ROM Hack [Release] MSBT Editor Reloaded

[IcySon55]

Hey there gbatemp,

Notice: For a more advanced and complete MSBT solution, check out Kuriimu.

I created this editor a while ago to support a translation project I was planning; Which is now cancelled since Picross 3D 2 is slated for a North American release. It has since grown beyond anything I could have imagined and is now used by many in the modding community on all sorts of projects. I hope you find it useful in your own projects!

Credit is welcome.

Releases

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.8

• Fixed CSV exporting.

Older Changelog Entries:

Spoiler

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.7b

• Fixed the BG4 extraction menu not showing up.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.7

• Finally corrected the label renaming bugs.
  • v0.9.7 will correct broken files that were previously broken by v0.9.6 and v0.9.5b. Just open the broken file and then click save to fix it. Broken files created by v0.9.5 and below can not currently be fixed with the program. Contact me directly if you need your heavily modified file fixed so you don't lose any work.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.6

• Added the Export Mod feature for XMSBT files.
  • Export the differences between two MSBT files to an XMSBT delta file.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.5b

• Actually fixed the label length bug this time. Label renaming wasn't updating the length value.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.5

• Added links to the GBAtemp thread as well as the GitHub page.
• Added new icons to support webpage links.
• Allowed users to drag the splitters between UI elements.
• Adjusted spacing between all UI elements to maximize screen real-estate.
• Patched label addition where new labels created with spaces in their names would have an invalid length and cause a broken MSBT file to be saved.
• Allowed other software to read (not write) the currently open MSBT file at the same time.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.4

• Implemented batch import and export for XMSBT files.
• Implemented label addition when using XMSBT import (batch included).
• Rearranged the menu bar slightly.
• Changed the shortcut keys because of adding more XMSBT tools.
• Added some new icons for the XMSBT functions.
• Fixed a bug with UMSBT extraction where the overwrite choice was being ignored.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.3

• Added the new XMSBT translation tools.

XMSBT files are XML files that contain the labels and text from an MSBT file. The strings are stored on separate lines so that the files are source control friendly. This gives fan translation authors the ability to collaborate on the same file without having to manually merge the changes from multiple translators as most source control solutions will take care of merging.
MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.2

• Added null byte support via "\0" for control characters in the text.
• Added a console window while in Debug mode.
• Implemented the IEntry interface to mostly separate the UI from the MSBT class.
• Extensive rewrite of the MSBT class to support IEntry and the removal of SubStrings.
• Extended BinaryReaderX and BinaryWriterX functionality.
• Patched the SearchDirectory feature to properly select the correct entry after double clicking a result.
• Patched the RemoveLabel functionality to correctly remove a label and re-sequence the existing TXT2 entries.
• Made the Add, Remove and Save label features only available for files that have an LBL1 section. (Temporary)
• Removed SubStrings and supporting UI elements. (Replaced by null byte support.)
• Removed the Preview box as the full string is now visible in the Edit box.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.1

• Added the new Search Directory feature.
• Fixed user settings not saving properly.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.9.0

• Added the ability to add and remove labels in MSBT files!
• Fixed the LZ11 windows not appearing.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8.6

• Added support for managing UMSBT archives.
• Now supports Animal Crossing: New Leaf.
• Fixed a few grammatical errors.
  • LZ11 Compression windows do not appear.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8.5

• Added support for the ATO1 section.
• Now supports Miitomo.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8.4

• Added support for UTF8 encoded MSBT files.
• Now supports Art Academy and Detective Pikachu.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8.3

• Added a search feature to find strings in the file.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8.2

• Added a new icon for the BG4 Extraction tool.
• Added a new export feature that dumps MSBT values into a CSV file.
• Patched my BigEndian reading class. Fixes support for large BigEndian files in Super Smash Bros 3DS/WiiU.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8.1

