.IPK File Extension

Compressed archive format derived from the Debian package (.DEB) format; used for handheld software installations.

An IPK file may also be a game data archive used by a video game developed using Ubisoft's UbiArt game engine. It contains a subset of the game's assets (such as images, videos, 3D models, animation data, etc.). Games that use IPK files include Rayman Origins, Child of Light, and multiple games in the Just Dance series.

UbiArt is a proprietary game engine that UbiSoft created and began using internally in the mid 2000s. Games developed using the UbiArt game engine contain a number of proprietary-format files, including IPK files.

IPK files contain multiple related game assets, such as textures, shaders, and animation files used to show and animate in-game objects. Each IPK file is compressed using either Zlib or LZMA compression. Some of the files that IPK archives contain may themselves be compressed.

In the late 2010s, UbiSoft began phasing out the UbiArt game engine. However, the engine is still used to develop the Just Dance series of games.

Modders who want to extract the game data that IPK files contain can do so using a variety of player-created tools. For example, QuickBMS (Windows) users have created many game-specific .BMS scripts that allow them to extract data from IPK files.

An IPK file may also be an application that can be installed and run on an LG webOS smart TV. Developers create IPK files using the webOS TV IDE. To run the app an IPK file contains, enable Developer Mode on your webOS TV and use the webOS TV IDE or command-line interface to install the app.

WebOS is a smart TV operating system used by LG televisions. Developers who create webOS apps do so using the webOS TV SDK, which contains a development kit, a command-line interface, and a webOS emulator.

After a developer finishes creating their webOS application, they package the app as an IPK file. They can then install the IPK file on a webOS TV with Developer Mode active, to continue testing their app, or upload the IPK file to the LG Smart TV Content Store, for distribution to other smart TVs.

IPK files are meant to be installed and run on LG webOS smart TVs. After enabling Developer Mode on your LG webOS smart TV, you can use the webOS IDE or command-line interface to install your IPK file. Note that, after 50 hours, your TV will automatically leave Developer Mode and uninstall the IPK file (unless you manually extend the Developer Mode session time).

You can also use the webOS emulator, included with the webOS TV SDK, to run the app an IPK file contains.