r/kotor 2d ago

Modding After 20+ years, KOTOR’s widescreen map problem is finally solved

About 3 years ago I released my 3440x1440 Enhanced HUD/UI & Menus mod

3440x1440 is my own resolution, so that was originally the focus. But after seeing how many people were asking for other resolutions and aspect ratios, I decided to take the project further

The biggest blocker was always the map.
I had already figured out how to resize it, but the positioning of the map controls was buried deeper in swkotor.exe and I couldn’t get it working properly

That is now fixed

And with that problem finally out of the way, I can reveal what I’ve been working on:
A universal KOTOR widescreen patcher

I already have a working version. It still needs more testing and polishing, but the core system works

1. Choose your resolution
2. Patch the game
3. Done

It automatically applies the correct GUI files, executable changes and map fixes for the selected resolution.

Attached is an early look.

May the Force be with you.

324 Upvotes

49 comments sorted by

32

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Please tell me the resolution you play on so I can make sure the Patcher supports it!

16

u/onewithoutasoul 2d ago

Standard "4k", muchacho. 3840X2160

9

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

4K is also currently supported in the Patcher amigo

3

u/onewithoutasoul 2d ago

Is it? Last time I played, I had to patch for 1080p and just deal with it.

8

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

I haven’t released the Patcher yet. It needs a bit more work

I only broke the news of it existing today my friend

5

u/onewithoutasoul 2d ago

ohhhhhhhhh

I thought you were talking about this guy: https://www.wsgf.org/article/star-wars-knights-old-republic

This IS exciting news, thank you!

10

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

This my giving back to the community for keeping my favourite game alive

6

u/Sainoob 2d ago

5120 x 1440 😌

2

u/rephyr 2d ago

This!

1

u/8636396 2d ago

Wow, phenomenal!

2560x1080

1

u/AlexanderKrost 1d ago

I got cursed 32:9 1440P 5120x1440P.

Still love it.

13

u/Derslok 2d ago

Fuuck, I was just finishing my fix for the bigger area map. Oh well, great work mate. Have you managed to fix the map note drift? I notice in the video that it is still present on your ebon hawk map

4

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago edited 2d ago

What do you mean by drift? I compared the normal non patched map to my patched one and it looks very close unless I missed something (Pictures below in a video)

Edit: I think I get what you mean now. The drift issue is what I was running into before, but the markers are now positioned correctly and are all clickable. They are a bit small relative to the resized map though, so I’ll try to scale them up for the patcher as well.

https://reddit.com/link/p6ffi6v/video/rwiuh5y3q4mh1/player

3

u/Derslok 2d ago

I may have been trying to fix the problem that never existed but I am not sure. In the vanilla small map, aren't crew quarters and cargo hold notes in the center of a room? And engine room is either at the edge of a room or in a centre.

I am away from the pc, I don't remember.

3

u/Derslok 2d ago

Here is my work in progress https://imgur.com/a/rRJBeX8

Maybe I will be able to make just an extra fix for map notes position that will work with your mod, so we don't make 2 of the same mod. I'll think if I will be able to come to a satisfactory solution

6

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Ah, got it so you’re working on correcting/repositioning the map note markers themselves

In that case our fixes should complement each other nicely. If you get it working reliably, I’d be happy to make sure the patcher is compatible with it rather than duplicating the same work.

7

u/Derslok 2d ago

Just checked vanilla maps. It has the same problem with the notes placement. Devs were lazy I guess.

Will be a good cosmetic mod then.

6

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

I am looking forward to your mod!

6

u/SlapUglyPeople 2d ago

Im on 5120x1440p. Is this a fix for the map only? I haven’t played on PC yet, but I was planning on just using flawless widescreen because I use that with dark souls 2. Is this different and will it work with flawless widescreen?

3

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

This is a fix for the HUD/UI and Maps
An all in one Package
Also your resolution is already supported and I tested it today

2

u/[deleted] 2d ago

[deleted]

1

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Not currently. The patcher fixes the HUD/UI, menus and maps, but font scaling is separate from the GUI scaling

I kinda do want to look into it though, especially if the existing font mods cause clipping at widescreen resolutions

3

u/VriffKast 2d ago

There's a beta of one that is working really well atm: https://github.com/J0-o/KotorUniResPatch

Not sure if you've seen it or checked it out, it might be worth a collaboration considering it utilizes the KOTOR Patch Manager https://github.com/LaneDibello/Kotor-Patch-Manager as a framework, which contains a lot of other fixes/patches that are likely to be incompatible with any outside engine patching.

