This mod aims to get the lighting of Stilwater looking as close to its SR1 counterpart as possible.
Through edits to the weather and time of day files, small texture edits for the trees and grass and finally some additional help in the form of shader editing via the tool HelixMod, I've managed to get the game about as close as I possibly can without more in-depth programming knowledge.
Do note this was developed with the HDR setting ON and is intended to be played as such, but should generally look fine with it off as well.
LATEST VERSION: 1.25
POTENTIAL QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MOD
SCREENSHOTS
INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
Put the contents of the "Files for GOTR patcher" folder into your 1-MODDERS_-_PUT_YOUR_OWN_PERSONAL_MODS_HERE folder and build the custom patch.
For the shaders, paste d3d9.dll and the shaderoverride folder into your SR2 directory. Don't know where that is? Right click the game on Steam, click on "Properties", click on "Local Files", then click on "Browse" and put them in the folder that opens up.
CREDITS
FusionH20 - the weather mod that came as part of their texture pack gave me a much needed head start on learning the structure of time_of_day.xtbl so thank you.
glenquagmire71 - testing and general feedback.
Through edits to the weather and time of day files, small texture edits for the trees and grass and finally some additional help in the form of shader editing via the tool HelixMod, I've managed to get the game about as close as I possibly can without more in-depth programming knowledge.
Do note this was developed with the HDR setting ON and is intended to be played as such, but should generally look fine with it off as well.
LATEST VERSION: 1.25
Version 1.25:
-Reverted the comically large sun at sunrise and sunset to a proper size. (Was a leftover from testing, sorry folks.)
Version 1.2:
-Made changes to the sun so it looks more appealing. The 3D model won't stick out like a sore thumb at sunset anymore.
-More changes to the TOD file, just for the sake of accuracy and visual clarity.
-Changed interior lighting again, so it should look less "scuffed", for lack of a better word.
-Some cutscenes have lighting changes, toned down bloom in some areas (Laura's house for instance) and brightened others since the mod made them lose visual clarity.
Version 1.1:
-Fixed wrong colouring applied to the bottom of the sky at night.
-Updated tree textures.
-Reverted the comically large sun at sunrise and sunset to a proper size. (Was a leftover from testing, sorry folks.)
Version 1.2:
-Made changes to the sun so it looks more appealing. The 3D model won't stick out like a sore thumb at sunset anymore.
-More changes to the TOD file, just for the sake of accuracy and visual clarity.
-Changed interior lighting again, so it should look less "scuffed", for lack of a better word.
-Some cutscenes have lighting changes, toned down bloom in some areas (Laura's house for instance) and brightened others since the mod made them lose visual clarity.
Version 1.1:
-Fixed wrong colouring applied to the bottom of the sky at night.
-Updated tree textures.
POTENTIAL QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MOD
What the hell is this dll and is it safe?
The included d3d9.dll is a release of the tool HelixMod. The main function of this tool is the ability to parse game shaders and save their assembly code as text files, allowing you to make changes and then reinsert them into the game with no hassle. These edited shaders are what's contained in the shaderoverride folder. A common use I see for this tool is implementing 3D Vision into games that don't support it natively but as you can see, I used it to edit SR2 and get it looking more like SR1.
As for whether it's safe, I have been using the tool for a little less than a year in the creation of this mod and there have been no issues in regards to any funny business occuring to my PC or data. It has been around for a long time with quite an active community contributing shader modifications for games via the tool to this day on Helix's blog. Ultimately, I'm not the developer of the tool so I can't say for sure but if the Admins and Moderators feel it's in everyone's best interest I'll remove all traces of it and just leave the regular game files up.
Why did you edit the shaders and what was changed?
There are certain graphical aspects of SR2 that can't be changed without getting under the hood. One of the big ones being the incredibly apparent reflections on most glass in the game (car windshields, building windows, etc) which can be a pain in the ass for anyone making an edit to the game's weather since they were originally designed around being very desaturated.
I have toned down these reflections so the SR1 weather isn't as hard on the eyes due to multicolour windows.
Other changes include:
- Toned down brightness and bloom on the HDR setting for the sake of visual clarity.
- Restored night lights for Poseidon's Palace and apartments in Shivington. The Casino's lights turn on later than most others in the game but it's better than not having them at all.
- Increased intensity on window lights at night time, just by a small bit to light up the night as it were.
- Increased intensity on character lighting from "main light" source. In the vanilla game, light from the sun & moon don't reflect off the characters as much as they did in SR1 so I cranked it up a bit.
Hasn't this been done before?
You're probably thinking of the Saints Row 1 HQ Texture Pack by FusionH20. An excellent mod to be sure and while we have similar objectives, our means of getting there are completely different. The texture edits I made are minimal in comparison as I was more focused on the weather and shaders, so I see no reason why Fusion's mod and mine can't coexist. If I'm being completely honest, it's the SR1 Texture pack that inspired me to take my own crack at bringing the SR1 aesthetic to the game in the first place.
