As others have already said that's way too much for anything but a long term project, unless you are happy with producing complete junk.
A specific subset of vanilla or a reasonable mod could make a much more reasonable competition. For instance "Vanilla Nether", or Vanilla Trees & Flowers" are in the ballpark of reasonable. On the plus side such entries would be much easier to showcase and judge.
At the risk of going off-topic:
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Thanks.
Actually the last release included Christmas themed chests. They activate when you computer's clock is set to Dec 24 or 25 (which doesn't have to correspond to the actual Dec 24-25).
I'll think about a Christmas themed add-on.
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Only if you want to. Under "Markup Type" you can choose between 5 different formats.
Try it and find out.
I think it updates around once an hour. My experience was that i needed to drive downloads externally until my pack ranked high enough on curse to get significant downloads from people browsing on Curse.
If you have enough levels in PMC you can direct your downloads to your curse page.
0
They aren't as smooth as we might wish, but some of those "power" features are hidden under the "project site" link on your pack's page.
I haven't payed attention to it, but IIRC there has been discussion on how CTM should stack in the MCPatcher thread.
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I very much doubt it. Try Vattic's Faithful and Sphax, which are probably the best for mod support. Or you might try cobbling together a personal pack out of multiple other packs.
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