Free online DDS to TXD converter

What the DDS format is

DDS (DirectDraw Surface) is a texture container developed for DirectX and commonly used by game engines. It stores pixel data in GPU-oriented formats such as DXT1, DXT3, DXT5, BC4, and BC5, and can include mipmaps, cube-map faces, and alpha channels.

Game artists and mod tools create DDS files with applications such as DirectX Texture Tool, GIMP or Photoshop with DDS support, and 3D packages or game engines that export DirectX textures. You usually encounter DDS when extracting assets from a game, downloading a texture mod, or editing a texture before placing it in a GTA texture dictionary.

What the TXD format is

TXD is a RenderWare Texture Dictionary used by Grand Theft Auto III, Vice City, San Andreas, and related RenderWare-based games. A TXD file can contain multiple named textures, each with raster data, dimensions, an optional alpha channel, and mipmap information.

TXD is useful when a model's materials refer to texture names inside a dictionary rather than to standalone image files. Its main advantage is game-specific packaging: one dictionary can store all textures required by a vehicle, map section, or character. TXD is not a general replacement for DDS, and a TXD made for one GTA game may not be accepted by another.

How to actually convert DDS to TXD

Using Magic.TXD

1. Make a backup of the original .txd file if you are replacing an existing game texture.
2. Install and open Magic.TXD, selecting the target game version when the program asks for the RenderWare or platform settings.
3. Create a new texture dictionary, then use the program's texture import or add-texture command to select the .dds file.
4. Set the texture name to the exact name referenced by the model or material. Do not include the .dds extension; GTA texture references are normally name-based.
5. Choose a raster format supported by the target game. Use DXT1 for opaque textures, DXT3 or DXT5 for textures requiring transparency, and retain mipmaps when the source and target game support them.
6. Save the dictionary with a .txd extension. If replacing an existing dictionary, preserve its other texture entries unless you intend to remove them.

Magic.TXD is preferable to a generic image converter because it writes the RenderWare dictionary structure and exposes GTA-specific raster settings. TXD Workshop is another desktop option for older GTA workflows; its DDS import support varies by version, so convert the DDS to PNG or TGA first if that build cannot read DDS directly, then import the intermediate image and save the dictionary.

Using the online converter

You can convert the file on 101convert.com for free without installing software. Upload the DDS, select TXD as the output format, start the conversion, and download the resulting dictionary. Check the generated texture name and open the output in a GTA-aware editor before putting it into a game archive.

Quality and compatibility limits

TXD conversion does not make a texture compatible with every GTA release. GTA III, Vice City, and San Andreas use different engine constraints, platform raster formats, and practical limits for dimensions and compression. A dictionary can load successfully while its texture remains invisible if the name does not match the model reference.

Use power-of-two dimensions such as 256x256, 512x512, or 1024x1024 for the safest compatibility. DXT1 has a one-bit transparency mode and is unsuitable for smooth alpha; DXT3 provides explicit alpha, while DXT5 generally produces better gradients. Converting between compression formats can alter fine detail and transparency, and DDS metadata or unsupported mipmap layouts may be discarded. Test the TXD in the intended game and inspect it with Magic.TXD if the texture appears black, opaque, blurred, or missing.