Why are there files for Red Asphalt?
Two reasons, the first is to prevent crashing on mission start up and the second is to make sure the right weather stage is applied.
I think your shader edits SUCK but I like the other stuff, how do I get rid of them?
Simply delete the d3d9.dll and shaderoverride folder in your SR2 directory and all the changes related to them will be gone.
I think some shader changes suck but like others, can I remove only some of them?
Yes. Go to the shaderoverride folder and check the .txt files, each should have a label at the top about which shader it controls. Just delete the .txt file in question and that change will be reverted.
Can I use these shaders with other weather mods (eg, Vanilla Sr2, BeautiDuwanger's Winter, etc)?
Yes*
*Keep in mind, most changes made here were done solely with my weather mod in mind. They may look fine here and be unspeakably ugly when used in combination with other mods, in particular I can see the changes I made to the Bloom causing issues.
The included d3d9.dll is a release of the tool HelixMod. The main function of this tool is the ability to parse game shaders and save their assembly code as text files, allowing you to make changes and then reinsert them into the game with no hassle. These edited shaders are what's contained in the shaderoverride folder. A common use I see for this tool is implementing 3D Vision into games that don't support it natively but as you can see, I used it to edit SR2 and get it looking more like SR1.
As for whether it's safe, I have been using the tool for a little less than a year in the creation of this mod and there have been no issues in regards to any funny business occuring to my PC or data. It has been around for a long time with quite an active community contributing shader modifications for games via the tool to this day on Helix's blog. Ultimately, I'm not the developer of the tool so I can't say for sure but if the Admins and Moderators feel it's in everyone's best interest I'll remove all traces of it and just leave the regular game files up.
Why did you edit the shaders and what was changed?
There are certain graphical aspects of SR2 that can't be changed without getting under the hood. One of the big ones being the incredibly apparent reflections on most glass in the game (car windshields, building windows, etc) which can be a pain in the ass for anyone making an edit to the game's weather since they were originally designed around being very desaturated.
I have toned down these reflections so the SR1 weather isn't as hard on the eyes due to multicolour windows.
Other changes include:
- Toned down brightness and bloom on the HDR setting for the sake of visual clarity.
- Restored night lights for Poseidon's Palace and apartments in Shivington. The Casino's lights turn on later than most others in the game but it's better than not having them at all.
- Increased intensity on window lights at night time, just by a small bit to light up the night as it were.
- Increased intensity on character lighting from "main light" source. In the vanilla game, light from the sun & moon don't reflect off the characters as much as they did in SR1 so I cranked it up a bit.
Hasn't this been done before?
You're probably thinking of the Saints Row 1 HQ Texture Pack by FusionH20. An excellent mod to be sure and while we have similar objectives, our means of getting there are completely different. The texture edits I made are minimal in comparison as I was more focused on the weather and shaders, so I see no reason why Fusion's mod and mine can't coexist. If I'm being completely honest, it's the SR1 Texture pack that inspired me to take my own crack at bringing the SR1 aesthetic to the game in the first place.
Why are there files for Red Asphalt?
Two reasons, the first is to prevent crashing on mission start up and the second is to make sure the right weather stage is applied.
I think your shader edits SUCK but I like the other stuff, how do I get rid of them?
Simply delete the d3d9.dll and shaderoverride folder in your SR2 directory and all the changes related to them will be gone.
I think some shader changes suck but like others, can I remove only some of them?
Yes. Go to the shaderoverride folder and check the .txt files, each should have a label at the top about which shader it controls. Just delete the .txt file in question and that change will be reverted.
Can I use these shaders with other weather mods (eg, Vanilla Sr2, BeautiDuwanger's Winter, etc)?
Yes*
*Keep in mind, most changes made here were done solely with my weather mod in mind. They may look fine here and be unspeakably ugly when used in combination with other mods, in particular I can see the changes I made to the Bloom causing issues.
SCREENSHOTS
Midday
Early Sunset
Late Sunset 1
Late Sunset 2
Midnight
Club Koi Interior
Cocks Interior
Early Sunset
Late Sunset 1
Late Sunset 2
Midnight
Club Koi Interior
Cocks Interior
INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
Put the contents of the "Files for GOTR patcher" folder into your 1-MODDERS_-_PUT_YOUR_OWN_PERSONAL_MODS_HERE folder and build the custom patch.
For the shaders, paste d3d9.dll and the shaderoverride folder into your SR2 directory. Don't know where that is? Right click the game on Steam, click on "Properties", click on "Local Files", then click on "Browse" and put them in the folder that opens up.
CREDITS
FusionH20 - the weather mod that came as part of their texture pack gave me a much needed head start on learning the structure of time_of_day.xtbl so thank you.
glenquagmire71 - testing and general feedback.
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