How to Create and Edit a NASCAR Racing 2003 Season Recap of a Saved Replay

By Michael Yanoska AKA Netrunner

OVERVIEW

This document is intended to give you instructions on creating a recap of a saved replay using the ingame Replay Studio (also called the Replay Editor). These instructions also apply to the more recent 2005 and 2007 version, as well as the previous title NASCAR Racing 2002 Season.

There is no better guide to creating recaps on the internet. Go ahead and 'google' the various problems people encounter when trying to edit a replay...you will find very little. That is because it is far more mainstream to create a movie file than it is to use the ingame Replay Editor. You will see some forums where people have asked questions on problems they have in editing a replay, but the answers do not come because people simply have no idea. Hopefully this helps those who want to use the Replay Studio's capabilities to the fullest.

NEEDED PROGRAMS

To create this recap, you will be using the ingame Replay Editor. You will also need:

- a painting program, such as Paint Shop Pro. This is so you can add graphics to your replays.

- a sound conversion program, such as GoldWave, that will convert to the file extensions .wav or .ogg. This is so you can add sound bites and music to your replays.

I do not intend to give instructions on how to use these programs. If you have come this far then you will figure it out regardless.

BEFORE YOU START

Before you start even racing, there is a couple of things you need to do to your core.ini file. If you don't have these settings, you will be severely limited in what you can see in your replay, and if you can't see it, you can't edit it. You can't change the settings after the race, because the replay uses the settings you had WHEN you were racing. Here are the following settings in your core.ini file that I HIGHLY recommend you change, PRIOR TO EVEN RACING:

- Under the header [Communications] you have

net_use_mdm_bandwidth_for_tcp_ip=1

... change the 1 to a 0. If set to 1, you will NOT see ALL the cars ALL the time because the game is using dialup modem settings, which means fewer packets sent back and forth, which means not all the cars are seen. Usually this means seeing something like 3 cars maximum in back of you and 5 cars in front of you (I'm being generous with the numbers...most dialup customers have a crappy connection). This is not good when you have a 20 car field and can see only 8 at any given time. Obviously, if you are truly on a dialup modem, you will be restricted on what you can edit in your replay. Changing this value to 0 is for high speed internet access (cable/dsl), and also means you see ALL the cars ALL the time.

- Under the header [Replay] you have

replayMemoryOverride=0

... you can either keep the 0 or change it to a higher value. If set to 0, the game will use all available ram for the replay. This is ok for most cases, however, sometimes you will notice in long races that the beginning of your replay is missing the beginning laps. This is because, at the time your racing, the game has used up the maximum amount of ram for its replay, and while you are still racing the game starts removing beginning laps starting from the beginning. The game will continue to remove beginning laps to keep within the maximum ram it has access to until you save the replay. In this scenario, the replay will ALWAYS have the end of the replay, but it will be missing beginning laps to stay within the maximum ram allowed. You can try to override what the game thinks is the maximum ram by changing this value to a number, reflecting how many megs you want the maximum file size to be, however, if you set it too high you will receive the error 'Could not initialize the replay system' when trying to start a track up, followed by the error 'Cancelling the weekend', and you will not be allowed to start the track up. Try to use a number that is 1/3 to half of your total ram. For example, I have 2 1-gig sticks of ram, and I use 701000...if I try to set it to 702000 or higher I start getting the error. The bottom line is, the longer the race, the more of a possibility that your replay will have beginning laps cut off. Solution is to buy more ram.

FAQ

1. What is a replay?

A replay is what is created while you race. Whether you know it or not, the replay starts recording automatically once you enter the main screen of the track (where you can see the track in a little window off to the right). After you exit the car, you are given the opportunity to save the replay. The replay is saved in your game folder, under the 'replay' subfolder. You can enter the Replay Studio at the game's main screen to view the replay. It is here that you can also 'edit' the replay. All replays are created with the .rpy file extension. File sizes vary depending on what options you have selected in your core.ini file.

2. What is a recap?

A recap is simply a shortened version of the race. For our purposes, a recap is the finished version of the replay after you have edited it. The recap will have graphics if you added it, as well as sound bites and music if you added it. You can do a multitude of things when you edit the replay, some of which we will cover. I typically create recaps with file sizes around 12 megs. Compare that with movie files, which are much bigger if the screen size ratio is the same as the replay. Also, keep in mind that you need certain things in place to view a replay/recap properly...like you need the game installed, you need the mod if there is one, you need the track if its not a default track, and you need the cars if you want to see the cars used during the race. Most people find it easier to just use a video capturing program so that everyone sees the same thing regardless of what they have installed, but you and I are not most people.

3. What is the Replay Studio?

The Replay Studio is where you can view a replay you saved. It is one of the choices in the main screen that comes up when you start up the game (in other words, it's a feature of the game). The Replay Studio is also where you can edit replays. The editor is accessed in the Replay Studio by a button called 'EDIT'. To edit a certain replay you first select the replay, then click on the 'EDIT' button.

