NBA Live 2000 Cyberface Tutorial

This tutorial, created by Patman, will assist you in creating cyberfaces for NBA Live 2000.

The Tutorial

To make cyberfaces for the NBA Live games you will need a few programs before you can start.

PROGRAMS NEEDED TO MAKE CYBERFACES

1. EA Graphics Editor. Created by Tim Tschirner and Brien Smith. This can be downloaded at the NLSC.
2. JASC's PAINT SHOP PRO. This can be downloaded at Jasc Software.
3. BLOTCH00. Created by: Lutz van Hasselt. (included here).
4. CUSTOM_FACE_2K.BAT file. Created by: Pat Lee. (included here).

If you have all of these items, then you are ready to create your own custom cyberfaces.

Setting up your game for custom Cyberfaces

Step 1. You must have the game FULLY INSTALLED on your hard drive. This seems to fix any errors that might occur with patch problems. If you don't have your game fully installed, you need to uninstall it and then reinstall it as a FULL INSTALL.

Step 2. Once you have the game FULLY INSTALLED on your hard drive, you can now copy the entire \ART directory from the CD Rom onto your Hard Drive.

This ensures proper usage of the created files. Once you have all of the files copied over to your Hard Drive, then make sure that they are changed from READ ONLY to ARCHIVE.

This is easy to do. Simply right mouse click on the files that you will be editing, and then click on properties. This will bring up a new screen. From there, you can now change the settings of the file. ARCHIVE needs to be checked, and the READ ONLY setting needs to be UNCHECKED or turned off.

You need to change these files to use custom face, court, jerseys, and logos.

• art\ingame\players\plrdata0.viv
• art\ingame\players\portbg.viv
• art\ingame\misc\smlogos.viv
• art\frontend\foregrnd\logos\logos.viv
• art\ingame\teams\teamdata.viv

Creating a character within the game to edit

Step 1. Start the game, and load a roster that you want to add your new custom character to.

Step 2. Click on the bottom bar where it says ROSTERS, and you will see the option to CREATE PLAYER, click on it.

Step 3. You are now able to build a custom character with all of your own personal information. Be sure that you have everything you want you will not be able to change the information later.

Step 4. Click on the ADD button. This will add your new custom character to the roster. Now you MUST SAVE this roster. Click on the bottom of the screen where it says FILES, and it will take you to the roster page. Click on SAVE ROSTER, and then name your roster.

Step 5. Now you're ready to create a custom cyberface for this character.

Extracting a Cyberface to create your new Cyberface

Step 1. Your created character does not exist in the game, like the other players so you will need to make one from one of the originals.

Step 2. Think of a character in the NBA that best fits your custom character traits. You want to match the hair style and color of the player.

Step 3. One you have decided on which player best fits your needs, you can now extract him.

Step 4. The custom player I'm creating is ME, so I have to extract someone that looks like me. I'm a white male with a shaved head and goatee. My cyberface will be made from Matt Geiger.

Step 5. I will use my own cyberface creation with Matt Geiger's face as an example. To get this file, you must use the EA Graphic Editor. Double click on the EAGRAPH icon to run the program and then under FILE choose OPEN and then find the 0plrdata.viv file in the art\ingame\players folder. Once you open this file, all of the images within this file will appear on the left hand collum.

The names are listed with numbers (0, 1, 2, 3 and 4) and then the first two letters of the player's name followed by 5 letters of their last name. For example, Matt Geiger would be 0MAGEIGE. You can find your player very quickly with the FIND GRAPHIC option under the TOOLS menu.

Enter the name you are looking for and then click FIND.

This search may take a while depending on the speed of your machine, so be patient. After your file is found, it will now appear on the top of the left side collum. Now you click CLOSE.

Now, you have to extract 2 files. They are: 0MAGEIGE.FSH and 1MAGEIGE.FSH. (You don't have to extract these files, but instead the ones that best fit your desired character.)

To extract the 2 files, click on the one you want and then click on the EXTRACT file button. (Shown here in the highlight)

This will ask you where you want to extract the file to. Be sure to keep them all together. YOU MUST also add the .FSH suffix to the file before you extract it.

So if I were extracting the 0MAGEIGE.FSH file, I would click on the name, then click the EXTRACT file button on the toolbar and then save as 0MAGEIGE.FSH.

HEADS UP!! When you try to extract the files it will tell you that it is LZ compressed, and then ask you if you would like to decompress it. Choose YES.

Now, add the .FSH extention to it's name again, and then click SAVE.

Do this for both the 0MAGEIGE.FSH file and the 1MAGEIGE.FSH file.

Step 6. Now, you can extract the image files from within these FSH files. You can now close the 0PLRDATA.VIV file that you were working with, and then open the files you just extracted. This will allow you to get the actual image that you will edit for your cyberface. For example, I would close the 0PLRDATA.VIV file, and then OPEN the 0MAGEIGE.FSH file. Once you open that file, you can now click on the word FACE. Now, the image will appear on the right.

You can now save that image, by clicking the BLUE DISK icon. Notice, you have many format options in which to save it. Choose the first, SAVE AS BMP.

It asks you for the name of your file. Simply call it face and then save it. REMEMBER where you save it. This is the file you will be editing soon!!

Step 7. Do the exact same thing as above, but this time open the 1MAGEIGE.FSH file. This will let you extract the portrait of your character.

Again, you can now save that image, by clicking the BLUE DISK icon. Notice, you have the same format options in which to save it. Choose the first, SAVE AS BMP. I usually called it 0000.bmp since that's what the game calls it.

