SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis Sensible Soccer - Mod Projects/Hex Editing

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1 year 2 months ago #146424 by Jubigala10
Hi all,

I've recently decided to pursue a mod project for the SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis version of Sensible Soccer that I'm playing on GENS Emulator.

I'm not aware of any programs that change squads or kits outside of the game, and there is the 20 team editing limit which is a pain.

If anyone would like to collaborate on projects aimed at modding the data, please let me know. I have been modding games since 2003, and recently moved onto rom hacks for my own use.

I will aim to hex edit the game text for now, but that's as far as I've got without other programs known to me.

Jubigala10

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1 year 2 months ago #146453 by lukasroar
Hello!

Please keep us updated with this project, i'm a massive fan of the Mega Drive/Genesis version and being able to edit the game's base data/info has been a dream of mine for many many years.

I'd absolutely love to collaborate but i know nothing of modding games :( but have plenty of ideas on what i'd like to change/edit.

I love editing this version and have spent countless hours doing it. It's nice that you confirmed there's a 20 team editing limit, something I've often wondered about. I have a few other questions if you wouldn't mind answering them? Feel free to DM.

Thanks

P.S. if you fancy reading about just how passionate I am about the mega drive version, please feel free to read my article below
medium.com/p/2b155002d478

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1 year 2 months ago #146454 by Jubigala10
I've been able to add 20 teams on the European version - The FA Carling Premiership 96/97.

It seems to be stable on the save state method - you basically load the .bin file I've made with the hex edits, then you load the .GS0 file which seems to load a save state for edited teams. I'm hoping that allows for a full, stable edit of each team.

I've now expanded that to edit all the 64 clubs - it's now a English Pyramid mod, featuring the FA Carling Premiership, 1st Div and promoted teams from 2nd and 3rd Divs. I've left some European clubs, and you'd now be able to play the UCL QFs and the finals on the UEFA and CWC - there's even room for a couple of Intertoto Cup winner, Karlsruhe for example.

The teams are edited in a realistic skill order, so Floriana will be Northampton Town of Div 3 and Galatasaray will be Birmingham City of Div 1 and Benfica Liverpool in the Prem and it works really well and seems to be fairly accurate in simulated tournaments.

I will see how the editing goes for that - hopefully it won't wipe the data as it's saved in a save state.

Note: I now have the International version (licensed club and national teams and national teams) but I notice the save state is different and so any mods on that version are WIP.

That's as far as I've got. I think it might be possible to replace music, but I don't think much else is, like custom kits and the like.
 
The following user(s) said Thank You: lukasroar

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1 year 2 months ago #146455 by lukasroar
Thank you for replying. I assumed save states would be the best option.

Ideally i'd love to edit the teams and have that saved to an actual Mega Drive cart, so that i'd only have to do minimal edits again. Editing on a D-Pad really is a labour of love.

I'd also love to edit the difficulty, adding dribble to hard mode but I imagine that's a rather difficult edit to make.

You mentioned realistic skill, how does this work behind the scenes? I've always wondered how the teams are ranked and what makes them good/bad, especially in the Custom Teams section (which features no recognisable names or star player system).

Also, there's a cheat in the MD version that allows low gravity. I accessed it once as a kid and have found reference to it online but I have no idea how to enable it. If you have any info it would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry for all the questions, but they're ones i've had for years and no one else has ever been able to answer them lol.

Thanks again, it's nice to chat with someone who's a fan of this version. Despite it's limitations, it's basically my childhood.

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1 year 2 months ago #146456 by Jubigala10
So - update. I got the dreaded 'choose custom edits to lose' screen upon trying to play a game, so I'm currently seeing how many teams I can get into this mod. It looks like 44 currently, but I assume it's 20 fully renamed teams.

I'd suggest mods are made on the International version for the season of the game that year and that way you can get more edits in if teams can be left alone.

I'm using the Euro version for now. Mods don't take long - it's purely data entry.

I can't currently mod any gameplay/graphics. It's beyond my remit as I have no programs.

I can't see a way to edit data outside of the in-game editor. I may try something like DB Commander or open it in excel. If that works - I'd be chuffed!

The team/player data doesn't appear editable in hex editors - bit it must be stored somehow, excel seems a decent shout.

I believe there are no editable skills in game. I notice you can actually detach the ball from your dribble in the gameplay. Maybe edit a poorer team for a bigger challenge?

However, the teams are already edited, so you all you need to know is their general level.

I know the levels of clubs and national teams, and so in a mod, you can make the top team in a mod as Brazil and the bottom team say, Estonia.

This will guarantee a probable league table - the tricky part is guessing who's in the middle.

Custom teams are much more difficult. You manually have to simulate a league to get their rough skill levels. A dull task indeed.

As for the cheat - no idea. Might be a Game Genie thing.

Do you have Facebook? Might be easier to chat there as it's likely us two!

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1 year 2 months ago #146457 by lukasroar
I remember the dreaded, ‘Choose Custom Teams to Lose’ screen. I can remember wanting to cry as a kid when I’d edited about 15 teams, started a league with about 11 mates and then the cartridge reset mid-season.

Let me know if you have any luck with DB Commander/Excel. I really wish I knew how to mod, I’d love the SWOS database but with the MD control system.
Or just a few simple little edits here and there to improve the game.

I knew that the higher a team was on the listing, the harder they were to play against but I wasn’t sure if that applied to Player vs Player. As kids we used to have arguments where someone would swear my team was faster and I’ve always wondered if that’s the case.

I don’t have facebook but I’m on Twitter/Reddit with the same username as on here. Feel free to drop me an add or DM.

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