Turning San Andreas into a realistic Immersive Sim/RPG

[Sabudum]

 

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Now, into the meaty gritty!

 

This mod can be seen as a Total Conversion, as an Overhaul, or simply as individual small mods that change single things.

 

The goal is to completely transform San Andreas into a realistic and immersive crime simulation role-playing game.

What this means is, everything the player does, must have a consequence, if you steal a vehicle and someone sees you, they inform the police and you become wanted, as well as the vehicle, if you destroy the vehicle, it should never re-spawn, ever again. If you just abandon the vehicle, it is apprehended and later returned to it's owner.
If you kill someone, same deal.

Committing crimes in a certain neighborhood will increase police patrols in that area.

Police should not spawn randomly with traffic, but have systematic and realistic patrols, including officers on foot, bikes, cars and helis, they should all be accounted for and killing an officer should make you a wanted criminal for life.

Same goes for Armored Cars, they should have systematic routes and stealing one would be a gigantic endeavor.

 

These are Just examples of what can be done to transform the game.

It should create a unique experience never before seen in any game or mod, by a long shot.

 

The mod has now reached Pre-Alpha Stage!

 

I have developed enough to reach Pre-Alpha, most of the systems are now in place and have their fundamentals covered.

 

You can become a supporter and ensure you get early access for every update!

 

Video Showcase:

 

In depth description:

 

The mod is completely modular, you can install just a piece of it, or remove what you don't like, combine with other mods, and so on.

 

    Currently there are 11 modules, which are:

 

    Crouch Strafe - Modifies the crouched movement, allowing for strafing while crouched.

Spoiler

        This mod replaces rolling with crouched strafe, now you can
        peek behind corners while under cover and receive much less
        fire.

        Other mods that can go along with it and improve the
        experience:

        Advanced Aiming by DK22Pac
       https://www.mixmods.com.br/2022/06/advanced-aiming-mod/

    Engine - Simple script for toggling engine and headlights.

Spoiler

        This mod adds controls for toggling vehicle engine and
        headlights.
        I decided to make my own because all the mods that I tried
        did not have what I wanted, or had bugs and didn't work
        right.

        Currently there is only one issue with it:
        Sometimes when you steal a car from the passenger side,
        the driver will turn the engine off when exiting the car.

        Controls are as follow:
        I - Toggle engine, you need to turn the engine ON when
        stealing a parked car.

        L - Toggle headlights, you will need to turn them on
        manually at night.

        Headlights go off with the engine automatically.

    Entry - Disable all entrance Enexes and requires pressing Action(default Tab) to enter or exit a building.

Spoiler

        This mod disables all Enex entrance and exit markers to make
        a more appealing and immersive experience.

        To enter or exit a building, approeach the door and press
        Action (default Tab).

        The experience is similar to RPG games such as Fallout and
        Skyrim.

    Fatigue - New fatigue and sleeping mechanic.

Spoiler

        This mod adds an advanced fatigue system.

        The more you stay awake, the more your fatigue will increase
        and eventually you will have to sleep.

        Having a high fatigue will slow your movements, compromise your
        aim, and you have a chance of dozing off anytime you're idle.

        You can sleep on a variety of surfaces, including beds, couches,
        benches, tables.

        Sleeping outside at night can be dangerous and you might get
        robbed.

        Included with the mod is a INI file with all the model IDs for
        sleepable surfaces with a local offset and rotation, this
        determines the character location in relation to the object.

        If you want to edit this, it can be done in-game by typing
        "SLEEP", this enables edit mode.

        To sleep on a surface, simply approach it and press Action
        (default Tab), your character will then lie on it and sleep as
        much as needed to regain full strength.

            Edit Mode:

        Enter or exit Edit Mode by typing "SLEEP".

        Sleeping on an object while in editing mode allows to control
        the character's position and rotation with the keys:

        Up/Down: Move on the Y axis.
        Left/Right: Move on the X axis.
        Attack + Up/Down: Move on the Z axis.