Step 8. Now, you should have 2 files and the two images. If you DO NOT HAVE these 4 files then you need to start again. You missed a step. MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE...

• 0MAGEIGE.FSH
• 1MAGEIGE.FSH
• FACE.BMP
• 0000.BMP

Editing the images

Step 1. Using PAINT SHOP PRO, open the FACE.BMP file.

Step 2. Open an image with your own face, copy it, and then place it over the face of the FACE.BMP image and then save it.

An easy rule of thumb is this... highlight the area around the face with the LASSO tool (that's the little icon that looks like a rope with a loop in it). Draw a circle around the FACE.BMP image. Go just above the eyebrows, around the cheeks and just below the chin.

Now you can select COPY from the EDIT menu. Once you have your face copied, then go back to your FACE.BMP and LASSO the same area on it, then go to the EDIT menu again and choose PASTE, and then INTO SELECTION.

This will paste your NEW face on the FACE.BMP face. This is a practice makes perfect technique. Try it a few times. You will soon get the hang of it.

If you really want to get tricky and make GREAT cyberfaces, you can edit the color saturation and hue of your face to better match the FACE.BMP face. This option is under the COLORS menu as ADJUST. There are many ways of editing the color and look of your image.

Again, this is PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT technique. Experiment a little with the setting. See what each one does and then you can edit your images more precise.

Step 3. Same as step 2, but for the 0000.bmp image. Open it, now you have to increase the color depth to 16 Million Colors. It's an option under the COLORS menu.

Now to replace this image, draw a square around a section of your own image and copy it. You can use the SQUARE button to make a perfect square shape.

Once you have the section you want to copy selected, choose COPY under the EDIT menu. Now to paste that into the 0000.bmp, click back on it and then click on the SELECTIONS menu, and then choose SELECT ALL.

Now you can click on the EDIT menu, then choose PASTE and then INTO SELECTION. That will make your new image fit into the 0000.bmp shape. Once you are done, save the image.

Step 4. Be sure that you have saved both images. Now you are ready to put them back into the game.

Importing the created images back into the .fsh files

Step 1. Using EA Graphic Editor, just like you did to extract the files above, you can import you new images into the place of the other ones. Open the 0MAGEIGE.FSH file, or whatever file you have chosen to edit, and then click on FACE. You should again see the face of that player.

Now you can click on TOOLS, then IMPORT WIZARD. Click the top circle. It should read: IMPORT AN EXISTING EXTERNAL FILE INTO THE CURRENT OPEN IMAGE, then click next.

You will now see the old image to the left and a BROWSE button to the right.

Using the browse button, find your image and then click OPEN and then NEXT. It will say DATA PROCESSING COMPLETE, then click FINISHED.

To confirm the change, click on the FACE.BMP again on the right, and now you should see you new image.

Step 2. Do the same thing for your 1MAGEIGE.FSH file, but instead import 0000.bmp file.

Now that you have these created, you have to put them into the game.

Putting your custom cyberfaces into the game

Now that you have the files built, you can either change the name to your new name, or you can import them back into the game as a replacement. For example, if I built a Cyberface as 0MAGEIGE.FSH, I would want to change the name to 0PATLEE.FSH so that I don't erase Matt Geiger with my face. Once you decide on a name (it must less than 7 letters) you can now change the name and edit your CUSTOM_FACE_2K.BAT file.

To change the file name, you can right mouse click on it and then select RENAME.

Step 1. Editing the CUSTOM_FACE_2K.BAT file to import your new file. Right mouse click on the CUSTOM_FACE_2K.BAT file and then select EDIT. This will let you edit the text within the file. This is EASY, all you have to do is replace the NAME within the 0NAME.FSH and 1NAME.FSH with your new name. For example, if I were importing 0PATLEE.FSH into the game, my the edited line would look like this....

BEFORE

blotch00 saves LASTNAME,FIRSTNAME pp 0NAME.fsh
blotch00 saves LASTNAME,FIRSTNAME lp 1NAME.fsh
blotch00 saves LASTNAME,FIRSTNAME ir t
blotch00 saves LASTNAME,FIRSTNAME ic f
MOVE 0NAME.FSH art\ingame\players\update
MOVE 1NAME.FSH art\ingame\players\update

AFTER

blotch00 saves LEE,PAT pp 0PATLEE.fsh
blotch00 saves LEE,PAT lp 1PATLEE.fsh
blotch00 saves LEE,PAT ir t
blotch00 saves LEE,PAT ic f
MOVE 0PATLEE.FSH art\ingame\players\update
MOVE 1PATLEE.FSH art\ingame\players\update

Step 2. Save the changes. Now make sure that both files and BLOTCH 00 are in the same directory that your CUSTOM_FACE_2K.BAT is in before you double click on it.

Step 3. Double click on the CUSTOM_FACE_2K.BAT and then it will import all of your new images into the game.

Step 4. THE HARDEST STEP!! Run the game and enjoy the new cyberfaces!! You will need to reload your roster that you added the custom cyberface into before you can see the new additions. If you edited roster 000, then that's the one you would reload.

CREDITS

I hope this tutorial helps you build cyberfaces of your own. I have spent many hours building and rebuilding my own, but it's worth it to see myself playing along side the real NBA players. I would like to thank Tim, Lutz, and Brien for their programs that help me edit my own faces. Without them, this tutorial wouldn't be possible. Thanks guys!!

Links

• NBA Live 2000
• NBA Live 2001 Cyberface Tutorial