This Blender Manual Has A Good Demonstration Of Projections & Their Effect On Textures, Here Are A Couple:

New Mods Finds

I tend to avoid reblogging, I should probably set up a finds blog, but for now, here's a list of all the new mods I've found and started using for The Sims 2 in the last few months:

Shiftable Everything by @lamare-sims

50 New Lifetime Wants by @lamare-sims

Invisible Kitchen Surface by @lamare-sims

PSBs From Planter’s Paradise Recolors Fix by @simnopke

Time & Weather Manager by @simnopke

Convenience Store Clerk Outfit Fix by @simnopke

Longer Novel Titles by @simnopke

Immersive Rain by @bstu

Fix for Old Pine Trees by sam&skye

Max Slope Value Mod by @catherinetcjd

Go Steady Wants Fix by zachjohnunlimited

Trait Based Skill Gain Speeds by @fwaysims

Amicable Unbonding by @equinoxts2

Community Espresso Machine Now Sells Espresso by VirtualAlex

Fix for Broken Break Up Want by @profesionalpartyguest

4t2 Little Campers Functional Toddler Skill Toys by @elvisgrace

Closest Fridge for Cooking by @picknmixsims

Leftovers Overhaul by @picknmixsims

Charisma Gain while Chatting by @picknmixsims

Rabbit Pen as Toy Dog Pen Default Replacement by @deedee-sims & @episims + Rustic Edit by @pforestsims

No Caffeine Jitters by @episims

Crib Teeth Animation Fix by @episims

Colour Traits by @episims + all the mods for them:

Toothbrushes by Color Traits

Gifts by Color Traits

Coffee Mugs by Color Traits

Pencils by Color Traits

Engagement Ring Stones by Color Traits

Compatibility Addons/Edits by @jellymeduza

I have a mod list with all the mods I use, but I tend to keep new mods 'in testing' for a while before adding them to my list. I also get lazy and sometimes don't get round to updating it for ages. So most of these amazing finds are not yet on my full list, but I'm pretty sure they'll all be sticking around so will be on there soon! Check it out for more mod recommendations.

I'll be releasing some stuff myself soon so keep an eye out👀

Experimenting with Replacing the Default Sims 2 Face Mesh

So, after uh, whew, months(!) of experimenting with attempting to change the default face mesh in Sims 2, I’m here to basically share what I’ve found to be possible, what I still am struggling to get working, and what parts of my findings are still useful for a LOT of modding and custom content purposes, even if I couldn’t achieve my initial goal. I’m really tired of this project and I’d rather move on to doing stuff that are more doable (and more quickly doable) for my gameplay goals, rather than trying to do what seems to be a gargantuan task for my level of skills. 

In this post I’ll mostly focus on what is doable *in principle*. There’s lots of subtleties and tricks in getting things to look decent (well, at least I think I got it to look decent) which I won’t go into. Or try not to. I go into tangents a lot.

I’ll also not go into step-by-step details. Mostly because I suck at it but also because this post will be super long anyway. If you wanna know, ask!

For those who just want a brief summary: What I could get to work: a default replacement face mesh, with working templates and sliders, for adult sims. Though the procedures are the same for the rest of the ages.

What I still have trouble with: Basically, getting the game to recognize different parts of the face. This means applying the templates to different parts of the mesh, and, of course, genetics, don’t work yet. I have ideas about what could get it to work, but I’ve failed to do it so far.

Awesome things you could still do: My major finding here is that face animations can be applied to *any* CAS object. Clothing, accessories, and of course, nude skins (see below, this was an outfit with a bit that changes with eyes, proof of concept). This means that you can have specific sims with additional face parts and/or accessories and clothing that respond to face animations, or alternatively, you can have skin tones/body morphs that have face pieces which will not mix together between the parents, but are still heritable (with some limitations)

Oh, and full disclosure, the tools I used were simPE and blender 2.9. Nothing else. Don’t know how to do other stuff.

Thank you @simnopke , @rudhira , @withlovefromsimtown​  and many others for your help and encouragement in all this! I think there’s potential for some really good modding here.

Keep reading

List of People's Experiments with Replacing Sims' Face Mesh.

An on going list. updates aren't showing up on reblogs. check out the original post for the most up to date version.

@myweirdslimblr: Experimenting with Replacing the Default Sims 2 Face Mesh.

Long thread started by @l-1-z-a: Extracting Hidden Face Morphs in The Sims 2.

@paluding: Taking the 4t2 concept too far...

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Post by @paluding · 1 video

💬 19  🔁 14  ❤️ 115 · Taking the 4t2 concept too far. Yup, that's the Sims 4 face converted to The Sims 2, in all its blurry glory. Well, jus

@pooklet's answer to my question, & links to a tutorial:

pooklet.tumblr.com

welcome back to me screaming

Hey, i ran into your recent post [Anonymous asked Do you mind people editing sims you’ve put up for download?] in which you talk about editi

TS2 facial expression swatch, by @pforestsims.

