Free online USM to MJPG converter

What the USM format is

USM is a proprietary video container associated with CRI Middleware Sofdec. Game studios use it for packaged cutscenes, menus, introductions, and other pre-rendered video. CRIWARE/Sofdec encoding tools create USM files during a game's build process, so users usually encounter them inside installed or extracted game data rather than from consumer cameras.

A USM may contain a video stream plus separate CRI audio streams such as ADX or HCA. Many files are encrypted or wrapped in a game-specific structure, and the .usm extension alone does not guarantee that a general-purpose media player can decode them.

What the MJPG format is

MJPG, or Motion JPEG, stores video as a sequence of independent JPEG frames. It is a video codec rather than a complete container; converted files are commonly saved as .avi, although other containers can also carry MJPEG.

Because each frame is independently compressed, MJPG is straightforward to edit frame by frame and is supported by many older applications and capture devices. It normally produces larger files than modern inter-frame codecs such as H.264 or H.265 at comparable visual quality.

How to actually convert USM to MJPG

For most USM files, use a two-stage process: first decrypt or demultiplex the CRI container, then encode the extracted video with FFmpeg.

1. Make a working copy of the USM file. Do not modify files in the original game installation.
2. Run a USM-capable CRI Sofdec demultiplexer or decryptor, such as a current USM tool that explicitly supports the file's encryption variant. The output is often an MPEG video stream such as video.m2v, plus a separate audio file.
3. Check that the extracted video plays before encoding. If the tool produces only encrypted data or reports an unsupported key, the file requires the key or extraction method used by that particular game.
4. Install FFmpeg and encode the extracted video to MJPEG. For an AVI output, use:

ffmpeg -i video.m2v -c:v mjpeg -q:v 3 -an output.avi

Here, -q:v 3 selects high MJPEG quality; values from 2 to 5 are common, with lower values generally producing better quality and larger files. The -an option omits audio. To retain a compatible extracted audio stream, use a separate conversion or muxing step rather than assuming that the original ADX or HCA stream can be copied into AVI:

ffmpeg -i video.m2v -i audio.wav -c:v mjpeg -q:v 3 -c:a pcm_s16le output.avi

If the USM contains no separately usable audio, omit the second input. Replace video.m2v and audio.wav with the actual extracted filenames.

You can also try the free converter on 101convert.com without installing software: upload the USM, select MJPG, and start the conversion. Encrypted or game-specific USM files may need local demultiplexing first if the online converter cannot read their stream.

Quality, compatibility, and limitations

USM-to-MJPG conversion is a re-encode, so it cannot restore detail already lost in the source. Avoid resizing unless necessary; preserving the original frame size and frame rate prevents additional scaling and timing problems.

Some USM files contain unusual dimensions, variable frame rates, interlacing, or multiple video segments. Inspect the extracted stream with ffprobe video.m2v and specify settings only when automatic detection is wrong. If an editor rejects the AVI, try an MOV or MKV container while keeping -c:v mjpeg, or use a standard pixel format such as -pix_fmt yuvj420p.

Only decrypt or redistribute game video when you have the legal right to do so. USM encryption and proprietary audio may prevent complete conversion even when the video stream itself can be extracted.