The VG Resource

I'd ask Raccoon Sam C as he was the one who dumped all of the palette files once upon a time. I scarcely remember what went into it.

Oh, almost forgot. I found palette data in savestate files from DeSmume a long time ago. You might want to try looking at that.

Just came across this web page when researching how GIMP do alpha-blending, and apparently there are at least 17 different ways to do it! Oh crap...

https://docs.gimp.org/en/gimp-concepts-layer-modes.html

Then there is another problem - additive blending doesn't work if the background is transparent. It is still transparent after blend.

Try to make the result opaque, the clouds is still black, so it is still wrong.

I am no graphic designer, let me know if I am wrong - I think alpha mask with rgb(20,20,20) can be translate to rgba(255,255,255,20). It kind of feels right. The clouds are white and semi-transparent certainly helps. So alpha mask rgb(20,40,80) can be translate to rgba(63,127,255,80), right?

I don't know...

Taking a break for some fresh air.

@Smithy Thanks. I managed to find the palette. Turns out they are on "overlay/overlay_7.bin". Either that, or it is in "arm9.bin". I believe arm9.bin is like an .EXE and those overlay files are like .DLL for NDS. No idea how to work with them, yet.

BUT! If it is about assembling parts into sprites, it is done! All three NDS games used the same file format, so my script works on all 3 of them. I also found the animation sequence and timing data too. Some examples on how it looks with a grayscale palette.

[attachment=10434] Grim Reaper from Dawn of Sorrow

[attachment=10435] Loretta from Portrait of Ruins

[attachment=10436] Rusalka from Order of Ecclesia

Please let me know is there any sprites that I need to be aware of, like it has alpha-blending and stuff.

Take care,
- Rufas

Good job! I am stunned at the amount of progress you've made. Take a break, you need one.
As far as alpha blending and stuff goes, I don't think you have much to worry about for the DS games. I don't think the DS used much alpha blending at all.

Holy S***! rufaswan you are a god of ripping, seriously, i am freaking impressed! can´t believe what you have done, it was my dream to have all Legend of Mana sprites ripped.
Just checked your file and i am speechless haha. Every boss and enemy is ripped, AWESOME!
I can´t complain about anything, you did everything...
You are some kind of genius, how could you do all this.

I will mess with the archives and try to make sheets and upload them here.
I mostly wanted the bosses first, then i can assemble the maps.
Thank God i logged here because i was really inactive with ripping and everything related.

Cheers!

Well, i started to assemble the sprites and upload them on spriters...
Hope the format is good: https://www.spriters-resource.com/playst...et/128979/

I am using a really cool program called Texture Packer to make the sheets.

Hopefully what's being done here can also be done with the SaGa Frontier 2 sprites.

(04-08-2020, 10:09 PM)Magma Dragoon Wrote: [ -> ]Hopefully what's being done here can also be done with the SaGa Frontier 2 sprites.

I think that if he achieved this, then ANY game can be done in this way, as long as the sprites are in "parts" like Legend of Mana bosses (unassembled).

I thought of Xenogears characters too, when you see them in the VRAM, they are all in lots and lots of parts, ripping via the classic screenshot method doesn´t work very good (specially in deathblow or magic attacks).

Rufas became a king of ripping for me right now haha.

(04-08-2020, 07:18 PM)Mortifier777 Wrote: [ -> ]Well, i started to assemble the sprites and upload them on spriters...
Hope the format is good: https://www.spriters-resource.com/playst...et/128979/

I am using a really cool program called Texture Packer to make the sheets.

Grid boxes make it easier for people who are creating GIF animations or using them in fangames. But I guess it's up to the rippers tastes what's essential and what not.

For the rest of the sheet, the font seems to be a little bit too big. Also it's called Du'Inke, not Du-Inke.

Never heard of Texture Packer, but I'm always in search of tools to make sprite ripping easier. Here is the tool which I am using:

https://mega.nz/#!QYBy3aiJ!4U0KF7NDIFv7G...C5xe5Ob4KM
Sheet Maker, text file with tutorial is attached.

You basically throw all files in a folder and put that one in another folder. Then you drag it on Sheet Maker (an installed Java version is needed to run) and it creates a sheet for you in the same directory as the main folder. You can colour the background, the blank space in the frames and determine the pixel distance to each frame (x-axis, y-axis). Pretty nice tool, I must say.

Ah yes, the more subfolders you create within the main folder, the more rows on the sprite sheet you have. Ideal for animation rows like Walking / Attacking / Jumping / etc.

(04-10-2020, 10:14 AM)Barack Obama Wrote: [ -> ]

(04-08-2020, 07:18 PM)Mortifier777 Wrote: [ -> ]Well, i started to assemble the sprites and upload them on spriters...
Hope the format is good: https://www.spriters-resource.com/playst...et/128979/

I am using a really cool program called Texture Packer to make the sheets.

Grid boxes make it easier for people who are creating GIF animations or using them in fangames. But I guess it's up to the rippers tastes what's essential and what not.

For the rest of the sheet, the font seems to be a little bit too big. Also it's called Du'Inke, not Du-Inke.

Never heard of Texture Packer, but I'm always in search of tools to make sprite ripping easier. Here is the tool which I am using:

https://mega.nz/#!QYBy3aiJ!4U0KF7NDIFv7G...C5xe5Ob4KM
Sheet Maker, text file with tutorial is attached.

You basically throw all files in a folder and put that one in another folder. Then you drag it on Sheet Maker (an installed Java version is needed to run) and it creates a sheet for you in the same directory as the main folder. You can colour the background, the blank space in the frames and determine the pixel distance to each frame (x-axis, y-axis). Pretty nice tool, I must say.

