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Contributing to Phoenix Wright Accessibility Mod

Thank you for your interest in making Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy more accessible. This guide will help you get started.

Development Setup

Requirements

  • Visual Studio 2019+, Visual Studio Code, or another compatible IDE with .NET support
  • .NET Framework 3.5 targeting pack
  • Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy (Steam)
  • MelonLoader v0.7.1 installed in the game directory

Building

cd AccessibilityMod
dotnet build -c Release

The build output is automatically copied to the game's Mods folder.

Testing

  1. Build the mod
  2. Launch the game through Steam
  3. Check [Game Directory]/MelonLoader/Latest.log for debug output

Use AccessibilityMod.Logger.Msg() to add debug logging.

Decompiling the Game

To create Harmony patches, you'll need to inspect the game's code. Use ILSpy, dnSpy, or a similar .NET decompiler to examine the game assemblies in [Game Directory]/PWAAT_Data/Managed/. Key assemblies:

  • Assembly-CSharp.dll - Main game code (dialogue, menus, minigames)

Project Structure

AccessibilityMod/
├── Core/                   # Main mod entry point and managers
├── Patches/                # Harmony patches for game hooks
├── Services/               # Localization, character names, etc.
├── Navigators/             # Mode-specific navigation (hotspots, evidence, etc.)
└── Data/                   # Default configuration files

Code Guidelines

.NET 3.5 Compatibility

The mod targets .NET 3.5 to match MelonLoader. Avoid modern C# features:

  • Use Net35Extensions.IsNullOrWhiteSpace() instead of string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace()
  • Use sb.Length = 0 instead of StringBuilder.Clear()
  • Use .ToArray() before string.Join() on enumerables

Harmony Patches

  • Verify method names exist in the decompiled code before patching
  • Game methods often use lowercase names (arrow, board, name_plate)
  • Use [HarmonyPostfix] unless you need to intercept before the original runs

Adding New Patches

  1. Find the target method in the decompiled code
  2. Create a patch class in Patches/
  3. Use [HarmonyPatch] attributes with exact method signatures
  4. Test thoroughly - incorrect patches can crash the game

Navigator Pattern

For new game modes, follow the existing navigator structure:

public static class MyNavigator {
    private static List<ItemInfo> _items;
    private static int _currentIndex;

    public static bool IsActive() { /* check game state */ }
    public static void Update() { /* called each frame */ }
    public static void NavigateNext() { /* [ key */ }
    public static void NavigatePrevious() { /* ] key */ }
    public static void AnnounceHint() { /* H key */ }
}

Register the navigator in InputManager with appropriate priority.

Localization

  • Use L.Get("key") for all user-facing strings
  • Add new strings to Data/en/strings.json
  • Use placeholders like {0}, {1} for dynamic values

Submitting Changes

  1. Fork the repository
  2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/my-feature)
  3. Make your changes
  4. Test with the game
  5. Submit a pull request

Commit Messages

  • Use clear, descriptive commit messages
  • Start with a verb (Add, Fix, Update, Remove)
  • Reference issues if applicable

Pull Request Guidelines

  • Describe what the change does and why
  • Include testing steps
  • Keep changes focused - one feature or fix per PR

Reporting Issues

When reporting bugs, include:

  • Game version and episode/case where the issue occurs
  • Steps to reproduce
  • Expected vs actual behavior
  • Relevant log output from MelonLoader/Latest.log

Questions?

Open an issue for questions about contributing or the codebase.