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Custom Mods?

AnimewareAnimeware Member Posts: 73
edited September 2012 in iPad (Archive)
Will there be Custom Mod's for the IPAD Device's like Add-On content to this where down the road you can pay money to add content to the game and expanded it with more features or Custom Mods as well to pay on the device?
MurrayConfederacy

Comments

  • CyricSpawnCyricSpawn Member Posts: 74
    I wish but due to App Store control and overhaul contracts I doubt it will happen
  • MurrayConfederacyMurrayConfederacy Member Posts: 188
    Trent Oster once tweeted that they may use the iTunes file transfer system (many media apps use it) to allow for mod support. I'd be guessing that if it were coming it would be a bit later after release on iPad.
  • NathanNathan Member Posts: 1,007
    Currently we're looking into options. Chances of there being support for stuff at launch is small, but going forward we think we have some ideas for how to approach this.
    mlnevese
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    @Nathan you've found a way around the forced sandboxing?
  • NathanNathan Member Posts: 1,007
    edited November 2012
    Yes and no - currently, we're looking at allowing access to the override directory by making that the same as the one that people copy files in and out of via the itunes document file sharing (that apple already allows). As for more invasive mods, that's still up in the air - but if any mod can be installed simply by putting files in the override directory, that should be possible. More invasive mods might be out of luck, but we'll see!
    mlnevesesazalandSpace_hamster
  • WolfheartWolfheart Member Posts: 170
    What about overriding the dialog.tlk as many mods do (Well, they use Weidu to modify, but same same)? Is that also possible via the override folder?
  • sazalandsazaland Member Posts: 25
    You could just jailbreak like any iDevice power user. Then it'd be exactly the same process as the OS X version, just chuck the files in.
  • Space_hamsterSpace_hamster Member Posts: 950
    It's cool that they are finding a solution to legit modding on the iPad. I don't fancy jailbreaking.
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    I really don't see any way for implementing this unless it only offer support for very simple override mods.

    Before Weidu all mods used override and it was hell to make them compatible. Weidu solved that by layering patches to the required files (dialog.tlk and chitin.key, for instance) and correctly removing adding to the files according to install/uninstall order.

    Installing anything more complex will be stopped by the inability to directly access the filesystem to patch required files.
  • WolfheartWolfheart Member Posts: 170
    @mlnevese That's assuming the next gen Weidu doesn't generate an override directory for ipad use. Does lock you to a computer with the files available but still ^^* Weidu only needs to be able to access the files once, then create a set of override files.
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    edited December 2012
    @Wolfheart You mean modding the game in a computer and then transfering to an IPad?

    First you'd need to know all files that were changed and then transfer them to an IPad. Depending on the type of mods you use you'd soon have a few thousand files in your override folder. BG1 NPC Project alone would need to install a few hundred portraits and sound files, along with changed tlk file and others.
  • WolfheartWolfheart Member Posts: 170
    @mlnevese That's not really an issue as long as it uses the override folder, just copy the whole thing. Problem would be uninstalling mods but its at least possible without jailbreaking, assuming it doesn't break one of apple's holy rules. If that's the case then we are "gently made love to"...
  • Space_hamsterSpace_hamster Member Posts: 950
    Groovy. I can dig it.
  • IllydthIllydth Member, Developer Posts: 1,641
    *shrug* Would this even be possible? I don't know anything about Weidu or any of that, but I do know that software for an ARM based processor isn't going to run on a Windows based PC. YOu can't take an executable or anything that will run on windows and simply "copy" it over to your iPad and get anything of the sort to run. The file formats are different...the methods of execution are different, even the way the save files are structured are going to be different.

    If Weidu has to patch something in the executable to get some kind of override it's going to be a VASTLY Different process for windows vs. iPad. I don't want to dash hope, but I'm not sure anything you're mentioning is going to work...software on the iPad doesn't work like software on a Windows PC or even Mac OSX.

    I hope to be proven VERY wrong.
  • WolfheartWolfheart Member Posts: 170
    @illydth Weidu doesn't touch the .exe file, it just modifies dialog.tlk (and others?) and dumps tons of stuff in the /override folder.
  • plan9auplan9au Member Posts: 6
    @Illydth no offence but i too hope you are proved wrong :) , i was never hugely into the modding but the option was always welcome....
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