First off i did not make any tools i am providing.
One: thank minimaul for the gibbed tools
Two: thank gameqube for the asm updater i am
Providing
Three: i am providing gimp×64 standalone
Installer plus the gimp .dds plugin
Necessary to read .dds images which are
Free shareware software
Four: thank volition for the great games they are
Allowing us to mod
Five: On a personal note thank you to the modding
Friends here at saints row mods for helping
Me get this far.
I'm no expert at texturing but am offering my knowledge at this point to help others to figure out how to texture without the confusing babble.
I am only providing theses tools to make things easier for you so no links and extra hunting. Now the gimp software i am providing is for ×64 bit systems only so if you are running a 32bit system you may need to google the gimp software which is free and download it( don't forget to download the .dds plugin that has instructions provided).
Alright it's time to start our process.
First step is to download the programs folder provided and extract it with winrar or 7zip or equivelent extraction program of your choice.
Inside you will see a couple different folders and programs. I have included the sr3 repack tools inside the gibbed volition folder for you as i have found it to be easy access to have gibbed tools and sr3 repack tools in the same place(i will be explaining their uses shortly).
Alright you have your tools and curious what to do with them at this point.
1: First requirement is a legitimate version of steam.
2: Second is a legitimate version of saints row the third installed from steam.
3: If you have the above requirements we may continue.
4: Steam will install saints row the third in the same place on any system: local disk c:/program files x86/steam/steam apps/common/saints row the third
5: look for the folder in step 4(this is called your installation directory by many here at the saints row mods). Copy the entire asm updater folder provided in the programs folder to your installation directory. Just to verify you should have a folder inside local disk c:/ program files×86/steam/steam apps/common/saints row the third named asm updater. This is a handy tool made by gameqube that is an easy alternative to be able to update almost any asm_pc files. It uses the gibbed tools to update the files for you only made a little more user friendly.
6: Inside the programs folder provided you will find the latest copy of gibbed tools and sr3 repack textures in a folder. Copy this folder to your desktop or a second drive for easy access.
7: Inside the programs folder you will see a setup for gimp 2.8. Run the installer and follow the easy instructions for installation( may take a few seconds to start the installation as it is unpacking a lot of information so don't panic).
8: Next you want to look inside the programs folder provided and you will see the gimp .dds plugin with instructions on where to put the plugin. Follow the instructions on where to copy and paste the plugin as this will be required for gimp to read the extracted images later.
Alright if you followed the above steps correctly your tools are ready for use. Now we will be starting with my particular area of the most experience which is weapons(but texturing is pretty much the same process for clothing and other items as well).
We will be using the 45 fletcher as our example for this tutorial as it is probably the most common weapon in saints row the third and easiest to work with since the resolution of the files are the same.
Now for our first step we need to access our weapon files. Go to your installation directory(local disk c:/program filesx86/steam/steam apps/common/saints row the third) and you will see all the installed files for the game. Open the folder inside that's called packfiles. Inside that folder is another folder called pc and open it. Now you will see a folder called cache and open it. Now you will see a lot of files with an extension .vpp(these are the games preloaded files for gameplay). Now gibbed tools is much easier to use than you may think. Everything is pretty much what they call drag and drop. For our weapons we need to look for the file named items.vpp. Hold your cursor on the items.vpp and drag it on top of Gibbed.SaintsRow3.UnpackVPP.exe inside the gibbed tools folder. It should extract all weapon files into a folder. Move this folder to your desktop for easy access.
If you followed the steps correctly you now have a folder on your desktop called items with a bunch of files ending with the extension .str2_pc
These are the files for the weapon textures that the game preloads.
Let's pause for a second here and explain a few minor basics. Any modified files must be left in your main directory. The reason for this is the game recognises any items in the main directory before the preloaded ones of the game. Second you want to leave the asm updater folder in your main installation directory for future use. Third is any time you make changes to any files such as str2_pc files they must be accompanied by the coresponding asm_pc file. In our case for weapons you will be modifying the .str2_pc file for the weapon which must be accompanied by items_containers.asm_pc. Both the str2_pc file and asm_pc file will be placed in your main directory and left there after we are finished.
Now to continue our project. Since we are starting with the 45 fletcher open the folder on your desktop called items and look for this file:
pistol_gang_high.str2_pc
Drag this file onto the Gibbed.SaintsRow3.UnpackSTR2.exe inside your gibbed volition folder.
It will extract the file for you to a new folder named pistol_gang_high.
Move this folder to your desktop for easy access.
Inside our new folder calked pistol_gang_high you will see 3 different files.
Look for the one ending in .cpeg and drag it on top of the SR3UnpackTextures.exe inside the gibbed volition folder. It will extract the contained images in .dds format. Now this is where your program gimp comes in.
