TIM (PlayStation graphics)

Latest revision as of 16:44, 5 August 2025

TIM, or PSX TIM, is an uncompressed raster image file format associated with the Sony PlayStation family of video game consoles.

It supports 4- and 8-bit paletted images, and 15- and 24-bit full color images.

See also TIM2.

[edit] Identification

Files begin with (hex) bytes 10 00 00 00.

[edit] Structure

This content was first retrieved from the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine for the date 2017-11-03 from the following URL: https://web.archive.org/web/20171103172802/http://rewiki.regengedanken.de/wiki/.TIM

A TIM file contains one uncompressed bitmap. It starts with this header:

typedef struct {
	unsigned long	magic;	/* Constant = 0x10 */
	unsigned long	type;
	unsigned long	offset; /* allways Size of Clut data + 12 */
	unsigned short	Palette Org X;
	unsigned short	Palette Org Y;
	unsigned short	palette_colors;
	unsigned short	nb_palettes;
} tim_header_t;

• type can be:
  • 0x08 for 4 bits paletted images
  • 0x09 for 8 bits paletted images
  • 0x02 for 16 bits true-colour images.
• offset is an offset to start of image data.
• nb_palettes is the number of palettes stored in the file, each palette having palette_colors colors.

[edit] Palettes

In the case of paletted images, palettes are following the header in the file. Each color is coded in a 16-bits RGB value, which format is A1B5G5R5. There are 'palette_colors'*'nb_palettes' values stored.

[edit] Image header

After the optionnal palettes, come the image header. The width is in 16bit words, it means the real width in pixel is width*4 for 4-bits paletted images, width*2 for 8-bits paletted images and width for 16-bits paletted images.

typedef struct {
	unsigned short	width;	/* Width of image in 16-bits words */
	unsigned short	height; /* Height of image in pixels */
} tim_size_t;

[edit] Image data

• 4 bits images: Each pixel is stored in 4 bits (so 2 pixels per byte), bits 7-4 for first pixel, and bits 3-0 for second pixel. The value is an index in a palette stored in the beginning of the file.
• 8 bits images: Each pixel is stored in a byte, which is an index in a palette stored in the beginning of the file.
• 16 bits images: Each pixel is in A1B5G5R5 format.

[edit] Software

• ImageMagick
• Konvertor
• XnView
• RECOIL
• tim2bmp

[edit] Sample files

• http://cd.textfiles.com/cdaction/cdaction20a/HORR/USA/ {DATA,EFFSPR,ITEM_M2}/*.TIM
• http://cd.textfiles.com/pcgamesexe/pcge199902/RE2/COMMON/DATU/
• http://cd.textfiles.com/pcgamesexe/pcge199902/RE2/PL0/EMD0/
• dexvert samples — image/tim

[edit] Resources

• TIM Graphic Formats, By Klarth, Version 1.0
• TIM Graphic Formats, By Klarth, Version 0.7