        Special Left/Right: Rotate character.

            Cheats:

        There are currently only two cheats, one that allows to rest
        instantaneously, typing "RESTNOW".
        And another that increases time without sleep to 16 hours, by
        typing "ROUGHDAY".

    Fuel - Vehicle fuel consumption and gas station mechanics.

Spoiler

        This mod adds a fuel system to the game, every vehicle you take
        will have a certain amount of fuel, it's consumption is roughly
        one liter per second, varying with Engine load, RPM and acceleration,
        upon emptying the tank, your car won't turn on until you put some gas
        in it. You can tow it to the gas station.

        Re-fueling is as straight forward as it can get.

        Approach a gas pump, press Action(default Tab) to pick up the nozzle.
        Approach your car and hold Action(default Tab) to pour gas into the
        tank.

        The cost will be displayed on screen, as you let gas flow, it
        increases.

        When finished, approach the gas pump and press Action(default Tab)
        again to return the nozzle and pay the bill.

        Remember: always turn your engine off when re-fueling to avoid
        unwanted accidents.

    Gang - Introduces a completely new and revamped gang system, with a respect system.

Spoiler

        This is probably the biggest and most complex module, as it
        introduces a deep gang relation system that is not present in the
        vanilla game.

        Gangs now have a respect level towards each other.

        If a gang, let's say Grove, attacks another gang, like the Ballas,
        respect from the Ballas towards the Grove will decrease until it
        reaches maximum hatred, when this happens, the Ballas can initiate
        a retaliation and attack the Grove.

        However, enemies of the Ballas will increse their respect towards
        the Grove and aid them in any incursion.

        Allies of the Ballas will also decrease their respect towards the
        Grove and assist the Ballas.

        This works for all gangs, and also for the police.

        If you hurt policemen, then the police will increase it's hatred
        towards you, and start getting more aggressive when they see you.

        Same goes for all gangs.

        Everything works under the hood and there is no visual indication
        of the respect levels for each relation, which makes for a very
        immersive experience when you see the gangs retaliating and trying
        to send a message.

        As of now, the gang wars have not been revamped and there's still
        the vanilla system in place.

        Other mods that can go along with it and improve immersion and
        realism:

        Restored Gangs by CleytonGamer
       https://www.gtainside.com/en/sanandreas/mods/141950-restored-gangs/

        More Hostile Gangs by SilentPL
       https://www.gtagarage.com/mods/show.php?id=23845

    HUD - Controls the new hud interface and automatically detects other modules.

Spoiler

        This module simply displays the custom HUD, created by me, with a
        gothic design, I chose this type of design because I want the mod
        to feel like a serious and realistic simulation, and nothing speaks
        more seriousness than a gothic design.

        The HUD now includes information about your movement speed, your
        wanted profile and notoriety, your fatigue level and the fuel
        present in your car.

        There is a INI file included which allows to modify colors for all
        the elements and even hide the background gothic design if you don't
        like it.

    Save Anywhere - The name speaks for itself.

Spoiler

        This mod does as advertised by the box.
        It allows to save anywhere, except during missions.

        By pressing F6, the save screen will be brought up and you will be
        allowed to save the game.

        This one has many advantages over other similar mods.

        Mainly, it does not use a custom thread to save the game, instead,
        the game is saved from the Main SCM thread, this completely removes
        every bug related to forcing a save game.

        I managed to do this by simply moving an existing save pickup
        (Johnson's House) to where the player is, then restoring it's
        location afterwards.

        There is a INI file with the option to remove the vanilla pickups.
        This makes for a much cleaner look inside houses and also makes
        more sense.

        The pickups don't get permanelty deleted, they're just hidden.

    Walk Speed - Control movement speed with mouse wheel.

Spoiler

        This module modifes walking, running and sprinting mechnics.
        Now they're controlled by the mouse wheel.

        Scrolling Up will increase your movement speed.
        Scrolling Down will decrease your movement speed.        

