Editing Mods, hacks and fan-translations

Some people are not satisfied with how their favorite game looks and plays like. So, they resort to altering this game to mold it in the game they wish it has been. This practice is known as '''modding''', or '''hacking''', or '''romhacking'''. It's prevalent in PC games, but it's also done for console and handheld games.

==How To Apply Mods==
''Main Page: [[Apply ROM Hacks and Translations‎]]''

==Types of Mods==
: Mods alter the game files
: They're permanently included in the ISO/ROM 
: They exist within hardware constraints

''If you're looking for enhancements that are outside what the hardware can achieve (HD true color sprites for NES, HD sprites for N64/GC) then check this page: [[Use Texture Packs]]''

===Fan-Translations===
Games released only in foreign countries (like Japan) often have enthusiasts translating them to their language. After they whip up a translation on some script dump text document they extracted or transcripted from the game, they insert it back in the game.

'''Changes:''' 
: Text 
: Font 
: Graphics (title screen and in-game graphics with text) 
: Programming (in case game has no variable width text)

===Anti-Piracy Fix===
GBA and DS games don't take too kindly to flashcards. If it's not a black screen at startup, then some roadblock would be implemented by devs to trigger in-game and render all progress impossible. Region-locked games have it even worse, especially import ones. They could use some alteration to the ROM image so that the programming check doesn't go off.

'''Changes:'''
: Programming

===Region===
This could be as easy as changing some bytes in a header, or programming-out region locking as well as fixing how the game displays (for example, PS1 games display way off with only a superficial region change done).

Examples:
: Terranigma (SNES): NTSC version patch (changes region, removes region locking programming)

===Intro Screens===
Some warez groups for distributing ROMs like to add lengthy unskippable intros with rotating rainbow text and crappy messages, that appear before the game begins executing. This practice fell from favor with new warez groups distributing unaltered ROM dumps booting as intended normally... NOT. It still happens, only with mod/hack/fan-translation authors wishing to make it clear this is not an original copy like some cart reproducer scammers would like you to believe. Only some aren't just one short screen but can be as unskippable and annoying as warez intros. And guess what, YOU can mod the intros out of these mods too if you learn far enough. 

They sometimes include trainers, that is hardcoded cheat codes for invincibility, infinite HP and so on.

'''Changes:'''
: Programming (repointing initial part of executable code from game to intro screen)
: Lots of Homebrew stuff, depending of the author

===Balance Mods===
An RPG with an obscenely high encounter rate (every five steps), very low NEXT EXP or stat values hence much grinding, and inconsistent enemy difficulty. Besides RPGs, other games suffer from some bosses being bullet sponges, and absurd prices (like the dreaded triforce quest in WW) leading to padding and unnecessary frustration and waste of time not out of the player's incompetency. Sometimes, the frustration is because the game is too easy. 

An Android game made shitty with tons of microtransactions could use some tinkering with the initial gem counter to have an astronomical value at startup, or ideally with the programming tampered with so that it never decreases.

'''Changes:'''
: Stat Values
: Programming (not often)

Examples:
: Valkyrie Chronicles rebalance patch (PC)
: Breath of Fire 2 (SNES): Easy Type
: Mother 1 (NES): Easy Ring Patch

===Restoring Cut Content===
Sometimes stuff gets cut from the game before it's released, because devs ran short on time. Sometimes stuff gets censored because cultural issues and soccer moms/SJWs throwing hissy fits, or because it simply would be too costly to license. This sort of stuff often has people rallying to restore it to the game with whatever little remnants there still is in-game.

Examples:

Stuff getting scrapped before release
: Sonic Adventure (GC, PC): Beta Windy Valley
: Halo (XB): unused weapons
: Xenoblade (Wii): Bionis left shoulder access
: Final Fantasy 7 (PS1): Honey Inn brothel scene
: Metroid Fusion (GBA): Crocomire mod
: SaGa Frontier (PS1): Japanese hack to restore all scrapped plot threads from side-material as functional sidequests
: Cosmo Cops / Advance Wars Days of Ruin (DS): re-enabling the fully functional Japanese option, games were unreleased in Japan
: Star Ocean 1 (PSP): unused difficulty options
: Final Fantasy XIII (PS3/PC): 7th Ark
: Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii): restoring Flying Mario and Ice Mario

Stuff getting removed from localizations
: Final Fantasy 4 (SNES): prostitute sprite restoration
: Final Fantasy 6 / Mother 1 / Mother 2 (NES/SNES): uncensored patches
: Gurumin (PSP): restoring hidden options for Japanese audio still in-game

Stuff getting censored by mods
: One retro fan-translator we shall not name was a devout Christian of a certain branch and would "tone down" text and graphics left and right in this translation of his.

