A Lot Of Textures (ALOT)
This topic isn't updated regularly anymore.
Please use the instructions available on the Nexus.
DISCLAIMER : This mod is a compilation of 475 other mods. Those weren't authored by me. I made a list of the mods used here.
Credit goes to smarteck, wadres, Ottemis, DeadMeat, ThinkBlueN7, ELE08, sulezraz and probably other great persons I forgot. Go give them some love 
. I have of course their permission to use their mods, mods that you can find here :
What is this mod ?
Tired of having to search for hours several websites to get as many HR (High Resolution) mods as possible ? Not enjoying downloading dozens of small mods one by one, instead of a unique big mod ? Well tire no more, this mod is for you. MP textures are also included in ALOT. As they are often shared with SP (eg Geth textures), I mixed them with the other textures.
This is an exhaustive, easy to install graphical overhaul mod. Download, let me3explorer do it's job, play. Easy enough.
How exhaustive ?
1986 textures as of version 2.0, including HR squad mates, places, armors, outfits, weapons, enemies, even multiplayer. If you find textures that I have not included here (pretty unlikely), don't hesitate to link them in the comments ! Note that I'm not counting identical textures used multiple times by the game, that would bring us to 2200+. That's approximately 10% modded textures out of the 27 379 of the all-DLC game.
Origin of the project and description
This project began as a personal quest for a higher resolution ME3, mainly in preparation of my next trilogy playthrough. Seeing the commitment of this community to modding, I felt the need to contribute myself to it, using my meagre skills^^.
My goal here was to gather as many high-resolution texture mods as I could find, then merge, fix, select them and order them into a comprehensive, easy to install mod. When faced with two identical textures from different mods, I tried to keep either the highest resolution one, or the one closest to vanilla if both were the same rez. It happened for a few hundred textures, I basically went through them one by one.
DOWNLOADS
Torrents are the best way to download this (huge) mod. If you only want specific textures, you can select the files/folders you want to download from your torrent client. Be sure to seed at least as much as you downloaded, it's the best support you can give me =). I also mirrored the downloads on MEGA, links are available in the Nexus mirror tab.
1. ME3Explorer (rev717 recommended, I won't support older versions)
ME3Explorer rev717
2. Select a version. Most users will only need the METPF Version. All versions contain the exact same files. The only difference is the storage format and the folder structure.
3. Follow this procedure to download : Download the torrent (it is located in the Files tab of Nexus, below the pictures), open it in your torrent client (µTorrent, Bittorrent, Transmission...), mark the checkboxes near the METPFs you want to download. Mark them all if you want the full HR experience (sounds badass, right ?).
- METPF Version (recommended). Size : 5.5 Go/GB. Structure : 6 METPFs without subfolders.
Torrent or regular download - OR 7z Compressed DDS' (advanced users). Size : 4.3 Go/GB. Structure : 7 7z compressed (LZMA2, Ultra) archives with descriptive subfolder names.
Torrent or regular download - OR Raw DDS' (even more advanced users). Size : 10.1 Go/GB. Structure : Same as 7z but uncompressed. Use your torrent client to choose specific files/folders to download.
Torrent download.
Update 2.0.1 here.
Optional download for Battlefield Armor With Fire here.
Optional download for vanilla faces (Kaidan, James) here.
Optional download for new high-poly meshes (ELE's for Hair, sulezraz's for Vorchas) here.
4. Please always download and install the BackgroundReplacer.metpf or .7z file. It is only there to confirm that the installation was successful. Basically, if this texture installed without prompting errors and displays correctly in-game, the rest of the textures probably also installed correctly.
5. If you choose the mirror download, please verify the integrity of your downloaded files using this utility and these hashes :
INSTALLATION
WARNING : The installation of all the METPFs/DDS' can take a really long time. You may have to let a single METPF run during a couple hours, so be prepared. In my opinion, it is absolutely worth it. You also have the option to make backups afterwards (see wiki), so you don't have to reinstall if something goes wrong afterwards. Optimizations to me3explorer will most likely come in the future to fasten the process.
Make sure to set your computer to not sleep or reboot during the installation. Bad things that can happen are automatic updates, automatic sleep/shutdown, power cut... You would have to reinstall the TPF(s) and possibly ME3 otherwise. It already happened, so be careful.
METPF Version Installation
1. Download. See the Download section for instructions.
2. If you have never used me3explorer before, please take the time to read the wiki. It will save you and me huge amounts of smashing his head against walls.This and that should help a lot.
3. Once downloaded, launch me3explorer. Run it as admin if possible, it will avoid some problems, especially if you installed ME3 in the "Program Files (x86)" folder.
4. Build your tree. Depending on the amount of DLC present and CPU speed, it can take up to 3 hours. To build it, go into Texplorer. If using the tool for the first time, the tree indicators (up right) should be red.
