File replacement: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 12:10, August 8, 2014

File replacement is a general term used to describe replacing various elements of the games in the Super Smash Bros. series, including textures, music, and even movesets. Initially holding niche appeal amongst gamers, improvements to the hacking scene, especially for Brawl, have led to more and more sophisticated file replacement hacks for the games. A majority of game mods for the games feature extensive use of file replacement hacks in order to deliver a unique experience to the mod.

In Smash 64

A texture hack of Pikachu's Thunder that recolors the electric effects pink.

File replacement in Smash 64 is accomplished by the use of the Rice Video plugin in conjunction with an emulator. The lesser fanbase of Smash 64 is the primary reason why this type of file replacement is less common than for the other two games; additionally, Rice Video has been implicated in causing stability problems with Super Smash Bros. with certain hardware and emulators

Owing to an inability to design cartridges for the Nintendo 64, no effective way has been found to replace files and use the modified ROM on an actual console.

In Melee

A character select screen hack for Melee; the portraits more closely resemble those found in the previous game, and Captain Falcon now has palette swaps that resemble other characters from other media.

Largely untouched for the first nine years since the game's release, file replacement in Melee gained popularity when S. of Stack Smash posted his texture hacks online. This process entails replacing files directly to the ISO with a program such as GC-Tool, and then burning the ISO to a disc or saving the ISO on a computer so that it can be run with an emulator such as Dolphin.

Due to the difficulty in hacking the GameCube console by itself, the difficulty in reliably accessing the Wii's RAM for playing GameCube games, and the steep system requirements of Dolphin, file replacement in Melee is considerably less widespread than that for Brawl, though it does have a few devoted developers. Improvements in Dolphin itself have allowed for more hacks to be produced for the game, with Melee: SD Remix featuring numerous changes the game's stages via file replacement.

In Brawl

A popular hack that alters Toon Link's model, moveset and animations to create Geno from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.

Due to the ease of hacking the Wii through the use of the Homebrew Channel, the lack of technical expertise in getting the Homebrew Channel and replacement files, the ability to hack a Wii because of the Smash Stack exploit, and a wide variety of resources available for it, file replacement is the most popular in the Brawl community, with many websites available solely for downloading a variety of hacks for the game. Brawl hacks are also known for being among the most sophisticated of the three games, with all-new character movesets and unique stages even being introduced to some mods; programs like BrawlBox and Open SA also exist to assist in the creation of file replacement hacks.

Brawl hacking was initially restricted to particularly devoted players, as hacking the game's files initially required the extensive use of modified ISOs and Wii consoles in order to run hacked data. Hacker Phantom Wings is credited to expanding the popularity of Brawl file replacement hacks, as he made file replacement available to users using SD cards, with most prior file replacement hacks requiring hacking of the Brawl ISO itself.

Specific hacks

Texture hacks

A "Christmas Edition Peach" stands on a modded Final Destination.

The textures of Link's model have been modified and replaced to make him look like his Fierce Deity form from The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask.

Texture hacking refers to the modification of individual textures in the game's data. Pioneered by the hacker Pharrox, a majority of texture hacks are cosmetic in function, and often take the form of alternate costumes for characters, such as those seen in the images to the left and right. Textures from both characters and stages can be modified, as can various other texture; some hacks, for instance, replace the graphics featured in Peach's Peach Blossom. Particularly extensive texture hacks are also often featured in moveset hacks, such as those seen in Project M and Brawl-.

Music hacks

Music hacks feature the replacement of unpopular music tracks and replacing them with tracks that the user prefers to use in the game. Custom music was popularized by GHNeko (one of the main developers of Brawl+), who made a video displaying various stages with custom music, although it was done with a modified ISO. Eventually, Phantom Wings continued his file replacement code used for textures to incorporate music (the first post about it can be seen here). Initially difficult for casual users to understand, due to the use of the .brstm file and requiring music to loop in an acceptable manner, fellow hacker Bionic Sonic created a tool that required considerably less hacking and editing from the end user's part. The hacker Dantarion later improved on this method.