• More fully reverse engineered the BG4 format. BG4 extraction success is basically 100% now.
• Some files inside BG4 archives without extensions now extract with their expected extensions.
  • Only MSBT, BCH, and PTX for now.
  • If the extension is in the BG4 already, it will be used.
• Cleaned up some UI handling code. Used directories are now remembered properly.
• Added some minor exception handling checks.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8

• Added support for Mario & Luigi Paper Jam MSBT files.
• Added a tool to extract files from BG4 archives. An M&LPJ archive format containing MSBT files.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.7

• Added some error handling to correct files that were edited with v0.4.
• Patched a few UI bugs that prevented some features from working properly.
• When saving, the Original entries now get updated without reloading the file.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.6

Read and Write accuracy is now 100%

• Added support for BigEndian files which includes Super Mario Galaxy 2 support.
• The last major action will now be displayed in the center at the bottom.
• File changes will now be tracked and the user will be prompted to save changes when opening another file or quitting the program.
• Patched sub string support to properly read in the last set of strings in the file.
• Fixed text boxes not updating when text is changed in the edit and hex views.
• The tab key now also cycles through sub strings and doesn't depend on focus being given to the Edit text box to function.
• Ctrl+A now works on all text boxes including the hex view.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.5 Beta

• Added support for sub strings. Certain MSBT files contain null bytes in between string offsets.
• Added new shortcut keys. When focus is given to the Edit text box:
  • Ctrl+A selects all text
  • Tab cycles down through the strings. Shift+Tab cycles up.
• Added a preview text box that shows all sub strings concatenated together.
• Patched saving so that the section size is correctly written to the file.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.4 Beta

• Initial release with basic MSBT support and a few bugs.

Planned Feature(s)

• Creating MSBT files from scratch.

Supported MSBT Sections

• LBL1 - Full support.
• NLI1 - Preliminary support. Most content is unknown.
• ATO1 - Preliminary support. Content is all 0xFF without padding.
• ATR1 - Preliminary support. Content is usually blank.
• TSY1 - Preliminary support. Content is unknown.
• TXT2 - Full support.

Supported Games

• Super Mario 3D Land - Not tested.
• Mario Kart 7 - Supported.
• Super Mario Galaxy 2 - Partially tested.
• Super Smash Bros. 3DS - Supported.
• Super Smash Bros. WiiU - Supported.
• Mario & Luigi Paper Jam - Supported.
• Art Academy - Partially tested.
• Detective Pikachu - Supported.
• Miitomo - Partially tested.
• Animal Crossing: New Leaf - Supported.
• Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE - Supported.
• Paper Mario: Sticker Star - Not tested.
• Paper Mario: Color Splash - Supported.
• Others may be supported, need feedback.

XMSBT Translation Tools

• This is the MSBT translator's dream feature! This format allows translators to work together and collaborate on the same file(s) without losing any work due to files being overwritten or files being impossible to merge easily.
• Export an open MSBT file to the human readable XMSBT (XML) format.
• Import XMSBT files into an open MSBT file. Text is imported by matching the label names.
• Batch Export and Batch Import support all of the same features as the single file tools.
• To use the batch tools, keep the MSBT and XMSBT files in the same directory. (Export does this automatically, and Import expects it.)
• Export only the differences between two MSBT files to an XMSBT delta file using the new Export Mod feature!

Other Features

• Add and Remove labels. (Limited to files with an LBL1 section which is 99% of them.)
• Find - I've added the ability to search for strings in the file making translation that much easier.
• Search Directory - Works like Find except that it searches all MSBT files in a directory. (Subdirectories supported)
• Export CSV - Exports the currently open file and any changes made to a CSV file.
• BG4 Extraction - Extract files from within BG4 archives found in games like Mario & Luigi Paper Jam.
• LZ11 De/Compression - Compress and Decompress files using LZ11. Held onto this feature from Exelix11's original version.
• UMSBT Extraction & Packing - Extract MSBT files from UMSBT archives and repack them into UMSBT archives.
• v0.9.7 will correct broken files that were previously broken by v0.9.6 and v0.9.5b. Just open the broken file and then click save to fix it. Broken files created by v0.9.5 and below can not currently be fixed with the program. Contact me directly if you need your heavily modified file fixed so you don't lose any work.

