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Unreal to Deus Ex mesh converter, version 1.2 (19 K)
The Unreal to Deus Ex mesh converter is a little program I wrote that will convert a mesh (model) from the Unreal or Unreal Tournament format to the Deus Ex format. This allows you to use any existing utility that exports to Unreal format, such as MilkShape 3D, 3ds2unr, etc. In case you weren't aware, Deus Ex uses a slightly different mesh format than Unreal/UT. The reason for this seems to be to support higher "mesh resolution" which allows finer detail to be modeled in the game's meshes. As a result, if you attempt to import a mesh into Deus Ex that is in the current Unreal/UT format, you'll get a random, jumbled mess. Convert it with unr2de (Unreal to Deus Ex), however, and you're good to go.
To use it, open up a command prompt (MS-DOS Prompt) and either copy the unr2de.exe file to a folder where you want to convert meshes, or put it in somewhere in your PATH. Make sure the two .3d files are in the same folder (your Unreal mesh will consist of two files: one ending with _a.3d and one ending with _d.3d).
At the command prompt, type in:
unr2de <Filename of your mesh before the "_" character>
In other words, if your mesh files are named BunnyDroid_a.3d and BunnyDroid_d.3d, you would type this in:
unr2de BunnyDroid
That's it!
This program will overwrite your "_a.3d" file, so if you want the original, be sure to back it up somewhere or rename it. It does require that the "_d.3d" file be in the same folder. See the readme.txt file for more information.
As of version 1.2, there is a new command line option for "fixing" files exported to Unreal/UT format from MilkShape 3D. Previously, it was necessary to use the Mirror Left <--> Right option in MilkShape before exporting. The new option is "-ms". To use it, you would type this in:
unr2de -ms BunnyDroid
NOTE: When using the "-ms" option, your _d.3d file will also be overwritten.
These tips are just as applicable to Unreal and Unreal Tournament as they are to Deus Ex. They really have nothing to do with my converter, but it's information you will want to know when exporting Unreal meshes from MilkShape, trust me!
1. IMPORTANT: Before exporting to the Unreal format from MilkShape 3D, be sure to select all of the faces of your mesh and then use the "Mirror Left <--> Right" command from the Vertex menu. That will cause the left and right part of your mesh to be reversed, and it will also make all of your textures backwards. It will look weird in MilkShape, but as of version 1.4.1, you will need to do that for your mesh to properly export. In Deus Ex, it will look fine. I would recommend not saving the reversed version as a MilkShape file; after all, you may want to export the same mesh to Quake or something later. Just get in the habit of mirroring your model before you export to Unreal. And don't forget to run "unr2de" after you export of course! UPDATE: If you're using version 1.2 or highter of unr2de, you can simply use the "-ms" option instead of doing the "Mirror Left <--> Right" command in MilkShape.
2. Be sure to keep the outer edges of your model within a boundary of -127 to 128 MilkShape units in each direction. Although the Deus Ex format supports a much higher mesh resolution, the Unreal format does not, so you'll have to stick with those same restrictions. My converter does display the maximum and minimum values of x, y, and z in your mesh, so if you see values approaching the high 120's, you'll want to scale your model down a bit in MilkShape 3D. If part of your model goes beyond 128, you'll start seeing scrambled polygons at the edge.
Steve Tack
stack@planetdeusex.com