Move the .dds file( there are 3 of them) to your desktop. Now open gimp2.8 in your programs. After gimp loads you will see 3 screens. One up top is a small window. Now in that window up top you will have the option to open a file click on it and a submenu will come up. Click on desktop on the left and it will show all items on your desktop. Look for the .dds files you moved to your desktop(there is 3 of them: d,s,n). Open the d file with gimp. Now at the top it will give you options as what to do with the file. In my personal experience the best way to texture a weapon or other is to export the image and modify it then have gimp export it back as .dds format. So what you want to do is choose the option at the top to export the file. Then below it will give you a choice of what to export the file as. I have found it is best to export the file as .png format then modify it with the program of choice( i personaly use windows paint as it has many options and is user friendly).
Now that you have your images exported in .png format you can modify them(paint) them to your own desire.
Make sure that you save these images in the same resolution they were exported or our process of repacking them will be useless.
Ok so you think you got them the way you want them. Now we want to repack the files for use in the game.
Now with gimp you want to do the same option to open a file. Look on your desktop for the .png images you just modified. Open them up in gimp. Export your png images as .dds format now(your option in submenu below for file extensions).
It will say it already exists do you want to replace it. Say yes. It will ask you in a small window what format. Now this is important you must choose the one below none called dxt1. This is the format the game recognises. Now that you exported your images in .dds format it's time to repack our .str2_pc file. Open your folder on the desktop called pistol_gang_high and copy the modified .dds files to the folder with the .cpeg file. Now this is a little confusing. You have the three original files ending in .cpeg gpeg plus your .dds files you modified in the same folder. This is where the repack comes in. Look inside your gibbed volition folder for this file: SR3RepackTextures.exe and copy it to the pistol_gang_high folder with the .dds files. Now you want to drag the file ending in .cpeg on top of the SR3RepackTextures.exe. it will silently repack your modified textures for you. Now at this point you should be able to right click on the .cpeg file and click properties and verify the date and time modified. Now we are getting close to done here. Now that you have repacked your textures you can delete the .dds files and SR3RepackTextures.exe from the pistol_gang_high folder. Now you should have only the .cpeg and .gpeg and the third original file that was in our folder. Now it's time to repack our str2_pc file. Now this is where i always got lost so pay attention to this part. Now what we want to do is drag the entire folder on our desktop called pistol_gang_high onto Gibbed.SaintsRow3.PackSTR2.exe inside the gibbed volition folder. If all went well you now have a file on your desktop called pistol_gang_high_PACKED.str2_pc
Now this is where i always messed up.
Right click on your new file named pistol_gang_high_PACKED.str2_pc and rename the file to pistol_gang_high.str2_pc
Now for our final step.
Copy your new file pistol_gang_high.str2_pc to your main directory(local disk c/programfilesx86/steam/steamapps/common/saints row the third) where the saints row the third.exe file is. Now you want to look inside your items folder and find this file: items_containers.asm_pc and copy it to your main directory with the saints row the third.exe
If you did all steps correctly you will have folder called asm updater,pistol_gang_high.str2_pc, and items_containers.asm_pc in your main directory with the saints row the third.exe
Now this is where gameqube's asm updater comes in. All asm files must be upated for the game to recognize the updated changes to any files. So what we want to do at this point is open the asm updater folder in your main directory and you will see a couple folders and 2 windows batch files. To update our items_containers.asn_pc you want to click on the top windows batch file that says after addition or changes. You will see a command prompt come up and update the files for you. Now start the game and you should be able to see your new modified(retextured) weapon in use.
Now for a few basic reminders or examples:
Every weapon has 3 different texture files to it.
D
N
S
Now everyone can call these as they will but i am going to explain them from an artist point of view.
D: I consider this the detail file as many have calked it a duffuse file. Either way from my point of view this file basicly changes the detailed coloring or persay textures of the model.
S: This is basicly the shading of the details(d) file.
It basicly intensifies the shades or colors of the details to the model.
N: Consider this like a bump file. It tells the game for the most part what texture the model should have. For example in our 45 we just created it creates the bump textures in the grip of the 45.
Note if you want to change the color or shade of a particular piece on your your model the d and the s file must be shaded the same to show up correctly.
From here any questions on this tutorial will be answered as promptly as possible.
Also if anyone feels they have progressed well enough into texturing and wishes to create a 3d effect from a weapon or any other textured item we can continue this tutorial.
I hope this helps as it took me a while to figure out how to get texturing done.