        There are 5 walking speeds, from slow to fast.
        The 6th level is running.

        Whilst running, you can scroll your mouse Upwards really fast to
        start sprinting, scroll back down to stop sprinting.

        By default, the script records 5 successive scrolls within a certain
        time limit, if all of them happen in rapid succession, then sprint
        is activated.

        You can change your movement speed also while driving, so if you
        entered a vehicle while running, and want to exit while walking.
        You can do it.

        The impact on immersion that this simple mechanic does
        is simply astounding.

    Crime - Completely new and revamped crime system, with a wanted profile and notoriety system.

Spoiler

        This one is also kinda big.

        As you commit crimes, your notoriety increases.

        If you have a high notoriety, people can start recognizing you from
        the news, and might call the police.

        You can wear masks and balaclava to commit crimes and not get
        recognized.

        However, change your clothes as well, because some smart-ass might
        recognize you from your clothing.

        When committing a crime, notoriety will only increase if there is at
        least one withness, otherwise, you will remain hidden.

        After a police chase, and a succesful runaway, your wanted level
        will be zero, but your wanted profile will remain high, the same
        as your maximum wanted level during the chase.

        When someone recognizes you and calls the cops, the chase will
        continue.

        Notoriety decreases very slowly and the cops will keep searching for
        you for a while, depending on the severity of your crimes.

        Notoriety can go from zero, up to 6000, the time it takes is relative
        to that in days, a notoriety of 6000 will take 120 days to completely
        go away.

        The time is based on movies and TV shows where the cops keep
        investigating a crime for some time before filing the process and
        never touching it again.

        I took great inspiration from the TV Show Starsky and Hutch for this
        one.

    Weapon - New weapon control and interaction system.

Spoiler

        New weapon selection and interaction system.

        You can now select weapons via the numbers on the top of the keyboard
        like in FPS games such as Call of Duty.

        Each number represents a slot in your inventory.

        1 - Unarmed / Brass Knuckles
        2 - Melee
        3 - Pistol
        4 - Shotgun
        5 - SMG
        6 - Assault
        7 - Rifle
        8 - Throwable
        9 - Camera, Spray, etc...
        0 - Goggles, Parachute
        - - GF Gifts

        Weapon pickups are now manual, meaning you won't automatically
        pickup a weapon you come in contact with. instead, you have to
        approach it with empty hands, and press Action(default Tab) to
        pick it up.

        Picking up a weapon of same category will not destroy the one you
        have, instead, your character will drop their current weapon on
        the ground, and pickup the new one. When for example, switching
        between AK-47 and M4.

        Beyond the number keys, there is also the ability to holster and
        unholster current weapon.

        By pressing Q, your character will put away their weapon, press it
        again to unholster it again.

        This makes it easy to rob a store in a flash, just draw and point.

        You can also drop your current weapon, by pressing T.

        Notice there is no Heavy weapon category, that's because you can't
        carry the heavy weapons with you, they're just too heavy.

        Instead, when picking up a heavy weapon, you can fire it and move
        with it in your hands, but upon switching to another weapon, your
        character will drop the heavy weapon on the ground to free their
        hands.

        When selecting throwables, if you happen to have satchel charges,
        pressing again will toggle between satchels and detonator.

        This might have a few bugs, I did not test all the permutations.

        Other mods that can go along with it and improve the experience:

        Weapon Outfit by Ryosuke839 corrected by JuniorDjjr
       https://www.mixmods.com.br/2015/07/weapons-outfit-armas-pelo-corpo-correcao/

 

 

    Plans for future versions:

    - Add animations for every weapon pick up and drop, as well as draw and holster.
    - Add proper animations for Crouch Strafe.
    - Tweak Fuel module to consider engine size and fuel type.
    - Find a way to enable fueling only if the player is at the vehicle's gas port.
    - Integrate the ability to toggle turn signals into the Engine module.
    - Add tire changing mechanics.
    - Add the ability to store weapons in the trunk of any car.
    - Add duffle bags to carry weapons.
    - Add a bank system to store cash and limit the amount of money you can carry.
    - Revamp the entire Gang War mechanic by re-writting it from scratch.
    - Add crime scenes to whatever crimes that are committed in the game.
    - Add realistic police patrol mechanics.
    - Add Vehicle heat mechanics, similar to Driver games.

