Twisted D.I.R.T. Archive

Tool documentation

Practical guides for preserved track-making and game-modification tools.

Reflex Track Compiler

Preserved builds: ReflexCompiler.zip, ReflexCompiler_101.zip, ReflexCompiler_103.zip
Game: MX vs ATV Reflex
Purpose: Compile a text .track definition and referenced assets into a beta-slot track.

This is a compiler, not a visual terrain editor. Digital Earthworks later supplied visual placement and editing.

First test

  1. Install the required period DirectX/PhysX components and Reflex beta-slot files.
  2. Open the default .track definition.
  3. Save it before compiling—the compiler reads the saved file, not unsaved text in its editor pane.
  4. Compile the unchanged flat example into an installed beta slot.
  5. Verify Reflex loads that slot before adding custom maps.

Principal inputs

  • 1024×1024 terrain/maps for Supercross or 2048×2048 for National, except zone maps, which are half those dimensions.
  • High-precision RGB displacement BMP.
  • Top-down texture.
  • Base, R, G, and B surface overlays plus matching bump maps.
  • RGBA mask map, ChromLum, softness/deformation, and shadow maps.
  • Four indexed zone maps for reset/slip, drag, particles, and sounds.
  • Activity/spline and object/environment definitions as required by the compiler version.

Several maps need extended BMP alpha. Saving them from a program that discards BMP alpha can yield a file that looks correct but compiles incorrectly. DXTBmp was the period bridge for exporting/importing alpha.

Output and sharing

A Free Ride beta consists of four matching files:

Beta_Track_Slot_X.dx9.level
Beta_Track_Slot_X.dx9.scene
Beta_Track_Slot_X.dx9.database
Beta_Track_Slot_X.dx9.package

Copy all four to Reflex's Database folder. The receiver must have the definitions for that slot. Compiling into an uninstalled/empty beta slot can crash Reflex.

Sources