Moveset hacks

The vertices of Ike's model, his moveset, and even animations have all been altered to turn him into Final Fantasy VII protagonist, Cloud Strife.

Created by Phantom Wings, moveset hacks (known as "Project Smash Attacks" after the identically-named program, as well as "Plan Zeroes" after the first notable moveset hack) alter the movesets of an individual character to varying degrees. This type of hack, however, requires extensive knowledge of scripting and floating values in order to perform, though multiple tutorials exist in an attempt to teach newer users on how to perform such hacks. The first notable moveset hack was "Plan Zero", a moveset hack of Mario. Although not the most popular moveset hack, it became the most widely known amongst hackers after the release of Project Smash Attack. Today, most moveset hacks are more refined than before, and often feature famous characters such asCloud Strife from Final Fantasy VII and Mewtwo, who was eventually hacked into Project M.

a PSA Hack for Ness is made to make him look like Paula Polestar.

another Ness PSA hack, this makes Ness look like PaRappa The Rapper.

External links

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{ArticleIcons|ssb=y|ssbm=y|ssbb=y}}
-'''File replacement''' is a general term used to describe replacing various elements of the games in  the ''[[Super Smash Bros. (series)|Super Smash Bros.]]'' series, including textures, music, and even [[moveset]]s. ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'' is by far the most popular game in the series to hack, followed by ''[[Melee]]'' and then the original ''[[Super Smash Bros.]]''. Hacker Phantom Wings is credited to expanding its popularity, as he made file replacement available to users using SD cards, as initially music and textures required ISO hacking. Notable texture hack programs include [[BrawlBox]] and [[Open SA]].
+'''File replacement''' is a general term used to describe replacing various elements of the games in  the ''[[Super Smash Bros. (series)|Super Smash Bros.]]'' series, including textures, music, and even [[moveset]]s. Initially holding niche appeal amongst gamers, improvements to the hacking scene, especially for ''Brawl'', have led to more and more sophisticated file replacement hacks for the games. A majority of [[Gameplay modification|game mods]] for the games feature extensive use of file replacement hacks in order to deliver a unique experience to the mod.
 ==In ''Smash 64''==
 [[File:Tex hack SSB.png|thumb|150px|A texture hack of {{SSB|Pikachu}}'s {{b|Thunder|Pokémon}} that recolors the electric effects pink.]]
-File replacement in ''Smash 64'' is accomplished by the use of the {{s|wikipedia|Rice Video}} plugin in conjunction with an emulator. The lesser fanbase of ''Smash 64'' is the primary reason why this type of file replacement is less common than for the other two games; additionally, Rice Video, when used with some emulators like Project 64, have reportedly caused stability problems with ''Super Smash Bros.''
+File replacement in ''Smash 64'' is accomplished by the use of the {{s|wikipedia|Rice Video}} plugin in conjunction with an emulator. The lesser fanbase of ''Smash 64'' is the primary reason why this type of file replacement is less common than for the other two games; additionally, Rice Video has been implicated in causing stability problems with ''Super Smash Bros.'' with certain hardware and emulators
 Owing to an inability to design cartridges for the Nintendo 64, no effective way has been found to replace files and use the modified ROM on an actual console.
 ==In ''Melee''==
-[[File:ChristmasPeachMelee.jpg|thumb|left|A "Christmas Edition Peach" stands on a modded [[Final Destination]].]]
 [[File:HackedMeleeRoster.png|thumb|right|A character select screen hack for ''Melee''; the portraits more closely resemble those found in the previous game, and Captain Falcon now has palette swaps that resemble other characters from other media.]]
 Largely untouched for the first nine years since the game's release, file replacement in ''Melee'' gained popularity when S. of Stack Smash posted his texture hacks online. This process entails replacing files directly to the ISO with a program such as GC-Tool, and then burning the ISO to a disc or saving the ISO on a computer so that it can be run with an emulator such as [[Dolphin]].
