SM-Record

A high-performance screen recording mod specifically for Scrap Mechanic that captures gameplay directly from the DirectX 11 render pipeline and saves frames as PNG images.

🎥 Features

• Real-time Frame Capture: Captures game frames directly from the DirectX 11 backbuffer at the game's target FPS
• Zero Performance Impact: Efficient frame capture using GPU staging textures with minimal overhead
• In-Game Controls: Simple overlay interface with start/stop recording and preview window
• Automatic DLL Injection: Debug injector automatically launches Scrap Mechanic and injects the mod
• Frame Management: Intelligent frame queue system with debt monitoring to prevent memory issues
• High Quality Output: Saves frames as PNG images using DirectX Texture (DirectXTex) library

🛠️ Technical Details

Built with:

• DirectX 11 Hooking: Uses Kiero for universal D3D11 graphics hooking
• ImGui Interface: Real-time overlay using ImGui with docking support
• DirectXTex: High-performance texture processing and PNG export
• MinHook: Low-level API hooking for seamless integration
• Modern C++: Written in C++20 with Visual Studio 2022

Key Components:

• SM-Record.dll: Main recording module that hooks into Scrap Mechanic's render pipeline
• DebugInjector.exe: Launcher utility that automatically injects the DLL into the game process

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Visual Studio 2022 with C++ development tools
• Windows 10/11 (x64)
• Scrap Mechanic installed via Steam
• vcpkg package manager (configured automatically)

Building & Running

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/BenMcAvoy/SM-Record.git
   cd SM-Record

2. Open in Visual Studio

   # Open the solution file
   SM-Record.sln

3. Build and Run

   • Set build configuration to Debug|x64 or Release|x64
   • Press F5 or click "Local Windows Debugger"
   • The injector will prompt to launch Scrap Mechanic if not already running
   • The mod will automatically inject once the game is detected

Usage

1. Launch the game - The injector will detect when Scrap Mechanic is running
2. Open the recording interface - The SM-Recorder window will appear in-game
3. Start recording - Click "Start Recording" to begin frame capture
4. Stop recording - Click "Stop Recording" when finished
5. Find your frames - PNG files are saved to C:\Users\[Username]\Desktop\recording\

⚡ 60FPS Recording Setup (Recommended)

For professional-quality 60FPS recordings, it's highly recommended to use SM-Record in combination with the SM-TimeScaleModifier:

⚠️ Important: You will need to modify the TimeScaleModifier source code to set the delta time directly to 0.016 instead of using multiplication. The default TimeScaleModifier behavior won't work correctly with SM-Record.

📢 Future Update: In upcoming versions, SM-Record will include built-in time control, eliminating the need for the separate TimeScaleModifier mod.

Why You Need Both Mods (Currently)

• SM-Record captures frames from the game's render pipeline
• Modified SM-TimeScaleModifier ensures consistent frame timing for smooth 60FPS output
• Without the time scale modifier, recordings may have inconsistent frame rates depending on your actual game FPS

How It Works

The modified TimeScaleModifier sets the game's delta time to exactly 0.016 seconds (1/60th of a second), which:

• Forces the game to run at a consistent 60FPS timeline
• Ensures each captured frame represents exactly 1/60th of a second
• Results in smooth, professional-quality recordings regardless of your actual game performance

Setup Instructions

1. Download and modify SM-TimeScaleModifier:
   • Download SM-TimeScaleModifier
   • Modify the source code to set delta time directly to 0.016 instead of multiplication
   • Build the modified version
2. Set up SM-Record as described in this README
3. Launch with modified TimeScaleModifier active before starting SM-Record
4. Record normally - Your output will be perfect 60FPS footage
5. Convert to video using your preferred tool (FFmpeg, etc.)

💡 Tip: Once SM-Record includes built-in time control (coming soon), you'll be able to skip steps 1-3 and use SM-Record standalone.

🔧 Configuration

Recording Path

Edit the recording path in SM-Record/include/state.h:

std::filesystem::path recordingPath = "C:\\Users\\Ben\\Desktop\\recording\\";

Frame Buffer Settings

The frame queue automatically manages memory, but you can adjust the warning threshold in main.cpp:

if (frameCount > 10) {
    CWARN("Frame debt: {} frames", frameCount);
}

📁 Project Structure

SM-Record/
├── SM-Record/              # Main recording DLL
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── dllmain.cpp    # DLL entry point and hook setup
│   │   ├── main.cpp       # Recording logic and UI
│   │   └── hook.cpp       # DirectX hooking implementation
│   ├── include/
│   │   ├── hook.h         # Hook definitions and D3D11 render state
│   │   └── state.h        # Recording state management
│   └── vendor/            # Third-party libraries
│       ├── kiero/         # Graphics API hooking
│       └── carbon/        # Scrap Mechanic game utilities
├── DebugInjector/         # DLL injection utility
│   └── src/main.cpp       # Process detection and injection
└── x64/                   # Build outputs
    ├── Debug/
    └── Release/

🎮 How It Works

1. Process Detection: DebugInjector monitors for ScrapMechanic.exe
2. DLL Injection: Injects SM-Record.dll into the game process
3. DirectX Hooking: Hooks the Present() function of the DXGI swap chain
4. Frame Capture: Copies the backbuffer to a staging texture for CPU access
5. Async Processing: Queues captured frames for background PNG encoding
6. File Output: Saves numbered PNG frames to the specified directory

🔍 Troubleshooting

Game won't start with injector:

• Ensure Steam is running and Scrap Mechanic is in your library
• Try running as Administrator
• Check Windows Defender isn't blocking the injector

No recording interface appears:

• Verify the DLL was injected successfully
• Look for console output from the injector

Frame drops or high memory usage:

• The frame queue automatically manages overflow
• Consider recording at lower resolutions
• Monitor the "Frame debt" warning in console

Inconsistent frame rates in recordings:

• Use SM-TimeScaleModifier for consistent 60FPS output
• Ensure the time scale modifier is active before starting recording
• This is essential for professional-quality recordings

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! This Scrap Mechanic modding project serves as a great example of:

• DirectX 11 graphics programming
• DLL injection techniques
• Real-time game modification
• Modern C++ development practices

Related Projects:

• SM-TimeScaleModifier - Essential companion mod for consistent 60FPS recordings

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.