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Field Researcher
#51 Old 28th Aug 2016 at 7:02 AM
Quote: Originally posted by GrijzePilion
That tutorial won't be of any help here, unfortunately.


Hmmm, who knows exactly what to edit? Anyone here?
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Mad Poster
#52 Old 28th Aug 2016 at 8:13 AM
The file to edit is shaders.precomp. But you probably can't. Have you been reading the thread?

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Field Researcher
#53 Old 28th Aug 2016 at 7:09 PM
Quote: Originally posted by GrijzePilion
The file to edit is shaders.precomp. But you probably can't. Have you been reading the thread?



Yes. lol I'm sorry to ask that question. I really don't know where to find that file honestly. Which is why I ask for someone to show me.
Virtual gardener
staff: administrator
#54 Old 28th Aug 2016 at 8:47 PM
You can't just pry open the game and re-make the game in the game engine it's made in. Especially since my thoughts are too that the sun camera is a function coming with the game but is hidden. Maybe you've worked with CAW before, you'll see certain lines that will be hidden within the game. That's a bit like how it works with these sorts of cameras. You can't get these lines back within the game if you want to. (Unless I missed some tutorials in doing that but I'm sure you can't).

Also, if you know Unity or unreal engine you probably know what a game engine means, as these are actual game engines. There are game companies who make their own (which I guess happens more often with AAA games.) But how I have always seen it and got explained as, is a game engine to be the main program for the game to work, but you should see it as a box. trigger points will be added within the game, camera settings, rendering settings. But yeah, Wikipedia might help understanding the concept a bit better.
Mad Poster
#55 Old 28th Aug 2016 at 8:57 PM
What @Greenplumbbob said. You can't just go in and edit stuff so @Goodywood, don't bother. You'll only disappoint yourself...and you'll waste time getting there.

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Mad Poster
#56 Old 31st Aug 2016 at 4:05 PM
So apparently the .precomp file is a plain-text Python file. I'm not sure how to open it in Python, but I'm guessing there must be a way. One I'm too lazy to find.

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Virtual gardener
staff: administrator
#57 Old 31st Aug 2016 at 8:32 PM
@grijzepilion Python files are likely to be 'plugin' files for 3D Programs, or anything using something familiar to 3D. (Like programs with 3D windows, it's rare but i've seen them). I did saw a python file on the internet when looking for a way to open it, and I think the plugin was for Maya, or something autodesk-y. Can't quite remember >-<.
But I do know it's likely to be compiled as a directx file. especially since the game needs a graphics card that's supported with pixel shader. (although pixel shader is pretty much installed with Directx, but I guess some graphics card need them seperated).

So it's pretty obviously it's a file made for pixel shader and is compiled as a directx file, which are pretty hard to open up.

Edit: in case you want to know which version of Pixel shader the sims uses, it's likely to be 2.0 since this version is most compatible with directx 9
Virtual gardener
staff: administrator
#58 Old 1st Sep 2016 at 1:40 PM
I just realise... So with S3OC you can find some hidden objects that are used for testing, right? In SuperCAW we can even select a shadertest, which is also available in S3OC. Though it's extremely hidden in the game. Maybe we can somehow access the shaders with just that one tester. I don't even know if it could crash someone's game if it's visible to use, or that EA made a script to make it switch shaders to test it somehow. But i'll go look deeper into this.
Field Researcher
#59 Old 11th Sep 2016 at 12:00 PM
I'm just following you guys and hoping.
Mad Poster
#60 Old 11th Sep 2016 at 9:01 PM
Can I just say that I really miss TS3? Not necessarily in the sense that I haven't played it in a while, because I have and I am right now, but I miss the time when TS3 was The The Sims instead of a The Sims. It's a shame you can't abort two year olds, because I know one that totally should be aborted/retroactively wiped from existance.

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Field Researcher
#61 Old 24th Oct 2016 at 8:45 AM
I was looking at this photo and thinking "we have to fix the shadow fading. The game would look so much better".
Mad Poster
#63 Old 24th Oct 2016 at 10:20 AM Last edited by GrijzePilion : 24th Oct 2016 at 11:43 AM.
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
I think we have a better chance at fixing the multi-lvl outdoor lighting.

Do we? Now that would be something...

@Goodywood, there's a trick you can use to get better shadows in your screenshots. You just zoom all the way out in the normal Live Mode cam before tabbing into the freecam. Also, the more you look down the shorter the render distance for the shadows is, so what you'll want to do is zoom out as far as possible in Live Mode and then keep the camera level in freecam.

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Mad Poster
#64 Old 24th Oct 2016 at 6:42 PM
Quote: Originally posted by newlibertysims
I know @heaven has a gorgeous lighting mod on Tumblr but it's not out yet, so I'm waiting patiently.

Ooh, can you link that?

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Mad Poster
#65 Old 25th Oct 2016 at 12:35 PM
Quote: Originally posted by newlibertysims
Check out this entire tag on her Tumblr. Her game is gorgeous!

Oh it looks nice, but it's not all that much better than what I already have. My game could use a bit of polishing though, it's not as good as some other peoples' games.

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Mad Poster
#66 Old 25th Oct 2016 at 11:08 PM
It's a mishmash of all kinds of mods. I started off with this lighting tweak and have been making changes to it to better suit my worlds. I have default replacement clouds, stars and modified sun and moon lighting, and I have different color ramps for the various weather types. I've also tweaked the water parameters, it looks a little nicer now.
My #1 priority is to have Sims look good in every situation, and I'd say I've definitely succeeded in that. Priority #2, which is to have natural-looking sunrises and sunsets, is less successful. And my nights don't look all that great either. I'd say the ugliest thing in my game is the shadows. They're 8k, and therefore crisp as hell, but they're not strong enough and I don't like their tint.


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Mad Poster
#67 Old 26th Oct 2016 at 10:00 AM Last edited by GrijzePilion : 26th Oct 2016 at 10:51 AM.
I'm not sure, I've just tweaked everything I've come across. I'm also using ReShade - my preset should be up on MTS in a few days.

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Mad Poster
#68 Old 19th Nov 2017 at 1:43 PM
Just dropping in here to kind of update the whole thing, since this thread has been active and relates to the one we're in.

I've done a little bit of research on the precomp file, and I can neither confirm nor deny that it can be decompiled and edited. With more time and effort I think it would be possible. Personally, I've instead focused on what we KNOW we can do to improve the game's visuals, and a bit of lighting mod here and a bit of ReShade there can go a long way. So the freecam trick that I mentioned is definitely the best way to avoid shadow-related annoyances that there is now.

First off, I've reevaluated the colour ramp my personal lighting mod uses, and my dawns and dusks now look more natural and more stunning. This annotated illustration by @simsample shows the various ramps that make up a lighting mod.


The preset I mentioned in my previous post is now very much obsolete, having been succeeded by a much better one. Still, I've continued tweaking it and even the new preset is now somewhat out of date compared to the one I'm using in my game, which is easier on the eyes and less obtrusive, while still looking just as good (if not better).

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retired moderator
#69 Old 19th Nov 2017 at 1:56 PM
That image is not by me, it's from this post:
http://modthesims.info/showpost.php...7&postcount=194
For more info on the colour ramos and ini files, you might want to look here:
http://modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=459198
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