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Post by @pforestsims · 4 images

💬 12  🔁 96  ❤️ 415 · I did this recently for myself so I might as well share. This is TS2 facial expression swatch and also some expression

The Internet Archive needs your help.

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This lawsuit is an existential threat to the Internet Archive and everything we preserve—including the Wayback Machine, a cornerstone of memory and preservation on the internet.

At a time when digital information is disappearing, being rewritten, or erased entirely, the tools to preserve history must be defended—not dismantled.

This isn’t just about music. It’s about whether future generations will have access to knowledge, history, and culture.

Sign our open letter and tell the record labels to drop their lawsuit. 

obsessed

Sims 2:

Because I'm working on a simple solution, but idk if its still an issue.

4t2 Novvvas Buena Kitchen

Master meshes- counter, cabinet, shelf

Slaved meshes - counter left, counter right, island counter, cabinet left, cabinet right, shelf open

Standalone meshes - Bosch stove (full functionally), Bosch oven&microwave (decor), barstool, Bosch cooktop

4 marble and 4 wood swatches, price 1$

This is my first kitchen conversion, so mistakes are possible, sorry

For any questions please contact me

All meshes and textures by @ts4novvvas  Special thanks for help @lowedeus and @beautifulnerdkitty

Download SFS / Mediafire

Buy me a coffee

Somebody made the mashup that was in my head! Assassin's Creed Unity + Les Miserables. It made my jaw drop.

SimPE Material Definitions Index:

DW link for a more legible layout. Another thing I made for myself and might as well share. Definitions have links to wiki. If I made any errors feel free to let me know.

Further Reading:

Texture Mapping – Wikipedia.

Materials in general – Unity Manual.

In SimPE – PixelHate's Guide to Material Definitions [TXMT].

Definitions:

Material Type: StandardMaterial (stdMat).

alphaRefValue – (I forgot)

deprecatedStdMatInvDiffuseCoeffMultiplier (idk)

reflectivity

stdMatAlphaBlendMode – Alpha Layer Settings (Responsible for Transparency).

stdMatAlphaMultiplier

stdMatAlphaRefValue – Reflection?

stdMatAlphaTestEnabled

stdMatBaseTextureAddressingU – Base Texture Settings (The Main Texture).

stdMatBaseTextureAddressingV

stdMatBaseTextureAlphaReplicate

stdMatBaseTextureEnabled

stdMatBaseTextureName

stdMatCullMode – Backface Culling Mode.

stdMatDiffCoef">0.8,0.8,0.8< - Diffuse Reflection – Coefficient [pretty sure. Isn't that Albedo?].

stdMatEmissiveCoef">1.00000,1.00000,1.00000< - Emissivity Coefficient.

stdMatEnvCubeBlurFactor">0.000000< - Environment Cube Map Definitions.

stdMatEnvCubeCoef">0,0,0<

stdMatEnvCubeLockedToCamera>0<

stdMatEnvCubeMode>none<

stdMatEnvCubeTextureName

stdMatFillMode>solid<

stdMatLayer>0<

stdMatLightingEnabled">1<

stdMatMinLightRangeHint">4<

stdMatNormalMapTextureEnabled – Normal/Bump Map Settings.

stdMatNormalMapTextureAddressingU

stdMatNormalMapTextureAddressingV

stdMatNormalMapTextureName

stdMatSpecCoef">0.53,0.53,0.53< - Specular Reflection & Specular Map Settings.

stdMatSpecMaskTextureEnabled

stdMatSpecMaskTextureName

stdMatSpecPower">1e+002<

(Not in SimPE - Albedo Map)

stdMatTextureCoordAnimMode">none<

stdMatTextureCoordAnimNumTiles">1.000000,1.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimOrigin">0.500000,0.500000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimRotSpeed">0.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimRotStartEnd">0.000000,1.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimRotWaveform">triangular<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimScaleSpeed">0.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimScaleStartEnd">0.000000,1.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimScaleWaveform">triangular<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimTransEnd">0.000000,0.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimTransSpeed">0.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimTransStart">0.000000,0.000000<

stdMatTextureCoordTfAnimTransWaveform">triangular<

stdMatTextureCoordTileAnimSpeed">0.000000<

stdMatUntexturedDiffAlpha">1<

Great info! That's the reason some conversions from newer games have flat and unsaturated textures.

It's a great method for shading even if you don't have a normal map. Make one out of the texture with an image editing software, or with Nvidia Texture Tools Exporter. If the texture is too flat, it can be made out of the mesh itself in blender, like so.

Shout-out to people converting objects to TS2 from other games. Don't ignore normal maps!

You can retain many details by desaturating (the right way) normal map and using it as overlay.