How to Add Screenpacks to MUGEN
A screenpack is the shell: title, select, versus, continue, often the lifebars. It lives in data. Install it after you can already boot Kung Fu Man, and never let it overwrite a roster you spent an hour typing.
What a screenpack actually replaces
Most packs drop files into data: system.def, system.sff, fonts, sometimes fight.def. A few also ship a new select.def with hundreds of empty slots. That last file is the one that wipes your character list if you copy it blindly.
IKEMEN GO screenpacks (Lua, different system files) do not drop onto a stock Elecbyte 1.1. Windplay is IKEMEN GO only.
Steps
- Back up dataCopy the whole
datafolder somewhere else. If the pack looks wrong you restore that copy. This is the whole safety net. - Read the author's readmeSome packs are a full data replace. Some want you to merge. Heavy HD packs (CvS 3) also tell you the resolution they expect.
- Drop the files inOverwrite system.def, sprites and fonts as the readme says. If the zip includes fight.def, that is the lifebar too. See how to change lifebars if you only wanted bars.
- Keep your rosterOpen the new select.def and your backup. Copy your [Characters] and [ExtraStages] lines into the new file. Slot count has to match the pack. A 680-slot Anthology file does not fit on a 12-slot default select.
- Match the engine1.0 pack on 1.1 can boot and then die on the versus screen. IKEMEN pack on MUGEN 1.1 will not. Listing Mugen Version is the filter.
Screenpacks on the catalog
Also on the label: Melty Blood Actress Again (Kohaku), BrokenMUGEN, Fighting Jam.
Usual failures
- Select screen is empty. You installed the pack's blank select.def. Paste your character lines back from the backup.
- Portraits missing. The pack wants big portraits in a specific size. Default kfm mugshots look wrong; that is expected until you add matching portraits.
- Crash after title. Resolution / OpenGL mismatch. 1.1 with a 1.0 system.def is a common mix. Restore data, try the other engine.
- Memory. CvS 3 HD plus a folder of HD chars will trip 1.1's 2GB cap. 4GB patch or IKEMEN GO.
FAQ
Is a screenpack a full game?
No. It is menus. You still add characters. A full game (Jump Force, Cosmo, New Era) is a separate folder with its own exe.
Can I keep the default bars and only change the select?
Yes, if the pack splits system.def and fight.def. Skip fight.def, or put your old fight.def back after. Details in the lifebar guide.