-Due to the difficulty in hacking the GameCube console by itself, the difficulty in reliably accessing the Wii's RAM for playing GameCube games, and the steep system requirements of Dolphin, file replacement in ''Melee'' is considerably less widespread than that for ''Brawl'', though it does have a few devoted developers.
+Due to the difficulty in hacking the GameCube console by itself, the difficulty in reliably accessing the Wii's RAM for playing GameCube games, and the steep system requirements of Dolphin, file replacement in ''Melee'' is considerably less widespread than that for ''Brawl'', though it does have a few devoted developers. Improvements in Dolphin itself have allowed for more hacks to be produced for the game, with ''[[Melee: SD Remix]]'' featuring numerous changes the game's stages via file replacement.
 ==In ''Brawl''==
-Due to the ease of hacking the Wii through the use of the Homebrew Channel, the lack of technical expertise in getting the Homebrew Channel and replacement files, the ability to hack a Wii because of an exploit built into ''Brawl'' itself, and a wide variety of resources available for it, file replacement is the most popular in the ''Brawl'' community, with many websites available solely for downloading a variety of hacks for the game.
+[[File:Geno in Brawl 5.png|thumb|300px|A popular hack that alters {{SSBB|Toon Link}}'s model, moveset and animations to create Geno from ''Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars''.]]
-===Textures===
+Due to the ease of hacking the Wii through the use of the Homebrew Channel, the lack of technical expertise in getting the Homebrew Channel and replacement files, the ability to hack a Wii because of the [[Smash Stack]] exploit, and a wide variety of resources available for it, file replacement is the most popular in the ''Brawl'' community, with many websites available solely for downloading a variety of hacks for the game. ''Brawl'' hacks are also known for being among the most sophisticated of the three games, with all-new character movesets and unique stages even being introduced to some mods; programs like [[BrawlBox]] and [[Open SA]] also exist to assist in the creation of file replacement hacks.
-[[File:Fierce Deity Link.png|thumb|An example of a texture hack. The textures of {{SSBB|Link}}'s model have been modified and replaced to make him look like his Fierce Deity form from ''The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask''.|300px]]
-::''For a catalog of many available texture hacks, please visit [http://forums.kc-mm.com/Gallery/BrawlView.php Brawl Vault].''
-The term "texture hack" refers to a hack that alters or replaces the designs or colors of a stage, texture, item, etc. The hacking of character [[palette swap]]s was pioneered by Pharrox, a user on [[Smash World Forums]].
+''Brawl'' hacking was initially restricted to particularly devoted players, as hacking the game's files initially required the extensive use of modified ISOs and Wii consoles in order to run hacked data. Hacker Phantom Wings is credited to expanding the popularity of ''Brawl'' file replacement hacks, as he made file replacement available to users using [[SD card]]s, with most prior file replacement hacks requiring hacking of the ''Brawl'' ISO itself.
-[[File:NessPSAPaulapolestar.png|thumb|a PSA Hack for Ness is made to make him look like Paula Polestar.]]
+==Specific hacks==
-[[File:NessPSAParappa.png|thumb|another Ness PSA hack, this makes Ness look like PaRappa The Rapper.]]
+===Texture hacks===
-Since then, texture hacking has expanded to incorporate stage textures, [[item]] textures, [[Final Smash]] textures (e.g., the artwork seen during {{SSBB|Peach}}'s [[Peach Blossom]]), and [[non-playable character]] textures. Over time, the popularity of texture hacking has caused several other kinds of hacks to become available, such as music hacks, moveset hacks, and, eventually, model swapping, vertex hacks, custom animations, and even the insertion of completely new models.
+[[File:ChristmasPeachMelee.jpg|thumb|left|A "Christmas Edition Peach" stands on a modded [[Final Destination]].]]
+[[File:Fierce Deity Link.png|thumb|The textures of {{SSBB|Link}}'s model have been modified and replaced to make him look like his Fierce Deity form from ''The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask''.|300px]]
-Initially, blank DVDs were necessary in order to use texture hacks, but Phantom Wings managed to create a hack, exploiting ''Brawl'''s use of data created and saved on an SD card, that allowed for texture hacks to be stored on and loaded from folders on SD cards, making them much more popular and accessible. Now, the only thing required is an SD card, and a program to load the codes and textures, commonly Gecko OS or Riivolution.
