Start a new GLE mod

Note: This page is under construction

Introduction

Welcome to the Galaxy Level Engine Setup Guide!

This guide assumes that you are starting a brand new project that will use GLE.
If this is not the case, and you intend on converting a Vanilla mod to a GLE mod, please visit the Convert an existing mod to GLE guide instead.

Note: This guide will only ever show the setup for the latest version of Galaxy Level Engine. If you want to use an older version for whatever reason, you will need to figure out any differences from this guide on your own.

This version of the guide is for GLE-V3.

Before you begin

If this is your first time using Galaxy Level Engine, please be sure to read the Home page first, as it lists knowledge prerequisites that you will need to have in order to understand GLE.

If you intend on using 3rd party extensions in addition to GLE, please ensure the extension has support for GLE (or at the very least, that GLE doesn't break it, or it break GLE). A list of 3rd party extensions that have been tested can be found at the Compatibility page.

Note: This guide will be demonstrated using the NTSC-U version of SMG2, however the process is identical for all regions of the game.

Note: You should setup GLE before any 3rd party extensions so that you can ensure you setup GLE itself correctly.

Chapter 1: Filesystem Setup

Congratulations! If you made it this far with your confidence intact, that means you're (probably) ready to start the setup process.

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to do the following:

• Boot the game
• See the title screen
• Selecting a file will restart the File Select scene

Step 1: Download GLE

First thing's first, we'll need to download Galaxy Level Engine!

1. Visit the Galaxy Level Engine Releases page, and find the latest version.
2. Click the title of the release to go to that version's release page.
3. Scroll down to the "Assets" section
4. Download Galaxy Level Engine.
   Do not download the template hack or Source Code by mistake!

Note: Inside the download is a folder for Dolphin. This guide will only use the contents of the Riivolution folder.

Step 2: Preparing your Workspace

With GLE in hand, it's time to prepare the workspace for your project.

1. Create a new folder. Preferably in a place where you will be able to find it easily in the future.
   This folder will be referred to as your "Workspace Folder" in the future.
2. Rename your Workspace Folder to be one of the following formats: (For this example, the mod is named "SMG2: My Epic Adventure")
   • Shorthand (SMG2MEA)
   • Expanded (SuperMarioGalaxy2MyEpicAdventure)
   • Condensed (SMG2_MyEpicAdventure)
3. Inside your Workspace Folder, create a new folder called riivolution (all lowercase)

Step 3: Making a Riivolution XML

With your Workspace Folder at the ready, it's time to make the Riivolution XML. This is what players will use to play your mod, and what you'll be using to launch the mod for testing.

Where you live matters

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a game that was localized to 5 unique regions. When you are developing your mod, you will only need to account for the region that your main Wii is using. Each region has a unique letter associated with it:

• NTSC-U = E
• PAL = P
• NTSC-J = J
• NTSC-K = K
• NTSC-W = W

In this guide, replace X with the letter of your region, and replace <Y> with the long form (the text on the left of the Equals sign in the list above)

1. Create a new text file inside the riivolution folder that is in your workspace.
2. Rename the text file to be one of the following formats: (For this example, the mod is named "SMG2: My Epic Adventure")
   • Shorthand (SMG2MEA-<Y>)
   • Expanded (SuperMarioGalaxy2MyEpicAdventure-<Y>, Not recommended)
   • Condensed (SMG2_MyEpicAdventure-<Y>)
   • Regionalized Shorthand (SMG2MEA-SB4X01)
   • Regionalized Expanded (SuperMarioGalaxy2MyEpicAdventure-SB4X01, Not recommended)
   • Regionalized Condensed (SMG2_MyEpicAdventure-SB4X01)
3. Change the file extension to .xml
4. Open the XML file in a text editor
5. Inside the XML file, create a Riivolution XML for SMG2. Don't know what that means? Well you can just copy paste the text below instead... (remember to replace X with the region letter)

<wiidisc version="1">
	<id game="SB4">
		<region type="X"/>
	</id>
	<options>
		<section name="SMG2: My Epic Adventure">
			<option name="Enable">
				<choice name="Enabled">
					<patch id="smg2mea" />
				</choice>
			</option>
		</section>
	</options>
	<patch id="smg2mea" root="/SMG2MEA">
		<!-- Important! GLE Savegames are NOT compatible with vanilla SMG2 -->
		<savegame external="SaveGame" clone="false" />

		<folder external="AudioRes" disc="/AudioRes" create="true" />
		<folder external="LayoutData" disc="/LayoutData" create="true" />
		<folder external="ObjectData" disc="/ObjectData" create="true" />
		<folder external="ParticleData" disc="/ParticleData" create="true" />
		<folder external="StageData" disc="/StageData" create="true" />
		<folder external="SystemData" disc="/SystemData" create="true" />

		<folder external="LocalizeData" disc="/LocalizeData" create="true" />

		<!-- GLE -->
		<folder external="ScenarioData" disc="/ScenarioData" create="true" />

               <!-- PASTE THE GLE CODE HERE -->
    </patch>
</wiidisc>

6. Once your XML is setup, you'll want to replace the <!-- PASTE THE GLE CODE HERE --> with the contents of Galaxy Level Engine. In the file you downloaded in step 1, there are several XML files. Choose the one that matches the region of your mod's XML and replace the above XML line with the contents of the GLE XML.
7. Save your mod's XML file.

Step 4: Adding the GLE required files

With your XML in hand, it's time to let the game know that the files GLE requires are present in the filesystem.

1. Create a new folder named after the value that you used for the root= in your XML file. ("SMG2MEA" in this example)
2. You now need to copy the contents of the GLE version folder into the new folder. You should be copying folders with the following names:
   • AudioRes
   • LayoutData
   • LocalizeData
   • ObjectData
   • ScenarioData

Note: If your computer asks to replace files, you should replace them, or else GLE may not work!

Once you've done that, you're good to perform the "GLE Initialization Test".

Step 4: Perform the GLE Initialization Test

What is the GLE Initialization test? Well, it's actually surprisingly simple, and will prove that you performed the setup correctly.

1. Launch the game using your XML
2. If the game passes the Wii Remote Strap screen, then you've made it to checkpoint 1.
3. If the game shows the GLE's LoadIcon, then you've made it to checkpoint 2.
4. If the game shows the Title Screen, then you've made it to checkpoint 3.
5. You can now select a file. Create a new one and start it. If doing this restarts the Title Screen, then you've made it to the end of the GLE Initialization test!

I'm stuck at Checkpoint 1

If your game does not proceed to show GLE's LoadIcon after the strap screen concludes, it likely means that your Workspace folder is not setup correctly. Refer to Preparing your Workspace.

I'm stuck at Checkpoint 2

If your game shows GLE's LoadIcon but does not reach the Title Screen, this likely means that the game was unable to find a required file. If this happens, check the XML to ensure you typed the paths correctly. If you did type them all correctly, refer to Preparing your Workspace, or possibly Download GLE.

I'm stuck at Checkpoint 3

If your game makes it to the title screen, but selecting to play a file crashes, then I advise you to check to see if maybe you have mistakenly setup a SavePointList entry that cannot be warped to. If it can be warped to, then ensure you have registered the destination galaxy in your ScenarioData folder.

Chapter 2: What next?

Congratulations if you made it this far without any issues. Galaxy Level Engine is now proven to be working properly (meaning only you can break things now) and is ready for use. If you're wondering where to go next, I recommend Creating a new Galaxy and going from there.