FOSS gamedev and creative worlds

As a follow up to minetest_game issue #1235 I thought it might be interesting to have a poll to see what the community thinks about updating the skin format. Please note that version 1.9 is not possible since it allows partial transparency which the engine does not yet support for entities.

I have created a format 1.8 model and some batch skin conversion tools for those wishing to upgrade their games/servers manually

Model files: https://github.com/stujones11/minetest- ... format-1.8

Skin conversion tools: https://github.com/stujones11/skin-converter

Please note that changing the player model will have no effect if you are using my 3d_armor mod, however, the 0.5.0-dev branch has built-in support for skin format 1.8. To enable set multiskin_format = 1.8 in your minetest.conf

Please let me know if you find problems with any of the above.

If you do take part in the poll then please give reasons for your vote, thanks.

Thanks so much for making this! My students are going to be so happy. I believe that most minecraft skin making sites are using 1.8 so that is why I voted for that and a conversion tool if people need 1.7 but wouldn't they be able to do anything they want in a 1.7 skin in 1.8? Thanks again!!!

TheReaperKing wrote:Thanks so much for making this! My students are going to be so happy. I believe that most minecraft skin making sites are using 1.8 so that is why I voted for that and a conversion tool if people need 1.7 but wouldn't they be able to do anything they want in a 1.7 skin in 1.8? Thanks again!!!

You are welcome and quite correct, there is nothing 1.7 can do that 1.8 can't, however, I did forget to mention that I also removed the cape which complied to neither format. I would favor a clean upgrade since I think it's unlikely the game developers will ever accept having to maintain two separate models for this.

Please not. The current format (1.7 like plus cape) makes Minetest more unique together Minecraft. If Minetest will always support the newest Minecraft skin format it always requires a update if there is a Minecraft update. So Minetest would depend on what Minecraft is doing.
The best idea imo would be to make a mod that replaces the character model of default with one that supports Minecraft skins, than people that want to convert Minetest to Minecraft could simply use it.
Please let Minetest be Minetest with it's own features and ideas and not a cheap copy/clone of Minecraft!

The capes are neat but how are skins made for 1.7 if not without the minecraft skin making webpages? I suppose I could google for a 1.7 sometime and also the converter will help a lot.

I chose upgrade to 1.8. Supporting both formats would be nice for end users but it's going to be a headache for core devs, mods devs, and anybody trying to offer support in the forums.

Would be nice to give support to both... But since that looks hard, i don't know...

I agree with @addi, why we have to depend in what "MineCraft" does?

I was thinking in a different skins format for Minetest, and an editor to make one, but since mostly end-users use skins from "Minecraft", that can not be such a good idea...

I do like the capes!!! I had a lot of fun freaking my kids out with the clothing mod today especially with different colored shirts and pant legs. And my mineyoshi until we get an easy way to make skins I think being able to use minecraft skins in MT is a big deal though I'm certainly for adding in variety!

Edit also I was trying the editor in class and it kept saying "wrong syntax". I was wondering if you could write out an example of what it should look like. I was trying python format18.py <blaze.png|c:\users\m\desktop\skinconverter\cskins> Where blaze.png is in the cskins. I also tried just format18.py without the python and also taking off the < > and many other things but no dice. I installed python 3.5 and set the paths variable. What am I doing wrong? Thanks so much!!!

TheReaperKing wrote:And my mineyoshi until we get an easy way to make skins I think being able to use minecraft skins in MT is a big deal though I'm certainly for adding in variety!

Well...
Some people don't like so much the fact that we have to depend in "Minecraft"...

But since some end-users only think this is a cheap "MC", that sucks... Actually everbody who sees this game thinks it's "MineCraft"...

I also have the trouble of "editing skins and get problems", but i choose to edit them manually, i always use mtpaint, and that works great...

But well, what can i do to stop this?... If some end-users want to use their "MineCraft 1.8 skins" in MineTest, what can i do?... I guess that would be nice that MineTest support both skin formats...

TheReaperKing wrote:I was trying the editor in class and it kept saying "wrong syntax". I was wondering if you could write out an example of what it should look like. I was trying python format18.py <blaze.png|c:\users\m\desktop\skinconverter\cskins> Where blaze.png is in the cskins. I also tried just format18.py without the python and also taking off the < > and many other things but no dice. I installed python 3.5 and set the paths variable. What am I doing wrong? Thanks so much!!!

Sorry if the readme is not very clear. <file|dir> basically means that you should supply a file name or a directory, eg:

python format18.py character.png will convert a single file

python format18.py skins/textures will format all compatible files in that directory.

Be careful though as it will overwrite images without warning. As always, make a backup first.

Thank you so much for the clarification!

TheReaperKing wrote:Thank you so much for the clarification!

No problem, thank you for highlighting my poor documentation.

For the benefit of future readers, I have since updated the readme.

I don't think uniqueness is a valid argument here since the 1.8 format can emulate any 1.7 format skin anyway. Being unique by sticking to the old format would be doing so at the cost of strictly less possible skins. Is uniqueness even a good thing with skin format? As long as the default player is a certain model, there's only so much you can do with the skin format. Copying the skin format of Minecraft is a fine and pragmatic way to reduce the work players have to do to have their skins work on both games. If we want to be unique in a way that's beneficial to Minetest, we should look for a skin format that is strictly more powerful than Minecraft skins, meaning that any Minecraft skin could be used in Minetest, but not the other way around.

I voted for support only 1.8 and add a conversion tool. If there is a simple solution for supporting both that scales to future new formats, then I support it.

Byakuren wrote:I don't think uniqueness is a valid argument here since the 1.8 format can emulate any 1.7 format skin anyway. Being unique by sticking to the old format would be doing so at the cost of strictly less possible skins. Is uniqueness even a good thing with skin format? As long as the default player is a certain model, there's only so much you can do with the skin format. Copying the skin format of Minecraft is a fine and pragmatic way to reduce the work players have to do to have their skins work on both games. If we want to be unique in a way that's beneficial to Minetest, we should look for a skin format that is strictly more powerful than Minecraft skins, meaning that any Minecraft skin could be used in Minetest, but not the other way around.

I voted for support only 1.8 and add a conversion tool. If there is a simple solution for supporting both that scales to future new formats, then I support it.

I would like to see a good format of skin unique of Minetest and as well a very good editor!
Or at least add support to both...

I personally think the format should be changed to 1.8, since 1.8 seems to be a combo of 1.7 and 1.8. I would really like to not have to mirror textures on the arms and legs. Also, there is also the part of having the full-body over-lay. Currently, the MT skins only have a head over-lay, which is nice...I guess, but a full-body over-lay would allow better armor, clothes, mounted weapons, etc... 1.8 format defiantly seems better than the current format... Although, we could do without the new 3-pixel wide arms. Those would require new models and are quite un-necicary in my opinion. Wouldn't it be quite easy for a decent-modder to make a mod that supports this?