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How to convert YTD textures to PNG or DDS

Save one texture, a whole texture dictionary or every .ytd in a folder as PNG or DDS images, for GTA V, Red Dead Redemption 2 and GTA IV, in the app or from the command line.

Updated · 3 min read

RPFView – Texture viewer
RPFView texture viewer showing a car livery texture from a DLC pack, with zoom and buttons for each colour channelRPFView texture viewer showing a car livery texture from a DLC pack, with zoom and buttons for each colour channel

Before you start

  • RPFView with the game folder and keys set up. See how to open RPF files for the first start.
  • A folder for the images, outside the game folder.

Choose the format by what you want to do with the textures. PNG opens in every image editor and keeps transparency, but holds only one size of the image. DDS keeps the texture exactly as the game stores it: its compression and all its mip levels (the smaller copies the game shows at a distance).

Converting only reads the game's files. Nothing in the game folder changes.

1. Convert one texture

  1. Press Ctrl+F, search for the dictionary with ext:ytd (for example adder ext:ytd) and press Enter.
  2. Double-click the result to open its folder, then click the .ytd once. The texture viewer opens in the preview pane, with every texture of the dictionary in a list.
  3. Select the texture, open Export and choose Selected texture as PNG… or Selected texture as DDS…, then pick where to save it.

2. Convert a whole .ytd

  1. Open the .ytd in the texture viewer as above.
  2. Open Export and choose All textures as PNG… or All textures as DDS….
  3. Pick a folder. Every texture of the dictionary is saved there, named after the texture.

3. Convert many .ytd files at once

  1. In the file list, select the .ytd files you want, or whole folders (folders are converted with everything in them).
  2. Choose Export as… (Ctrl+Shift+E), or right-click the selection and choose Export as….
  3. Under Texture dictionaries (.ytd) → one folder per dictionary, pick DDS (original format, all mips) or PNG.
  4. Choose a Destination folder and click Export. Each dictionary gets its own folder, named after the file, with its textures inside.

The same dialog converts other files in the selection as well: models to GLB or OBJ, and game data to XML if Convert to XML is ticked. Everything else is saved as it is stored.

4. From the command line

rpfview-cli, which comes with RPFView, does the same without opening the app, for scripts and large batches. DDS is the default; --format png writes PNG images.

rpfview-cli export-textures adder.ytd --out D:\work\textures --format png
rpfview-cli export-textures --type ytd --in "x64e.rpf\levels\gta5\vehicles.rpf" --out D:\work\vehicle-textures
  • The second line saves every texture dictionary of GTA V's vehicle archive in one go.
  • --texture "*_n" picks textures by name (here the normal maps), --mip <n> picks a smaller size for PNG, and --list only lists what would be written.
  • It also takes models (.ydr, .ydd, .yft) and saves the textures inside them.
  • All options are in the command-line reference.

Red Dead Redemption 2, GTA IV and GTA V Enhanced

  • Red Dead Redemption 2 (beta): its .ytd files convert the same way. Exporting RDR2 textures and models has the details.
  • GTA IV (beta): its texture dictionaries are .wtd files; the steps are the same. See GTA IV IMG files.
  • GTA V Enhanced (beta): textures can be viewed and converted, but not edited yet.

Common problems

The PNG is missing the smaller sizes

A PNG holds one image. Choose DDS to keep every mip level, or use --mip <n> on the command line to save a smaller one as PNG.

I want to put my edited image back

Use Replace… in the texture viewer: how to replace a texture in a .ytd file walks through it, including saving to the mods folder.

Can it save TGA or JPG?

No. RPFView saves textures as PNG or DDS; any image editor can convert those further.

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