Vancity_Primal
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2020
- Messages
- 3
- Slippi.gg
- PRML#682
This guide is intended for beginners who want to learn how to texture hack Melee characters
Technically you can stop after the first step and just import your modified textures using DTW,
however using HSD to preview how textures will be applied has greatly improved my workflow
and will enabled you to move on to more advanced hacks in the future
Big thanks to Durgan for DTW and Ploaj for HSD, without whom this tutorial wouldn't exist
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You'll need the following tools
DAT Texture Wizard (DTW) - Used for browsing and exporting/importing files from the Melee ISO
HSD Raw (HSD) - Used for previewing the texture hacks on your character
Photoshop/Photopea/GIMP - Used for working with the texture files
Use Photopea or GIMP if you don't have an image editor already
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1. Exporting the Character File and Textures from your ISO
Open DTW and import your Melee ISO by going File > Open Disc (ISO/GCM) from the menu at the top of the window
Click on the Characters shortcut at the top of the window
Open the folder of the character you want to make edits to
Single-click the file of the character costume colour you want to make edits to
Click the export button on the right side of the window and save the .dat file somewhere easy to find
Double-click the file of the character costume colour you want to make edits to
Right click any of the textures and select Export All and save the textures somewhere easy to find
It's a good practice to save the .dat and texture files together in their own labelled folder
It's recommended to keep an unedited copy of your .dat and texture folder as a backup
2. Viewing the Character Model for Texture Changes
Open HSD and import the .dat character file you exported by going File > Open from the menu at the top of the window
Double-click the JOBJ file in the Nodes window on the left side
You should see your character in a T-pose on the right side, in the Preview window
Click and drag with the right mouse button to rotate
Click and drag with the left mouse button to pan
Scroll wheel to zoom
3. Making Texture Changes to your Character
To the left of the Preview window you will see a Nodes title with three tabs under it labelled Joints, Objects and Textures
Click on the Textures tab to view the textures that are being applied to the model
This is the main window we will be working with in HSD
To substitute textures, click on the texture you would like to replace then click on the Replace Texture button at the top of the window
Melee stores two copies of the character model in each .dat file - one that has a high poly count and one that has a low poly count
These are laid over each other in the viewer and can mess up your preview while you are working
To disable the low poly character model, click the Objects tab next to the Textures tab and uncheck the low poly objects
It can take some time to identify which object is which, but generally the low poly objects are grouped together at the bottom of the list
4. Making Modified Textures
Now that you have your HSD workspace set up, it's time to make some textures!
Open the character folder with the .dat and texture files that you exported from DTW in Step 1
Open the texture file you would like to make changes to in your image editor of choice
Make the changes you want to the texture, and save the image as a PNG
Back in HSD, identify the unedited version of the texture you want to swap out and use the Replace Texture button to upload your texture
See how the texture gets applied to the model and tweak as needed
5. Importing the Modified Textures to the Melee ISO
Once you're happy with how your texture hack is looking in HSD, go File > Save at the top of the window
Open DTW and navigate to the folder of the character you are working on, just like we did in Step 1
Single-click the file of the character costume colour you want to overwrite with your new texture hack
Click the import button on the right side of the window and select the modified .dat file that you created
Save the ISO by going File > Save from the menu at the top of the window
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Congratulations on your new texture hacking skills! Texture hacks are a great way to get started with Melee modding and are usually netplay-safe!
Share your best work at SSBMTextures and meet other modders on the Melee Workshop Discord server
Technically you can stop after the first step and just import your modified textures using DTW,
however using HSD to preview how textures will be applied has greatly improved my workflow
and will enabled you to move on to more advanced hacks in the future
Big thanks to Durgan for DTW and Ploaj for HSD, without whom this tutorial wouldn't exist
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
You'll need the following tools
DAT Texture Wizard (DTW) - Used for browsing and exporting/importing files from the Melee ISO
Official - DAT Texture Wizard (current version: 6.1.1)
Introducing DAT Texture Wizard, a program designed to encompass, simplify, and speed-up the entire Melee texture hacking process. It allows you to view, extract, and import textures from and to any file in the game! It also allows you to export/import/add/remove files or folders from your disc...
smashboards.com
HSD Raw (HSD) - Used for previewing the texture hacks on your character
Releases · Ploaj/HSDLib
A library that assists with reading/writing HSD DAT files - Ploaj/HSDLib
github.com
Photoshop/Photopea/GIMP - Used for working with the texture files
Use Photopea or GIMP if you don't have an image editor already
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
1. Exporting the Character File and Textures from your ISO
Open DTW and import your Melee ISO by going File > Open Disc (ISO/GCM) from the menu at the top of the window
Click on the Characters shortcut at the top of the window
Open the folder of the character you want to make edits to
Single-click the file of the character costume colour you want to make edits to
Click the export button on the right side of the window and save the .dat file somewhere easy to find
Double-click the file of the character costume colour you want to make edits to
Right click any of the textures and select Export All and save the textures somewhere easy to find
It's a good practice to save the .dat and texture files together in their own labelled folder
It's recommended to keep an unedited copy of your .dat and texture folder as a backup
2. Viewing the Character Model for Texture Changes
Open HSD and import the .dat character file you exported by going File > Open from the menu at the top of the window
Double-click the JOBJ file in the Nodes window on the left side
You should see your character in a T-pose on the right side, in the Preview window
Click and drag with the right mouse button to rotate
Click and drag with the left mouse button to pan
Scroll wheel to zoom
3. Making Texture Changes to your Character
To the left of the Preview window you will see a Nodes title with three tabs under it labelled Joints, Objects and Textures
Click on the Textures tab to view the textures that are being applied to the model
This is the main window we will be working with in HSD
To substitute textures, click on the texture you would like to replace then click on the Replace Texture button at the top of the window
Melee stores two copies of the character model in each .dat file - one that has a high poly count and one that has a low poly count
These are laid over each other in the viewer and can mess up your preview while you are working
To disable the low poly character model, click the Objects tab next to the Textures tab and uncheck the low poly objects
It can take some time to identify which object is which, but generally the low poly objects are grouped together at the bottom of the list
4. Making Modified Textures
Now that you have your HSD workspace set up, it's time to make some textures!
Open the character folder with the .dat and texture files that you exported from DTW in Step 1
Open the texture file you would like to make changes to in your image editor of choice
Make the changes you want to the texture, and save the image as a PNG
Back in HSD, identify the unedited version of the texture you want to swap out and use the Replace Texture button to upload your texture
See how the texture gets applied to the model and tweak as needed
5. Importing the Modified Textures to the Melee ISO
Once you're happy with how your texture hack is looking in HSD, go File > Save at the top of the window
Open DTW and navigate to the folder of the character you are working on, just like we did in Step 1
Single-click the file of the character costume colour you want to overwrite with your new texture hack
Click the import button on the right side of the window and select the modified .dat file that you created
Save the ISO by going File > Save from the menu at the top of the window
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Congratulations on your new texture hacking skills! Texture hacks are a great way to get started with Melee modding and are usually netplay-safe!
Share your best work at SSBMTextures and meet other modders on the Melee Workshop Discord server
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