    - The ability to have a family, defend it from gang attacks.

 

Edited January 31, 2024 by Sabudum
Added a video showcase

[salazarcosplay]

can you add havign a family like Fable and Sims

[Sabudum]

On 11/16/2023 at 2:39 PM, salazarcosplay said:

can you add havign a family like Fable and Sims

Whoah, that could be something, then the gangs that really hate you do drive-bys on your house and assassinate your family.

[universetwisters]

Reading the OP makes me very nostalgic to back when I was like 10 and playing the Sims 2 religiously and wanting to learn how to mod San Andreas to make it a crossover with the Sims. You pull someone out of their car and they yell at you in that dumb language of theirs 

 

I wouldn’t be opposed to working on something like that as an adult, or at least porting sh*t from the sims 2 because  nostalgia from my childhood aspirations is what’s keeping me going 

[Sabudum]

On 12/2/2023 at 4:30 AM, universetwisters said:

Reading the OP makes me very nostalgic to back when I was like 10 and playing the Sims 2 religiously and wanting to learn how to mod San Andreas to make it a crossover with the Sims. You pull someone out of their car and they yell at you in that dumb language of theirs 

 

I wouldn’t be opposed to working on something like that as an adult, or at least porting sh*t from the sims 2 because  nostalgia from my childhood aspirations is what’s keeping me going 

My thoughts exactly, I always wanted to create a game that would merge all the best features from the games I've played, I always wondered why no one made that yet, games are always too focused on a single subject, and lack on variation and realism greatly.

[Papayamamba]

Hi,

 

Great idea!

 

My main gripe with this awesome game is that they've put so much effort into the story and feeling, still, the world feels somewhat inert and lifeless when it comes to crime.

 

For example, you rob a betting shop: a police chase ensues... for about a minute and half till you get to the safehouse. Mission Completed, and minutes later you can return to said betting shop and place bets and act like a normal customer.

 

Instead, I would want that area closed, with heavy police presence, press and D.T.-s taking photographs, certain roads closed and traffic diverted. - This should be up for x number of ingame days, depending on the seriousness of the crime. Your character's clothes, tats, vehicle should be noted by witnesses (random peds in given area) and it would result in notoriety points. These points could determine your wanted levels and police response. There could be even private investigators or hitmen tailing you, finding out where you live and then later on organizing a hit on your house.

 

Imagine going inside to save your game and finding bad guys waiting for you.

 

I would keep the o.g. storyline with CJ however, because I think it's a great story with a lot of potential. It would need a very deep re-write with missions edited to follow this extra depth, but it would be worth it.

 

 

Vehicles should be tracked based on their type, color and licence plates. Stealing a rich f*cks Banshee could result in half of the force looking for it, or even the owner's henchmen, whereas stealing some raggedy ass Perennial or Clover could keep you under the radar for much longer.

 

 

 

Edited December 8, 2023 by Papayamamba

[sixpence]

Absolutely a fan of this project, please make it a full release!

[Sabudum]

On 12/8/2023 at 8:18 PM, Papayamamba said:

Hi,

 

Great idea!

 

My main gripe with this awesome game is that they've put so much effort into the story and feeling, still, the world feels somewhat inert and lifeless when it comes to crime.

 

For example, you rob a betting shop: a police chase ensues... for about a minute and half till you get to the safehouse. Mission Completed, and minutes later you can return to said betting shop and place bets and act like a normal customer.

 

Instead, I would want that area closed, with heavy police presence, press and D.T.-s taking photographs, certain roads closed and traffic diverted. - This should be up for x number of ingame days, depending on the seriousness of the crime. Your character's clothes, tats, vehicle should be noted by witnesses (random peds in given area) and it would result in notoriety points. These points could determine your wanted levels and police response. There could be even private investigators or hitmen tailing you, finding out where you live and then later on organizing a hit on your house.