When you are ready for Texplorer to start the inventory process, click Yes.
After some time (~2 hours), another window will appear that allows you to choose exactly which DLCs to scan. Select the DLCs you want to have HR textures for.
Once the process is finished, you can start installing ALOT in TPF/DDS Tools.
5. Open TPF/DDS Tools. Load the METPFs you wish to install. Click "Analyse with Texplorer".
6. Click "Install Valid". It is recommended to install the METPFs one at a time.
7. Wait for it to finish. It can (and will) take a long time to process, especially if you load all METPFs at the same time. Check the Debug window (green font on black background), to see if it stalls. If the text keeps moving, you're fine.
8. Launch ME3. You should see the message "A Lot Of Textures (ALOT) by CreeperLava" at the top right of the main menu.
9. Congratulations, you have modded your game ! Now enjoy it, dammit ! You're welcome to post screenshots of your adventures in a HR world, I'll add them to the post.
7z/DDS Version Installation
1. Download. See the Download section for instructions.
2. The rest of the installation is very similar to the METPF Installation. Plus you are supposed to be an advanced user if you downloaded 7z or DDS version .
Further Graphical Improvements
1. ENBs, SweetFX and other graphical enhancement tools. I found some interesting ones but haven't found the time to test them out with ALOT. You can find them here, there, over here and over there. Please notice me of your favorite and/or send screenshots to help other users choose .
2. Coalesced edits. Here is a link to a research thread on me3explorer forums, seeking to improve ME3 graphics using Coalesced editing.
UPDATING
Updating ALOT
Download the updated torrent or the specified file on MEGA. You do not have to redownload everything if you go for torrent :
- Remove the previous torrent (keep the files)
- Load the new torrent in your torrent client. When asked for the download location, browse to the folder containing the previous version. Don't select the "ALOT METPF" or "ALOT 7z/DDS" folder. Click OK.
- Wait for your torrent client to verify the existing files. It will then overwrite those that have been updated.
- Apply the update : install the updated package over the previous version following the same steps as the installation. This will only work if you use the same Texplorer tree as for the initial installation. You have to reinstall everything if you don't have it anymore.
Updating ME3Explorer
This will only work for rev717+ of ME3Explorer.
- Open your current ME3Explorer version.
- Go into User Tools > Utilities > Version Switcher
- In the dropdown menu, select the version corresponding to the currently recommended one (see required files).
- Click Download. This will replace your existing version with the newer one. It won't delete your trees.
This will work for all revs.
- Download the new rev from GitHub.
- Transfer your tree from the old to the new me3explorer folder. To do so, make a search for me3tree.bin in the old and copy the found file to these locations:
..\ME3Explorer\exec\
..\ME3Explorer\bin\Debug\exec\
If one of the directories does not exist, ignore it.
- Done.
FAQ
1. General advice for installation
Don't load all the METPFs at once in me3explorer, do them one by one. Also, run me3explorer as administrator and check if your ME3 folder is read-only (right-click the folder and click on properties, uncheck the read-only checkbox). It happened to a few users before.
2. My game is already modded or I want to install content mods (ThaneMOD, MEHEM, CEM, Galaxy Map Mod...) too, what order should I respect ?
Generally, following this installation order will ensure a problem free game. You can also build the tree before installing DLC-like content mods if you don't care about modifying their textures. If you want more information about mod formats, read this article.
3. I get "NOT FOUND IN TREE" errors in TPF/DDS Tools.
You must lack DLCs, so me3explorer can't find their textures. The concerned textures will simply be skipped, no harm will ensue on the rest of the installation.
4. I placed all the METPFs in TPF/DDS Tools, but me3explorer crashes a while after.
Try running the METPFs one by one, me3explorer ran out of RAM.
5. The installation is very long.
This is normal, the compression (METPF) and the me3explorer method cause the whole process to be very long. In the end, it will be much faster than having to load everything through Texmod (30mn+ to boot the game every time you launch it...), and as such is worth the wait.
Quickening the process is impossible, unless me3explorer gets an update to optimize the installation process. Another option would be for me to publish my already modded game, but this has 2 major downsides : 1. it is probably illegal and 2. you won't be able to mod your game any further, as building a tree on a modded game is a very bad idea.
6. I installed a DLC after building the tree/installing ALOT, do I have to reinstall everything to apply textures to the DLC ?
Sadly, yes.
7. I get a "DLC not authorized" error upon launching the game.
Install a DLC patch like this one (direct download : here, copy-paste-overwrite in your Binaries folder).
