Duck Game

Duck Game

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[ENG] Metapixels Tutorial for Duck Game
By Hipo and 2 collaborators
FULL Guide of Metapixels on Duck Game Hats, basically this update got new options for the custom hats that are a bit complicated to understand.
I have created this guide to help everyone create new and even cooler hats for this amazing game.

Thanks to Antikore, Pato, and NiK0 for giving me some information for this guide.
Credits to Owllie for making the PFP of the guide.

SPECIAL Thanks to SharpShoot_ and Drake, for helping me a lot in this guide.
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Template
First of all, you need to download any version (latest recommended) of PaintDotNET
Here's the link: https://www.getpaint.net/

Once you have done that, you need to download the Hat template I made for this guide.
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/178108124048130049/777279536165027840/Template_Hats_Duck_Game.pdn

In this template, you can see 6 sections - the hat, the quacking hat, the cape, the custom rock (The rock you throw in the intermission) Particles (or FX) and METAPIXELS.

Now, the actual metapixels!
How metapixels work
All the metapixels go at the right of the template

To start understanding metapixels, you need to open Paint.NET, open the color wheel, and then click "More".













It will show you some more options. The one we need is the "RGB" Section. (Red, Green, and Blue)







Now, how do metapixels work?

The R value = The ID of the metapixel. What kind of metapixel it is.

The G and B = The parameters for the metapixel. The values you're giving it.


So when you're making your first metapixel, you need to set R to number (ID) of the metapixel, and G and B to the parameters.
Metapixels and their functions
There are a total of 34 metapixels you can add to your hat, so I will summarize of all of them.

REMEMBER!
If it's not specified which parameter does which action, the first one will be G, and the second one (obviously) will be B. This also applies when there is only 1 parameter, it will be G. If the parameter modifies the X and Y coordinate of something, G will be X and B will be Y.
Also when you're adding metapixels/drawing or making your hat, make sure to add a new layer so you don't mess up the template.

If a metapixel is wrong, there will be an error related to that in the devconsole, you can activate the devconsole by pressing "`" ingame (Ñ in spanish keyboards).

[Metapixels related to hat/duck]
Metapixel 1 (R Value)
Name: Hat Offset.
Description: Hat offset position in pixels.

I can give you a help with this one, the center of the hat is 128 and 128, so if you want to go 1 pixel left, you will put 127 in G, and if you want to go 1 pixel up, you will put 129 in B

Example:
So I said I want to add a hat offset, the value of that metapixel is 1, so that means I will set R to 1, and I said I want to go 1 pixel left and 1 pixel up, then I will set G to 127, and B to 129.

Here's what I mean with this.

Once you have done with that, you will add that color (Basically the metapixel with his metadata and their parameters) to THE RIGHT, as I said in the second section.



You will do this process for every metapixel you want to add (Just saying so I don't need to do the same explanation with every metapixel)

Metapixel 2
Name: Use Duck Color.
Description: If this metapixel exists, White (255, 255, 255) and Grey(157, 157, 157) will be recolored to duck colors.
[Metapixels related to capes]
Metapixel 10
Name: Cape offset.
Description: Cape offset position in pixels. Basically the same thing as metapixel 1.

Metapixel 11
Name: Cape is foreground.
Description: If this metapixel exists, the cape will be drawn over the duck.
Does not support parameters.

Metapixel 12
Name: Cape Sway Modifier.
Description: It affects the length of the cape and the swing from left to right.
G determines the cape's rotation, clockwise or counterclockwise. To not rotate it at all, pick 128, the middle value. A maxxed rotation in either direction leaves an otherwise downward-pointing cape pointing up and diagonally to the side.
B determines the cape's weight. 0 will have it flying straight upward. 255 will have it fall to the floor like lead. This is applied before the rotation from G.

Metapixel 13
Name: Cape Wiggle Modifier.
Description: Affects how much the cape wiggles in the wind.

Metapixel 14
Name: Cape Taper Start.
Description: Affects how narrow the cape/trail is at the top/beginning.

Metapixel 15
Name: Cape Taper End.
Description: Affects how narrow the cape/trail is at the bottom/ending.

Metapixel 16
Name: Cape Alpha Start.
Description: Affects how transparent the cape/trail is at the top/beginning.

Metapixel 17
Name: Cape Alpha End.
Description: Affects how transparent the cape/trail is at the bottom/ending.

Metapixel 20
Name: Cape Is Trail.
Description: If this metapixel exists, the cape will be a trail instead of a cape (Like the rainbow trail left by the TV).
Does not support parameters.
[Metapixels related to particles]
Metapixel 30
Name: Particle Emitter Offset.
Description: The offset in pixels from the center of the hat (REMEMBER, G = X Coordinate (Horizontal) = 128, B = Y Coordinate (Vertical) = 128 is the center of the hat (128 and 128)) where particles will be emitted.

Metapixel 31
Name: Particle Default Behavior.
Description: G defines a particle behavior from a list of presets:
  • 0 = No Behavior
  • 1 = Spit
  • 2 = Burst
  • 3 = Halo
  • 4 = Exclamation

Metapixel 32
Name: Particle Emit Shape.
Description:
G values (How the particles are emitted):
  • 0 = Point
  • 1 = Circle
  • 2 = Box
B values (Modifiers):
  • 0 = Emit Around Shape Border Randomly
  • 1 = Fill Shape Randomly
  • 2 = Emit Around Shape Border Uniformly

Metapixel 33
Name: Particle Emit Shape Size.
Description: X and Y size of the particle emitter (in pixels).