Last but not least i want o give a big shout out to Voltarox for helping me figure out texturing and answering my stupid questions. I simply applied my own creativity and inginuity and hope i can help others apply theirs
One: thank minimaul for the gibbed tools
Two: thank gameqube for the asm updater i am
Providing
Three: i am providing gimp×64 standalone
Installer plus the gimp .dds plugin
Necessary to read .dds images which are
Free shareware software
Four: thank volition for the great games they are
Allowing us to mod
Five: On a personal note thank you to the modding
Friends here at saints row mods for helping
Me get this far.
I'm no expert at texturing but am offering my knowledge at this point to help others to figure out how to texture without the confusing babble.
I am only providing theses tools to make things easier for you so no links and extra hunting. Now the gimp software i am providing is for ×64 bit systems only so if you are running a 32bit system you may need to google the gimp software which is free and download it( don't forget to download the .dds plugin that has instructions provided).
Alright it's time to start our process.
First step is to download the programs folder provided and extract it with winrar or 7zip or equivelent extraction program of your choice.
Inside you will see a couple different folders and programs. I have included the sr3 repack tools inside the gibbed volition folder for you as i have found it to be easy access to have gibbed tools and sr3 repack tools in the same place(i will be explaining their uses shortly).
Alright you have your tools and curious what to do with them at this point.
1: First requirement is a legitimate version of steam.
2: Second is a legitimate version of saints row the third installed from steam.
3: If you have the above requirements we may continue.
4: Steam will install saints row the third in the same place on any system: local disk c:/program files x86/steam/steam apps/common/saints row the third
5: look for the folder in step 4(this is called your installation directory by many here at the saints row mods). Copy the entire asm updater folder provided in the programs folder to your installation directory. Just to verify you should have a folder inside local disk c:/ program files×86/steam/steam apps/common/saints row the third named asm updater. This is a handy tool made by gameqube that is an easy alternative to be able to update almost any asm_pc files. It uses the gibbed tools to update the files for you only made a little more user friendly.
6: Inside the programs folder provided you will find the latest copy of gibbed tools and sr3 repack textures in a folder. Copy this folder to your desktop or a second drive for easy access.
7: Inside the programs folder you will see a setup for gimp 2.8. Run the installer and follow the easy instructions for installation( may take a few seconds to start the installation as it is unpacking a lot of information so don't panic).
8: Next you want to look inside the programs folder provided and you will see the gimp .dds plugin with instructions on where to put the plugin. Follow the instructions on where to copy and paste the plugin as this will be required for gimp to read the extracted images later.
Alright if you followed the above steps correctly your tools are ready for use. Now we will be starting with my particular area of the most experience which is weapons(but texturing is pretty much the same process for clothing and other items as well).
We will be using the 45 fletcher as our example for this tutorial as it is probably the most common weapon in saints row the third and easiest to work with since the resolution of the files are the same.
Now for our first step we need to access our weapon files. Go to your installation directory(local disk c:/program filesx86/steam/steam apps/common/saints row the third) and you will see all the installed files for the game. Open the folder inside that's called packfiles. Inside that folder is another folder called pc and open it. Now you will see a folder called cache and open it. Now you will see a lot of files with an extension .vpp(these are the games preloaded files for gameplay). Now gibbed tools is much easier to use than you may think. Everything is pretty much what they call drag and drop. For our weapons we need to look for the file named items.vpp. Hold your cursor on the items.vpp and drag it on top of Gibbed.SaintsRow3.UnpackVPP.exe inside the gibbed tools folder. It should extract all weapon files into a folder. Move this folder to your desktop for easy access.
If you followed the steps correctly you now have a folder on your desktop called items with a bunch of files ending with the extension .str2_pc
These are the files for the weapon textures that the game preloads.
Let's pause for a second here and explain a few minor basics. Any modified files must be left in your main directory. The reason for this is the game recognises any items in the main directory before the preloaded ones of the game. Second you want to leave the asm updater folder in your main installation directory for future use. Third is any time you make changes to any files such as str2_pc files they must be accompanied by the coresponding asm_pc file. In our case for weapons you will be modifying the .str2_pc file for the weapon which must be accompanied by items_containers.asm_pc. Both the str2_pc file and asm_pc file will be placed in your main directory and left there after we are finished.
Now to continue our project. Since we are starting with the 45 fletcher open the folder on your desktop called items and look for this file:
pistol_gang_high.str2_pc
Drag this file onto the Gibbed.SaintsRow3.UnpackSTR2.exe inside your gibbed volition folder.
It will extract the file for you to a new folder named pistol_gang_high.
Move this folder to your desktop for easy access.
Inside our new folder calked pistol_gang_high you will see 3 different files.
Look for the one ending in .cpeg and drag it on top of the SR3UnpackTextures.exe inside the gibbed volition folder. It will extract the contained images in .dds format. Now this is where your program gimp comes in.
