Hi there! You are currently browsing as a guest. Why not create an account? Then you get less ads, can thank creators, post feedback, keep a list of your favourites, and more!
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#1 Old 23rd Sep 2017 at 12:18 AM
Uv maps & Sims 2
Hi, I can mesh and am familiar with blender and Sims 4 Studio; but I want to update a few (!) things in my sims 2 game and I have never created an object for Sims 2. I have made and posted over a 100 for Sims 4 and thats the problem; although I can use SimPE for re colours and changing behaviours and a few other bits, object making is a mystery to to me using this program. I have downloaded and read all the tuts but there are a lot of questions that I can't find the answers too and are to Sims2 creators probably stupid.
So here goes for my first one. I am in the "I can fix that!" mood and have wanted to remesh a round bed by 4ESF for around 7 years and now I can easily (yay!) But I need, not want a 1024 uv map, the original is 512. Can I change the sizes of the uv maps when making a new object in the Sims 2 like Sims 4? Do I have to find the bed frame in game that has a 1024 map first? I think the only bed that supplies the whole caboodle is the most expensive one as all the others are slaved to it. I know (I think) to just export and import the frame (still learning how to import an object with two meshes, I know I sound like a moron ).

If I can change the maps then this is a great opportunity to update and improve a few things that I love but would like to be a little less poly heavy and perhaps a bit more funky.
Thanks to anyone who can help me out with this

There is no Planet B
Advertisement
Née whiterider
retired moderator
#2 Old 23rd Sep 2017 at 12:04 PM
UV maps don't have sizes - every co-ordinate in a UV map is relative. The UV map will be applied to the whole of the texture regardless of what size the texture is.

If you want to use a bigger texture, just import a bigger texture into SimPE. If you want to get a bigger copy of the UV map to use as a guide when you're texturing, just change the export size in whatever program you're using to export the UV map.

Do bear in mind that you should stick to powers of 2 (256, 512, 1024 etc) and don't change the aspect ratio (so if the original texture is a square the new texture should also be a square). There are exceptions to these rules but they're a pain in the arse, it's easier to just keep things simple!

What I lack in decorum, I make up for with an absence of tact.
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#3 Old 23rd Sep 2017 at 1:05 PM
Ok got that cheers. I want to remap so that the texture on the base is smooth but to do that I need to lay the map out differently and of course increase the size. I just wasn't sure how SimPE would react. Uv mapping is something of a love for me so your answer will keep me happy for hours thanks :-)

There is no Planet B
Mad Poster
#4 Old 29th Sep 2017 at 4:30 PM Last edited by simmer22 : 29th Sep 2017 at 4:43 PM.
SimPE doesn't care about the UV map, as long as everything is put within the set space (there's usually a guiding square you follow in the meshing program, and if anything is outside, it may or may not get any texture, depending on the type of object. Hairs won't show texture if the UVs are outside said square - I've had that problem a few times).

It's a good idea to keep the texture to 1024x1024 or below. Every time you increase a square texture to the next number up, it actually gets 4 times bigger (a 1024x1024 map consists of 4 imaginary tiles where there's 512+512 pixels at the top, and 512+512 pixels at the bottom), and the bigger the size, the more memory is needed. Only very big and detailed objects would need anything bigger than an 1024x1024 map, though.

And of course you can remap and retexture various objects. Just keep in mind that there's often a lot of recolors, maybe even slaved objects (that borrow the texture from the main object) for old CC objects, so if you change the UVs too much these might not work. If you're planning to upload the object, a good idea would be to make a clone and remap this, leaving the original as-is, or perhaps make both a replacement and a standalone object.
Back to top