ROM Hack Trainer Sprite Replacement in HeartGold

[_Chaz_]

So, for whatever reason, I had the urge to replace Lyra's sprites in HeartGold. Only problem is... I'm clueless.

I have replacement sprites ready to go, but I don't know where to replace some of them, or how to.

I can edit the overworld sprites with a combination of BTX Editor, and some program called kiwi.ds, but I don't know which files are Lyra's sprites. I have most of them down, but I need the rest of them, and searching through over 800 files isn't exactly thrilling.

After that, I need to know how I can replace the in-battle sprites (the animation where she throws out her Pokemon), her trainer card sprite (I forget if there's a Pokeathlon variant), her mugshot, and character select sprite (if that's even possible...).


Any help is welcome, I just wanna get this done.

 

[Fishaman P]

It seems odd that you're never heard of Google.

http://www.pokecommu...t=194248&page=2 post #36

 

[_Chaz_]

That helped with some locations, but other than that, not a whole lot.

I know several people here have some experience with hacking HG/SS, and I'd REALLY like some help from someone who's been here before.

 

[rastsan]

sometimes the only thing you can do is find it/them yourself... there is this one game I have helped with that had over 9000 graphic files. Yes I looked through them all... It'll be even easier for you if you look for spriter's resource pages - where they just dump the images. if you ask nicely where they got it from (ie the file) they generally tell you.

otherwise:
might be even handier to know how to find images in a game with a debugger. if you can find it in memory you can find it in the game, first you find it in memory - graphically in the debugger. then look at that same spot in memory in hex... go up a little and see if you find the name of the graphic- or better copy a bit of that hex that is that graphic then use that to search the rom... where you end up is where that graphic is. if you are lucky the graphic will not be compressed and you can find it right away. If not then you have dump all the files - decompress the compressed files, then rebuild the rom (as in use dsbuff to make a rom from those files)save the rom. then search through the that new rom with the decompressed files, with/for the aforementioned chunk.

 

[_Chaz_]

I don't even know where to begin with a hex-editor. I don't even know how to use one... Who'd have thought that replacing some sprites would be such a big deal?

 

[rastsan]

oh jeez... you are only searching in hex you aren't changing anything. You know how to use a search button right?
you click it after you put something in the box near it to search.
you take a chunk of something that you know is the image you use that to search for it in the rom. find it in rom... done.
If this doesn't sound simple enough I don't know how else to put it.
tip crystaltile 2 has a hex viewer and a tile viewer(graphic). even better you can search the hex.
next thing find an emulator with debugging that can let you know where to find a particular image on its screen... better one thats memory is real good for searching... I would suggest Ideas. when you dump its memory with emuhaste it does a real good job of doing an exact dump (as in the offset and pointers are listed exactly as you would find them in the arm9 or overlays).
if you have a little cash pay for the debug version of no$gba. handy little thing that you have to use to understand why i am recommending it.

other options that seems more up your alley wait for someone else to do the work for you or do it yourself. either by looking through file by file or with a memory search.