 

Imagine going inside to save your game and finding bad guys waiting for you.

 

I would keep the o.g. storyline with CJ however, because I think it's a great story with a lot of potential. It would need a very deep re-write with missions edited to follow this extra depth, but it would be worth it.

 

 

Vehicles should be tracked based on their type, color and licence plates. Stealing a rich f*cks Banshee could result in half of the force looking for it, or even the owner's henchmen, whereas stealing some raggedy ass Perennial or Clover could keep you under the radar for much longer.

 

 

 

That is exactly the idea my friend.

[Papayamamba]

I'm an amateur sound designer with 10+ years of experience, so if you need anything sound-related for your project, you can count on me.

[Sabudum]

Pre-Alpha is here! I've developed enough to reach pre-alpha stage, created a Patreon to get support for the mod, each update will be available there as early-access until it's release.

 

Updated the OP with new information and better description, as well as a showcase video with details about it's current state.

 

On 12/19/2023 at 12:37 AM, Papayamamba said:

I'm an amateur sound designer with 10+ years of experience, so if you need anything sound-related for your project, you can count on me.

I'll keep that in mind, so far I've been using the original game's sounds, but in the future it would be nice to have better weapon sounds for reloading and stuff.
Maybe general sound effects for everything would be kinda nice.

Edited December 21, 2023 by Sabudum
typo

[Papayamamba]

Hi,

 

Looks great already! Would be cool if you could demonstrate the wanted system a bit more in-depth with some kinda debug enabled, so we could see messages about what's happening in the background.

 

On another note, what do you think about revamping the weapon skill system? So instead of leveling up just by shooting randomly, have certain styles, like two-handed grip, one handed-grip etc available to learn at Ammu-Nations by instructors? Then you could select what grip suits the situation best: sometimes you want to run for cover and spray at threats one-handed with an Uzi; other times you might want to keep it more steady with two hands and fire more accurate bursts. What do you think about this?

 

Also, regarding heavy weapons... would it be feasible to implement a system that allows storing heavy weapons in car trunks? That way they could be transported in the game world without making them too unrealistic or overpowered. Ammo limit could also be introduced alongside with it, to keep for example the number of RPG rockets in a believable range.

 

And do you have any plans to do something about the game's economy? Feel like apartments and houses are way too cheap. No way a nice condo with garage in a nice part of San Francisco costed 20k $ in 1992! Also, would be cool if the player needed to pay bills i.e. x amount deduced weekly. Though, now that I think about it... with your "save everywhere" feature, what will be the point of owning houses? Perhaps sleeping in a nice home could result in certain boosts (like fatigue increases at a slower rate for x minutes etc).

 

 

Edited December 23, 2023 by Papayamamba
heavy weapon idea, houses idea

[Sabudum]

On 12/22/2023 at 11:36 AM, Papayamamba said:

Hi,

 

Looks great already! Would be cool if you could demonstrate the wanted system a bit more in-depth with some kinda debug enabled, so we could see messages about what's happening in the background.

 

On another note, what do you think about revamping the weapon skill system? So instead of leveling up just by shooting randomly, have certain styles, like two-handed grip, one handed-grip etc available to learn at Ammu-Nations by instructors? Then you could select what grip suits the situation best: sometimes you want to run for cover and spray at threats one-handed with an Uzi; other times you might want to keep it more steady with two hands and fire more accurate bursts. What do you think about this?

 

Also, regarding heavy weapons... would it be feasible to implement a system that allows storing heavy weapons in car trunks? That way they could be transported in the game world without making them too unrealistic or overpowered. Ammo limit could also be introduced alongside with it, to keep for example the number of RPG rockets in a believable range.

