Adding Custom Player Models

From version 1.12.2 it's now possible to add custom player models, or 'avatars', to Super Video Golf using the Workshop tools. From there you can also optionally upload your models to the workshop to share with other players.

This guide explains how to use the free modelling software Blender to prepare an avatar model and then import it to Super Video Golf via the built in tools.

Introduction

With the 1.12.2 update comes the ability to use the game's built in workshop tools to import custom player models and, optionally, upload them to the Steam Workshop.

This guide assumes that you have read the introduction to the workshop tools, which can be found here. This guide, unlike the previous guide, also explicitly describes the steps used to prepare the model with Blender, a free 3D modelling package. While it is possible to use other software it is down to the user to transpose the following guide to their software of choice.

The version of Blender used with this guide is version 3.1.2. Other versions of Blender have modified features, such as the vertex colour property or the glTF exporter - so if some steps do not give the expected results check the version of Blender you are currently using.

If you are using the distribution of Blender available on Steam, it is possible to switch versions using the Steam client interface:



To aid with creating player models there are template files available in the Super Video Golf installation directory, under

assets/workshop/

These include two model template files for Blender, as well as two *.ase files containing colour palettes which can be imported to Blender and are used later in this guide.

Preparing the model

Unlike the models used for balls and head wear, player models use a slightly more complex format which requires rigging with skeletal data. Thanks to sites like Mixamo[www.mixamo.com] this job is made much easier, however there are still a few preparation steps to take.

Player models need to be approximately 1.7 units tall, and humanoid. The skeletal rigs need to have exactly 41 bones or joints, which needs to be considered if you are planning on adding your own rig. This guide, however, will use Mixamo to take care of this. Models in Blender are z-up but must be exported as y-up to be used with Super Video Golf. The export settings for Blender are detailed below.

To get started with a player model you can use one of the two template files included in the installation directory of the game, under assets/workshop/ named template_male.blend and template_female.blend. These are based on project files created by VideroBoy and are available on Open Game Art[opengameart.org] in the public domain.

Whether or not you use one of these templates as a basis for your model, once you have finished creating the mesh you will need to colour it.

---

Colouring
The models use vertex colour data which is added in vertex paint mode[docs.blender.org] in Blender. The colours you use can be anything you like, although it is recommended to use or stay close to the colours in the colordome-32 palette[lospec.com], also available as an *.ase file in the templates directory. For instance this model has the eyes and collar painted with selections from the colordome-32 palette.



It may also be obvious from the image that some slightly unusual colour choices have been made for the rest of the model. This is because that, although it's possible to use any colour you wish, painting with specific 'key' colours allows Super Video Golf to substitute them in game, using the player customisation screen.

These key colours are (in hexidecimal):

• 0x000000 - Bottom Dark
  
• 0x0a0a0a - Bottom Light
  
• 0x1e1e1e - Top Dark
  
• 0x282828 - Top Light
  
• 0x464646 - Skin Tone
  
• 0x646464 - Hair

Note that the hair colour will also match the colour chosen in the player profile editor for any active hair or head wear model. Any or all of these colour keys are optional.

These key colours are also available in the template directory in the file avatar_keys.ase for easier import into Blender.

---

Unwrapping
Once the model is coloured you will also need to perform a UV unwrap on it. This is because the workshop tools, when importing the model, will automatically bake the vertex colours to a texture. This allows multiple player profiles to share a single model, but have multiple textures with different colour schemes.

How you unwrap the model isn't *too* important however there are the following recommendations:

• Leave a reasonably large area between islands, to allow for colour bleed when baking.
  
• Add seams along borders of different coloured parts so that way different colours have their own islands. This will prevent adjacent colours bleeding into each other.

Finally you can export the model to *.fbx for use with Mixamo's auto-rigging system. Use the following settings for the fbx exporter - and remember to apply any modifiers such as the mirror modifier included with the model templates!

Rigging the model

This guide uses the auto-rigging system provided by Mixamo, a free Adobe service. However it requires the user to sign in with either an existing facebook/google account or by creating a new Mixamo account. Understandably some people may not like the idea of this, in which case you can manually rig the model using Blender.