4. Where do I start?

Your recap needs to be entertaining. No regular joe likes to watch boring recaps. It must be fun to watch. The fact that you are even attempting to create a recap with the Replay Studio implies that you intend to create something awesome. With this in mind, I like to start with the soundtrack. You want a song to go along with the action on the screen. So, try and pick a song that somehow ties in with the race. Any song with a racing or car theme is usally good. An example of a song that I used was in a novice race I was in, where a guy who was running second at talladega made a daring move on the last lap which took him outside, and he won it by inches. For that recap I chose the Mission Impossible theme. It was entertaining to watch and listen to, as no one watching it knew who would win. My deciding factor in knowing if I created a crappy recap or a good one is I show it to my wife, who does not play racing games. If she says the recap was entertaining then I know I created a winner.

MY STEPS IN CREATING THE RECAP

Now the meat of the document. I will take you through exactly how I create a recap. It is assumed you know how to use the basics of the Replay Studio edit functions. I am not going to explain every aspect of the edit functions, as some of them are still a mystery to me. I am simply just going to show you how one of my recaps is done.

1st step: cut Practice, Qualify, and Happy Hour out of the replay. I do this by opening up the replay in Replay Studio (do not use EDIT for this). Click on the Session arrow until it cycles to Race. Click on the scissors icon to place a marker where you want to start the cut. Next, click on the double right arrow icon with the vertical line to advance to the end of the replay. Click on the scissors icon again and save the replay under a different name (I usually choose 'test', and I will be referring to this cut race replay as 'test' from now on). This will save just the race portion of the replay, which is what we will be editing.

2nd step: save scenes for the recap and cut everything else, except all before the green flag and all after the checkered flag. This is where you select your test replay and click on the EDIT button. I usually save actions resulting in cautions. It is well known that everyone that watches a race likes wrecks...their entertaining from the time right before the wreck, to when it happens, to the aftermath. Sometimes while choosing my wrecks I will see something else noteworthy, like a close call or some tight racing action. You make the call in what you want in your recap. I usually save a half a lap before the wreck happens, to a few seconds after everyone gets back in the same direction and moving again...all frames in between I cut using the flag marker icon and scissors icon. The flag icon is to indicate where you want to start deleting frames and the scissors icon is to indicate where you want to end deleting frames. The deletion always is from flag marker to scissors. You must start a cut with the flag marker and end that same cut with the scissors icon. You do this for each cut. By the time I'm finished, I usually reduce a 40 minute race replay to about 7 minutes (it all depends on how many wrecks I saved). You can view how many minutes long a replay is by simply going into the Replay Studio...its under the column LENGTH next to the replay its referring to. You can't see the length in the EDITor as that shows only the number of frames long a replay is.

1 sec = 36 frames

2 sec = 72 frames

3 sec = 108 frames

4 sec = 144 frames

5 sec = 180 frames

6 sec = 216 frames

7 sec = 252 frames

8 sec = 288 frames

9 sec = 324 frames

10 sec = 360 frames

All actions selected in the EDITor will be shown in the upper left box, showing whatever action button you selected in the bottom right. Also, SAVE OFTEN, especially when making lots of changes...and save incrementally. This way if something bad happens to the replay during your changes, you can simply go back to the last edited one. Believe me, this is way better than having to start from scratch again.

3rd step: for each scene, set fade ins and fade outs to show transitions from one scene to the next by using the FADE button. You can select the number of seconds for each fade in the LIFE SPAN entry, using either a whole number or fractions in decimals (refer to the tip chart for amounts). I usually keep fade ins/outs to 1 whole second. I count back 36 frames from the end of one scene to place a fade out, and place the fade in at the beginning of the next scene. It also helps to use VOLUME to coincide with FADE so that while the scene is fading out that the volume also fades out, as well as the scene fading in with the volume fading in. VOLUME uses the LIFE SPAN entry as well, as well as a slider switch to indicate the volume level (note that the VOLUME level slider switch only affects ingame sounds...it does not affect sound files you may insert. Sound files you insert stay at maximum sound level throughout the replay).

4th step: now we prepare the intro graphic and credits graphic. Use your paint program to create a full size graphic. Dimensions I used for the intro are 826x620. I usually have the name of the league, followed by the series. Further down I have the name of the track, followed by the date. As an example, I used a blue background with white letters, font was Ariel Black, size 20. Save as a .tga (the Replay Studio will only allow .tga or .bmp to be imported into a replay...bmp's are larger in file size so save as a .tga). Ensure the STAMP button has a .TGA button next to it (if it doesn't then click on that button to change it to .TGA). Next, click on the STAMP button, select your intro graphic and push OK. Now you choose certain settings. For the intro graphic I choose both Position's as 0 (this is width and height coordinates where the graphic will be placed, the coordinates maxing out at 800, 600. The top left corner of the replay screen is considered 0, 0). Next is the Fade Time (note that the number of seconds you pick is for both fading in AND out...there is no choice for just picking a fade in or fade out option). Next is the Life Span in seconds that you want the graphic on screen.

For the credits you do the same. I usually put something like Hobo Racing Recap, Produced by, Michael Yanoska, Netrunner, Precision Speed Inc. I make the credits graphic smaller, like 800x220 and place the graphic after the checkered flag near the bottom of the screen so that while it fades in you can still see some action on the screen.

