Xbox 360-Legacy Texture modding

[raupe]

EA's NHL Legacy Xbox 360, PS3
Tutorial for texture modding

Supported games:

Spoiler

• NHL 08 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL 09 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL 10 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL 11 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL 12 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL 13 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL 14 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL 15 (Xbox 360, PS3)
• NHL Legacy Edition (Xbox 360, PS3)

XBOX 360
What you need for modding:

Spoiler

• Modded XBOX 360 console:
  
  Option 1:
  Hardware mods RGH/Jtag: You can run the game with extracted .big archives. You don't need to rebuild .big and .iso. (I recommend this. This is a more effective way to mod the games)
  
  Option 2:
  xKey DVD drive emulator. Installing is quite easy and soldering free. Run .ISO copy of games. https://www.se7ensins.com/forums/thr...-guide.930943/
  There are many limitations to mod game .iso. It works but sometimes game doesn't load if cached archives has modded.
  
  Option 3:
  Flashed DVD Drive:
  Modifiying steps are same as using xK3y but you need to burn the game to physical disc.
  
  Option 4:
  Xenia emulator for modern PC:
  Xenia
  
  
• XBOX Image Browser to edit .iso files (for xKey and Flashed consoles)
  
  
• QuickBms to extract .big files QuickBMS by Luigi Auriemma
  Scripts for quickbms:
  
  NHL 11 - NHL Legacy
  EA BIG (EB *.big): Fightnight.bms
  
  NHL 08 - NHL 10 and menu graphics .big archives in fe/ion/artassets folder.
  EA BIG4/BIGF(*.big): EA BIGF/BIG4
  
  
• Big File Extractor Update 2021/03/17 Added support for BIG4/BIGF files.
  Extract and Rebuild .big files with EB identifier. If you extract all the files are compressed (chunklzx, chunkzip or refpack). (You need to use compressed files to rebuild. If you extract single file the tool decompress the file). You can use quickbms and fightnight.bms to extract big files and then you don’t need to do it using Big File Extractor. Fighnight.bms decompress all files.
  
  
• Noesis
  Python scripts for Noesis: https://app.box.com/s/3fosgp6yc1o4ujg82l1gge5p32p6q8b5
  
  
• NHL Legacy Texture Patcher v.2.0 Update 2021/03/01
  
  
• Blender(2.79b) Playermodel template

Part 1 How to rip Xbox 360 game disc:

Spoiler

If you have game .iso file use xbox-360-image-browser or xbox-360-iso-extract to extract files.

If you don’t have .ISO, install a game to USB in xbox 360:
https://github.com/xenia-project/xen...w-to-rip-games

Then convert installed game to .ISO using GOD2ISO and extract converted iso using xbox-360-iso-extract

Part 2 How to extract files from NHL game folder:

Spoiler

Example NHL Legacy Edition:

• There are .big files inside extracted game disc and first you have to extract it.
  There are some bigs inside gamedata folder. Don’t extract it, leave gamedata folder as it is.
  
  
  
• Open quickbms.exe -> select fightnight.bms -> select .big -> select the game folder (the same folder where the big files are inside)

Backup your big files just make a new ”BIG BACKUP” folder and move extracted bigs inside it.

• The game folder before big extraction

• The game folder after big extraction

Part 3 How to mod rx2 textures:

Spoiler

Place tex_NHLLegacy_X360_rx2.py into Noesis plugins/python folder

Mod jerseys:
In game jerseys found in rendering/jersey/texlib_x_x_x.rx2

Update 2021/03/01

Option 1:

• Open rx2 file in NHL Legacy Texture Patcher
• Unbundle rx2 to tga (select output folder)
• Bundle tga to rx2 (select the same folder where you extracted the tga files)

Option 2:

1. Open rx2 file in Noesis
   
2. Extract rx2 to tga. To take care of texture names use -texnorepfn option in Advanced option.
   Rx2toTga
   Tga output folder
   Output folder with modded files
3. Open rx2 in Legacy Texture Patcher
4. Push "Bundle RX2" -> select the TGA directory with modded files
   https://app.box.com/s/uhhk38up7yk9ghzsxlbvroblukjdc0nz
5. Check patched rx2 in Noesis that it looks right.
   https://app.box.com/s/oztni4uk0xaml941jh5amix3c7iyw6nm
   
6. If you use xkey or flashed xbox and you have to rebuild big, compress the file before rebuilding. NHL 11 - Legacy use chunklzx, 08-10 use refpack.

