I looking at getting back into modding.

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I looking at getting back into modding.

Postby ThaSaltyDawg on Sat Apr 03, 2021 8:48 am

Hey modding community what’s up! I’m not necessarily new to this. I actually go way back 20+ years to the Vintage NBA Live PC games. I started on NBA Live PC back in like NBA Live 98. While all my friends were on PSOne gaming I was on the PC. With my brothers and my friends, we use to have NBA Live tournaments at my house. I use to mod the game with new courts, new jerseys, new rosters and whatever to jazz the game up. I was the hero, and no one ever wanted to play NBA Live on PSOne again! I even created a few mods myself, just some personal stuff like edit courts, arenas, face mesh, roster edits, editing players. Mainly for our personal tourneys.

I looking at getting back into modding. I just got NBA 2k21 PC just so I can start back modding. But I need to do some research and studying, it’s been a while this is all foreign to me now LOL. My technical background is in Computer Programming, Graphics and IT. Got degrees in Math, Physics and Computer Information Systems. Though I originally started college in Commercial Graphic Arts. In 1993 that field was not too lucrative unless you were an engineer. I left study and just finished my degree in General Math. At the time the WWW was starting up and I taught myself HTML, as I did teaching myself programming in Jr High and High School! Now I work as Level 3 IT Technician and a Project Manager for a PBX VOIP UCaas phone company.

As I said, I use to run tournaments out my house back in the day, and looking to see what’s new in modding these days on NBA 2k21. So I’m just looking for any direction anyone of you can take me to get started. I’m looking at court and arena mods, specifically blacktop courts, players, rosters, jerseys and whatever else. Hope to also be able to contribute to the community soon. Thanks
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Re: I looking at getting back into modding.

Postby Dee4Three on Sat Apr 03, 2021 2:59 pm

Welcome back to the modding scene!

Unfortunately, we do not have a lot of tutorials in this 2K21 tutorials sections located below:

viewforum.php?f=268

However, some of the other recent titles have more content in those sections that can help you get started and still apply to 2K21 (Like blender tutorials, etc)

Your questions are not easy to answer, because a lot can be involved with the creation of mods, editing of rosters, and importing of mods to work with the game. I will give you a few tips though:


:!: Download the Mods folder, hook tool and plugins (Links below) and place them in your main NBA 2K21 directory. This will allow you to install the many mods you see in this section.

Hook tool: https://www.shuajota.com/2021/02/nba2k2 ... looyh.html
Mods Folder and plugins: https://www.shuajota.com/2020/09/nba2k2 ... added.html

Note: The mods folder and plugins link also has the hook tool, but it is an older version, so make sure just to use the hook tool items from the first link

Here is a tutorial The Goods made on how to setup your mods folder, and how to install mods.

phpBB [video]



:!: Download the 2K21 export console at the link below: This allows you to export files in order to edit them outside of 2K21.

https://www.shuajota.com/2020/09/nba-2k ... looyh.html

Here is a tutorial Shuajota made on how to use it

phpBB [video]



:!: Download 7-zip if you don't already have it. It is free, and the best and easiest way to open archives, pack archives, etc.

https://www.7-zip.org/download.html


:!: Download Blender: I recommend 2.82 for this 2K, and 2.79 works pretty well for other recent 2Ks. But the conversion tool to convert faces back and forth from different 2Ks works best with 2.82.

https://www.blender.org/download/releases/2-82/

Note: Maybe other newer versions would work fine, I just really like 2.82


:!: If you do not have Photoshop, Paint.net is a fantastic free program that I use the large majority of the time when modding.

https://www.getpaint.net/

DDS Plugin for the program

https://forums.getpaint.net/topic/11173 ... 0-08-2020/


:!: Download NBA 2K21 Tools (I don't have a lot of experience with this program on NBA 2K21, but I do on NBA 2K19 now). This is a roster editor created by Looyh

viewtopic.php?f=267&t=110912


:!: Here is a way you can get your feet wet with court modding. The Goods made a tutorial

viewtopic.php?f=268&t=111345

phpBB [video]