Metapixel 34
Name: Particle Count.
Description: The number of particles to emit.

Metapixel 35
Name: Particle Lifespan.
Description: Duration time of the particles, in seconds.

Metapixel 36
Name: Particle Velocity.
Description: Initial velocity of the particle.

Metapixel 37
Name: Particle Gravity.
Description: Gravity applied to the particle.

Metapixel 38
Name: Particle Friction.
Description: Friction applied to the particle (The value it's velocity is multiplied by every frame).

Metapixel 39
Name: Particle Alpha.
Description: G = Start alpha, B = End alpha.

Metapixel 40
Name: Particle Scale.
Description: G = Start scale, B = End scale.

Metapixel 41
Name: Particle Rotation.
Description: G = Start rotation, B = End rotation.

Metapixel 42
Name: Particle Offset.
Description: Additional X Y offset of particle.

Metapixel 43
Name: Particle Background.
Description: If this metapixel exists, particles will be rendered behind the duck.
Does not support parameters.

Metapixel 44
Name: Particle Anchor.
Description: If this metapixel exists, particles will stay anchored around the hat position when it's moving. This means the particles will stay in the same X coordinate to the hat.

Metapixel 45
Name: Particle Animated.
Description: If this metapixel exists, particles will animate through their frames. Otherwise, a frame will be picked randomly.
Does not support parameters.

Metapixel 46
Name: Particle Animation Loop.
Description: If this metapixel exists, the particle animation will loop.
Does not support parameters.

Metapixel 47
Name: Particle Animation Random Frame.
Description: If this metapixel exists, the particle animation will start on a random frame.
Does not support parameters.

Metapixel 48
Name: Particle Animation Speed.
Description: How quickly the particle animates.
[Metapixels related to sounds]
Metapixel 70
Name: Wet Lips.
Description: Modifies the quack sound to sound like "wet lips".
Does not support parameters.

Metapixel 71
Name: Mechanical Lips.
Description: Modifies the quack to sound like "mechanical lips".
Does not support parameters.
[Metapixels related to random parameters]
Metapixel 100
Name: Randomize Parameter X.

Metapixel 101
Name: Randomizer Parameter Y.

Metapixel 102
Name: Randomize Parameter.

If any of these metapixels are present, the previously defined metapixel value will have a random number between G and B applied to its X value each time it's used. This will generally only work with particles.
Does not support parameters.

Additional Information:
All Randomizer metapixels apply a random value to the X and Y (or G and B) values of the closest
non-randomizer metapixel above them in the hat. The G and B values of the randomizer pixel let you define
the minimum and maximum value for the randomizer to use.

(Example - placing a Randomize Parameters metapixel with G = 1 and B = 10 below a Particle Velocity
metapixel would set both the Particle Velocity X and Y to the same random value between 1 and 10.
Alternatively, placing both a Randomize Parameter X and a Randomize Parameter Y metapixel underneath would
allow you to randomize the X and Y of the particle velocity separately, or just one of them would let
only randomize X or Y and not both.)
Save your hat
When you finish your hat, with custom rock, cape, and metapixels, you need to remove all the layers except your hat, save it as .PNG, then copy it, and paste it to your DG folder.

(If you don't know where is your DG folder, open steam, right click in Duck Game, properties, local files, and click browse local files).
Additional section
And if any of this confused you or you want to know more about each metapixel, there's also a online guide[docs.google.com] by Drake

Landon's metapixels page[wonthelp.info].
23 Comments
Asian British Citizen 20 Feb @ 3:08am 
discord attachment died
Thibus Razibus 15 Sep, 2024 @ 2:41pm 
Hi, when I use this my hat no longer change direction while moving, please help. :frogzone:
Dan12 27 Oct, 2023 @ 1:13pm 
Is there a way to replicate the Senpai Hat quack effect with metapixels?
Whomping Walrus 18 Aug, 2023 @ 11:37am 
@Abnormal-Gamer
You put the .png in Duck Game's installation directory within another directory titled "Hats", yeah? If you can get someone else's PNG to work, then you'll know it's a problem with how you're formatting the image (dimensions? quality knobs?) and not with the config.
Ozzold 16 Aug, 2023 @ 9:36pm 
I can't get my hat to apear in the game but I did everything nI was sapposed to do...
mozzie 12 Jul, 2023 @ 7:44am 
thanks mate!
Whomping Walrus 6 Jul, 2022 @ 6:15pm 
Some elaboration for:
"METAPIXEL 12. 'Cape Sway Modifier' It affects the length of the cape and the swing from left to right."

G determines the cape's rotation, clockwise or counterclockwise. To not rotate it at all, pick 128, the middle value. A maxxed rotation in either direction leaves an otherwise downward-pointing cape pointing up and diagonally to the side.

B determines the cape's weight. 0 will have it flying straight upward. 255 will have it fall to the floor like lead. This is applied *before* the rotation from G.
Whomping Walrus 6 Jul, 2022 @ 6:10pm 
Oh and as for:
"METAPIXEL 13. 'Cape Wiggle Modifier' Affects how much the cape wiggles in the wind.
"

Very high and very low values will have almost identical effects. To neutralize the sway entirely you need a middling value, but if you use EXACTLY 128, the cape will bug out and not appear at all. 127 works nicely (:
ROLL*A*TOR 11 May, 2021 @ 9:53am 
Can you also export the template as a .psd? GIMP doesn't like .pdn
Skeebster 1 Mar, 2021 @ 5:57pm 
is it possible to make a particle always apear the same regardless of the direction you're facing? i made some particles that are words, but they are inverted when i face left.