How to change the Catchphrases/Quotes and Wrestlers names in the loading Screens.

[noobmodder]

How to change the Catchphrases/Quotes and Wrestlers names in the loading Screens.

First of all Credits to 2 people. I would not be able to give you this guide without their help.
It's @squaredcirclefan who helped me with his large knowledge about the location of the games files and how to edit them, the best way.
And also a shoutout to @trioxin1331 who helped me by sharing some valuable informations with me.

But now let's start with the guide!

Tools you need:
- WrestleMinus
- A tool of your choice to to clear the Chunk0.ark and to rebuild the Chunk0.def, like WrestlePlus or the CCT

For further Quote/Catchphrase editing:
- PAC Editor
- A Hex-Editor (HxD suggested)
- A tool to count characters (optional, but might help. Online character counter in example)

 

To achieve what we want, we have to edit the file string_win.pac.
In case you might use a mod (like JManny's Arena Mod, you could have the so called "Super String" which would be located in the mod directory.
Then this would be the string file you will have to edit.
In any case make a recovery copy  of it (outside the games installation, because always work tidy! ;-))

Open the file with WrestleMinus. You should see something like a "Directory tree", that shows different number-letter combinations, like
97FD1814BC036AF7 or A1EF7F4322D03055.
If you click on the "+" on the left of those they will show a new file with the name @00000000

IMPORTANT: There is a small but important difference if you edit the file for english version, or if you play the game with one of the supported
languages (like german, spanish, italian a.s.o.)
In this case you will have to work with the english string as well as the string of the language you play the game with.

The reason why you have to work in 2 language strings (if you play it in a different language than english) is that you might have noticed that the catchphrases/quotes,
in the loading screens contain the original english text and beneath it there are those lines again, but in "your language".
And to do the job right, you need to edit both!

I play the german language version of WWE2k19, so I had to edit the @0000000 under 97FD1814BC036AF7 (english) and A1EF7F4322D03055 (german)
So forgive me if I don't remember which number-letter combinations the other supported languages have.
To find your, just open the one of the other @00000000 and select "String viewer". Scroll down till you see some written lines.
If it's in your language, then congratulations, you found the correct string! 🙂

First step if (AND THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!) you play it in another langauge than english:
Open the @00000000 that fits your language and scroll down till you find some lines that read like the catchphrases and quotes you might have seen in
the loading screens. Best evidence that you are on the right track is, if there is a show name, with a date next to it in a line under that quote/catchphrase.
No delete those catchphrases, and show names (with dates next to the show name), just like you would do it with any textfile.
BUT (And this is important!!!) make some space (just hit the space bar a few time).
If you are sure you deleted them all, save the file. The Save option will appear if you click out of the line you are editing.

Now open the english string (the @00000000 with the 97FD1814BC036AF7). And search the catchphrases again.
Now you have several options: Or you delete the same lines, you deleted before (the same way), in case you don't want to have any text, whatsoever
in the loading screen, or you type in what you like to read there.
If you play the game in english, you just have to edit the @00000000 in 97FD1814BC036AF7, of course!

Now you have pretty much done the major work in editing the laoding screen.

To complete it you would also have to edit the Wrestlers name (which ar in different lines than the catchphrases or the show name with dates)

To achieve that you have to work in the @00000000 of your games language and search for the name of the wrestler.
To search, type the name in the search line and click in the middle of the windowre (hitting enter would just make your windows doing the "ding"-sound 😉
As you would guess, you will find any wrestlers name more than just 1 time, so which is the name that is used for the loading screen?

To make sure you have found the correct name look at the Hex Ref next to it.
To make your work easier, I give you the list, so you don't have to do "wild guessing". 😉

Xavier Woods: 58C
Roman Reigns: 558
AJ Styles: 64A
Sasha Banks: 64D
Charlotte Flair: 64C
Carmella: 657
John Cena: 473
The Miz: 4C2
Big E: 568
Kofi Kingston: 498
Jimmy Uso: 534
Seth Rollins: 559
Braun Strowman: 649
Elias: 648
Alexa Bliss: 654
Matt Hardy: 459
Adam Cole: 6CB
Jey Uso: 535

Again you can choose to delet the name (again: DON'T forget to leave some empty spaced and not just delete the letters!)
Or you type in a name what you want to read there, instead.