8. (Taken from MEHEM mod page) Before you install MEHEM (or any mod), make sure you turn Origin's auto update setting off. Otherwise, Origin tends to overwrite modded game files with the originals without asking. If that happened, uninstall the mod, repair the game and the DLCs (especially the Extended Cut and Leviathan), update your game once to make sure it's the latest version, turn auto-update off and then install.
9. Why use me3explorer over Texmod ?
Texmod loads the whole METPFs in your RAM, whereas me3explorer replaces vanilla (unmodded) files. So, with Texmod, you get a veeery long initial loading screen (30mn+ depending on your HDD and amount of mods). With me3explorer, you shouldn't experience loading screens longer than a few minutes, at most. The reason for that is that the game loads every texture for the level you are entering during the loading screen, not the whole game.
10. Infinite loading screens
A possible explanation for that could be a failure on me3explorer's part during the installation process. To fix that, you have to do a TOCBin update (see here for instructions). Backup your PCConsoleTOC.bin before doing that.
11. Crashes, freezes ?
Nobody has noticed me of such problems yet, but if you do experience random CTDs or freezes, do notice me of it. One solution to fix it could be to apply the Large Address Aware patch available here (direct download here). To do so, follow the instructions given on the linked topic for your MassEffect3.exe, located in your ../ME3/Binaries directory.
12. Buggy textures ?
If you see some strange looking textures, dark or pixellated, that weren't like that in vanilla, please contact me. I tried to limit as best as I could the quality loss/problems when fixing textures, but with this huge number of DDS', there will inevitably be some fails. Describe the texture as best as you can, it's location, what it is... Give me the hash through Texmod if you can. I'll try to update it.
CHANGELOG
1.0
- Initial Release
1.1
- Fixed Debug_Console (hash 0x75FE31AB) texture, from Places pack.
- Updated torrent links and MD5 hashes.
1.2
- Fixed GethVision_HexPattern (hash 0x011DED68) texture, from Multiplayer pack.
- Fixed Eye_EmisScars_03 (hash 0x3E6D12EC) texture, from Squad pack, that caused red eyes for Hackett's hologram, in Bryson's labs and possibly others.
- Updated torrent links and MD5 hashes.
1.2.1
- Updated the background texture to not be covered by the computer on the main menu *facepalm*
- Updated the mirrors with this texture, but not the torrents. Added a direct download link to it.
1.2.2
- Fixed MM_Placeholder_Norm (hash 0x4D558A87) texture, from Citadel pack, that caused graphical glitches in the Normandy.
2.0
Fixes :
- Included all previous bugfixes.
- Replaced Battlefield Armor to remove fire effect.
Optional :
- Added optional download for Battlefield Armor With Fire.
- Added optional download for vanilla faces (Kaidan, James).
- Added optional download for new high-poly meshes (ELE's for Hair, sulezraz's for Vorchas).
Updates :
- Included 65 new mods.
- Upscaled 38 textures with new ones from BSN and sulezraz. Upscales go from 2x to 8x the original size.
- Added 84 new textures
- Reorganized the file structure for TPFs, 7z and DDS to have approximately same sized packs and a more intuitive naming system. MP textures are now mixed with the rest.
Misc :
- Updated mirrors, torrent links, MD5 hashes and mod list.
- Added statistics in the Forums tab on Nexus.
2.0.1
- Fixed eye texture (hash 0xF1535C11), from Shepard pack, that caused some character's eyes to appear black.
PERMISSIONS
Personal Use
You can use assets for your personal projects as long as you don't share them publicly.
Public Release
You can use assets originating from my projects for your own and release them if you've acquired express consent from the original file authors and adhere to their personal permission rules.
Special thanks go to Heff and KFreon for their amazing support and help on the chat =). I would still be extracting the tpfs/mods one by one, instead of having the mod ready to release, if not for you.
Thanks JunkoXan and JackAmphlett for the testing !
Huge thanks to Spark9 and GuerillaTech for helping with Update 2.0 !
FEEDBACK
TheViper823x
You saved my life
jurgcl29
Wow! I have been wanting to play ME3 again for sometime now, but I didn't want to have to re download and install all of the texture mods on my new computer. I will definitely be playing again now! Thank you!
worthlessdaisey
HUGE thanks to putting this pack together. Makes life a lot easier than trying to find all the little pieces.
Xayjyn
Excellent compilation mod; adds a huge amount of immersion to the game.
furosuto81
I recently upgraded to a 4K monitor and it left the standard textures looking....wanting...to say the least. I've now played through the Earth tutorial and the improvement is astounding.
Spark9
Thank you VERY MUCH for taking the time to put this together. I was searching for exactly something like this. Thank you very much
Ironhead34
Just want to say thanks for putting this together. Recently built a new PC and this is my first time playing through ME3 with mods. What a difference. No hiccups with installation. FWIW - using Windows 10.
Retour en haut