Part 4 Using modified files on Xbox 360:

Spoiler

Retail Xbox : unfotunately it isn’t possible to modify game files because of Microsoft Secure Transacted File System (STFS) signed packages (LIVE,PIRS)
https://www.arkem.org/xbox360-file-reference.pdf

RGH:
You can run the game with extracted .big archives. You don't need to rebuild .big and .iso.

• Extract a game disc (Part 1)
  https://app.box.com/s/4gz2hwuaim50yh3pzchin4gri2fqk9zk
• Extract all .bigs inside extracted game folder into same folder using quickbms (do not extract bigs inside game data folder) (Part 2)
  https://app.box.com/s/ngkcdropqwow75b9cuu6uquwuynpclg5
• Create a ”Big Backup” folder and move extracted bigs inside it.
• Copy your game folder with extracted files in to game root folder in Xbox 360. In my rgh aurora dash path is ”\Xbox360\System\Hdd1\xbox360 games\nhl legacy”
  https://app.box.com/s/8ht0kelvw6mcp1c1iq3rslnr3mgg4p18

xKey/Flashed dvd:

• Jersey files are stored in nocacherender.big. Open nocacherender.big in Big File Extractor and extract all if you haven't done it yet.
  
• IMPORTANT! Files must be chunklzx (NHL11-Legacy) or refpack (NHL08-10) compressed before rebuilding.
  
• If you have done extraction with quickbms and fightnight.bms just extract all files in other location using Big File Extractor. Pants, socks, icesurfaces and goaliehelmets etc. are in cacherender.big. Extract cacherender.big also. Move your modded files in right location in Big File Extractor extracted files, rebuild and save as new big-file.
  
  
• Open the game .iso in Xbox Image Browser and replace original .big to modded one.
  
  
• Note! For that reason if your modded rx2 files are bigger than the original ones, your .big file will be also bigger than the original .big file. You can’t replace .big in iso if the file size has increased. If your modded rx2 file sizes (compressed size) has increased there are many rx2 files in the archive that are not in use in game. For example jerseys/texlib_0_93_5.rx2 is ”extra file”. Open ”extra file” in hex editor, write placeholder string and delete all other data after it and save the file. Now you save about 2Mb.
  
  
• Note! Save the ”placeholder” file in to same place, don’t remove it totally because it will cause error when rebuilding big.
• Note! For Xk3y users disable game autostart on xbox settings. If you mod cacherender.big, reading game will cause disc read error-> you may need to start a game many times.

PS3
What you need for modding:

Spoiler

• Upcoming soon...

2021 Upcoming news

I will complete the tutorial with all the information which I know about modding these games.


NHL Legacy Rx2 Patcher: [Done]

• App name change (NHL Legacy Texture Patcher)
• Interface update (a more usable interface for high-resolution displays + graphical icons)
• support for rx2 texture extract.
• more testing and possible bug fixes

EA BIG4/BIGF rebuilder:

• NHL 08-10 .big and .bh files
• NHL menu artasset .big files

File structure researching:
Converting 3D models from .mcd (PS4) to .rx2 (X360) and .rpsgl (PS3) to get new EA scanned faces available on last gen consoles.


I spend most of my time researching something new, so I haven’t been made downloadable mods available yet.

Feel free to use the tools and if you manage to do something interesting , share it with everyone else. Let's take care of the culture of modding NHL games.

[raupe]

I ripped 3d model from rx2-file using Hex2Obj and imported that to blender. Blender file download link below. Textures need to flip vertical before use. You can extract textures from .rx2 files using noesis.

https://ufile.io/zujjw
https://imgur.com/a/85UOnKd

[GHFear]

Could you add me on Discord or Twitch and show me the process for getting the 3D models? I wrote a script for getting Skate 3 Textures recently and has had luck getting the 3D models too, BUT I can't seem to get the UVs exported, so any help would be very appreciated =]

Twitch = GHFear
Discord = GHFear #7777

[GHFear]

Quote: Originally Posted by GHFear

Could you add me on Discord or Twitch and show me the process for getting the 3D models? I wrote a script for getting Skate 3 Textures recently and has had luck getting the 3D models too, BUT I can't seem to get the UVs exported, so any help would be very appreciated =] Twitch = GHFear Discord = GHFear #7777

Just to clarify, it's the same file format for NHL and Skate 3, just slightly different header fort he containers.

