Texture folder appearing as a BSA in data file

[RevanStar89]

I recently decided to install Fallout 3 after nearly a year of not playing.
The install was fine.

The issue however arose when I was attempting to re-install various mods, including texture mods,

 

For some reason, the texture, sound, mesh, misc and other folders in the data file for FO3 are showing up as .bsa instead of folders.

Am I doing something wrong?

[Fallerent]

Fallouts textures, meshes, etc. are packaged into BSA files by default. You can use BSAOpt to unpack them into raw files, however beware that unpacking them all can cause lag and crashes.

[Fallerent]

By default, Fallouts files are packaged into BSA format, as are Skyrim's and other games by Bethesda. You can unpack these files with a program called BSAOpt, available on the Nexus. Be aware however, you do not need to do install mods. In your Fallout data folder, there should be a folder for meshes, textures, animations, etc. respectively. Unpack your mod's files where they belong among these folders, and place the esp\esm file in the directory where these folders are contained to install a mod. Unpacking all of your BSAs with BSAOpt will likely cause slow startup and crashes.

[RevanStar89]

By default, Fallouts files are packaged into BSA format, as are Skyrim's and other games by Bethesda. You can unpack these files with a program called BSAOpt, available on the Nexus. Be aware however, you do not need to do install mods. In your Fallout data folder, there should be a folder for meshes, textures, animations, etc. respectively. Unpack your mod's files where they belong among these folders, and place the esp\esm file in the directory where these folders are contained to install a mod. Unpacking all of your BSAs with BSAOpt will likely cause slow startup and crashes.

 

Thats the thing though, there is no folder for them. just the .bsa

 

http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc79/k_bammel/datafolder.png

[prensa]

RevanStar89 - Hello!

 

"Thats the thing though, there is no folder for them. just the .bsa"

 

That's perfectly normal.

 

You don't get Textures & Meshes folders until you install mods.

 

Many mods come in the proper folder structure like:

 

Textures/armor/robcojumpsuit

 

So when they are installed in your Data folder you gain a Textures folder etc..

 

If not you are often instructed to make the correct path by making new folders & naming them Textures, Meshes etc..

 

People become so used to seeing those folders in the Data Folder while using mods that they forget vanilla Fallout 3 does not use them by default. :smile:

 

Bethesda packs their assets in .bsa's, basically archives.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Prensa

Edited February 6, 2014 by prensa

[vforvic]

If you were to look inside those compressed BSA files you would see the directory structure you are expecting to see. Fallout 3 knows to look SECOND, more about this in a second, inside these BSA files for its resources. So for example to show the Vault Jumpsuit the game looks inside the "Fallout - Meshes" and "Fallout - Textures" BSA files which hold the Mesh and Texture files it needs. Fallout Mod Manager has a BSA viewer if you wanted to look.

 

Now the FIRST place it looks is the actual Fallout 3 Data structure on your hard drive. If it cannot find the files it needs in that location then it looks SECOND in the BSA files for what it needs. This is how modders override Fallout 3’s defaults. They simply put their version of a mesh or texture in the exact same location on the hard drive that it is located in the BSA. Now Fallout 3 will use the modders custom files even if they don't do anything else like make a esp or esm file.

 

Modders should place this correct structure in their mods. If you use Fallout Mod Manager or Nexus Mod Manager, and the modder did their job correctly, the mod should install in the correct location even if the actual directory structure is not currently on the hard drive.

 

I tried to keep that simple, but I think I went over a bit. :smile:

 

Prensa beat me by 1 minute. :)

[prensa]

vforvic - Hello!

 

"Prensa beat me by 1 minute."

 

That usually happens to me! :D

 

Prensa

[M48A5]

When looking at the image you provided, I can see that you are going to have a problem when you start adding mods to your game. You should have installed the game outside of the "Program Files". I see that you already have a folder available labeled "Games". That is where you should have installed the game, if not directly on your hard drive. The path to the game should be anywhere outside of "Program Files" and away from the User Account Control (UAC).

Edited February 6, 2014 by M48A5

[RevanStar89]

When looking at the image you provided, I can see that you are going to have a problem when you start adding mods to your game. You should have installed the game outside of the "Program Files". I see that you already have a folder available labeled "Games". That is where you should have installed the game, if not directly on your hard drive. The path to the game should be anywhere outside of "Program Files" and away from the User Account Control (UAC).

 

Uninstalled and tried re-installing it in the games folder. Still the same issue

[M48A5]

"Still the same issue" as the textures, meshes, sound, etc are BSA? BSA= Bethesda Softworks Archive. That is how they are supposed to be. Mods will add the additional folders as needed.

If not, just create the sub-folders yourself in the main "Data" folder.

 

If you mean the game installed in the "Program Files" folder, during installation choose custom install and direct the game to the location where you want it installed.