PlanetPhillip

• Introduction
• Downloading
• Scanning
• Saving and Uncompressing
• The difference between a mod and a map
• Installing a mod
• Uninstalling a mod
• Launching a mod
• Installing a map
• Important note about map saves
• Uninstalling a map
• The Developer Console
• Advanced launching techniques
• Summary
• Revisions

This guide will explain how to download, uncompress, install and launch maps & mods for Half-life games using Steam and found on PlanetPhillip.com.

Steam is a free, digital content management and delivery system that is pretty darn cool.

Disclaimer
There are other ways to open compressed files and copy the contents to new locations than the way shown here. I use this method because I believe it’s the easiest. Your method may vary.

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The first thing you need to do is download a map or mod. The screenshot shows the section within a post where you can download files for each map or mod. As you can see, there are five mirrors (a “mirror” is the name of a location where a file is kept). The first three are direct downloads (this means you get the file by just clicking the link) but only work from within the PlanetPhillip page.

The second two are filehosts. Filehosts cover their costs by displaying ads and normally require a few clicks to get to the file. The advantage of these types of mirrors is that they automatically link you to the closest file location to you, meaning the transfer speed is generally very good.

If you are a regular PP reader I recommend you try all 5 mirrors, on different days and files, because you may find one mirror that is better for your location than the others.

Which ever mirror you use you will eventually see a “Save As” dialog box. The exact appearance of the box may differ from the one you see compared to my screenshot depending you which browser and operating system you are using. I am using Windows XP (set to minimal visual effects) and Google’s Chrome browser.

Save the file to a location of your choice. I recommend a special folder rather than your desktop or My Documents, but it’s really up to you.

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I have never knowingly uploaded a file with a virus. I use up-to-date anti-virus, firewall and malware software and scan everything before I upload it. However, you should scan ALL files before you open them.

That is true of EVERY file you download. In fact if you are unsure of the trustworthiness of the site you want to download a file from, then you shouldn’t download the file.

I can’t describe the process of scanning files here because each application is different but it should simply be a case of right clicking on the file and selecting Scan with “XYZ”.

Once you have scanned the file, open the saved file. This opens the 7zip application and displays the contents of the file. As you will see there is a folder or set of files and a PlanetPhillip.Readme.txt. I always include the readme because many other websites use my downloads but don’t credit me.

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All the files you download from PlanetPhillip have been compressed. I do this for a few reasons. Firstly, it puts all the files or folders into one easy-to-download file and secondly because it significantly reduces the file size, which means it downloads faster. For small files that’s not very important but for larger files that are downloaded thousands of times, it’s very important.

Just to complicate things there is a variety of compression (sometimes called “archive”) formats. In September 2009 I changed the format I use on the site to save even more space and bandwidth. In reality the change of format doesn’t affect users.

To manage compressed files I use and recommend a free application called 7zip. It opens all the file formats available from PlanetPhillip.

Once you install this application it should “associate” itself with the “.7z” extension files (and probably some others, but that’s your choice). That means that when you try to open a file ending in “.7z” it will open with the correct application.

At this point the instructions fork, depending on whether you are installing a map or a mod.

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Before we starting installing and playing, let’s have a quick look at the difference between a map and a mod. The word “mod” is short for modification. Essentially this means that the game is modified in some way. It could contain new content (textures, models, sounds, weapons etc), it could be the way it plays (weapons have more or less power, new moves are available etc). But the basic idea is that the game is changed somehow. However, some mods, don’t have any new content.

A Mod will be supplied as a folder, which just needs to be copied to the correct location to work.

A map is simply a level that contains all the same elements as the game and just gives you the opportunity to play in a new area. A map has 1 or more files that need to be copied to different folders.

There is also a difference how a mod or map is launched, but this is discussed in the appropriate section.

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First find your SourceMods folder. Its path should be:
C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\SourceMods
but your path may be different depending on how and when Steam was installed on your system.

Next, you need to open the mod file you downloaded.

Resize the windows to suit your screen size and preference but I prefer to have mine like the screenshot.
Press (not click) the folder (no need to copy the PlanetPhillip.ReadMe.txt) in the 7zip window with your left mouse button and drag it across to the SourceMods folder. Release the button and it will copy the folder.

I have some shocking news for you: You have just installed your first mod! Yes, it was that easy.

You need to start or restart Steam for it to appear in your “My games” tab. If you don’t restart Steam you won’t see it.

I highly recommend creating a shortcut to your SourceMods folder if you plan to install lots of mods (and why wouldn’t you?).

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Unless your mod came with its own installer then you simply need to delete the relevant folder in your SourceMods folder. If the mod did come with its own installer, I recommend you use that.

Please note: whichever method you use, you will lose all the screenshots and saves for that mod.

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There are three ways that I know of for launching a mod:

• 1. Double clicking it (from the list in your “My games” tab.
• 2. Selecting it from the list in your “My games” tab and clicking Launch.
• 3. By creating a shortcut to the mod and double clicking that.

Clearly, creating a shortcut is not worth it for a short mod but for long mods it might be.

To create a shortcut, right click the mod in your “My games” tab and select Create Shortcut.

We will be looking at some useful tips on launching mods in the Advanced launching techniques section.

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I will use a Half-Life 2 map example, but the concept applies to all games. Firstly, find your Half-Life 2 folder. Mine is here:
C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\planetphilliphl2\half-life 2\hl2\
but your path may be different depending on how you installed Steam.