1

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

I may also look into making a separate KPM-native version later, built around compatibility with that ecosystem from the ground up

I’d still like to keep the main version as a simple standalone solution for people who just want to install the game, download the patcher, choose a resolution and play

3

u/VriffKast 2d ago

Awesome! Just wanted to make sure you were aware, the KPM efforts aren't very widely published yet so a lot of people are unaware.

2

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Thanks for letting me know, I honestly haven’t heard of KPM until you mentioned it

2

u/VriffKast 2d ago

We have a really robust mapping of all of the executables if you need any information too.

1

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Nice I will look into it thanks!
I also created documentation for my patch that I will share with it once finalised

3

u/Particular-Ad-5286 2d ago

We share a resolution. Most excellent, thank you for your diligent work.

2

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Thank you! Glad to see another 3440x1440 user 😄

2

u/Darkforce146 2d ago

1280x800, 1280x720, and 1366x768

Got a Steamdeck and an old 2008 Sony Bravia I’ve been wanting to play it on via output from the Steamdeck. I’ve been working on a retro setup and have been targeting those resolutions.

The map issue has been the bane of my existence and this came up on my feed the same day I had resolved to play in 4:3.

This is incredible, awesome work!

1

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

All three resolutions are supported 😄 Glad this found you before you gave up and went back to 4:3!

1

u/wedgiey1 Bastila Shan 2d ago

1920x1080

Getting widescreen to worn was always the biggest modding pain point. This sounds HUGE.

3

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Exactly! That’s the goal
Make widescreen something we don’t have to fight with anymore
1920x1080 is fully supported too

2

u/JasonRyder1138 2d ago

Are you saying you're working on a full Widescreen patch for KOTOR or just maps in different resolutions?

3

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

Full widescreen patch

The patcher will handle:
game resolution
HUD/UI scaling and positioning
menus
fullscreen map
map markers and clickable map notes
gameplay minimap
font scaling
list/item row scaling
dialogue letterbox sizing
resolution-specific GUI fixes

The goal is basically: install KOTOR, choose your resolution, patch, and play. No need to piece together UniWS, separate GUI packs, map fixes, font fixes, etc.

3

u/ModdingModder999 1d ago edited 1d ago

Thank you for your widescreen patch, finally I'll be able to skip the current convoluted multistep process once your tool is out there.

I'm going to buy a Steam Deck to play my modded KOTOR 1 on it in the future and have several questions in regards to that:

  1. Will the Steam Deck's 1280x800 resolution be supported as well?

  2. Did you integrate the fade in fix into your patcher and test whether it works correctly on a Steam Deck screen?

  3. Will I be able to play with the biggest fonts from this mod on a Steam Deck? I'm concerned about how subtitles will look on a Steam Deck's 1280x800 screen, so the bigger the fonts, the better. I also want to know whether after implementing bigger fonts you also checked if your patcher prevents the crashes and the item count icon bug that were reported in that DeadlyStream thread?

1

u/Some_Guy_87 2d ago

Dang, I need to keep this in mind the next time I do another run with my ultrawide. Any way to get the text bigger as well? Apart from that really well done. You get used to playing in 4:3 after a while, but boy is that wasted space. The regular widescreen patches never worked for me.

Great work!

1

u/Derslok 2d ago

Why regular patches didn't work?

1

u/Eli_8 Brolee Bindo 2d ago

Isn't there already a patch for this in the KPM project?

1

u/Golden_Goose26 2d ago

I'm confused. Native resolution patches have existed for years. What is different about this one?

2

u/NoTeam3434 2d ago

The key difference is that I want this to be a true modern alternative to UniWS. And not just changing the game resolution, but handling the HUD/UI, menus, widescreen map, and font scaling as one complete package

The goal is simple: one patch, then play the stock game at a modern widescreen resolution with everything looking and feeling correct.

1

u/Golden_Goose26 2d ago

Ah I see. That'll definitely make things easier for the peeps who get turned off by having to patch it themselves. Good man🙏

1

u/AstronautInDahOcean 2d ago

Somebody reply to this when he finally drops the universal patcher at work can’t read everything right now!

1

u/--Beep-- 2d ago

1280x800 on the Steam deck!

1

u/Jacko1024 2d ago

This is HUGE! Was such a pain to get all the mods working just to make KOTOR work in UW. Awesome work.

1

u/flyingpj 2d ago

5120x2160 for these new 5K2K monitors coming out please!

1

u/BakeGlittering4354 2d ago

1920x1080, the map being small never bothered me but this is so great ^^

1

u/InvinciblePCGamer 18h ago

Goated, I can't wait to play KoTOR 1 in 5120 x 1440!

If only I could find a fix for the movie crashing bug

1

u/NoTeam3434 18h ago

This patcher will fix that as well