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No Man's Sky (Hello Games Engine) — XeNTaX Forum Knowledge Extraction

1. Engine & Archive Overview​

1.1 Engine​

  • Engine: Hello Games custom engine (not Unity/Unreal)
  • Archive format: .pak files — variant of PSAR (PlayStation Archive) / HGPAK
  • Platform differences: PC uses standard PSAR; PS4/Switch use HGPAK (different header, compression)

1.2 Archive Pipeline​

Game data → *.pak (PSAR/HGPAK) → extract → *.mbin / *.exml / *.dds / shaders
Key PAK: NMSARC.553AF401.pak (engine settings), NMSARC.EEAC04FA.pak (shaders)

2. PAK Format (PC — PSAR variant)​

2.1 Extraction​

Tool/ScriptNotes
aluigi's brink.bmshttp://aluigi.org/bms/brink.bms — works for NMS PAK
QuickBMS batchquickbms -d -F "*.pak" "brink.bms" "PCBANKS" "OUTPUT"
PSARC-Decompile-Toolhttp://nomansskymods.com/mods/psarc-decompile-tool/
NMS-Extract (HugoPeters)https://github.com/HugoPeters/NMS-Tools — CLI extractor

2.2 Structure (from brink.bms / community analysis)​

  • Magic: PSAR variant
  • Files zlib compressed in 64 KiB chunks
  • brink.bms fix: change log NAME OFFSET SIZE → clog NAME OFFSET SIZE SIZE

2.3 Loose File Loading (No Repack Needed)​

  • Method: Game loads loose files from GAMEDATA/PCBANKS/ if present
  • Source: Reddit guide by emoose (2016) — enables shader/texture mods without repacking
  • Use case: Chromatic aberration disable, vignette removal, shader edits

2.4 PS4/Switch — HGPAK Format​

  • Magic: HGPAK (different from PC PSAR)
  • Compression: zstd (possibly Oodle)
  • Tool: HGPAKtool by monkeyman192 — https://github.com/monkeyman192/HGPAKtool
  • BMS script: Partial (uncompressed only); zstd/Oodle support needed

3. MBIN Format (Core Data Format)​

3.1 Structure​

Header:
 int32 cc / magic
 int32 version
 int32 padding[2]
 int64 hash
 char type[64] # e.g., "cTkLocalisationTable", "GcWidgetData"
 int64 padding

Type-dependent data follows...

3.2 Known Types​

TypeDescription
cTkLocalisationTableLanguage/localization data
GcWidgetDataUI widgets
GcSceneData / GcModelDataScene/model descriptors
GcSkeletonDataSkeleton/bone hierarchy

3.3 Tools​

ToolPurpose
MBINCompiler (Atvaark / swuforce)010 Editor template + compiler/decompiler
NMS-View (HugoPeters)Model viewer — https://github.com/HugoPeters/NMS-Tools
MBIN to EXMLCommunity tools (swuforce texttool, MBINCompiler)
NMS-Modding-ToolsVarious community forks

3.4 Localization (.mbin → .exml)​

  • 010 Editor Template by Atvaark: parses cTkLocalisationTable
  • Structure: Header → LocalisationTableHeader → LocalisationTableEntry[key[32], lines[]]
  • Workflow: .mbin → extract → .exml (XML) → edit → compile → .mbin

3.5 Repacking Issues​

  • PC: PSARC-Decompile-Tool requires manual file listing for repack
  • PS4/Switch: HGPAKtool supports extraction; repacking WIP
  • Loose files preferred: Avoid repack entirely when possible

4. Model / Skeleton Format​

4.1 Model Files​

  • Format: Embedded in .mbin (type GcModelData / GcSceneData)
  • Geometry: Standard vertex buffers (positions, normals, UVs)
  • Textures: .dds (DXT/BC compressed) — directly editable
  • Shaders: Uncompiled GLSL in NMSARC.EEAC04FA.pak

4.2 Skeleton / Bone Hierarchy​

  • Descriptor: Separate .mbin with bone hierarchy + transforms
  • Fields: transmat = 9 values (3x3 rotation + translation? or TRS)
  • Coordinate system: OpenGL (right-handed, Y-up)
  • Rotation order issue: XZY works for some models, XYZ for others
  • Progress: gregkwaste (2016) — partial success, some models still misaligned

4.3 Tools for Models​

ToolNotes
NMS-ViewHugoPeters' viewer (models + skeletons)
NoesisCommunity scripts WIP
BlenderVia export → OBJ/FBX → import

5. Shaders​

5.1 Format​

  • Location: NMSARC.EEAC04FA.pak
  • Type: Uncompiled GLSL (OpenGL)
  • Editable: Yes — direct text edit after extraction
  • Examples: Chromatic aberration, vignette, post-process

5.2 Community Mods​

  • Chromatic aberration disable (Reddit 2016)
  • Vignette removal
  • Shader injection via loose files

6. Audio​

6.1 Format​

  • Container: Wwise .bnk / .pck (standard)
  • Tools: Wwise Authoring, bnkextr, vgmstream
  • Note: Standard Wwise pipeline — not extensively discussed in XeNTaX threads

7. Key Repositories & Tools Summary​

Repo / ToolAuthorPurpose
NMS-ToolsHugoPetersNMS-Extract, NMS-View (model viewer)
MBINCompilerAtvaark / swuforceMBIN ↔ EXML (010 Editor templates)
HGPAKtoolmonkeyman192PS4/Switch HGPAK extraction
brink.bmsaluigiQuickBMS script for PC PAK
PSARC-Decompile-ToolNoMansSkyModsPAK extract/repack
SCSSIIToolEkeySCS decryption (mentioned in NMS context?)

8. Gaps / Unresolved (from threads)​

  • Skeleton alignment: Rotation order (XZY vs XYZ) inconsistent per model
  • MBIN full spec: Only localization table documented; other types unknown
  • HGPAK repacking: PS4/Switch modding blocked
  • Oodle compression: PS4/Switch PAK may use Oodle, not zstd
  • Procedural generation data: Planet/ship assembly logic in MBIN — not reverse engineered
  • Animation format: Not documented in threads

9. Cross-References​

  • PSAR format: Used by Brink, other PS3/PS4 games — see aluigi's scripts
  • Wwise audio: Standard middleware — see generic audio docs
  • 010 Editor templates: Reusable pattern for binary formats
  • QuickBMS: Universal extractor — scripts portable across games