 Bink logo | |
| Filename extension | .bik, .bk2, .bik2 |
|---|---|
| Internet media type | video/vnd.radgametools.bink |
| Developed by | Epic Games Tools |
| Initial release | March 22, 1999; 26 years ago (1999-03-22) |
| Latest release | |
| Type of format | Video file |
| Open format? | No |
| Website | www |
Bink Video is a proprietaryfile format (extensions.bik and.bk2) forvideo developed by Epic Games Tools (formerly RAD Game Tools), a part ofEpic Games.
The format includes its own proprietary video and audio compression algorithms (video andaudiocodecs) supporting resolutions from 320×240 up tohigh definition video.
It is bundled as part of the Epic Video Tools along with Epic Games Tools' previous video codec,Smacker video. It is a hybridblock-transform andwaveletcodec using 16 different encoding techniques. The codec places emphasis on lower decoding requirements over other video codecs with specific optimizations for the different computer game consoles it supports.
It has been primarily used forfull-motion video sequences invideo games, and has been used in games forWindows,Mac OS and allsixth-generation game consoles (Dreamcast,GameCube,PlayStation 2 andXbox) and all majorseventh-generation gaming platforms (Nintendo DS,PlayStation 3,PlayStation Portable,Wii andXbox 360).[2]
The format was reverse-engineered by theFFmpeg project and Bink decoding is supported by the open-sourcelibavcodec library.[3]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding to it.(August 2023) |
Bink was inducted into the Front Line Awards Hall of Fame by theGame Developer magazine in 2009. The winners for the award were published in the January 2010 issue of the magazine.[4]
Bink 2, a new version of the format, was released in 2013.[5] This new format is available for Windows (standard, Windows 8 Store and Windows 8 Phone),Mac OS,Linux, major touchscreen smartphone platforms (Android andiOS), all three major seventh-generation consoles (PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360), all majoreighth-generation platforms except the Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo Switch,PlayStation 4,PlayStation Vita,Wii U andXbox One) and theninth-generationPlayStation 5 andXbox Series X/S.[6] Bink 2 is faster than Bink 1, and supports higher resolutions as well.[7]
Epic Games acquired the technology and business of RAD Game Tools including Bink on January 7, 2021, renaming it to Epic Games Tools. It was announced they planned to integrate RAD's technology directly intoUnreal Engine and that licenses will continue to be available to those who do not use the Unreal Engine in their work.[8][9]
| This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding to it.(May 2024) |
Bink uses a wavelet-based compression algorithm optimized for game video sequences. It supports resolutions up to 4K and can encode at bitrates from 500 kbps to 200 Mbps. The codec is designed for efficient decompression, leveraging multithreading and SIMD instructions on modern CPUs. Bink also offers optional alpha channel support for composing video with 3D graphics.[10]
| Games developed |
| ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Third-party publishing |
| ||||||||||||
| Technology | |||||||||||||
| Subsidiaries |
| ||||||||||||
| People |
| ||||||||||||
| Related | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