Last step would be to replace the wrestlers image. Therefore you need to replace the render of that wrestler.
But I will not describe that here, as there are already some excellent "how to" guides for this job.

If you like to edit a catchphrase by replacing it with another, you might find your self limited, if you just want to do it with WrestleMinus.
If you look at some sentences lenght it can say someting over 100 or even 200 characters, but when you try to inset what you like to have there, you soon
hear that windows-"ding" and the cursor will not move forward.

So what you have to do is to extract the proper file.
In this case just the english one.
First you extract the 97FD1814BC036AF7.pac from the string_win.pac file. Then the 0000.dat from the 97FD1814BC036AF7.pac
Now you can open that .dat file with a Hex-Editor.
Make sure the the View is set to Text and Hex as "visible columns. The Catchphrases start with something AJ Styles said:

"In fact, if you wanna call me "The Everyman," I'm okay with that. That's until I step in
this ring. When I step through these ropes, and I stand right here in front of you guys,
I... Am... Phenomenal."

You can  use that to search for it with the Hex-Editor.

You will also notice that after the "." (Fullstop) of the catchphrase (after a show name and date)
And before that catchphrase there is also a sentence that finsihes with a "." (Fullstop) but seems to have another one right after it.

If you mark one of those, you will notice that they have the value 00 in the Hex-Field (the middle part of the window that you see).
So the catchphrase is between two 00. And every other catchphrase too, as well as the show names with the date.
Please note that the sentences can also end with a different punctuations like a "!" so you might see a "!." instead of the described ".."
Bu what matter is that one is the punctuation character of the sentence (you will see it as 2E in Hex) and the other one is an "empty space" as HEX (00).
So the part you can edit is alway just that. The Sentence you want to replace the original catchphrase with has to have an equal number of characters
or less!
And keep in mind, also a space is a character, ot just letters, numbers or a punctuation!

To make it easier for you, copy the catchphrase (between the "."(00 in Hex) out and count the characters.

You copy & paste the text you want to have instead right over it. If there are characters left from the original text insert 0 in the Hex-Field until you reached the 00 that starts before the show name in date.
If we stay with AJ Styles first Catchphrase that would be .SmackDown Live, March 13, 2018 (that "." before Smackdown is that 00 !)

If you need to put a Sentence or word in a new line, the hex before the first letter of the first word of that sentence (or word) has to be 0A

If the Hex Editor gives you the message that the size of the file has changed wihile you insert or copy&paste something into it, you might have done something wrong.
If you are done inject that edited 0000.dat back into the 97FD1814BC036AF7.pac and that into the string_win.pac
And if you play the game in english, you can also edit the lines that contain the show names and date, of course, if not you can leave those untouched.
If you like to edit them and you play the game in a different language version, you need to edit it in the string file of that language (see above).
Because just as the names, shownames with the date that you see in the game are from the string file for that language.

If you like to test the steps, replace the original string_win.pac with that you edited. Use CCT, WretlePlus (or whatever elce you use) to clean the Chunk0.ark
Rebuilding that Chunk0.def seems optional. I never did that when I worked on the files, and the game always started and worked.

I hope I could help you with this guide!

Edited July 19, 2021 by noobmodder
edit

[mattfick]

very nice! thank you for this!

[noobmodder]

I edited the guide because, depending on what result yo uaim for, editing the catchphrases just with WrestleMinus might not do the job.

And credits to @squaredcirclefan for his help, again!

[jordi_wrestleside]

I wanna switch WHICH wrestlers show up in the loading screen, for example I want to exchange The Miz appearing in the loading screen for Finn Balor, what do I need to edit to make that possible?

Is there a way to change what the loading screen loads for images and not have to like swap The Miz's match screen render for Balor's just so Balor can show up during the loading screen?

[noobmodder]

As for the order in which the wrestlers show up: It is randomized by the game. IDK how to change that now how to tell the game which wrestler they should show and which it shouldn't

And for the 2nd: As the renders in the loading screen are the same the game uses for the matches/the selection screen, I sadly have no solution to add a render without replacing one of the deaults.

So it's a matter of how much you like to change it and if there is a wrestler you probably don't use at all, so it would not bother you, if the render gets replaced.