:!: How to mod crowds tutorial made by The Goods

viewtopic.php?f=268&t=111317

:!: Here is a Cyberface makng tutorial created by LosJosh. This was done using 2K20, but it still applies to 2K21

phpBB [video]



That should get you started. Most of the mods you download will go into that Mods folder, or in a folder within the Mods folder (The modder will usually release instructions with the release, or at the very least if the clothing folder within the Mods folder is utilized, they will release the mods in that clothing folder so you will know what to do)

I personally started modding way back with Live 98 using DB Commander, which was honestly pretty awesome (Ask me how to use it now, and I couldn't tell you). I just remember doing some portraits, inserting them, and messing with courts a bit.

We have a lot of great minds and artists in this community, look around and you might be able to find a lot of your questions answered. But don't be afraid to reach out to the community if you get stuck.

Hopefully this helps
"I don't know if I practiced more than anybody, but I sure practiced enough. I still wonder if somebody - somewhere - was practicing more than me." - Larry Bird

Check out my YouTube channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvHJXrqit8Dc6HBY5P6EmAA


Follow me on Twitter

https://twitter.com/Dee4Three84
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Re: I looking at getting back into modding.

Postby ThaSaltyDawg on Sat Apr 03, 2021 5:22 pm

Dee4Three wrote:Welcome back to the modding scene!

Unfortunately, we do not have a lot of tutorials in this 2K21 tutorials sections located below:

<!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="https://forums.nba-live.com/viewforum.php?f=268">viewforum.php?f=268</a><!-- l -->

However, some of the other recent titles have more content in those sections that can help you get started and still apply to 2K21 (Like blender tutorials, etc)

Your questions are not easy to answer, because a lot can be involved with the creation of mods, editing of rosters, and importing of mods to work with the game. I will give you a few tips though:


:!: Download the Mods folder, hook tool and plugins (Links below) and place them in your main NBA 2K21 directory. This will allow you to install the many mods you see in this section.

Hook tool: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.shuajota.com/2021/02/nba2k21-hook-tool-v007-by-looyh.html">https://www.shuajota.com/2021/02/nba2k2 ... looyh.html</a><!-- m -->
Mods Folder and plugins: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.shuajota.com/2020/09/nba2k21-hook-v005-2020-10-01-added.html">https://www.shuajota.com/2020/09/nba2k2 ... added.html</a><!-- m -->

Note: The mods folder and plugins link also has the hook tool, but it is an older version, so make sure just to use the hook tool items from the first link

Here is a tutorial The Goods made on how to setup your mods folder, and how to install mods.

phpBB [video]



:!: Download the 2K21 export console at the link below: This allows you to export files in order to edit them outside of 2K21.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.shuajota.com/2020/09/nba-2k21-file-export-tool-v11-by-looyh.html">https://www.shuajota.com/2020/09/nba-2k ... looyh.html</a><!-- m -->

Here is a tutorial Shuajota made on how to use it

phpBB [video]



:!: Download 7-zip if you don't already have it. It is free, and the best and easiest way to open archives, pack archives, etc.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.7-zip.org/download.html">https://www.7-zip.org/download.html</a><!-- m -->


:!: Download Blender: I recommend 2.82 for this 2K, and 2.79 works pretty well for other recent 2Ks. But the conversion tool to convert faces back and forth from different 2Ks works best with 2.82.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.blender.org/download/releases/2-82/">https://www.blender.org/download/releases/2-82/</a><!-- m -->

Note: Maybe other newer versions would work fine, I just really like 2.82


:!: If you do not have Photoshop, Paint.net is a fantastic free program that I use the large majority of the time when modding.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.getpaint.net/">https://www.getpaint.net/</a><!-- m -->

