Jul -- NSMB Hacking (Archive): Editing Levels/Hex Code

Joe
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Posted on 08-29-09 12:11:30 AM

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0x1A is 26. I think you need to learn more hex.

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BigBrain
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Posted on 08-29-09 08:00:39 AM

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Originally posted by Sinsmalice
So how much of the editing requires hex knowledge?

I've read over the "How to change music" in the sticky over at least 10 times and I still haven't a clue WTF its saying past the "Block 8" instruction.

There have been many occasions where hex has came up and I get lost, I've had people explain it to me on many occasions. It literally took me a week to find out that A = 10. And another week to figure out 1A meant 110. And I have to be honest, I'm not even sure if I'm right about that.

So anyway, I'm reading the sticky on music change. I don't know what an "offset" is. I'm looking over block 8 twenty times over and can't find 0x20, a 20, or even an "x". I don't know whats a 4byte hex is or a 16 byte. And I'm looking at World 1 Tower 1 for the example, and I see none of the numbers the example lists. Its just one big impossible nightmare to me, and thats only to change Dessert Music, to Grassland Music.

I don't even know how to link a pipe from Area 1, to area 2, or a vine, door, ect... Does that require hex too? :/

You should probably spend an afternoon reading this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hexadecimal ...

The 0x in front of the number is only a notation so that it's clear for everyone that we're talking about hexadecimal numbers.
If you have a number like 0xXYZ you translate it to the decimal numbering system (the "normal" one) by multiplying X by 16*16=256, Y by 16 and Z by 1 and summing up the three products.
An offset is basically only the relative position of a byte. If you're talking about the file offset X that's actually the byte at position X (0 being the first byte).

But honestly... If you don't even understand hexadecimal numbers I'm not sure why you're into ROM hacking (yet) at all :/

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Sinsmalice

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Posted on 08-29-09 10:45:28 AM

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I've been to that Wiki several different times in the past. Its nothing new to me. And its still jiberish to me. I managed to get the music changed after I blindly changed random sets of values about 15 times through trial and error.

And the reason I'm into rom hacking because the GUI does 80% of the work for me without knowledge of hexadecimal. As long as I keep a level straight forward, hexadecimal isn't required.

Usually in more complete editors (Atleast the ones that I've used) everything is automatic and hexidecimal knowledge isn't needed.

But the main reason I'm into New Super Mario Bros hacking is I want a challenging super level. The kind of level that I have to die 60 times and 900+ seconds to complete. Something Nintendo doesn't like to provide. Even though I'm looking forward to the progressing "Lost Levels" pack, its still going to be a cakewalk. So the only way I'll get what I want is to make it myself. And do I really have a choice?

Its not like I can ask anyone here to devote a week into making such a thing just for me. And I can't rely on this community as its barely getting started, and the already made custom levels that are here are just as easy as the original game.

But honestly, I'm about to give up. I can't figure out why Bullet Bills won't make any sounds or why I can't get the camera to scroll with Mario unless he's walking on ground or climbing a vine. So I can't make any large gaps where precision jumping is key. I can't make Red shelled Koopas. I also can't link a pipe to another area so I have to stick with the limited space I have, and even though I appreciate the editor Treeki has provided (He really does Rokk) for the community, I don't like the fact that I cant "highlight" multiple objects so I have to manually click every single object and sprite if I wish to just move them by one segment, and I can't copy and paste so I have to build a chunk of ground from scratch. I really don't want to sound like an ass, but I can't believe an application like this managed to get to a version of 4.7 and still not manage to include "Undo" action. Just to be clear, I'm not blaming an editor for not working. I'm just a little frustrated that editing a level isn't as easy as I hoped it would be. Seeing as New Super Mario Bros is my favorite Mario to date, I was wishing to put a little bit more life into it other than whats already on it. Theres nothing really fun about dieing only once or twice every world.

Hiccup
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Posted on 08-29-09 02:00:37 PM (last edited by Hiccup at 08-29-09 11:01 AM)

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Originally posted by Sinsmalice
I can't figure out why Bullet Bills won't make any sounds

http://jul.rustedlogic.net/thread.php?pid=148197#148197 - sound sets

Originally posted by Sinsmalice
I can't get the camera to scroll with Mario unless he's walking on ground or climbing a vine

http://jul.rustedlogic.net/thread.php?pid=148175#148175 - block 2 camera settings

http://jul.rustedlogic.net/thread.php?pid=148133#148133 - block 8 views

http://jul.rustedlogic.net/thread.php?id=5894 - camera settings tiles

Originally posted by Sinsmalice
I can't make Red shelled Koopas

http://nsmbhacking.wikidot.com/sprites:149

Originally posted by Sinsmalice
I also can't link a pipe to another area so I have to stick with the limited space I have

http://jul.rustedlogic.net/thread.php?id=5404

Garmichael
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Posted on 08-29-09 04:24:35 PM