TIP: All graphics and sound files must be placed in your exports_imports subfolder in your game folder. The Replay Studio only looks in this folder for importing and exporting files (you must create this folder if you are using the 2005 version to create your recap).

5th: now for the soundtrack. I usually have some 'go go go' sound bite inserted at the green flag, then I add the soundtrack. Usually, you will find the replay is either too long or too short in relation to the soundtrack. In the case of the replay being too short, adding the soundtrack may result in an error (I seem to remember an error a while back but can't remember what it was). In the case of the replay being too long, you will find the song ending long before the replay does. This results in a less-than-perfect replay. There is a solution to this however. Start removing scenes one-by-one until the replay ends as close to the end of the song as possible. I usually start with the least entertaining scenes.

TIP: Adding sound can be tricky. First you have to ensure your sound file is in .ogg or .wav format (.wav's are larger in size, so it's recommended you use .ogg's). Not only that, but the game is very finicky on what sound files it will allow. The usual problem that comes up is that you will create an .ogg file that has no problem in playing in external programs like Winamp, but once you try to insert this sound file, the Replay Studio gives the error 'Could not add item to resource table. Table too small?', then hitting ok gives the followup error 'Could not insert sound sample item.' There is no widely explained answer to this problem. I have found the solution after many attempts at converting to .ogg, and I believe the issue to be Stereo vs. Mono. None of my converted songs to stereo have worked, but once I converted them to Mono I have no issues inserting the song. You would think this would degrade the song but it doesn't sound too bad. Remember, this is just a replay. You don't need booming 5.1 to hear it decently. Also, refer to this article in the readme.txt, which states:

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IMPORTING SOUNDS INTO THE REPLAY EDITOR

NASCAR® Racing 2003 Season's Replay Editor supports the addition of sound files to a replay. Both standard 22kHz .WAV as well as compressed .OGG files are supported for sound playback, but by default the replay editor will only import WAV files. If you wish to use .OGG files instead (useful as these offer MP3-like compression), you may edit the rpy_editor_sound_extension line in your CORE.INI, changing the 'WAV' extension to 'OGG' as shown below. More information on encoding .OGG files using the included OGGENC.EXE utility can be found on the OGG Vorbis website: http://www.vorbis.com/index.psp

Note that the paragraph indicates you need to edit the CORE.INI file...that was the case with 2002. You do not need to do this for 2003, or the 2005 and 2007 version, as the option to switch is within the Replay Editor.

Also, there seems to be an issue with the sampling rate. If your sampling rate of the sound file is 44100 Hz then you may have a problem as well. I convert my sampling rate to 22050 Hz. I don't have any specific wonder program for conversion, so what I do is I will create a .wav file with the sampling rate as 22050 Hz and Mono, then I will use the oggenc.exe included with the game (find it in the game's main folder) to convert the .wav to .ogg. This usually creates a working .ogg file that the Replay Studio accepts. The oggenc.exe will report an error if there is a problem with the .wav file, resulting in no conversion. I look at oggenc.exe as the final deciding factor...if oggenc.exe converts the file then most likely the Replay Studio will accept it (doesn't apply if you don't use the settings I just specified).

One last item...all sound files you insert will not play together at the same time. That means that one sound file will override the other...usually the last sound file wins. So, you can't insert a long soundtrack then expect to insert a sound bite in the middle without one overriding the other. Don't do this. It sounds like crap to have the song just stop to have some sound bit come up.

6th step: now the creative part. This is where I choose camera shots, such as what camera and what car. Experimentation is in order here. You can also select None for the car. What this does is still the movement from the last camera selected. In other words you can have a car's Front camera rolling, and at the point of the replay where None is selected for the car then the camera will stop moving and all other action will continue to move, making cool shots like cars racing toward your standing still point. My description of this may be confusing so try it out for yourselves and experiment. You input the CAR and CAMERA by clicking on those action buttons on the bottom right. Whatever car or camera you have selected at that point in the drop down arrow area will be placed in the replay to instruct the replay to change to that camera and car when it reaches that point in time. Don't use one particular camera exclusively. Vary your camera shots. TV1 and TV2 get boring after a while. Some of the most exciting cameras are Front and Rear, especially when cars are up close in the camera shots, but don't overuse these also. Try and sync up certain parts of the song with Rear Chase views...this has a cool effect.

TIP: See my previous recaps for an example of the various tricks you can do. I have made 3 with N2002 however I don't make them available because I don't know any sim racer that still uses it. My most recent recap was with an outfit called Hobo Racing, where I used N2003 to create it, which is available upon request. Bring up that replay in the EDITor to see how I performed certain camera tricks.

SUMMARY

Hopefully this clears up alot of questions on how to make them. I have not seen one single N2003 'edited' replay using the Replay Studio in all my searches on the internet. Go forth and create one and prove me wrong!

CONTACT INFORMATION

michael.yanoska@stny.rr.com

Netrunner at the Flashpoint forums http://www.flashpointracing.com

Last updated March 15^th, 2008. This document will be updated periodically when needed.

Is there a way to combine clips from different replay files?

Thanks