Edit all Keen 1-3 graphics!

[adurdin]

Forget MODLATCH, Download ModKeen (50k), my new utility.
You can now change all the tiles, bitmaps and sprites in Keens 1-3, even make different size sprites!!

Cool, huh?

(This is not an April Fools joke. It's past midday here in Australia)

Andrew [img]graemlins/dopefish.gif[/img]

[Vetek]

w00t!!!

[Brick_Sledge]

I can't get it to work, I've tried several times now. [img]images/icons/mad.gif[/img]

[ 04-01-2002, 01:31 PM: Message edited by: Brick_Sledge ]

[Redlof]

Originally posted by Brick_Sledge:
I can't get it to work, I've tried several times now. [img]images/icons/mad.gif[/img]

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">yeah, it's kind of confusing. Try putting modkeen.exe in your keen directory and create a subdirectory. Then type"

MODKEEN e [episode] C:\keen directory\subdirectory\list1.lst

[Brick_Sledge]

I still doesn't work. [img]graemlins/tinyted.gif[/img]
I keep getting an error saying the file is for a different episode (yes, I'm sure the episode numbers match)

[adurdin]

I will admit that the instructions weren't very detailed...

Here's the best way to set it up (Example for Keen 1; replace all 1's with 2 or 3 for other episodes):
Put MODKEEN.EXE in your Keen 1 directory (make sure you keep a backup of Keen 1)
Create a subdirectory, called "pics" for example. Then run:
MODKEEN e 1 Pics\1pics.lst

Then fiddle with the pictures. When you're done, run:
MODKEEN i 1 pics\1pics.lst

----------
The error you were getting means that you were giving a different episode number on the command line to that specified at the top of the .lst file. Note that the parser that reads the list file is minimal, and expects things to be just so.

If you still can't get it working, email me ([email protected]) and I'll try and help some more.

I’m canceling my Keen5 level for now, this stuff is to good to pass up.

[WarHammer]

Mmmmm...Keen editing goodness! Now if only we had something like this and a level editor for Keen 4-6 the world would be a better place. There would be no more war or hunger...everybody would be too busy making new Commander Keen games to care. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Yorpy]

This is very cool, Andrew [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[WarHammer]

Edit ALL Keen 1-3 graphics!!

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Not quite. Just thought I would let you know the tiles for the ending scenematic are still missing. The window's in there but the other parts of the scene aren't included.

[adurdin]

Yeah I know. The ending pic (and the preview pics for Keen 1) are stored in separate files: finale.ckX and preview1.ck1 and preview2.ck1... I haven't looked at them yet, but I'm sure they're not too complex. In any case, It should take a few days at least before anyone's done enough of a conversion to need new ending pics...

[adurdin]

Now if only we had something like this and a level editor for Keen 4-6

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">That's quite possible, it'd just take a little work to get it going...
BTW, There is already a working level editor for Keen 4-6: TED5 -- go to www.commanderkeen.net and choose "Back Issues", and look at the March issue, article "Changing the World".

[WarHammer]

I really like you utilities, they are so simple and yet so functional. But I've run into a bit of a problem.

After changing all the tiles in Keen1 and also adding some of my own in the unused space I then go to build new levels around the new tile set only to realize you store all the graphics internally, which makes it extremely hard to remember where all of the custom tiles are and which is which. When you convert your code over to C how about adding the option to use custom tile and sprite sets? Perhaps by making use of the list file generated by your graphic utility?

One more thing while you're at it, since most of the large tiles in Keen come in sets of four or eight, why not add V to the Z,X,C respective tile keys?

Also mouse support in the editor would be nice but I could live without that. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[adurdin]

If you read the topic http://pub7.ezboard.com/fpubliccomma...icID=327.topic on the Public Commander Keen Forum, you'll see I also wrote a little VB (cause it was quick & easy) app to edit the tile behaviour information in Keens 1-3; and as an extra it could export a tile bitmap into KEENEDIT.DAT.
As far as other features go, the reason I stopped developing KeenEdit was that the source got too big to compile as a single file in QB, and I couldn't be bothered splitting it up into multiple source files. The source has more features than the latest .exe for this reason. Anyway, if anyone wants to modify KeenEdit to improve it, I'll make the source available to them.

[WarHammer]

Everything works fine until I go to edit some of the tile properties in tileedit. After importing the data from the .exe when I try to save (making sure the episode is set correctly) I get an error...even if I don't change anything.

Run-time error '13':

Type mismatch

It saves the .tli file correctly but the .pat file only contains:

#Tile info patching script for Keen 1
%ext ck1

%version 1.1

Am I doing something wrong? Should I start posting this stuff on the Public Commander Keen Forum you linked to? Should my urin be green?

[ 04-11-2002, 10:33 PM: Message edited by: WarHammer ]

[adurdin]

OK, I'll look into it -- that tileedit program was whacked together REALLY quickly and I didn't bother with any error checking at all...
I'll get back to you on this.

***EDIT***

How dumb can you get? (Not you, me!)
Just a stupid error; really the compiler ought to have picked it up, but I guess it's not smart enough.

Anyway, download tileinfo.zip again and *that* problem at least should go.

You should be able to load the ".tli" file again: the load feature doesn't do anything with the ".pat" file.

Andrew

[ 04-12-2002, 07:13 AM: Message edited by: adurdin ]

[WarHammer]

Now tileinfo seems to work flawlessly but I still seem to be having trouble actually applying the patch. Everything is the the same folder, the types and games match, the keen executable is uncompressed...I've double checked everything but for some reason Keen gets run but does not get patched.

I don't think this problem has anything to do with your stuff though. I tried writing my own simple .tli and got the same results. The problem must either be something I am doing wrong, a bug in CK1Patch, or a problem with the game itself.

Is there something else I need to do before using the patch? I must admit I have just barely skimmed over the CKxPatch instructions. It looks rather complicated. I have to learn it sometime but I was hoping I could put it off a while longer.

[ 04-12-2002, 04:41 PM: Message edited by: WarHammer ]

[adurdin]

I think I mentioned something about that in the readme...
It seems to be a problem with CKxPatch, that it doesn't recognise version 1.31 of Keen properly; what you need to do is edit the .pat file and just stick a # in front of the two lines pertaining to version 1.1, and also in front of the %version 1.31 line; it ought to work then.
Andrew

[WarHammer]

Ah, you did but I had forgetten that. That solved the problem. Thank you so much!

Now, no rush...no pressure...I'm just curious about the editing of the last few tiles, such as Keen's house at the end of Ep1. I'm working on a complete conversion Keen (as in no longer technically Keen) but I currently have no way of making a decent ending. I can alter the dialog but in the context of the mod a house on earth at the end is quite out of place.

But I appreciate all the excellent tools you are making. I am definitely putting them all to good use.

Hell yeah! The patch program doesn't work properly in XP, but on Win98 it's okay!