 

And do you have any plans to do something about the game's economy? Feel like apartments and houses are way too cheap. No way a nice condo with garage in a nice part of San Francisco costed 20k $ in 1992! Also, would be cool if the player needed to pay bills i.e. x amount deduced weekly. Though, now that I think about it... with your "save everywhere" feature, what will be the point of owning houses? Perhaps sleeping in a nice home could result in certain boosts (like fatigue increases at a slower rate for x minutes etc).

 

 

You are reading my thoughts, that's is exactly what I plan for the mod.

In the next update (Pre-Alpha 0.2) I'll make separate videos for each module, allowing for a more in-depth description, in it's initial version it didn't seem like it was worth it.

Storing weapons in trunks and carrying them in duffel bags.

Revamping the weapons skill system, each type of weapon has it's own skill and some synergy towards similar weapons, like, micro-smg skill will influence  smg and pistol skils, SMG will influence combad and micro-smg, and so on.
Adding different grip for weapons like Centre axis relock or single-handed, single or dual-wield, and all that jazz.

Each sleepable object will have a comfort level, so owning a nice apartment with a comfy bed can make you sleep better and have more energy.

And also the cost of life, you'll have to eat, drink and pay the bills for electricity, water, and so on, especially if you have a family somewhere.

Edited December 23, 2023 by Sabudum

[Papayamamba]

Hi!

 

Any news on this? How is it coming along?

[Sabudum]

On 1/4/2024 at 11:10 AM, Papayamamba said:

Hi!

 

Any news on this? How is it coming along?

Just finished an update.

Wanted System is now called Crime System, received a major update:
 

 

Edited January 12, 2024 by Sabudum

[Papayamamba]

Hi,

 

Looks great already. I've been thinking how the story will be able to work with such a system...

 

Since Tenpenny aids all the gangs to "maintain status quo", most of the crime CJ needs to commit in the LS arc of storyline can be written off or seriously deducted. However, for immersions sake, a police and emergency-service response could still be implemented to make the world seem more alive and realistic. Let's say in "Burning desire" since you complete an assigment by the crooked cops, you won't be pursued for the crimes (commiting multiple homicides, burning a property) - however, firefighters, ambulances and investigators should swarm the area and the player could witness these guys working for a few days: cops and press talking to pedestrians, taking photos, firefighters chatting next to their trucks, or investigating the building etc.

 

The robbery in the country with Catalina should be way different because it's no longer about the gang relations or the related drug-trade; also, Tenpenny shouldn't / couldn't even know CJ has anything to do with these. This way, the "exile" or "after LS" arc of the story could start way tougher; CJ would find more hardship apart from the annoying aggressive bitch that Catalina is. I can already see CJ sleeping in the big hangar at that abandoned wrecking yard (after the bridge before Angel Pine), because the cops are sweeping the nearby settlements. With the free saving and resting mechanic, the player could improvise safehouses and hiding places. Now we just need a system that would allow carrying spare clothes in a trunk or duffel bag; this way we could ease the wanted levels a bit without a wardrobe being available.

 

Tell me what you think, and keep up the great work!

 

 

 

Edited January 13, 2024 by Papayamamba

[Markus001]

Hi, your mod looks interesting. Very nice work. A long time ago i was looking for a different fuel mod, and you did it! I like how works and how you place the hud, in the radar. I wonder if the fuel is wasted quickly like in other mods, because in other mods it is wasted quickly and you have to constantly visit gas stations, but at the same time, it makes some sense.

 

One thing im worried about your mod, is the hud in general, its just a personal thing, i prefer to play with the original hud instead of modified one, i know it has some functions like the crime system, wich is very nice but, i saw the design a little bit noisy. 

 

Anyway, you are doing a wonderfull work, keep it up! 

[Papayamamba]

Hi,

 

Can you show us an in-depth video (perhaps with debug messages) demostrating the gang relation system?

 

Thanks and hope all's good.

[p4permaker]

is this dead? discord link does not work. if so, then that kinda sucks. this looks cool

[jazzysoggy12]

dead?