+Texture hacking refers to the modification of individual textures in the game's data. Pioneered by the hacker Pharrox, a majority of texture hacks are cosmetic in function, and often take the form of alternate costumes for characters, such as those seen in the images to the left and right. Textures from both characters and stages can be modified, as can various other texture; some hacks, for instance, replace the graphics featured in {{SSBB|Peach}}'s [[Peach Blossom]]. Particularly extensive texture hacks are also often featured in moveset hacks, such as those seen in ''[[Project M]]'' and ''[[Brawl-]]''.
-===Primary texture hacking teams===
+===[[Music]] hacks===
-*[http://Kc-mm.com Kitty Corp: Meow Mix.]
+Music hacks feature the replacement of unpopular music tracks and replacing them with tracks that the user prefers to use in the game. Custom music was popularized by GHNeko (one of the main developers of ''[[Brawl+]]''), who made a video displaying various stages with custom music, although it was done with a modified ISO. Eventually, Phantom Wings continued his file replacement code used for textures to incorporate music (the first post about it can be seen [http://board.gscentral.org/showthread.php?t=30533#22 here]). Initially difficult for casual users to understand, due to the use of the .brstm file and requiring music to loop in an acceptable manner, fellow hacker Bionic Sonic created a tool that required considerably less hacking and editing from the end user's part. The hacker Dantarion [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hu-IT_-ULXc&annotation_id=annotation_781800&feature=iv  later improved on this method].
-*[http://elitesmashhackers.wordpress.com/ Elite Smash Hackers]
+===Moveset hacks===
-*[http://stacksmash.kontek.net Stack Smash]
-Possibly one of the most well-known and renowned hacking teams, ]Syntax Error[, the first texture hacking team, as well as the ones who released a guide to the masses on how to do texture hacking, was, unfortunately, broken up by their host site shortly after their releases for fear of a lawsuit from [[Nintendo]]. In reality, no lawsuit actually ever existed; it was only a safety precaution by the host site when they learned that ]Syntax Error[ had actually released their textures and guide to the public. Their host site believed that this release of hacks was a promotion of illegal piracy, when, in fact, Syntax Error did not promote piracy at all and actually refused to give out ''Brawl''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s ISO for the hacks, which could also be inadvertently used for piracy. Their textures, which had been released for a very short time prior to their being shut down, were given to the Stack Smash team, who placed them in a separate file on their [Index of /STUFFZ/]. Their being broken up by their host site for fear of legal issues has caused the team to become a kind of martyr in the ''Smash'' hacking community, and has caused many to push hacking farther than ever before, even expanding the concept into ''Melee'', which was previously thought to be much more resilient to possible hacks, especially texture replacements and the like.
-===Custom [[music]]===
-Similar to textures, music was initially limited to ISO users, although much later than textures. Custom music was popularized by GHNeko (one of the main developers of [[Brawl+]]), who made a video displaying various stages with custom music, although it was with ISO. Eventually, Phantom Wings continued his file replacement code used for textures to incorporate music (the first post about it can be seen [http://board.gscentral.org/showthread.php?t=30533#22 here]). Custom music was initially very confusing to make, as users had to make the music into a .brstm file, loop in an acceptable manner, and have the proper settings, although Bionic Sonic created a tool that only required simple editing to accommodate various personal settings, mostly volume, in a music editing program, such as Audacity. A newer version was released by Dantarion and a video can be seen [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hu-IT_-ULXc&annotation_id=annotation_781800&feature=iv here].
-===Moveset hacks (Project Smash Attacks/Plan Zero)===
