Bright Memory: Infinite Bright Memory: Infinite Mod Development Manual

Getting Prepared To Make Your Mod

Download Unreal Engine 4.26.2 from the Epic Games Launcher.

(Please make sure you are downloading the correct version of Unreal Engine.)

Download "BMI_ModDevelopmentKit_V1.0" and unzip it to anywhere you want on your computer.

https://playism.com/bmi-mod/BMI_ModDevelopmentKit_V1.0.zip

Download a 3DCG software that supports skin binding, such as 3DS MAX, MAYA, or Blender.

Directory Structure Of The Mod Development Kit

Open "BMI_MOD.uproject" from the unzipped "BMI_MOD" folder in Unreal Engine 4.26.2.

Select the "MOD Content" folder from the Content Browser.

The mod development kit directory structure should look like this:

Objects marked in pink are skeletal mesh objects. They must be exported to a 3DCG software first, and then re-imported into the project.

"NPC_BMI_SuYa_Skin00" is Shelia's third-person model.

"BMI_SuYa_Foot00" is Sheila's first-person leg model.

"BMI_SuYa_Hand00" is Sheila's first-person arm model.

Changing The Character (Exporting An Original Model)

The following demonstration will be done on "NPC_BMI_SuYa_Skin00".

In the Content Browser, right click on the model and select Asset Actions>Export from the menu that appears.

When you export the file, the FBX Export Options window will appear.

Please uncheck all of the options selected in red.

(The yellow checkbox is for expression morphs, which will be exported if you check it. Otherwise, ignore it.)

Replacing The Character

The following steps will be done in 3DS MAX.

Open the exported "NPC_BMI_SuYa_Skin00.FBX" file.

Select Graph Editors>New Schematic View from the toolbar.

Once you're in Graphic View, find the part in the image marked in red.

Hold the left mouse button and drag your mouse to select the 3 objects marked in red, and then select the Unlink Selected icon in the top left.

Once they're unlinked, make sure that "Bip001" is the root bone.

(If "Bip001" is not the root bone, an error will occur when you try to import the file again.)

Select Customize>Units Setup from the toolbar and select Generic Units.

Select System Unit Setup, and set the 1 Unit to 1.0 and the measurement unit to centimeters.

(If you don't do this, the character will have incorrect proportions.)

Select File>Import>Merge from the toolbar.

Select the model you want to use and merge it.

(The model doesn't need to have bones, but it should not be too different in size from the original Sheila model. If the sizes are very different, please edit the model's vertices and adjust it beforehand.)

Load in the model. Here we will use a sample robot model.

(The yellow one on the right.)

Select the new model, and then move and resize it (if needed) until it overlaps with Sheila's original model.

Press the H key and select Sheila's bones in Select From Scene, then adjust them so they line up with the new model.

(As shown in the image, please try to match up the limbs, head, and finger joints as closely as possible.)

Select the new model, and select Command Panel>Modify>Modifier List>Skin Wrap.

As shown in the image, click the Add button and select the Sheila model to start the skin wrapping process.

Wait until the process is complete. "NPC_SuYa_Skin00" will be added to the list.

Check Weigh All Points at the bottom.

Click Convert to Skin.

Now, Skin should have been added to the top of the Modifier List.

Here, select Skin Wrap and delete it. We won't be using it anymore.

Now we can also delete the Sheila model, which we also won't be using anymore.

(We are using the bones, so don't delete them!)

Select File>Export>Export to name your file and save it.

(Make sure the file is named "NPC_BMI_SuYa_Skin00.FBX".)

When exporting, the FBX Export window will appear. Check all the boxes marked in red in Include>Animation, and click OK on the bottom right to export.

Cook The Character Model's Uasset Files

Go back to the BMI_MOD project in Unreal Engine and open your Content Browser.

Double-click on the Sheila model and select Reimport Base Mesh in the popup window that appears.

Select the newly exported "NPC_BMI_SuYA_Skin00.FBX".

If the Reimport Material Conflicts Resolution window appears, click Rest to FBX in the bottom right. Now the Sheila model has been replaced with the robot.

In Unreal Engine, select Settings>Plugins.

Click New Plugin in the bottom right.

Select Content Only and enter the name of the mod folder. Remember this name as it will be used later. Then, select Create Plugins.