DDS Plugin for the program

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://forums.getpaint.net/topic/111731-dds-filetype-plus-10-08-2020/">https://forums.getpaint.net/topic/11173 ... 0-08-2020/</a><!-- m -->


:!: Download NBA 2K21 Tools (I don't have a lot of experience with this program on NBA 2K21, but I do on NBA 2K19 now). This is a roster editor created by Looyh

<!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="https://forums.nba-live.com/viewtopic.php?f=267&t=110912">viewtopic.php?f=267&t=110912</a><!-- l -->


:!: Here is a way you can get your feet wet with court modding. The Goods made a tutorial

<!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="https://forums.nba-live.com/viewtopic.php?f=268&t=111345">viewtopic.php?f=268&t=111345</a><!-- l -->

phpBB [video]



:!: How to mod crowds tutorial made by The Goods

<!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="https://forums.nba-live.com/viewtopic.php?f=268&t=111317">viewtopic.php?f=268&t=111317</a><!-- l -->

:!: Here is a Cyberface makng tutorial created by LosJosh. This was done using 2K20, but it still applies to 2K21

phpBB [video]



That should get you started. Most of the mods you download will go into that Mods folder, or in a folder within the Mods folder (The modder will usually release instructions with the release, or at the very least if the clothing folder within the Mods folder is utilized, they will release the mods in that clothing folder so you will know what to do)

I personally started modding way back with Live 98 using DB Commander, which was honestly pretty awesome (Ask me how to use it now, and I couldn't tell you). I just remember doing some portraits, inserting them, and messing with courts a bit.

We have a lot of great minds and artists in this community, look around and you might be able to find a lot of your questions answered. But don't be afraid to reach out to the community if you get stuck.

Hopefully this helps
Thanks for the info. I figured most editing tools are relevant from series to series and started there researching myself. I was looking for some blender and photoshop content that I could learn from. Also I use LogMeIn Hamachi and other VPN Gaming software from some modded content to be played online, is there anything like this available for this game? And Thanks
ThaSaltyDawg
 
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2021 8:04 am

Re: I looking at getting back into modding.

Postby Bassman58 on Sun Apr 04, 2021 2:37 am

If you want to get back in to modding, I suggest you start small. Courts, uniforms, dornas are the easiest. Basically one texture made and put back in to an IFF file. The IFF files are containers that hold other files, similar to a ZIP file. This is why 7-Zip is used to decompress and compress the file. Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro and GIMP (free program) and Paint.Net (free) can be used. Cyberface editing requires 3D editing and is a lot more involved. Also download mods and reverse engineer what they did. Learn what they did. YouTube has tutorials for previous versions of NBA 2K. You can also find tutorials for your graphics program and Blender. Other sports games use similar techniques to create cyberfaces, like MLB 2K and Pro Evolution Soccer (PES).
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Re: I looking at getting back into modding.

Postby Dee4Three on Sun Apr 04, 2021 3:34 am

I agree with everything Bassman said.

Have a target interest (maybe courts or something), and focus on working on that and that alone to start. Learn the programs/apps, how to import/export, etc

We actually talked about this on the NLSC podcast we just recorded that will be released tomorrow. I suggest checking it out!
"I don't know if I practiced more than anybody, but I sure practiced enough. I still wonder if somebody - somewhere - was practicing more than me." - Larry Bird

Check out my YouTube channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvHJXrqit8Dc6HBY5P6EmAA


Follow me on Twitter

https://twitter.com/Dee4Three84
User avatar
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Re: I looking at getting back into modding.

Postby ThaSaltyDawg on Sun Apr 04, 2021 6:57 pm

thanks
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Re: I looking at getting back into modding.

Postby ThaSaltyDawg on Wed Apr 14, 2021 8:49 pm

would anyone happen to know if Looyh is opening his source code for NBA 2K21 Tool?
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Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2021 8:04 am


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