Known Issues

• v0.8.6 - LZ11 Compression windows do not appear. Update to v0.9.0+.
• v0.9.6 and below - Label renaming is broken. Update to v0.9.7+.

 

[Ridge]

Wow, this is really helpful! Nice work

 

[IcySon55]

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.5 Beta

• Added support for sub strings. Certain MSBT files contain null bytes in between string offsets.
• Added new shortcut keys. When focus is given to the Edit text box:
  • Ctrl+A selects all text
  • Tab cycles down through the strings. Shift+Tab cycles up.
• Added a preview text box that shows all sub strings concatenated together.
• Patched saving so that the section size is correctly written to the file.

 

[DarkFlare69]

What does this provide over the other one?

 

[IcySon55]

What does this provide over the other one?

1. Accuracy (I hope... With v0.6+, full accuracy has been achieved!)
   • If you open a file in the previous editor and save it, the contents will be different. (At least for the files I was working with. This may not be the case for Mario Kart 7 MSBT files.)
   • My program can open an MSBT and when you save it as another file, the two are identical. This was an important goal of mine since I needed an MSBT tool to translate a game.
   • There is currently only one file I tested where it doesn't output the exact same file. Still investigating that one. Fixed!
2. Features
   • Sub-string support. The MSBT files I'm working with seem to have more than one string in each entry. The previous editor was actually missing all but the first string. Data was being lost resulting in incomplete translations and nobody would even know it was happening!
   • Use-able hex view. The hex view in Reloaded can actually be used to edit the strings instead of just showing the bytes. It also displays them neatly in a standard hex grid.
3. More Supported Games
   • Super Mario 3D Land
   • Mario Kart 7
   • Super Mario Galaxy 2
   • Mario & Luigi Paper Jam
   • and one other I'm not going to mention yet.

...and I guess, it has a bit more polish? Shortcut keys, icons, etc...

P.S. I'm not mentioning the game I'm translating in this explanation because I want it to be a surprise for everyone here.

 

[IcySon55]

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.6

Read and Write accuracy is now 100%

• Added support for BigEndian files which includes Super Mario Galaxy 2 support.
• The last major action will now be displayed in the center at the bottom.
• File changes will now be tracked and the user will be prompted to save changes when opening another file or quitting the program.
• Patched sub string support to properly read in the last set of strings in the file.
• Fixed text boxes not updating when text is changed in the edit and hex views.
• The tab key now also cycles through sub strings and doesn't depend on focus being given to the Edit text box to function.
• Ctrl+A now works on all text boxes including the hex view.

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.7

• Added some error handling to correct files that were edited with v0.4.
• Patched a few UI bugs that prevented some features from working properly.
• When saving, the Original entries now get updated without reloading the file.

 

[IcySon55]

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8

• Added support for Mario & Luigi Paper Jam MSBT files.
• Added a tool to extract files from BG4 archives. An M&LPJ archive format containing MSBT files.

 

[aldelaro5]

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8

• Added support for Mario & Luigi Paper Jam MSBT files.
• Added a tool to extract files from BG4 archives. An M&LPJ archive format containing MSBT files.

I actually just tried and it's really weird.

Some file just tells me the program couldn;t read until the end of the stream (while the files clearly has a BG4 header) others extracts, but it;s just .bin files with appropriate file names and 0 bytes in them (so empty)

Did I do something wrong?