Ah yes, the more subfolders you create within the main folder, the more rows on the sprite sheet you have. Ideal for animation rows like Walking / Attacking / Jumping / etc.

I noticed that people here is too picky about everything... the font is too big, this, that... i tried to upload the Mana Goddess and i put the Mana tree behind the sprite in a nice way, and now as been rejected because the watermark thing makes the sheet more heavier (wtf???).
So, know what? i will keep ALL the sprites for myself, i dont need to waste time here trying to upload something and always have people whining about shit.

As for the Texture Packer, its all what i need, it works for me, i dont need any other tools, so thanks.

Cheers.

It's just friendly advice, not a malicious backlash.

The font really is too big and due to anti-alias, the sheet gets heavier in file size. Verdana 7 without AA is completely fine, for example. The same thing goes for your watermark, sheet gets bigger and produces more traffic for the servers. Another logo with just Verdana and "*game* - *subject from game* - Ripped by Mortifier777" is completely fine.

When I made my first CrossCode rips, Garamonde told me that blank space doesn't really look good and that it is a potential burden for TSR. Because at first, I wanted to keep the files "original" and thought there was some kind of grid to them (in hindsight only in very few cases), so I submitted them in a very suboptimal state. After some sheets got rejected, I thought about it and started to redo them. Now I ripped the entire CrossCode game and got 361 sheets on the site with 6 of them in the queue.

Listening to critics and trying out new stuff isn't so bad.

(04-10-2020, 11:09 AM)Mortifier777 Wrote: [ -> ]

(04-10-2020, 10:14 AM)Barack Obama Wrote: [ -> ]

(04-08-2020, 07:18 PM)Mortifier777 Wrote: [ -> ]Well, i started to assemble the sprites and upload them on spriters...
Hope the format is good: https://www.spriters-resource.com/playst...et/128979/

I am using a really cool program called Texture Packer to make the sheets.

Grid boxes make it easier for people who are creating GIF animations or using them in fangames. But I guess it's up to the rippers tastes what's essential and what not.

For the rest of the sheet, the font seems to be a little bit too big. Also it's called Du'Inke, not Du-Inke.

Never heard of Texture Packer, but I'm always in search of tools to make sprite ripping easier. Here is the tool which I am using:

https://mega.nz/#!QYBy3aiJ!4U0KF7NDIFv7G...C5xe5Ob4KM
Sheet Maker, text file with tutorial is attached.

You basically throw all files in a folder and put that one in another folder. Then you drag it on Sheet Maker (an installed Java version is needed to run) and it creates a sheet for you in the same directory as the main folder. You can colour the background, the blank space in the frames and determine the pixel distance to each frame (x-axis, y-axis). Pretty nice tool, I must say.

Ah yes, the more subfolders you create within the main folder, the more rows on the sprite sheet you have. Ideal for animation rows like Walking / Attacking / Jumping / etc.

I noticed that people here is too picky about everything... the font is too big, this, that... i tried to upload the Mana Goddess and i put the Mana tree behind the sprite in a nice way, and now as been rejected because the watermark thing makes the sheet more heavier (wtf???).
So, know what? i will keep ALL the sprites for myself, i dont need to waste time here trying to upload something and always have people whining about shit.

As for the Texture Packer, its all what i need, it works for me, i dont need any other tools, so thanks.

Cheers.

It was rejected because it made the file size and the number of colors on the sheet unnecessarily big. It was like slapping a giant jpeg photo on your nice, clean sprite sheet. It didn't add anything, it distracted from the sprites, and it jumbled everything up. I didn't say "This sheet sucks." I said you should remove it because of the reasons I just stated. I even said in the rejection that I'm really liking your rips, if I remember correctly. Sorry you took the wrong message from that.

No worries, i am not uploading the sprites from Legend of Mana here anymore.
I rather just use that time to continue with my project or my band...

Wow! A lot of replies happened during my break! How is everybody doing?

When I looking on Pearl sprite data, I find it strange that the sparkle ring palette is on 11th. Checking with other sprites confirm the palette is normally used for effects. So when I make all 11th palette to become alpha mask, this sprite appears:

[attachment=10482]

It is the same sprite with semi-transparent on my last post! Amazing!

Guess it is an example of the data DO exists. I just don't know what am I looking for, but "The truth is out there". Somewhere.

I also figured out the mean of value 3. For 1, it is PIXEL = FG + BG , and for 3, it is just PIXEL = (FG / 5) + BG . They are both additive blending, and is used multiple time on top of each other. Roa/Lumine on world map is using alpha mask like this to create lighting effect.

...Interesting. So that's how Playstation do alpha-blending, huh?

As for my question about translating RGB into RGBA, I managed to figured out the answer on my own.

Since additive blending is PIXEL = FG + BG , so by using an example:
  rgb(136,136,136) + rgb(96,96,64) = rgb(232,232,200)

BUT once you converted rgb(136,136,136) into rgba(255,255,255,136) and assembled into sprite, the formula also changed to PIXEL = (FG.R * FG.A) + (BG * (1 - FG.A)) . It will prevent any part that do not require blending to be blend. Therefore, it will become
  rgba(255,255,255,136) + rgb(96,96,64) = rgb(180,180,165)

The result is not the same anymore. It is less brighter than it should be.

For comparison:
[attachment=10483] [attachment=10484]

So even I able to keep (FG.R * FG.A) part correct, I am still screwed by (BG.R * (1 - FG.A)) part.

That sucks. I was hoping for a 100% faithful rip. Guess that's not going to happen.

What do you guys think? Can this problem be solve? Or do you guys consider it is good enough to be acceptable? Let me know.

Take care,
- Rufas

I think you've done a good enough job. Go ahead and start sheeting or find someone else to do it.