.PAC File Extension

A PAC file may also be a subtitle file created by Screen Subtitling Systems to synchronize closed captions or subtitles with the video timeline in media playback and editing software. It contains subtitle text along with timing and formatting information necessary for the precise on-screen display of text. Although it is still used, the proprietary format is less common due to the prevalence of more standardized subtitle formats.

PAC files are often utilized by media professionals who work with subtitling and closed captioning for film and television. These users typically create PAC files with subtitle editing software, such as EZTitles, and they may convert them to more widely supported formats, such as .SRT and .SUB, for broader compatibility.

You can open PAC subtitle files with various subtitle editing programs, such as EZTitles, Subtitle Edit, and BroadStream Solutions Wincaps Q4. To open a PAC file with EZTitles, select Import/Export → Import Subtitles, or click the Import Subtitles button on the toolbar.

Several programs, such as EZTitles and Subtitle Edit, can convert PAC files. These programs allow you to convert PAC files to other common subtitle formats, such as .SRT and .SUB, which are more compatible with different media players or video editing software.

A PAC file may also be a 3D model used in a video game developed by SEGA or Sonic Team. Notably, the games Sonic Forces and Sonic Lost World use 3D models saved as PAC files.

PAC files are 3D models used in games that use the Sonic Team's Hedgehog Engine game engine. In addition to Sonic Forces and Sonic Lost World, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2, Sakura Wars, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, and Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - The Official Video Game use PAC files.

Most players who play these games will never encounter the games' PAC files. However, some enthusiastic modders have created tools that allow them to extract, edit, and create their own PAC files.

You can use HedgeLib (cross-platform) to extract PAC files from a Hedgehog Engine game. Then, you can use Noesis (Windows) to open the files' contents and convert them to other 3D model formats.

After you've finished editing your PAC file, you can use HedgeLib to repackage the file and insert it into a Hedgehog Engine game.

A PAC file may also be a song created by SBStudio II, a music composition program developed by Henning Helstrom for DOS-based systems in the 1990s. It contains the musical arrangement and the audio samples used in a composition. SBStudio II users create, edit, and save songs in the PAC format, then load them later for playback or further editing within the program.

The PAC format comprises several blocks that store various pieces of information, including instrument samples, pattern data, and playback settings, which enables SBStudio II to load an entire song from a single file. Because the file stores multiple types of data in a single file structure, users often refer to PAC files as “package” files.

NOTE: Today, PAC files are obscure since SBStudio II, and the format is no longer developed. The files are primarily of interest to enthusiasts who preserve or convert vintage music files from older DOS-era trackers.

You can open PAC files with FMJ-Software Awave Studio in WIndows. To open a KRZ file with FMJ-Software Awave Studio, select File → Open.

A PAC file may also be an image created by STAD (STart Art Design), a graphics program for Atari ST computers. It stores a monochrome image designed for the Atari ST's high-resolution 640 × 400 display mode. The format was developed for creating detailed black-and-white graphics on Atari systems but is now obsolete as color graphics became common and development ceased.

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, artists and Atari ST users created PAC files with STAD to produce illustrations, diagrams, and other graphics. The format took advantage of the Atari ST's high-resolution monochrome display, making it suitable for precise artwork and technical drawings. As color graphics became more common, PAC files gradually fell out of use.

Users typically created PAC files by saving their work with STAD. Although the format is no longer widely used, retro computing enthusiasts and digital archivists may still encounter PAC files in software collections or historical archives.

You can open PAC files with several image editors, including Lemkesoft GraphicConverter and XnViewMP. To open a PAC file with XnViewMP, select File → Open.

Lemkesoft GraphicConverter can convert PAC files to various file types, including the following formats:

• .JPG - JPEG Image
• .PNG - Portable Network Graphic
• .TIF - Tagged Image File Format
• .GIF - Graphical Interchange Format
• .WEBP - WebP Image
• .BMP - Bitmap Image

A PAC file may also be an archive that contains game data used by a game in the WWE 2K series. For example, it may contain game audio, animations, textures, and/or character models. Modders have created tools that allow them to decompress and extract data from PAC files.

WWE 2K is a series of pro wrestling video games. Prior to WWE 2K20, games in the series were developed by Yuke's. These entries store various types of game data in PAC files.

Although PAC files are not meant to be opened by players, WWE 2K modders have developed tools that allow them to extract the data the files contain. Modders can also use these tools to add files to existing PAC files, to insert custom audio, animations, and characters into a game.

You can use PAC Editor (Windows) or rePac (Windows) to view and extract the files a PAC file contains.