Converting MCO cars to NFSHS

- By Justin Martin aka IH8COPS

 The purpose of this tutorial is to teach people how to convert MCO cars to NFSHS. Please do not email me with questions regarding this tutorial, I do not respond to questions regarding this tutorial. If this tutorial does not answer all of your questions, try posting a message on the Total NFS Message Board

Index

Overview
Converting the mesh
  Overview
  In Depth
Converting the texture
  Overview
  In Depth


Overview

 MCO cars are stored in a different manner than NFSHS, yet use very similar file formats. Unlike in NFSHS, where all of a car's files are contained in one car.viv file in one folder for each car, MCO cars have files located in multiple folders, with all like files in the same folder, a la NFSPU.


Converting the Mesh

 Overview

  1. Open the desired *.viv file located in \Data\Models
  2. Extract part.fce from *.viv
  3. Rename part.fce to car.fce
  4. Open, then save in FCEFinish to convert to NFSHS format
  5. Open in CarCad, click on a part and run Remove Duplicate Polys and Remove Unnecessary Verts
      Repeat for each part
  6. Use FCEFinish or ZModeler to fuse desired parts together into a part named :HB
  7. Rename :Hinterior to :OC, :Hlmirror to :OLM (if it exsists), :Hrmirror to :ORM
  8. Delete unused parts, including all parts starting with :PP
  9. Fix/Add dummies where necessary
10. Create or import needed parts (wheels, driver, etc) into car.fce

In Depth

 First, get the .viv file of the car you want to convert. MCO cars are located in the \Data\Models directory. The .viv file is opened using NFSWizard. Inside the .viv file, you will find seven files. Dash.fce is the mesh of the dash, dash.fsh is the dash texture, and part.fce is the car mesh. The rest of the parts are not needed for the conversion. After you extract the part.fce from the .viv, rename it car.fce.

 The .fce format of the MCO cars is the same as in NFSHS, except for one difference. The first byte in the header of the MCO .fce file is 15, while NFSHS is 14. Why EA changed this one byte is unknown, but the result is that CarCad and ZModeler (except v1.5c) cannot open a MCO mesh because they think since the byte is 15, it's not a NFSHS car. But don't pull out your hex editor just yet, FCEFinish doesn't care if the first byte is 15 or 14.

 The easiest way to fix this is to open the car.fce in FCEFinish, then save it. FCEFinish sets the first byte to 14, so CarCad and ZModeler can now open the part.fce.

 There's one more problem to fix, open the car in CarCad, and select the first part. Run "Remove Duplicate Polys", then run "Remove Unnecessary Verts", which are located in the Tools menu. Repeat this process for each part that you want to keep. This fixes the mapping, if you skip this step, even if you remap the car, the mapping will still be messed up.

 With the car.fce open in CarCad or ZModeler, you'll find that it contains many more parts than a NFSHS car. You will notice many parts that start with :PP that are boxes. These are place markers for parts that are changed in the game, like wheels. These addon parts are stored in other .viv files in the \Data\Models directory. The :PP parts serve no purpose in NFSHS, and can be deleted.

 The first thing you need to do is find the parts you want to use on the body of your NFSHS conversion, and fuse them together to form one :HB part. Be carefull with the parts :Mwheelwell and :Hwheelwell. Do not fuse the :Mwheelwell part to your :HB, as it is a simple 2d medium detail wheel well. Use the :Hwheelwell instead.

 Next, you will need to rename the :HInterior part to :OC, :Hlmirror to :OLM and :Hrmirror to :ORM, if it exsists. When you finish this, delete any unused parts, including all of the :PP parts.

 Most of the dummies can be carried over without changes, however, a few will need to be changed. First, you can delete the :ENGINE and :EXHAUST dummies. Next, rename the first letter of any dummies starting with M to P, and I to H. Finally, add a :LICENSE dummy.

 Now, you will need to either create or import a few parts for your car. These include the driver, wheels, and any other parts you may wish to add. You can either try to convert these from MCO, use exsisting NFSHS parts, or make your own parts. Once you get these into the car.fce, the car mesh is complete, and can be imported into a NFSHS car.viv.


Converting the Texture

 Overview

  1. Open the desired *.fsh file located in \Data\Skins
  2. Open 0000.bmp and 0000-a.bmp and an exsisting NFSHS car00.tga file
  3. Using the select all function, copy and paste the 0000.bmp into the car00.tga
  4. Import the 0000-a.bmp into the car00.tga as a Alpha Channel mask
  5. Convert the alpha channel colors to NFSHS spec
  6. Add textures for added parts, ie - wheels, driver, etc

In Depth

 MCO car textures are located in the \Data\Skins folder. The skins are in the NFSHS .fsh format, which can be opened with FSH Tool. As you can see, there are several skins for each car. Texture files ending in dec have decals, fla has flames, rus has rust, sca has scallops, tin is stock with changing colors and ting, which has an unknown function. Also, for every texture, there is a 0000-a.bmp file, which is the overlay for the car. You will need this later on.

 After you pick the texture you want to convert, open the 0000.bmp, 0000-a.bmp, and an exsisting NFSHS car00.tga in your graphics editor. Using the "select all" function, copy the 0000.bmp to the car00.tga. Close the 0000.bmp to eliminate any confusion. Copying to an exsisting .tga rather than just doing "Save As" is necessary to get all of the proper settings.

 Then, select the car00.tga, and import the 0000-a.bmp as a mask. This is done in Paint Shop Pro by first clicking on the car00.tga so it is the active texture, then click Masks, then New, then From Image. Change the drop down box to 0000-a. If it says car00.tga, it's because the 0000-a.bmp is the active file. Now, go to Masks again, then Save To Alpha Channel. A box will pop up, select Alpha Channel 1, then press OK. Now go to Masks, then Delete, then press No in the box that appears.

 However, we're not done with the alpha channel yet, at least if you are using a stock paint job. If you used one of the custom paint jobs, you're done with the texture. If not, read on.

 MCO uses different colors in it's masks than NFSHS, so the colors will need to be changed. The main body color should be changed to 223, interior color to 164. After you've done that, save the mask again, then save the car00.tga again. Your texture is now complete, and can be imported into a NFSHS car.viv with NFSWizard.