UFO-Scripts/skins.ufo

The skin script allow to describe skins the engine will use for actor models (at the moment, only for human skins). It is not used for the gameplay, but only for the look and feel.

Model file embed a list of skin name. The engine only use the first one to find image file name. Others are not used, but can be, anyway, useful for third party model viewers and editors. The engine

Script

Each skin is describe with the keyword actorskin. It contain a string id (used to find image file name), a name (displayed in the user interface) which is translatable, and some properties.

singleplayer

V_BOOL: Describe if we can use this skin in single player mode.

multiplayer

V_BOOL: Describe if we can use this skin in multiplayer mode.

Example

This example register a foo skin to the game. The game will search for skins using _foo suffix. This skin is available in both multiplayer and singleplayer game.

actorskin foo {
	name		"_My foo skin"
	singleplayer	true
	multiplayer	true
}

Resolution of image skin name

The engine use three things to found the file name used for a skin.

• The first image defined of the embedded skin defined inside model file. Most of the time it is the name of the model itself.
• The separator _ (underscore) for readability.
• The actor skin id as suffix.

For example: It exists a model called body.md2. It embedded the skin file name body. And it exists an actor skin name called forest. The engine will check the image filename body_forest. If this image do not exists, the engine will use the default skin name.

• base/models/soldiers/foo
  • body.md2
  • body.jpg
  • body_forest.jpg

Script order

The engine use the first embedded skin from models. It is a special case cause here - it doesn't use any suffix. To avoid loading error, the engine must read this skin entry on first, and this skin must be called default.

actorskin default {
	name		"_Urban"
	singleplayer	true
	multiplayer	true
}

It is anyway an artificial order limitation. We should fix it with code. Patch is welcome.

Sharing actor skin

Elite skin by turkana.

We can share an own actor skin with a pk3 file. You can check http://mattn.ninex.info/files/eliteskin_turkana.pk3 for an example of skin.

To use this file, we can move it on the game base directory, or on the home base directory. It add a new "Elite" skin, for the multiplayer mode only.

Some notes:

• A pk3 can contain more than one new actor skin.
• It should not overwrite official content.
• The script should be prefixed with skins_.
• Actor skin name and script should avoid conflict name.

Multiplayer limitation

The game engine only share numerical skin id, and not named skin id. If a player use a custom actor skin, we don't know if other people will see the same model. Anyway the player himself will see the right model. Patch is welcome.

If all players use the same pk3 files, and the same game content, all players will have the same right result.