NewGRF FAQ

From OpenTTD

Answers to frequently asked questions and problems with replacement graphics in OpenTTD. For more information on NewGRF, including advanced options, see Newgrf.

[edit] How do I get different graphics into my OpenTTD? (installation)

OpenTTD uses special files called GRF (aka NewGRF) files to override the game's default graphics. These files can also be used to change the stats and behaviors of various objects in the game, including the speed of vehicles, the in-game sound effects, and the date in which vehicles are introduced, amongst many more examples.

The process by which you integrate these files into your game depends on which version of OpenTTD you are using.

The first step for all users is to copy the grf files of your choosing into the /data directory of your OpenTTD installation. After you've copied your files, you will need to know your OpenTTD version number to continue.

For OSX users the data folder is not the same data directory that is in the package contents (where you put the sample.cat and other grf files), you will need to create a new folder called data in the same folder that contains openttd.cfg.

OpenTTD version 0.5.0 and later

1. Start OpenTTD, then start a new game or load a saved game.
2. In the Options menu, select NewGRF Settings.
3. The NewGRF settings window will list all currently installed NewGRF files. To add additional files, click Add.
4. A new window will open, listing all .grf files currently living in the /data/ directory. If you have forgotten to place a downloaded .grf into your /data/ directory, move the file into the directory, and then click Rescan files.
5. Select the .grf files you wish to install, then click Add to selection.
6. In the original NewGRF settings window, you can now Remove any grf files you don’t wish to use, or change the order in which your grf files are loaded (if two or more grf files have the same feature(s), the settings of later files take precedence over those listed earlier).
7. When you are done, click Apply Changes.

OpenTTD versions prior to 0.5.0

1. In the OpenTTD root directory, open the openttd.cfg file in notepad or other text editing application
2. Go to the end of the file and enter the following: [newgrf] firstset.grf secondset.grf thirdset.grf where “firstset.grf”, etc., are the names of your grf files. Note that if two or more grf files have the same feature(s), the settings of later files take precedence over those listed earlier.
3. Save the file, and start OpenTTD.

[edit] A .grf file I downloaded causes errors, or keeps OpenTTD from running altogether. Why?

Not all .grf files will work with OpenTTD, as NewGRF is, at this stage of development, only partially supported. Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing ahead of time which .grf files will work with OpenTTD and which will not. The only way to tell is to install the .grf and begin playing.

• List of known OpenTTD-compatible GRF files

[edit] I’ve loaded the grf files into OpenTTD and loaded my saved game, but none of the new vehicle graphics I loaded appear. How come?

Any new games you begin will automatically use your newly installed .grf files. Previously started games, however, require the following steps to include your new graphics:

1. Open the OpenTTD console by hitting the ` key (key to the left of the "1" on most keyboards).
2. Type in “resetengines”

Note that even after typing “resetengines”, your pre-existing vehicles will still be of the old type. However, you should now be able to build the new types of vehicles from any of your depots.

[edit] When I load OpenTTD, I see an error that tells me I have too many sprites loaded, and the program terminates. What causes this?

The cause is trying to load too many sprites. :-)

A "sprite" is an individual, static graphics file. Each vehicle, building, industry, and piece of infrastructure in the game uses one or more sprites as its display. Animation effects (such as smoke billowing from a power plant, a grain carriage slowly filling up, or a skyscraper under construction) are created by switching from one sprite to another. Thus, GRF files often have multiple sprites (for example, a vehicle GRF often contains 8 different sprites.)

There is no explicit limit on how many sprites a single GRF file can contain -- a single vehicle could have thousands of sprites, if the author so chose. However, there is an upper limit on how many total sprites OpenTTD can handle. In TTD and releases of OpenTTD 0.5.0 (the current release) and earlier, that limit is 16383. If you load several different GRFs or GRF sets, or you load a set that is high in sprite count, you may see the following error:

To correct this error, you need to do one of two things:

1. Unload some of your installed GRF files. - Since you've exceeded the max number of sprites, you need to bring that number down.
2. Use a nightly build - In the nightlies, the max number of sprites allowable has been greatly increased, such that it is very unlikely someone could reach the upper limit. Note, however, that nightly builds are not official releases; they may be unstable, cause your OpenTTD to crash, corrupt your saved games, etc. Always be sure to back up any games/data you want to keep before installing and running a nightly build.

[edit] I’ve downloaded and installed a NewGRF set that includes both new vehicles and new town buildings. Why am I seeing the new vehicles, but not the new buildings in the game?

As stated above, OpenTTD only partially supports NewGRF files. Support is steadily increasing, but only certain features are enabled in the various versions. See the list below to determine which features are supported in which builds.

Feature	--- Build ---
	0.5.0	Nightly	SVN Branch
New Trains	x	x	x
New Ships	x	x	x
New Stations	x	x	x
New Bridges	x	x	x
New Sounds	x	x	x
New Houses*	-	x	x
New Industries	-	x	-
Change wagon sprites depending on pulling engine	x	x	x
Articulated Engines	x	x	x
Increased sprite limit	-	x	x
*While most sets of building replacements are currently supported only in the nightly builds, both the Urban Renewal set and the New Town Replacement set work in the latest Main Build of OpenTTD

[edit] Where can I find .GRF files for download?

Several sites have NewGRF files available for use in OpenTTD.

You should first visit the list of OpenTTD supported GRF files, which contains files confirmed to work within OpenTTD. After that, visit Links#Graphics_Links, or check out these sites:

• GRFCrawler
• TTD Patch
• OpenTTD Graphics Forum