Move the .dds file( there are 3 of them) to your desktop. Now open gimp2.8 in your programs. After gimp loads you will see 3 screens. One up top is a small window. Now in that window up top you will have the option to open a file click on it and a submenu will come up. Click on desktop on the left and it will show all items on your desktop. Look for the .dds files you moved to your desktop(there is 3 of them: d,s,n). Open the d file with gimp. Now at the top it will give you options as what to do with the file. In my personal experience the best way to texture a weapon or other is to export the image and modify it then have gimp export it back as .dds format. So what you want to do is choose the option at the top to export the file. Then below it will give you a choice of what to export the file as. I have found it is best to export the file as .png format then modify it with the program of choice( i personaly use windows paint as it has many options and is user friendly).
Now that you have your images exported in .png format you can modify them(paint) them to your own desire.
Make sure that you save these images in the same resolution they were exported or our process of repacking them will be useless.
Ok so you think you got them the way you want them. Now we want to repack the files for use in the game.
Now with gimp you want to do the same option to open a file. Look on your desktop for the .png images you just modified. Open them up in gimp. Export your png images as .dds format now(your option in submenu below for file extensions).
It will say it already exists do you want to replace it. Say yes. It will ask you in a small window what format. Now this is important you must choose the one below none called dxt1. This is the format the game recognises. Now that you exported your images in .dds format it's time to repack our .str2_pc file. Open your folder on the desktop called pistol_gang_high and copy the modified .dds files to the folder with the .cpeg file. Now this is a little confusing. You have the three original files ending in .cpeg gpeg plus your .dds files you modified in the same folder. This is where the repack comes in. Look inside your gibbed volition folder for this file: SR3RepackTextures.exe and copy it to the pistol_gang_high folder with the .dds files. Now you want to drag the file ending in .cpeg on top of the SR3RepackTextures.exe. it will silently repack your modified textures for you. Now at this point you should be able to right click on the .cpeg file and click properties and verify the date and time modified. Now we are getting close to done here. Now that you have repacked your textures you can delete the .dds files and SR3RepackTextures.exe from the pistol_gang_high folder. Now you should have only the .cpeg and .gpeg and the third original file that was in our folder. Now it's time to repack our str2_pc file. Now this is where i always got lost so pay attention to this part. Now what we want to do is drag the entire folder on our desktop called pistol_gang_high onto Gibbed.SaintsRow3.PackSTR2.exe inside the gibbed volition folder. If all went well you now have a file on your desktop called pistol_gang_high_PACKED.str2_pc
Now this is where i always messed up.
Right click on your new file named pistol_gang_high_PACKED.str2_pc and rename the file to pistol_gang_high.str2_pc
Now for our final step.
Copy your new file pistol_gang_high.str2_pc to your main directory(local disk c/programfilesx86/steam/steamapps/common/saints row the third) where the saints row the third.exe file is. Now you want to look inside your items folder and find this file: items_containers.asm_pc and copy it to your main directory with the saints row the third.exe
If you did all steps correctly you will have folder called asm updater,pistol_gang_high.str2_pc, and items_containers.asm_pc in your main directory with the saints row the third.exe
Now this is where gameqube's asm updater comes in. All asm files must be upated for the game to recognize the updated changes to any files. So what we want to do at this point is open the asm updater folder in your main directory and you will see a couple folders and 2 windows batch files. To update our items_containers.asn_pc you want to click on the top windows batch file that says after addition or changes. You will see a command prompt come up and update the files for you. Now start the game and you should be able to see your new modified(retextured) weapon in use.
Now for a few basic reminders or examples:
Every weapon has 3 different texture files to it.
D
N
S
Now everyone can call these as they will but i am going to explain them from an artist point of view.
D: I consider this the detail file as many have calked it a duffuse file. Either way from my point of view this file basicly changes the detailed coloring or persay textures of the model.
S: This is basicly the shading of the details(d) file.
It basicly intensifies the shades or colors of the details to the model.
N: Consider this like a bump file. It tells the game for the most part what texture the model should have. For example in our 45 we just created it creates the bump textures in the grip of the 45.
Note if you want to change the color or shade of a particular piece on your your model the d and the s file must be shaded the same to show up correctly.
From here any questions on this tutorial will be answered as promptly as possible.
Also if anyone feels they have progressed well enough into texturing and wishes to create a 3d effect from a weapon or any other textured item we can continue this tutorial.
I hope this helps as it took me a while to figure out how to get texturing done.
Last but not least i want o give a big shout out to Voltarox for helping me figure out texturing and answering my stupid questions. I simply applied my own creativity and inginuity and hope i can help others apply theirs
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