daggart
June 11th, 2007, 11:03 AM
So I spent most of my weekend working with the Map editor and here is some advice for others that don't want to lose as much hair as I did.
First of all, you need the following to make this all work:
1. Microsoft Windows Vista
2. Halo 2 Vista
3. Autodesk 3DS Max v8.0 (DO NOT USE v9.0, it is not compatible with the Bungie exporter.), yes its $4000 for the average Joe, but you can get it for around $400 if you are a college/university student.
4. A BOATLOAD of patience and the resolve to go for a walk once in a while or risk serious damage to your PC as it exits your window.
1. Turn of UAC (User Access Control) in Vista, otherwise when you create directories from within 3DS Max they will not be visible from anywhere except 3DS Max and The Halo 2 Map Editor Launcher. UAC can be turned off by clicking on the "Start Menu", then click on your User account photo in the top right. Should be self-explanatory from there.
2. Make sure you download and install Service Pack 3 for 3DS Max 8.
3. Put the Bungie 3DS Max exporter in the c:\Program Files\Autodesk\3DSmax8\Plugins\ directory. Then launch 3DS, select the "Customize" menu and choose "User Defined Paths". When the dialog appears, click on the "3rd Party Plugins" tab and click "ADD". When the dialog appears, navigate to your Halo 2 Map Editor folder and select the tags folder. In the field that says, "LABEL" type "Halo 2" and then click "Use Path". The reason for selecting the tags folder is that I have found that this program always reverts to the previous directory of the one you are in or have selected. Therefore, if you are in the Halo 2 Map Editing directory and click Use Path it actually sets itself to "c:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\ and does not work right.
4. Follow the tutorial but note that there are THREE glaring problems that kept me up late at night all weekend.
a.)The first one relates to compiling your exported map. The Tutorial says to "Compile" but don't "Light" your map at this time. I'm not sure why it says this. If you compile the map and then try to open it in Sapien you get an error that the file is corrupt and Sapien closes. I recreated my map 3 times in 3DS max thinking that I was doing something wrong before I decided to try the compile & light option instead. This made it work.
b.) The second problem is in Tutorial 4 which discusses creating custom shaders. Everything is fine except where it mentions naming your collection, "mylev.shader_collection"....this is supposed to be, "mylev.shader_collections". If you don't see the difference, it is the "s". That has to be there or it can't find your texture.
c.) Here is the biggest problem in my opinion, and one that I would also like to hear back from Bungie or Hired Gun on. The tutorial mentions using some shaders etc that do not exist. Well, its not that they don't exist but they are not provided with the retail Halo 2 Vista Map Editor. The shaders they mention are even listed in the shared_collections.shader_collections file, but most of them are not provided. This in my opinion really restricts the customization of any map created and is a huge problem. If someone from Bungie or Hired Gun could give some sort of explanation it would be appreciated.
There's my two bits,
XBL Gamertag: Daggart
First of all, you need the following to make this all work:
1. Microsoft Windows Vista
2. Halo 2 Vista
3. Autodesk 3DS Max v8.0 (DO NOT USE v9.0, it is not compatible with the Bungie exporter.), yes its $4000 for the average Joe, but you can get it for around $400 if you are a college/university student.
4. A BOATLOAD of patience and the resolve to go for a walk once in a while or risk serious damage to your PC as it exits your window.
1. Turn of UAC (User Access Control) in Vista, otherwise when you create directories from within 3DS Max they will not be visible from anywhere except 3DS Max and The Halo 2 Map Editor Launcher. UAC can be turned off by clicking on the "Start Menu", then click on your User account photo in the top right. Should be self-explanatory from there.
2. Make sure you download and install Service Pack 3 for 3DS Max 8.
3. Put the Bungie 3DS Max exporter in the c:\Program Files\Autodesk\3DSmax8\Plugins\ directory. Then launch 3DS, select the "Customize" menu and choose "User Defined Paths". When the dialog appears, click on the "3rd Party Plugins" tab and click "ADD". When the dialog appears, navigate to your Halo 2 Map Editor folder and select the tags folder. In the field that says, "LABEL" type "Halo 2" and then click "Use Path". The reason for selecting the tags folder is that I have found that this program always reverts to the previous directory of the one you are in or have selected. Therefore, if you are in the Halo 2 Map Editing directory and click Use Path it actually sets itself to "c:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\ and does not work right.
4. Follow the tutorial but note that there are THREE glaring problems that kept me up late at night all weekend.
a.)The first one relates to compiling your exported map. The Tutorial says to "Compile" but don't "Light" your map at this time. I'm not sure why it says this. If you compile the map and then try to open it in Sapien you get an error that the file is corrupt and Sapien closes. I recreated my map 3 times in 3DS max thinking that I was doing something wrong before I decided to try the compile & light option instead. This made it work.
b.) The second problem is in Tutorial 4 which discusses creating custom shaders. Everything is fine except where it mentions naming your collection, "mylev.shader_collection"....this is supposed to be, "mylev.shader_collections". If you don't see the difference, it is the "s". That has to be there or it can't find your texture.
c.) Here is the biggest problem in my opinion, and one that I would also like to hear back from Bungie or Hired Gun on. The tutorial mentions using some shaders etc that do not exist. Well, its not that they don't exist but they are not provided with the retail Halo 2 Vista Map Editor. The shaders they mention are even listed in the shared_collections.shader_collections file, but most of them are not provided. This in my opinion really restricts the customization of any map created and is a huge problem. If someone from Bungie or Hired Gun could give some sort of explanation it would be appreciated.
There's my two bits,
XBL Gamertag: Daggart