(The name of the folder must only use the Latin alphabet and numbers, and must not contain any spaces. Please do not use the name in the example image. If you want to upload the mod to the Workshop, please give it a unique name so that it doesn't clash with someone else's mod.)

Then, go back to the Unreal Engine Content Browser, where you'll see the folder you just named.

Select "NPC_BMI_SuYa_Skin00" from the "BMI_MOD Content" folder in the Content Browser and drag it into the new folder.

Select Copy Here, which will create a copy of "NPC_BMI_SuYa_Skin00" in the mod folder.

(Note: You can add materials and textures to your model, but make sure everything is put in the same folder so that the game can find them.)

Go back to the Content Browser, click "NPC_BMI_SuYa_Skin00" in the new folder, and drag it onto the scene.

(This is how the game knows what resources it has to reference. If you want to replace a weapon model, drag the weapon model onto the scene. If you want to replace both the character and weapon models, you have to drag all models you want to use onto the scene. If you want to create another mod afterwards, please delete the other models from the map first.)

(If you're making a weapon model mod, please also make a PhysicsAsset file for your magazine model, or else it won't have any physics when you reload in third-person mode, causing the magazine to float in midair.)

Click SAVE ALL in the Content Browser to save your files.

In the menu, select Cook Content for Windows to cook your Uasset.

Putting PAK Files In The Model Folder

Go back to Windows and open this Content folder:

\Saved\Cooked\WindowsNoEditor\BMI_MOD\Plugins\"Name of Your Plugin"\Content

Copy all the files in the folder.

(Note: If you have any material spheres or textures, there will be more files. Please copy them as well.)

Paste the copied files in this Content folder:

\UnrealPakTool\BMI_MOD\BMI_MOD\Plugins\BMI_MOD\Content

Go back to the "Plugins" folder and rename the "BMI_MOD" folder to the name of the mod folder you created earlier.

("BMI_MOD" is a placeholder name for this tutorial. Please change it to another name when you actually make a mod.)

Use the "UnrealPakTool" in the following location to creat a PAK file:

\UnrealPakTool\

Drag the "BMI_MOD" folder to the file named "UnrealPak-Without-Compression.bat".

As you can see, "BMI_MOD.PAK" has been added to the "UnrealPakTool" folder.

Import The PAK File To The Game

Save the new "BMI_MOD.PAK" file in the "BMI_MOD" folder in the following location:

\UnrealPakTool\LocalMods\BMI_MOD

Rename the "BMI_MOD" folder in the "LocalMods" folder to the name of the mod.

(If you don't rename this folder, it might clash with other mods you download in the future.)

Prepare Informational Files for the Workshop

"ICON.jpg" is the preview image for your mod in the Workshop. You may edit it with an image editing tool such as Photoshop.

(Please save it as a JPG, as the game cannot load PNG or other image formats.)

"ModInfo.json" is a text file that you can upload to the Workshop which contains information on your mod. You can edit it with the notepad or any other text editor. Here is an example of what you can include.

Open "Modinfo.json" and replace the words in quotations with the details of your own mod.

(Note: Please fill in PathName with the exact same name as your mod folder. If the name is different from the actual folder name, the game will not be able to recognize the new model. If you're unsure what the name is, refer back to Step 3 of Bake the Character Model's Uasset Files.)

ModInfo.json Example:

"Title": "Name of mod",

"UserName": "Your Steam username",

"TagA": "Tag name A",

"TagB": "Tag name B",

"TagC": "Tag name C",

"Describe": "Mod description",

"PathName": "Name of mod folder"

Go back to the "UnrealPakTool" folder and copy the "LocalMods" folder.

Open the folder where Bright Memory: Infinite is installed and paste the "LocalMods" folder there.

\BrightMemoryInfinite\BrightMemoryInfinite

(This is the same folder where you can find the Binaries, Content, and Plugins folders.)

Launch Bright Memory: Infinite.

Select Mods from the main menu.

Enter the Mod Manager. Your mod should show up in the list. Check the box to test your mod in-game.

(You will see a computer icon next to the checkbox. This means that the mod is only in your local files and not available on the Workshop.)

Upload Your Mod To The Workshop

In the Mods menu, make sure your "ICON.jpg" and "ModInfo.json" files are correct.

Select your mod. The Upload Mod(s) to Workshop button will appear below.

Click the button to upload your mod to the Steam Workshop.

Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3053538813

Bright Memory: Infinite Mod Development Manual