[raupe]

Hi, I used Hex2obj getting rx2 models extracted. There is no option to set vertices in half-float and uv’s in word in hex2obj so it need to be extract separately. Here is short tutorial, hopefully it helps:

Open rx2 file in hex2obj (example is goaliepad_2.rx2).

Fill the fields like example image. Next step is important because UV’s and vertices isn’t same type and there is no option to set vertices in half-float and uv’s in word in hex2obj. So thats why you need to set type box to ”HF_all” and then click mesh. Test.obj will appear in same folder where the rx2 file is.

Then set vertices option box to ”WordUV” and click UVs-button and testUVs.obj will appear in same folder where the rx2 file is.

This is extra work and it must be done because there is no option to set vertices in half-float and uv’s in word in hex2obj.
You need to modify testUVs.obj in text editor (I use text wrangler in mac) and you need to select all ”v” letters and replace it to ”vt” and then select all and copy. Then open test.obj and go starting of faces and select all in end of file and paste uv’s here and save the file.

Now you can open .obj in blender and create textures with it in blender. Textures need to flip vertical in default but if you open UV editor in blender and flip uv’s there you don’t need flip images.

There is different types rx2-files in NHL for example puck and net files are float-types and head files contains more than one object.

Im not expert in models but hopefully that helps you.

rx2 in hex2obj:
https://imgur.com/a/HSEAL4F
uv's conversion in text editor:
https://imgur.com/a/REWVSiz
goaliepad.rx2
https://file.io/RHdCjI

[GHFear]

That helped get the UVs Thank you very much!

[raupe]

I edited source code and added ”Extract all” and ”Rebuild” -functions for Big File Extractor tool by Experiment5X (https://github.com/Experiment5X/BIG-File-Extractor) and compiled it for windows. This is useful tool if you want mod game .iso for flashed/xkey consoles.

Example: I opened nocacherender.big from NHL Legacy and I want to mod powerring_0_0.rx2 texture file which is compressed to chunklzx format.

1. Open nocacherender.big
2. Extract All (It will create directory including compressed files from nocacherender.big
3. Right click to extract powerring_0_0.rx2 (It will decompress file and I can mod it with custom texture)
4. Compress modded powerring_0_0.rx2 to chunklzx with quickbms and chunkpack.bms and drag it to right folder in extracted directory created in section 2.
5. Press Rebuild big-file and select same folder that you selected in section 2.
6. Select location to new nocacherender.big

I try to add replace function for single file, but it’s complex if new file is bigger than original then it can’t be added in the middle of archive with c++. It’s easy to do for smaller or equal files. So the easiest way is rebuild whole archive.

This is my first programming project ever and I couldn’t have done that if I wouldn’t have found this tool from github. Thanks Adam for source code.

BIG File Extractor:
https://app.box.com/s/6g2lpct0trk1ylg11j4udcjso4bg4q9h

I have updated Noesis scripts to view .rx2 textures and 3d-models (different script for player models etc. and Arenas)
Drag rx2 sricpts to plugins/python in Noesis folder.
https://app.box.com/s/2vddkzg4jts0fp2mjve9qh5o1g3ltlac

If you haven't modded console, you can still view files with Noesis. That is useful because there is many "hidden" jeseys etc. in game and it can be activated by roster editing tools. If you have retail console and you want to extract files here is easy method to do that:
Install game to USB in xbox 360, extract installed game with Horizon tool and use god2iso to make iso file for it. Extract .big files from .iso with xbox image browser and unpack .big with QuickBms.exe and this script.

Big files in NHL 11 - NHL Legacy is this type. Older versions has BIG4/BIGF types and it can be edit for example finalBig or some FIFA tools. Rx2 files is same type all NHL versions except NHL 07 is different.

[raupe]

I made Noesis script for ps3 .rpsgl format to view game textures. Download Noesis from here: https://richwhitehouse.com/index.php...c_projects.php and put script in "plugins/python" folder. Rpsgl textures are dds images with different header. For example banner_0_0_cm.rpsgl is dxt1 packed and texture data starts from offset 0x280.