Game data files

File Format
Name	Game data files
Ontology	Electronic File Formats Game data files

Overview

Many popular games use proprietary file formats to store their assets. These include custom image, sound and video formats and custom archive formats. There is no way that all of these can be enumerated here in some way or another. And as long as the games can still be run by an Emulator it's not that much of a deal. However, a lot of work has been put into deciphering, decrypting and hacking these files, and that work should be preserved.

See also: Interactive Fiction for data formats related to text adventure games, Puzzles for puzzle-game files, and Saved Games for data saved by games to store a player's game status.

References

• Xentax Wiki
• ReWiki
• QuickBMS, a tool suite to describe archives in an abstract BASIC-like language, and lots of scripts for even more games

General Game Formats

This section details formats such as Interplay ACM and Unreal Music Format which are used in a number of games.

Archiving / Compression

• CFL

Audio / Music

• beatmania / IIDX simulation
  • BMS
• Commodore Amiga
  • AC1D-DC1A Packer
  • AMOS Music Bank
  • Channel Players
  • Digital Illusions
  • Game Music Creator
  • Jason Page
• Electronic Arts
  • Electronic Arts MUS
• Epic Megagames MASI
• id Software
  • Doom MUS
  • id Software Music Format
• Interplay ACM
• Inverse Frequency Sound format
• Ken's Adlib Music
• Sierra AGI
• Sierra SCI
• Westwood Studios ADL
• Westwood Studios AUD
• Xbox IMA ADPCM
• Nintendo GameCube / Wii
  • Nintendo GameCube / Wii AST
  • Nintendo GameCube / Wii BRSTM

Game programming languages

• Blitz3D
  • Blitz3D Model

(see also Programming Languages)

Other

• Allegro (game programming library)
  • Allegro packfile

• Blizzard Entertainment
  • BLP
  • MoPaQ

• Electronic Arts
  • Electronic Arts INF
  • Electronic Arts MOV

• id Software
  • BSP (map format used in Quake)
  • Doom WAD
  • Quake PAK
  • Quake PK3 (actually ZIP)

• Infinity Engine
  • BAM

• NetImmerse / Gamebryo Engine
  • KF
  • NIF

• Nintendo GameCube
  • Nintendo GameCube Opening.bnr

• Nintendo GameCube / Wii
  • DOL (Nintendo)
  • RARC
  • Yaz0

• Nintendo Wii
  • BootMii NAND Dump
  • Mii Data
  • Nintendo Wii BRLAN
  • Nintendo Wii BRLYT
  • Nintendo Wii BRRES
  • Nintendo Wii Content.bin
  • Nintendo Wii Data.bin
  • Nintendo Wii Opening.bnr
  • Nintendo Wii PAC
  • Nintendo Wii PCS
  • Nintendo Wii REL
  • Nintendo Wii Savegame
  • Nintendo Wii SEL
  • Nintendo Wii Ticket
  • Nintendo Wii TPL
  • Nintendo Wii U8
  • Nintendo Wii Update.inf
  • Nintendo Wii VFF
  • Title metadata
  • Virtual Console CCF
  • WAD
  • WiiConnect24 file

• Outerra engine (.otx) (used in Anteworld game)

• Raven Software game engine
  • GLA - Ghoul animation (.gla)
  • GLM - Ghoul mesh (.glm)

• STOS memory bank (.mbk)

• Torque 3D game engine
  • DTS (.dts)

• Valve Source Engine
  • Valve Model Format (.mdl)
  • Valve Collision Model (.phy)
  • Valve Map Format (.vmf)
  • Valve Material Type (.vmt)
  • Valve Vertex Data (.vvd)
  • Valve Texture Format (.vtf)

• Xtremeworlds
  • Xtremeworlds PWX
  • Xtremeworlds map

• ZZT

Individual Game Formats

This section details formats which are specific to a single game (or perhaps a game series), such as God of Thunder Music Format.

