What I am requesting is the ability to create game-mode specific sub-folders inside a skin's main folder for the game types. This is partially due to the fact all game modes use the same elements over and over again, which in some cases (especially osu!mania's implementation) this tends to result in a poor looking feel.

The Reason.

With the four different game types that osu! posses:

1. Standard
2. Taiko
3. Catch the Beat
4. Mania
5. Any future additions.

You can come into a minor headache when it comes down to ensuring that a certain skin element will look equally as nice in the other modes, examples as follows:

1. Some standard skin sprites in Taiko don't look as appealing. (spinner-circle.png)
2. In CtB during kiai time, lighting.png for some skin sets looks weird.
3. Standard skin elements look really awkward when mixed into mania.

The Need.

Have you ever tried to do a complete skin set for each game type inclusive of hit sounds?
The osu! template itself just so happens to have around 300 files when you include the audio files on top of the image count, this is without including hit-bursts as an animation object either.
As a skinner with plenty of experience, it is monotonous searching through all of these files just to pinpoint one which requires an alteration to fix up how it looks in-game.

The Purpose.

To eliminate all of this hassle by allowing the non-standard game modes to possess their own sub-folder, eliminating all of the clutter from the main skin folder leaving only the standard gameplay mode's skin set and audio samples with the necessary .ini file in tact.



This would give even new skinners more of an opportunity to want to make skinning elements specific towards a certain gaming mode. Some may want a minimalistic skin for standard but something a little flashy for Taiko as an example.

Ideally this would minimise the need to pollute your osu!skins directory with different skin sets just for a game mode specific, as it would all be packaged in one lovingly neat folder.

Well, that would be all for now, I might add some more to this later or further clarify certain aspects but this should get the point across.
I would like to hear what the community has to say about this potential option.

Pretty nice idea. I love this.

dont mode specific images have a prefix to them?

Not every of them, for example lifebar/score numbers.

I believe life bar doesn't have for example.

ninja'd

that's just a matter of adding those as possible for skinning.

MLGnom wrote:

The Need.

Have you ever tried to do a complete skin set for each game type inclusive of hit sounds?
The osu! template itself just so happens to have around 300 files when you include the audio files on top of the image count, this is without including hit-bursts as an animation object either.
As a skinner with plenty of experience, it is monotonous searching through all of these files just to pinpoint one which requires an alteration to fix up how it looks in-game.

Don't want to add more elements. I want to reduce amount of them in one folder, for easier browsing. :/

Edit : Also, it could make things easier for common players who doesn't know which part of skin is which.
Example : New skin appeared with skinned all game modes, but someone wants to keep standard mode of his anime themed skin and use beatmania theme for osu!mania.

Yeeeees. This is what I've always wanted

I already requested this here (before mania was implemented) but with the addition that these skins are not only limited to in-game elements, but loaded upon choosing a game mode (so the song select screen could look different between Standard and Taiko for example).
Since my post already has some SP, I suggest keeping it but because MLGnom's post is much more organised and in-depth, I'll edit my thread with a quote of this thread's OP.

Oh, I forgot to add this :
osu! could check for these folders and load them for specific game mode, if they don't exist - skin should work as always. This might be countermeasure for older skins.

I will add my stars but first need more opinion. ^^;

MLGnom wrote:

Oh, I forgot to add this :
osu! could check for these folders and load them for specific game mode, if they don't exist - skin should work as always. This might be countermeasure for older skins.

exactly what I was thinking. or maybe when osu! detects special game mode skin elements in the root folder, it will immediately move it to where it's supposed to be.

Did anyone even read my post?
I told you that this thread is a duplicate of a request I made which already has SP (so we should just use that thread) and in response you start shooting stars at this thread? ._.

Hope now they go to the other thread.