User:MainMemory/S2LVL INI File Setup

SonLVL uses INI files to define both the levels in a game and the objects available in the game and each level. INI files are simple text files that can be opened with a text editor such as Notepad.

Main INI

This file defines the version of the Sonic engine, the file containing object definitions for the whole game, and the levels available for editing.

Engine Versions

Whenever a setting asks for an "EngineVersion", use one of the following settings that SonLVL supports:

• S1 - Sonic 1
• S2NA - Sonic 2 Nick Arcade
• S2 - Sonic 2
• S3K - Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 3 & Knuckles
• SKC - Sonic & Knuckles Collection - This setting causes SonLVL to operate in little endian mode, and should not be used when working with a Mega Drive game.
• SCDPC - Sonic CD PC - This setting causes SonLVL to operate in little endian mode, and should not be used when working with a Mega Drive game.

Compression Formats

Whenever a setting asks for a "CompressionFormat", use one of the following settings that SonLVL supports:

• Uncompressed - The file is not compressed.
• Nemesis - The file is Nemesis compressed.
• Kosinski - The file is Kosinski compressed.
• KosinskiM - The file is Kosinski Moduled compressed. Only used in S3K and SKC.
• Enigma - The file is Enigma compressed.
• SZDD - The file is SZDD compressed. Only used in SCDPC.

Global Settings

These settings affect all levels. Most of them will be overridden if the same setting is defined in a level group.

version=EngineVersion - This setting chooses the default data types used. If omitted, S2 will be used by default.
objlst=filename - Specifies an INI file with definitions for objects that are loaded in all levels, as well as Rings for S2 and S3K, and Start Position definitions.
tile8fmt=EngineVersion - The format for the 8x8 tiles. Most games differ only in default compression type, but SCDPC uses an entirely different format for tiles.
block16fmt=EngineVersion - The format for the 16x16 blocks. All games differ only in default compression type.
chunkfmt=EngineVersion - Format of chunks. S1 and SCDPC use 256x256 chunks, S2NA, S2, S3K and SKC use 128x128 chunks.
layoutfmt=EngineVersion - The format of the level layout. More information can be found in the SCHG for each game. Of particular note is that S2, S3K and SKC use a single layout file, while others require both fglayout and bglayout files.
palettefmt=EngineVersion - The format of the palette files. All games use the same format except SCDPC.
objectsfmt=EngineVersion - The format of the object layout file. More information can be found in the SCHG for each game.
ringsfmt=EngineVersion - The format of the ring layout file. More information can be found in the SCHG for each game. S1 and SCDPC do not have ring layouts, and use objects instead.
colindcmp=CompressionFormat - Compression used for collision indexes.
colind=filename - Collision indexes for all levels. S2 and S2NA require colind1 and colind2 settings instead of a single colind setting.
colarr1=filename - Collision array (heightmaps) for all levels.
colarr2=filename - Rotated collision array for all levels. Generated from the normal one on saving.
angles=filename - Angle values for each heightmap for all levels. buildscr=filename - Path to the build script for your disassembly, usually "../build.bat". romfile=filename - Path to the built ROM file after running buildscr. Both of these settings together will allow you to use the "Build & Run" option in SonLVL after you set up your emulator.

Levels

Each level section starts with a line [Level Name Zone Act Number]. The text inside the brackets will be used as the name of the level in SonLVL. No two levels can have the same name. Backslashes will be used to create submenus in the Choose Level menu, for example, [Sonic 3\Angel Island Zone Act 1] puts the level "Angel Island Zone Act 1" in a "Sonic 3" menu.