• 7 Days to Die
  • TTS Prefab (.tts)
  • 7DTD Map File (.map)
• Age of Empires
  • Data Resource File (.drs)
  • Age of Empires Graphics File (.slp)
• Age of Mythology
  • BAR (Age of Mythology) (.bar archive)
• Alter Ego (1986)
  • Alter Ego Vignette Script format
• Arma
  • Arma PBO (.pbo)
• Barony
  • Barony Voxel (.vox)
• BVE, OpenBVE, Boso View Express (railroad simulator)
  • BVE object formats
  • BVE route formats
  • BVE train.dat file
• Cartooners
  • Cartooners actor file (.act)
  • Electronic Arts INF‎ (.inf)
  • Electronic Arts MOV (.mov)
  • Electronic Arts MUS (.mus)
• Cities Skylines
  • Cities Skylines CRP (.crp)
• Commander Keen 1
  • Commander Keen 1 Level format (.ck1)
• Core Wars
  • RBJ (Redcode oBJect) (.rbj)
• Crystal Caves
  • Crystal Caves Sound format (.snd)
• Dance With Intensity
  • Dance With Intensity simfile (.dwi)
• Dangerous Dave
  • Dangerous Dave level format
  • Dangerous Dave tileset format
  • (also uses Inverse Frequency Sound format)
• Dofus
  • Dofus localization
• Donkey Konga 2
  • Donkey Konga 2 DSP
• Doom
  • Doom cheat code encryption
  • Doom MUS (.mus)
  • Doom WAD (.wad)
• DTX Mania
  • DTX Mania simfile
• Duke Nukem
  • Duke Nukem level format
  • Duke Nukem graphics format
• Fallout
  • Fallout character description (.gcd)
• Garry's Mod
  • Garry's Mod Addon (.gma)
• God of Thunder
  • DAT (God of Thunder)
  • God of Thunder Music Format
• Grand Theft Auto
  • RAGE Package Format (.rpf)
  • RenderWare binary stream file (.dff)
• In the Groove
  • In the Groove PCK (.pck)
• Kick It Up
  • Kick It Up simfile (.ksf)
• Lego Island
  • Lego Island World Database (.wdb)
• Magic & Mayhem
  • Magic & Mayhem sprites file
• Mario Kart Wii
  • Wii BRFNT
  • Wii BTI
• Mario Paint
  • Mario Paint Composer
  • SHI
  • SHO
• Minecraft
  • Minecraft Alpha level format
  • Minecraft Anvil format
  • Minecraft Bedrock Edition level format
  • Minecraft chunk format
  • Minecraft classic level format
  • Minecraft classic server protocol
  • Minecraft generated structures format
  • Minecraft Indev level format
  • Minecraft Java Edition level format
  • Minecraft loot table
  • Minecraft map item format
  • Minecraft model
  • Minecraft NBT format
  • Minecraft player format
  • Minecraft raids.dat format
  • Minecraft Region format
  • Minecraft server_level.dat
  • Minecraft server list format
  • Minecraft structure block file format
  • Minecraft scoreboard format
  • Minecraft sounds.json
  • Minecraft villages.dat format
  • Schematic file format
• Pokémon
  • Pokémon Mystery Dungeon
  • Pokémon ROM
• RobotWar
  • RobotWar programming language
• StarCraft
  • StarCraft group file (.grp)
• StepMania
  • StepMania simfile (.sm)
  • StepMania 5 simfile (.ssc)
  • StepMania AMX simfile (.sma)
• Stronghold
  • Stronghold GM1 (.gm1)
  • TGX Graphics (.tgx)
• Supaplex
  • Supaplex Level format (.dat)
• Super Mario Galaxy
  • Super Mario Galaxy savefile
• Super Paper Mario
  • BRSTMPSM (music data)
• Total War
  • Total War ESF (.esf)
• Vinyl Goddess From Mars
  • Vinyl Goddess From Mars Instrument Format
  • Vinyl Goddess From Mars Music Format
• Warcraft
  • Warcraft II PUD (.pud) (custom maps)
• Wiggle Planet
  • Wiglet
• Wii Fit / Wii Fit Plus
  • Wii Fit BMG

Game hints

• UHS

External links

• Possibly the first video game, in 1958
• Nintendo Ultra64 Programming Manual
• Sega Pengo: bug found in maze generating algorithm
• How to 'hack' Candy Crush
• Glitch game files, released into the public domain
• Prince of Persia source code (Apple II)
• DICE: emulator of early discrete-circuit video games
• Museum acquires 'virtually complete' source code from Atari's arcade heyday
• Spacewar! for the PDP-1 (1962) (with in-browser emulation)
• Games with hidden developer messages
• Library of Congress Recommended Format Specifications: Software/Gaming
• Keen Dreams Source Code (open-source release)