 

[caprathebest]

I was working on a python parser yesterday, but you beated me on time lol. Btw some MSBT files from the FMsg.dat aren't working, since they use a different struct (like they have the standard MsgStdBn header, but then the next "magic" value changes to a BL1 instead of a LBL1). If you want some of them feel free to ask, or I'll need to learn C# lol

 

[IcySon55]

Some file just tells me the program couldn't read until the end of the stream (while the files clearly has a BG4 header) others extracts, but it's just .bin files with appropriate file names and 0 bytes in them (so empty)

Can you provide an example file that isn't working? PM would be fine.

I was working on a python parser yesterday, but you beated me on time lol. Btw some MSBT files from the FMsg.dat aren't working, since they use a different struct (like they have the standard MsgStdBn header, but then the next "magic" value changes to a BL1 instead of a LBL1). If you want some of them feel free to ask, or I'll need to learn C# lol

Which of the files in FMsg is not loading in the editor? There are many... I have FMsg at hand, I would only need to know the filename so I can extract and test the file.

You guys need to be more specific and provide example files. I can't magic the data off your hard drives.

 

[caprathebest]

Can you provide an example file that isn't working? PM would be fine.


Which of the files in FMsg is not loading in the editor? There are many... I have FMsg at hand, I would only need to know the filename so I can extract and test the file.

You guys need to be more specific and provide example files. I can't magic the data off your hard drives.

Sorry, but I wrote it quickly so I forgot to quote the files.
Every file inside FMsg doesn't work with the editor, except f_desert_1

 

[IcySon55]

Sorry, but I wrote it quickly so I forgot to quote the files.
Every file inside FMsg doesn't work with the editor, except f_desert_1

Really? I just extracted all 311 files, and basically all of them work in the editor. Are you extracting the FMsg.bin from Mario & Luigi Paper Jam Bros.? If it's from another game, then I'm not sure it'll work 100%.

 

[caprathebest]

Really? I just extracted all 311 files, and basically all of them work in the editor. Are you extracting the FMsg.bin from Mario & Luigi Paper Jam Bros.? If it's from another game, then I'm not sure it'll work 100%.

Yeah I'm working with Paper Jam (I'm documenting the unused stuff inside the game, check this out).
Btw the non-working files are inside the EU_it folder. The EU_en ones are working perfectly. Just wanted to let you know

 

[IcySon55]

Yeah I'm working with Paper Jam (I'm documenting the unused stuff inside the game, check this out).
Btw the non-working files are inside the EU_it folder. The EU_en ones are working perfectly. Just wanted to let you know

That's a very important detail! I'll give those files a once over. See what's different.

Edit: Aaaand it works just fine... All files are working. See all the Italian text in the editor. Try re-downloading the v0.8 archive and trying it again.

 

[caprathebest]

Found a lot of E3 leftovers inside Paper Jam thanks to your tool
You're awesome!

 

[IcySon55]

Found a lot of E3 leftovers inside Paper Jam thanks to your tool
You're awesome!

Many thanks! Did re-downloading solve the problem?

 

[caprathebest]

Many thanks! Did re-downloading solve the problem?

Yup.

 

[mustafag32g]

will we ever get a 3d land level editor (

 

[IcySon55]

will we ever get a 3d land level editor (

I imagine somebody would have to do something like:

Steps to get a working 3D Land Level Editor

1. Reverse engineer the level file format.
2. Create conversion tools that convert 3D Studio Max, Maya, Blender, etc. models into 3D Land Level format models. This may include collision meshes, enemies, items, and more.
   
3. Create a level viewer/editor that allows you to view the level and potentially place objects, like coins, enemies, the goal post, your starting location, etc., and to set options like the music, level time, etc.

All quite a bit of work that would take a lot of time.

 

[IcySon55]

MSBT Editor Reloaded v0.8.1

• More fully reverse engineered the BG4 format. BG4 extraction success is basically 100% now.
• Some files inside BG4 archives without extensions now extract with their expected extensions.
  • Only MSBT, BCH, and PTX for now.
  • If the extension is in the BG4 already, it will be used.
• Cleaned up some UI handling code. Used directories are now remembered properly.
• Added some minor exception handling checks.