New object creator, need help I have just started making new objects, and i would like some tips on how to make them better. Thanx in advance
From my view point... Start with simple objects...try your skills at recolouring objects first... People prefer their objects to look 3D...so when u get better...start doing new objects
Lewdini is correct. Start small and move up. My first suggestion is to site hop and read the tutorials out there. There is no 1 tutorial that is 100% perfect - everyone has a slightly different way of accomplishing the finished project. Sims T...Parlor has a very nice selection of recoloring tutorials to start with - including how to handle multiple tiles - http://stpcarly.free.fr/. Several of the big sites including 7 Deadly Sims have turorials that are good for making new objects. Start with recolors - using TMOG and the 'Just Recolor". This will get you used to handling sprites, your paint tool, color adjustments, working between 16 million colors and 256 colors. working with shadows and lighting. Recolors do not need to to mess with a and z channels and are a good wat to learn how to recolor using colorize tools and how to cut and paste a texture/print to recolor an object. Once you get the hand of that you can move on to changing the shape of an object - such as taking a base love seat and making it into a backless bench - or something like that. This measn also cloning and changing z and a channels too. This is much more complicated but is the next step in producing new objects. Once you can take an object and make it look different from its original (loveseat now looks like a bench but it still interacts with the Sims as a place to sit) you can move on to changing teh animation and behavior strings associated with an item so that the items not only looks different but the Sims use it differently. At that point you do not clone items specifically for their use but for their sprite number. Take the loveseat example. You cloned a vase loveseat and changed the fabric it had on it - but it was still a loveseat - just recolored. Then you learned how to remove the back and make it look like a bench - but the Sims still just sit on it. Now you want to make teh Sims treat it as a daybed. The sims need to sit on it to watch TV, or nap on it during the day, and then get under the spread and sleep the night away. So you probably would start by cloning a bed and using the sprites you already have for the bench to change the look of the "made" and "ready" states sprites. Then you would need to make additional sprites for the "unmade" and "sleeping" states. Once you have the pictures correct you would need to change the "ready" state to use teh behavior strings for 'sitting' (which would give_ comfort ratings) and attach Sims animation to that state so the sim goes and sits on the bench. You already ahve sleeping and bed making animations attached so your ahead of the game. This last step requires several other tools - ones to change animations and behavior strings as well as menu editors so you can choose different things for you sim to do. Very few object makers go to this level of change - it takes a long time to change animations and behaviors and get them all tweaked correctly...SO far I have put in over a month into a working washer and dryer ;0
Great tips Rentechd!! Thanks a lot!! I've never even considered try it.. hehehe.. Maybe I will one day (when I have a puter again , mumble.. hrm.. grr) Now there are quite a few tips all over - maybe it's time to collect them and let them have their own threads where only tips and tricks goes in??? What do you say Josh? Do you have anyone that can help you with it as I have the feeling you're busy enough already. :bunny: :bunny: :bunny:
I'm going to have to go find out more on how to deal with changing animations/interactions etc. I've made new objects... but I would LOVE to start messing with things like that.... Guess I need to go find some tutorials.... And I would need to learn where to find editing tools to let me change behaviors etc... where would I find all that???
For modifying code, Script Station is good (however Maxis really dislikes it) Interactions and stuff, hmmmm I think there was a program at SimPrograms, but they are down :(
If I were to try to do a search using a search engine, how would I word it to find the kind of programs I would be looking for?? I'm not sure what they would be called... I guess I will look up Script Station and take a look... why does Maxis not like it?? I'll have to remember to check SimPrograms and see if they come back up... I hope they do as I haven't been there yet!!
It starts to tred onto copyright issues primarily because script station allows someone to tap into the core code the sims objects therefore it could get into an issue of who made the object.... Confusing right? Yep it is..
ooooh... hmmm.... well... would it be a problem if I just wanted to make stuff and didn't care to copyright it and say other people couldn't re-do it?? Hrmmmm....
Well, where can I get the rtransmofrifer orogram for the sims-what is the best way to create a an new object?
Blueprint http://blueprint.thesimsresource.com SimPrograms (list of programs designed for The Sims. Choose as necessary) http://www.simprograms.com
Actually, the script station is a java script reader / writer. Maxis may not like it, but java script is used in more applications then just the sims. Walter