 [[File:IkeisCloud.png|thumb|The vertices of {{SSBB|Ike}}'s model, his moveset, and even animations have all been altered to turn him into ''{{s|wikipedia|Final Fantasy VII}}'' protagonist, {{s|wikipedia|Cloud Strife}}.|250px|right]]
-[[File:Geno in Brawl 5.png|thumb|300px|A popular hack that alters {{SSBB|Toon Link}}'s model, moveset and animations to create Geno from ''Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars''.]]
+Created by Phantom Wings, moveset hacks (known as "Project Smash Attacks" after the [[Project Smash Attack|identically-named program]], as well as "Plan Zeroes" after the first notable moveset hack) alter the movesets of an individual character to varying degrees. This type of hack, however, requires extensive knowledge of scripting and floating values in order to perform, though multiple tutorials exist in an attempt to teach newer users on how to perform such hacks. The first notable moveset hack was "Plan Zero", a moveset hack of {{SSBB|Mario}}. Although not the most popular moveset hack, it became the most widely known amongst hackers after the release of Project Smash Attack. Today, most moveset hacks are more refined than before, and often feature famous characters such asCloud Strife from ''Final Fantasy VII'' and [[Mewtwo]], who was eventually hacked into ''[[Project M]]''.
-Created by Phantom Wings, moveset hacks (known as Project Smash Attacks) allow one to edit a character's moveset to create their own. Although understanding of scripts and floating values are necessary, it has been described as simple to those who do understand it, and several users on [[Smash World Forums]] and various hacking sites have tried to make simple guides for those who don't. Many movesets have been made, although the first one, made by Phantom Wings, known as Phoenix Mario, was the first one to be unveiled at Brawlhacks Wiki under the name Plan Zero. Phoenix Mario, although maybe not the most popular moveset hack, is or was the most widely-used around the time of the release of Project Smash Attacks.
-An example of a moveset hack is that of {{s|wikipedia|Cloud Strife}} from the popular ''{{s|wikipedia|Final Fantasy}}'' series. His appearance is most well-known on Kitty Corp: Meow Mix, but the model was designed by Akari_Un from a lesser-sized team called Das Donkey. The moveset was added by a hacker named .Fade, and the animations designed mostly by Canon, both of whom are members of the Kitty Corp: Meow Mix team.
+[[File:NessPSAPaulapolestar.png|thumb|a PSA Hack for Ness is made to make him look like Paula Polestar.]]
+[[File:NessPSAParappa.png|thumb|another Ness PSA hack, this makes Ness look like PaRappa The Rapper.]]
-Other projects similar to this one have cropped up. Kitty Corp: Meow Mix normally creates hacks that will please mass amounts of people at a time, with large fanbases already in place. BrawlVault, designed by Picano and Jack H. (the current leaders of Kitty Corp: Meow Mix), houses many of these moveset hacks.
-If these types of hacks are used in a [[Wi-Fi]] match against those who don't have those hacks enabled, the character will appear as normal and will perform their usual attacks, however the match will lag and the players will soon disconnect. If the stage sizes are different, the consequences of certain actions can be different; for example, if the player using the file replacement if playing on a larger stage and goes too far to the side, they may still be grounded according to their screen, but they will have fallen and [[SD]]'d according to the other player's screen.
 ==External links==
@@ Line 53: / Line 39: @@
 *[http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=247119 Smashboards ''Melee'' hacking introduction]
 *[http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=225642 A guide to using the File Replacement code for users using the SD loader]
+*[http://forums.kc-mm.com/Gallery/BrawlView.php Brawl Vault, which hosts numerous ''Brawl''-related texture hacks]
+*[http://Kc-mm.com Kitty Corp: Meow Mix, a texture hack team.]
+*[http://elitesmashhackers.wordpress.com/ Elite Smash Hackers, a blog concerning file replacement hacks]
+*[http://stacksmash.kontek.net Stack Smash, a resource for hacks]
 [[Category:Hacking]]

File replacement: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 12:10, August 8, 2014

Contents

In Smash 64

In Melee

In Brawl

Specific hacks

Texture hacks

Music hacks

Moveset hacks

External links

Navigation menu

Page actions

Page actions

Personal tools

Navigation

Search

Participate

Tools