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You just made me proud, Hiccup

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Ehm
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Posted on 08-29-09 05:19:58 PM

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XD This is exactly the thing. In the editor itself, sprite data plays a huge part to all the little things. However, I do wish someone would GUI the few things that Hex Editing is needed for. As I said in a previous thread, I suck at programming, and it'd take me a while to learn Hex @.@ .... unless someone is willing to do lessons on here for the Hexadecimally challenged ^__^"

Sinsmalice

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Posted on 08-30-09 06:00:56 AM

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Thanks for the links you ripped from the sticky, I already read over the views and the sounds effects. I guess you think that if you link me to an answer I've already seen, I'll magically "understand it" the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th time I look it over. I KNEW the answer was there as plain as day, but just because you understand it, doesn't mean I can. Even if I was 100% n00b and didn't bother to check the sticky 1st before I asked my question, giving me an answer involving hexicdecimal is generally pointless. I know to you its probably elementary but to me its a foreign language. You can go ahead and post Camera Views sticky 20 more times, I'm still going to say "I don't know how to keep the camera fixed on Mario". Anyways I was listing my issues to get the point across that I have a ton of issues, not to get help. I have far more problems than I listed, I was just giving examples. However, the link to the Sprite Data to change the koopa actually helped. I didn't know the Wiki was useful. I thought it was worthless after the link I clicked prompted me with a "You must be a member" thing so I assumed the newly created information page had nothing added to it yet.
___
And a user-made guide might work, for some. The Wiki on hexidecimal has always been too formal for me. But I still think even if you simplified it, I'd still be no help. And Joe's comment that 0x1A = 26 made me realize that the past 10 months of my grasp on what little hex I did know, was actually wrong. And I still don't know where the fuck "0" and "x" came from even though it was explained by Big brain. It made sense when he said "The 0x in front of the number is only a notation so that it's clear for everyone that we're talking about hexadecimal numbers" but as soon as he followed it up with "If you have a number like 0xXYZ you translate it to the decimal numbering system (the "normal" one) by multiplying X by 16*16=256, Y by 16 and Z by 1 and summing up the three products.
An offset is basically only the relative position of a byte. If you're talking about the file offset X that's actually the byte at position X (0 being the first byte). " he completely re-lost me again. :/

Ehm
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Posted on 08-30-09 11:55:29 AM

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I really think we need some tutorials for Hex on here. Preferably in the "Hexadecimal for Dummies" format. XD

Hiccup
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Posted on 08-30-09 04:53:35 PM

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Originally posted by m64m
I really think we need some tutorials for Hex on here. Preferably in the "Hexadecimal for Dummies" format. XD

That would be usefull i only know some basic numbers

Joe
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Posted on 08-30-09 07:49:27 PM

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Okay, let's see...

0x - Stick this in front of a number so everyone knows it's in hexadecimal.

0x00, 0x01, 0x02, 0x03, 0x04, 0x05, 0x06, 0x07, 0x08, 0x09, 0x0A, 0x0B, 0x0C, 0x0D, 0x0E, 0x0F, 0x10 - The numbers 0 through 16 in hexadecimal.

0x10 = 16
0x100 = 256
0x1000 = 4096

The basic idea of hexadecimal is the same as decimal, except instead of having a digit for 1, 10, 100, 1000, and so on, the digits have values of 1, 16, 256, 4096, and so on.

Multiplying or dividing by 0x10 in hexadecimal works the same as multiplying or dividing by 10 in decimal.

For example, 0x1A * 0x10 = 0x1A0.

Knowing that, you can work out the value of a hexadecimal number by reducing it to single digit numbers and multiples of 0x10.

So, 0xB3F is the same as 0xB * 0x100 + 0x3 * 0x10 + 0xF, and that's the same as 11 * 256 + 3 * 16 + 15. Therefore, 0xBF is 2879.

Do you see how it works?

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Ehm
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Posted on 08-30-09 07:57:28 PM

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okay, so how do I know what values to change in the Hex editor? How do I know what specific hex will change into something I want it to? @.@

Sinsmalice

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Posted on 09-01-09 12:25:18 AM

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Originally posted by Joe
...

I understand the 1st half. I might have to figure out the next half later.

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