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https://github.com/bnnm/wwiser

wwiser - Wwise .bnk explorer and audio simulator.
https://github.com/bnnm/wwiser

vgmstream wwise

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wwiser - Wwise .bnk explorer and audio simulator.

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# WWISER

A Wwise `.bnk` parser, to assist in handling audio from games using the Wwise engine.



Simply open `wwiser` without arguments to start the GUI. From there you can load

and view banks, dump contents or make TXTP (used to simulate audio). It reads

and shows all `.bnk` chunks, including *HIRC* (audio scripting) data, and properly

identifies all fields. *wwiser* *can't* modify banks.



## MINI GUIDE

How to play audio simulating the Wwise engine:

- open *wwiser.pyz*

- press *Load dirs...* and select a *base folder* with `.bnk` and `.wem` inside

  - if game has `SoundbanksInfo.xml`, `Wwise_IDs.h`, `(bankname).txt` or similar files you are set,

    otherwise you may want to generate a name list and put it as `wwnames.txt` in the *base folder*

- press *Generate TXTP* to make `.txtp`

  - this will make files that simulate how Wwise plays audio, based on loaded bank info

  - may want to set language to `SFX` to skip voice lines (ignore if `SFX`` isn't shown)

- enter the *base folder* and open those `.txtp` with some player like *foobar2000/winamp/audacious* with the *vgmstream* plugin installed

  - if generated TXTP aren't fully satisfactory, fiddle with *TXTP Generator* options

  - note that TXTP currently can't simulate all Wwise features

  - when making audio rips to distribute, may be better to set *TXTP subdir* to *empty* so that `.txtp` are generated in the *base folder*

- you can also press *View banks* to explore, or *Dump banks* to save readable info, if needed

  - info is presented as-is and may be a bit hard to understand, but isn't important to generate *TXTP*

- Wwise is very complex so this program can only help so much, you may want to read and understand *doc/WWISER.md*



## OTHER INFO

All actions (and more) can be done from the command line as well: `wwiser [options] (files)`

- `wwiser bgm.bnk`

  - (dumps `bgm.bnk` info to `bgm.bnk.xml`)

- `wwiser -d txt init.bnk bgm.bnk -o banks.txt`

  - (loads multiple `.bnk`, like Wwise does, and dumps to banks.txt)

- `wwiser *.bnk -r -v`

  - (loads all .bnk in current folder and subfolders recursively and starts the viewer)

- `wwiser -g bgm.bnk`

  - (generates TXTP files from banks to use with vgmstream)

- `wwiser wwconfig.txt`

  - (loads a text list of any CLI commands, to simplify complex usage)

- `wwiser -h`

  - (shows all available actions)



Loaded banks can be explored using the *viewer*, a web browser-based tool (if you'd

prefer a native GUI, please understand there are multiple reasons behind this),

or dumped to a file. For best results make sure to load `init.bnk` then one or more

related banks, since banks can point to data in other banks.



If companion files like *SoundbankInfo.xml* or *(bank name).txt* are found in the

`.bnk` dir they'll automatically be used to show names. *wwiser* also supports some

artificial ways to add reversed names (`wwnames.txt` and `wwnames.db3`).



Be aware that depending on the bank size loading may be slow, memory usage high,

dump output big, and *txtp* generation slow. Dumped `.xml` can be opened with a

browser to see contents (like a simple html/GUI) but since they can be huge 

browsers may run out of memory; the *viewer* is a safer bet (looks the same).



*wwiser* requires *Python 3* installed. The viewer also needs a modern-ish browser.



Extra info:

- *doc/WWISER.md*: detailed Wwise info and usage explanations

- wwiser-utils (https://github.com/bnnm/wwiser-utils): info and helpers for audio rips

- For further help try asking on hcs64.com forums or discord



## WWISE ENGINE AND WWISER USAGE

**TL;DR**: Wwise never plays `.wem` directly and always uses *events* inside `.bnk`

that play one or many `.wem` indirectly. You want to open main `.bnk` (leaving

companion `xml` and `txt` files together to get names) with *wwiser*, maybe explore

a bit, and  automatically generate *TXTP* for *events*, to use with *vgmstream* to

play music (https://github.com/vgmstream/vgmstream).



Wwise has two "modes", a sound module that plays single sfx or tracks capable of

simple looping (some games loop like this), and a music module that dynamically

plays multiple audio stems mixed in realtime (other games loop by using multiple

separate files). You want *TXTP* to handle the later, but they also give consistency

and (sometimes) original names to the former. In short, for games using Wwise audio

don't play `.wem` directly but use *wwiser*'s generated `.txtp`.



## WWISER OUTPUT

Web view or dumped `.xml` shows what is stored in `.bnk`, trying to follow original

(Audiokinetic's) names. Since Wwise is a complex engine it can be a bit hard to

understand at first. Most concepts are explained in *doc/WWISER.md*, though to get

most of it install Wwise (free) and play around with the editor to get a better feel

of how Wwise deals with audio.



## TXTP GENERATION

You can generate `.txtp` files from `.bnk` that allow *vgmstream* to (mostly) play audio

simulating Wwise. Make sure `.wem` go to the `/txtp/wem` folder and open `.txtp` with a

player like *foobar2000* or *Winamp* with the *vgmstream* plugin installed (or use 

vgmstream's *CLI* tools).



This function tries its best to make good, usable `.txtp` to improve the listening

experience of Wwise audio rips (like giving names when possible, or handling

complex loops). However Wwise is a very complex, dynamic audio engine, so you may

need to tweak various options to improve output. *vgmstream* also has some limitations

and audio simulation is not always perfect.



See *WWISER* doc for detailed explanations.



## LIMITATIONS

This tool is not, and will never be, a `.bnk` editor (can't replace files). It's only

meant to show bank data and generate TXTP. But feel free to use info here to make

other programs.



Almost all `.bnk` versions should work, except the first two, used in *Shadowrun (X360)*

(unsupported) and *Too Human (X360)* (mostly supported but can't make .txtp). Report if

you get errors or incorrect behavior. All fields should be correctly identified and named,

save a few bit flags in some versions and some lesser objects like plugins.



## LEGAL STUFF

Everything from *wwiser* was researched and reverse-engineered by studying public

SDKs, executables and files, by bnnm.