For licensing reasons it's not possible to redistribute the default Mixamo rig, so you'll need to create your own. It MUST have 41 bones to match the existing animations which are added by the workshop tools during model importing.

---

If you are using Mixamo, then log in to the Mixamo site[mixamo.com], and follow the instructions to upload the *.fbx file exported in the previous step.

Place the markers in the auto-rigging window accordingly, and make sure to set the skeleton LOD to 41 bones (2 chain fingers)



Click next, and once the auto-rig process has completed you should see a t-pose model ready for download. Click on the download button and choose the following options:




Save the newly rigged model to your hard drive, ready for re-importing to Blender.

This final step is necessary to convert the fbx file to a glTF file, required by the workshop tools importer. If you reimport it to your existing Blender file then it also provides an opportunity to check that the rigged model matches in size and orientation with the original model.



Select the imported model and the rig - making sure NOT to select any existing model! - and choose Export->glTF from Blender's file menu. Using the following settings, making sure to include both UV and vertex colours, export the model to glTF.

Importing the model with the workshop tools

Once the glTF model has been exported from Blender it is now ready to be imported into Super Video Golf. Launch the game and, from the main menu, press F1 to open the console.

Type

workshop

into the console and press enter, to launch the workshop tools.



When the tools have launched by default you'll be on the Ball tab of the importer. Click on the Avatar tab to switch to the player model importer.



Click Import glTF (2) and browse to your exported model. Click Open, and the model should appear in the preview window. If the imported model is distorted, or doesn't appear, press F1 to open the console and look for any possible errors. Go back over the previous steps and check that you carried everything out correctly. If imported colours look incorrect it's possible that newer versions of Blender have changed the vertex colour format to or from sRGB colourspace. In which case use the steps outlined in the introduction to revert to an older, compatible version of Blender (3.1).

Assuming the model has imported successfully it is now possible to preview the player animations by selecting each one from the animation list (5). Using Rotate Left and Rotate Right above the preview window you can rotate the model to make sure that the example hair and club model attachments are aligned correctly.

Using the Hair Preview tab (7) you can switch between different hair models to check for correct alignment.

If either the hair or club model needs some re-alignment, select the appropriate attachment point, head or hands, from the attachment point window (6)
The attachment properties can then be used to alter the position, rotation and scale of the selected attachment. Make sure to double check by rotating the preview and playing the animations that everything is in order.



Click on the Audio Scape tab and select a set of voices to use with the model (8). After changing the selection you can demo the voices with the Play button to hear how they will sound in game.

When you are ready, click Export (3) which will highlight red to indicate if there are unsaved changes. Give the model a unique name (existing names will otherwise be overwritten) and click Save. You will now be able to quit the workshop tools and test the model in game. Open the profile editor and switch the player model selection until the new model appears.

---

At any point you can re-open the workshop tools, and from the Avatar tab click Open (1) and select a previously exported model. Then you may make any changes you require - just remember to click Export (3) again to save them. You can overwrite the existing model by using the same name or export it as a new model with a different name.

Optionally, at this point, you may also upload the model to the Steam workshop, to share it either publicly, or with your friends. Click Publish To Workshop (4) to open the workshop submission window.



The first time you do this you may find that the Steam overlay opens asking you to agree to the Steam Workshop Agreement. This only has to be done once, however you will not be able to upload anything until you agree to it. Sometimes the overlay will open even though you have already agreed - this is just because Steam hasn't yet downloaded your agreement status. Waiting a few moments and trying again will remedy this.

The export window allows you to set the name and description for the item, as well as a thumbnail image. You can also choose whether or not the item is public or friends only, so that you can test the item with friends first before making it public. When you're ready click Submit to upload the item. If any required fields are missing a pop up warning will appear, otherwise you'll see an upload progress window. Once the upload is complete you can open the workshop page for the item in Steam and further edit it, including adding any extra images, screenshots or videos you may have.