'''Changes:'''
: Text
: Graphics
: Pointers to enable access to these otherwise inaccessible places
: potentially other things too

===Undub===
For when weaboos prefer the original Japanese dubbing (and occasionally opening FMVs) over the horrible terribad English voices... or the lack thereof. In which cases some extensive studying of pointers of data within text has to be done to restore the voice acting in case the evil localizers decided not only to blank the voice samples out but to butcher the programming too (like the Growlanser 4 PSP Undub author hero did).

It's often swapping sound files from the English version with ones from the Japanese version, provided they use the same format (which they sometimes don't, leading to crashes, and the need for a more throughout hacking).

It's really popular, but frowned upon by hacking sites usually hosting content, since any patches would contain copyrighted data for voice performance of Japanese VAs. That's why you find these undub things directly prepatched to ISOs on your favorite shady ROM sharing darknet pits.

'''Changes:'''
: Sound data

===Sprite/Model Swaps===
Really nice stuff. 

Ever wanted to play M.C. Kids (a genuinely fun game) but couldn't due to the game starring the unbearably repulsive hideous satanic abomination that is Ronald McDonald? Wanted to play as a dick / Mara in the original Super Mario Bros? Your girl wanted to play as Zelda in the Legend of Zelda? Wanted to play as Link in Super Mario 64? As Hideo Kojima in Metal Gear Solid Ground Zeroes? As Roy in Super Smash Bros Brawl? As Mario in Doki Doki Panic?

All of this and more is possible (and happened indeed) by the modders replacing the original 2D sprites or 3D models with the ones of their liking.

'''Changes:'''
: Graphics

===Level / Quest Hacks===
When you take it one step further in changing how the game plays by modifying maps and levels. You could also alter the programming to create new gameplay mechanics (FLUDD in Mario 64 DS, Paint Gun in Portal) to accomodate the new level design and you might end up with a whole new game, Chinese-bootleg-style!

Some RPG mods take it one step further and alter storylines and quests left and right, adding enemies and so on.

Examples:
: Everyone's favorite Super Mario World and the myriads of its level hacks
: Rockman 4 Minus Infinity
: 2D Zelda games with altered dungeons (Zelda Alttp Parallel Worlds)
: Sonic games with the entire 3D geometry of a level from another game imported inside with possible tweaks to the actual level design too (Unleashed in Sonic Generations PC)
: Chrono Trigger Crimson Echoes
: Final Fantasy 6 T-Hack (Japanese)
: Romancing SaGa 3 hacks (Japanese) : have enemies from other games and radically new storylines to follow

'''Changes:'''
: Level data
: Graphics (occasionally)
: 3D Model of Level

===Asset Enhancement Hacks===
GBA games suffered from games having brightened palettes (to compensate for the lack of back-lighting on the early models), and terrible sound quality (the samples were low quality either by incompetence, just relying on Nintendo's tools, or wanting to save on cartridge costs). Forget about that, even SNES games have muffled sound samples and Megadrive games have questionable palette choices. Not to mention some FMVs in PS1 games being very low-quality for cost concerns, or having artifacts due to shoddy implementation of hard subs, compared to cleaner versions of the same FMV on other platforms. Have I mentioned horrible font choices for the text?

Some modders just went and fixed this up, by editing the files containing the sub-par assets to include a higher-quality version (often expanding the ROM in the process to get the needed free space).

It's nothing too crazy though - the replacements are still abiding by the hardware constraints. If you're looking for HD graphics you might want to check for emulator-based solutions enhancing the game on the go without actually altering the internal files.

Examples:
: Final Fantasy 4/5/6 (GBA) : sound and palette fixes (FF6's opera scene has full streamed opera singing audio)

===Scrubbing the game off Garbage Data===
Used to get rid of unneeded garbage data filling the disk and thus making it easier to compress later to much smaller sizes. Scrubbing preserves the disk structure by simply blanking out the garbage data areas, which might be needed to preserve the game's functionality when it expects to execute and load data off specific sectors - as opposed to trimming being scrubbing plus rearranging the iso dump file, potentially destructively too.

[[Category:FAQs]]