Here are the other paths:
C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\planetphilliphl2\half-life 2 episode one\episodic\
C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\planetphilliphl2\half-life 2 episode two\ep2\
Again, yours may vary and of course you will need to replace planetphilliphl2 with your username!

The screenshots shows the path in the explorer address bar and the folders inside. You may want to create a shortcut to the maps folder, depending on how often you want to install and play Hl2 maps.

Open the relevant folder mentioned above and have the 7zip file open at the same time. The screenshot shows how I like to operate. Press (not click) the relevant .bsp file in the 7zip window with your left mouse button and drag it across to the maps folder. Let go and it will copy the file.

Full Disclosure
The example shown is the simplest for maps. Sometimes other files are needed or included in the compressed file. The location of these files is ALWAYS detailed in my installation instruction on the respective map post on PlanetPhillip. If you have downloaded the file from another website, then please contact them for help.

One of the main differences between a proper mod (packaged as a folder) and a map or mappack is how you launch it.

To run maps you need to open the Developer Console. Don’t worry, it’s very easy.

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Ideally, everything would be released as mods because they are easier to install and uninstall than individual files, but when a modder makes a single, small map they rarely package it as a proper mod.

If you use the normal save system then there is no problem but if you use the quick save feature it will overwrite your last quicksave. If you are still playing the retail game it will overwrite that save. This doesn’t happen with mods because the saves are part of the separate folder. The simple solution is to avoid using quick saves when playing maps unless you are not playing the retail game.

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Uninstalling a map and its associated files should be part of your normal file management routine. When you install a map and are sure you won’t play it again you will need to delete the files that you installed, along with some others that are created by the game.

My example above, details the simplest installation. Any other files that are required are described in each map’s page, along with their locations.

However, even the simplest installation requires 3 files to be deleted. Below is a screenshot of the 3 folders you will need to access. In the first window you can see the maps folder, with an example map highlighted (don’t worry that my icons are probably different from yours). This file will need to be deleted. The second window shows the graphs folder. The relevant .ain file (same name as the map) will need to be deleted. And lastly the third windows shows the souncache folder and again the relevant .cache file will need to be deleted.

Whilst deleting these files isn’t essential for keeping your games and maps working, it will ensure your system doesn’t become clogged with files you will never use.

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The Developers’ Console allows you to do lots of things, but this guide won’t detail all of them, just those related to launching maps and mods. The first thing we need to do is enable the Console and there are a few ways to do it.

Technique 1
Launch the game you want to play maps in, go to:
Options > Keyboard > Advanced > Enable Developer Console (~)
(Check this box to enable the console)

Technique 2
In the My games tab of Steam right click the game you want to play maps in. Choose Properties, click Set Launch Options. In the text area that appears type, without the quotes, “-console”. Click OK.
(This technique will actually open the console when you first start the game.)

Note different keyboard and regional settings may not correspond to your set up. For example, UK keyboards the “¬” key in lower case, opens the console not the “~” tilde key

Next we need to open it.

Just press the key set for opening it. If you are not performing this action immediately after enabling it, make sure the game has fully loaded (i.e. reached the menu option) before trying to use it.

Note that enabling the console for Half-Life 2 won’t automatically make it available for other games. You will have to do that in each and every game you want access to the console.

Now we need to actually give it some instructions.

To play a map you need to type, without quotes, “map mapname”.

The first thing you may notice is that a dropdown list appears. This list is based on the first letter you type. I typed “g” and the list shows all the maps I have in my folder. Your list will be different; in fact it’s quite possible you won’t have any dropdown list.

This can either be helpful if you have forgotten the name or you can completely ignore it. The point to note here is that you need to enter the name of the file NOT the name of the map. The difference is subtle but important. You don’t need to enter “.bsp”.

In the screenshot, you can see the name of the file is gm_coolescape2.bsp but the name on PP is Cool Prison Escape 2.

Once you have typed the filename, press ENTER or click Submit. The console will think for a second and then disappear and the map will start.

You can use your arrow keys to select the file name, instead of typing it, press ENTER to select it.

Congratulations, you have just installed and launched a map.

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I have already described how you can use the Set launch options to add the console command to a game. This concept can be extended and can be very useful. (This idea can also be used in shortcuts if you know where to add the details.)

Depending on your circumstances this can either be incredibly useful or a complete waste of time. For example you could create a Windows folder in your Programs folder which could contain shortcuts to games, each with different parameters.

I am certainly not an expert on Console commands, but there are quite a few options available.

They seem to come in two forms; Command-line parameters and Console variables. When using them parameters come first, followed by variables.

Command-line parameters

• Enable the console: : -console
• Stop the intro videos from playing: : -novid

Console Variables

• Load you last quick save: : +load quick
• Set the skill level: +skill 3
• Set cheats to on: +sv_cheats 1
• Open specific maps: +map mapname
• Turn the gravity gun into a super gravity gun: +physcannon_mega_enabled 1

For more information on these and other console commands visit The Valve Developer Community website.

In fact, I am very eager to hear from readers about other possible uses and the commands they actually use.

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I hope this guide has taught you a few new things and, if you are new to installing maps and mods, made you realize that it’s not too hard. A new world of gaming awaits you. Please feel free to correct or add information to this guide via the comments system.

• 25 Oct 2009: First Published
• 26 Oct 2009: Added Map saves, Uninstalling a Mod and Uninstalling a Map sections

Thank you for reading and enjoy your gaming!