Ark Dev Kit : Features request [New Procedure 4/11]

[Ditsov]

Hello fellow modders,

To better help the devs understand what we expect / want from future updates of the dev kit, we're compiling a list of most wanted features and pass it along.

Example : Expose more blueprint functions about players stats.

Try to keep it concise & only ideas for new modding features

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/13ar...ad_b0/viewform

Edit:
Hey everyone, Complex here!!! I've started a really simple google form to help keep track of the ongoing requests. Please be sure to enter your feedback there!!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/13ar...ad_b0/viewform

[Kohii]

The ability to use the static mesh editor to freeform edit the shape the a degree without the use of an external 3d editor.

[Ditsov]

I should have been more specific, when i said features i was thinking more of blueprint / tools made towards modding. A mesh editor would never be in wildcardstudio best interest to develop in my opinion.

Although you could always suggest the idea to the epic games team for the unreal engine

[Rasmenar]

More descriptions of what a setting does on mouseover in the editor. Some settings give a good description of what it's used for, many of them are still very ambiguous. It would definitely help lower the learning curve a lot.

[cwm33]

The core blueprints that come with the devkit should ALWAYS be your point of reference to come back to when something breaks, we shouldn't be editing them for making Total Conversions (or editing them period).

A good way to make this possible would be to have a new TotalConversion folder in the devkit folder structure similar to the Mods folder. When cooking a TotalConversion, the cook process would ONLY look in this folder for files, rather than having to search the entire Content folder, or maintain a manifest of changed files. To include files for a total conversion, the blueprints would have to be added in a directory structure that mirrored the 'Game' directory within the devkit, like this for example:

Game\TotalConversion\PrimalEarth\CoreBlueprints\PlayerPawnTest
Game\TotalConversion\Maps\TheIslandSubMaps\C5_Far_WIP
Game\TotalConversion\PrimalEarth\Dinos\Mammoth\Mammoth_Character_BP

The process of adding blueprints to the TotalConversion could be alleviated by a right click interaction on a blueprint like "Add to Total Conversion" which would copy the blueprint to the TotalConversion directory, along with the required directory structure.

This method for storing total conversion files would save incredible amounts of time when an update comes out, as currently when an update comes out it overwrites all total conversion files and punts them to a backup folder. We then have to grab everything from that backup folder, and figure out which blueprints have been updated with new values and if there are fixes in those blueprints we then have to backport them to our modified TC files. When I did that for applying the 201.5 content to my total conversion I had about 433ish blueprints to deal with. It would also make it a LOT easier for people to work on multiple total conversion projects at a time. As of right now, unless a person keeps VERY good track/record of which files they modify for a TC, or are using a VCS, they have to essentially swap around and keep backups of the entire content folder. With my proposed method, you would only have to swap out the TotalConversion folder, rather than 30+ gigabytes worth of data.

If this isn't feasible, then it would at least be nice to be able to specify in the cook process if we want the compiler to automatically poke around and find modified blueprints, or to accept a list of folders to check modified content, not bothering with other folders unless referenced by the BPs in the included folder list.

[NitroNate2008]

https://forums.unrealengine.com/show...ory-modifiying

This.

[Delizin]

Better documentation is the most important thing that I've noticed so far. I like the idea for better mouse over descriptions on settings, but I would also like to see an editable ARK Dev Kit wiki. It would be great to have a central knowledge base for all the settings as well as tutorials and whatnot contributed by modders.

[Azunai]

A field to define/change the WorkshopItemId within the cooking window

and +1 to cwm33

also beeing able to cook a TC at all would be great

[Ditsov]

Better documentation is the most important thing that I've noticed so far. I like the idea for better mouse over descriptions on settings, but I would also like to see an editable ARK Dev Kit wiki. It would be great to have a central knowledge base for all the settings as well as tutorials and whatnot contributed by modders.

I started to make the modding section of the official wiki since day one available here : http://ark.gamepedia.com/Category:Modding

But i'll definitely add improving the documentation to the list.

[Kohii]

I should have been more specific, when i said features i was thinking more of blueprint / tools made towards modding. A mesh editor would never be in wildcardstudio best interest to develop in my opinion.

Although you could always suggest the idea to the epic games team for the unreal engine

you cant blame me for wanting it XD Im just going off of the notion that i heard for custom shaped rivers you have to edit your own mesh so i was curious

[Ditsov]

you cant blame me for wanting it XD Im just going off of the notion that i heard for custom shaped rivers you have to edit your own mesh so i was curious

haha i'm not blaming you for that. I understand you want more tools available on the same place and that is the purpose of the unreal engine. but i would like to keep the discussion here around the modding ark subject.

[Nguyen Ken]

Ability to turn on engram in learned list at certain level
I plan to get rid of the engram system and make some of the engram available (without learning it) at certain level

Ability to use item bp to acquire engram (instead of keeping the bp as item)

Ability to add trigger box outside dinos body root (plan to create fear zone that make herbivores run away when carnivores enter its trigger zone)

[Vokunzun Vokunkiin]

+1 to cwm's idea

[salcarr]

I'd like more options to find data in a player, like what animals does he/she have or what tribe are they in. Currently I am trying to have a player hit a trigger and then find out the name of his or her tribe but there is no access in the blue print to find out. Got close though with the Sotf, I was able to find out if someone is in a tribe but thats as far as it goes. So I would like to be able to access more data about the player pawn.

[Nguyen Ken]

I'd like more options to find data in a player, like what animals does he/she have or what tribe are they in. Currently I am trying to have a player hit a trigger and then find out the name of his or her tribe but there is no access in the blue print to find out. Got close though with the Sotf, I was able to find out if someone is in a tribe but thats as far as it goes. So I would like to be able to access more data about the player pawn.

under playerpawntest, if you check the show inherited variables, there you be a TribeName variable that you can get
I saw the variable but never actually plan to use it yet