Reggie! Translations

This page will explain how to create Reggie! Translations plug-ins. Each translation consists of multiple files containing text which the editor uses instead of the default versions.

Index

Use the following links to navigate this page:
How Hard will it Be?
Getting Started: Creating main.xml
Adding Files
Explanation of Strings


How Hard will it Be?

Translations are relatively easy to make because the file formats you will work with are fairly simple. However, these files are very large and it will take you several hours to translate the entire editor. Plan to spend a few days to a week, depending on how much time you can spend on it each day.

In addition, you need to know what XML files are and how to make them. If you're not familiar with that, Google it and then continue.

Getting Started: Creating main.xml

Each Reggie! translation is located within its own folder in reggiedata/translations/. The name of the folder doesn't matter, but make it something unique and descriptive.

Inside that folder, create a file named main.xml. Open it with a plain-text editor or XML editor and add the following code:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<translation name="" version="1.0" translator="">
    <strings path="strings.xml" />
    <file name="bga" path="bga.txt" />
    <file name="bgb" path="bgb.txt" />
    <file name="entrancetypes" path="entrancetypes.txt" />
    <file name="levelnames" path="levelnames.xml" />
    <file name="music" path="music.txt" />
    <file name="spritecategories" path="spritecategories.xml" />
    <file name="spritedata" path="spritedata.xml" />
    <file name="tilesets" path="tilesets.xml" />
    <file name="ts1_descriptions" path="ts1_descriptions.txt" />
    <file name="zonethemes" path="zonethemes.txt" />
    <file name="external-actors" path="external/actors.xml" />
</translation>

Add the name of the language between the quotes of the name attribute in the <translation> tag and add your name between the quotes of the translator attribute.

If you want to translate other game patches, such as the included Newer Super Mario Bros. Wii patch, you need to include a <for> tag and specify the name of the target game patch using the name attribute.

An example main.xml of a translation that translates the music.txt file of the Newer Super Mario Bros. Wii patch is shown below. Inside the <for> tag, all <file> tags that can be used outside the <for> tag can be used as well.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<translation name="" version="1.0" translator="">
    <strings path="strings.xml" />
    <for name="Newer Super Mario Bros. Wii">
        <file name="music" path="music.txt" />
    </for>
</translation>

Adding Files

The main.xml you've created instructs Reggie! to load various files from your translation's folder. Since those files don't exist there yet, you need to make copies there. Copy the following files to your game patch folder:

  • reggiedata/translations/strings.xml
  • reggiedata/bga.txt
  • reggiedata/bgb.txt
  • reggiedata/entrancetypes.txt
  • reggiedata/levelnames.xml
  • reggiedata/music.txt
  • reggiedata/spritecategories.xml
  • reggiedata/spritedata.xml
  • reggiedata/tilesets.xml
  • reggiedata/ts1_descriptions.txt
  • reggiedata/zonethemes.txt

After copying each of these to your translation's folder, translate them one by one. Each has a different format; open each one with a plain-text editor and see how it works. strings.xml and spritedata.xml are by far the largest files, so you may want to begin with those.

Explanation of Strings

If you're not a programmer, you may have no idea what is meant by "strings." "String" is the technical term for a chunk of text, which could be anything from a single letter to an entire paragraph. To change the rest of the text in Reggie!, you need to edit strings.xml. strings.xml contains all of the miscellaneous strings in the editor that don't fit anywhere else.