What is the DFF file format?
File with .dff extension contains a 3D model created using the RenderWare graphics engine. The format was used for games such as:
- Grand Theft Auto III,
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City,
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas,
- Need For Speed: Undercover,
- Burnout series.
A .dff model file contains sections that define geometry, reflection materials, or object behavior during collisions. Textures are not embedded - they are stored separately in a companion .txd texture dictionary file, while collision data lives in a .col file. Both are typically packed together inside a .img archive such as gta3.img.
The file uses a RenderWare binary stream structure: a hierarchy of nested sections, each with a 12-byte header carrying a section-type ID, a data size, and a version stamp. The root section is always a Clump (0x0010), followed by a Frame List, Geometry List, and Atomic records linking geometry to scene nodes. Character models additionally carry a Skin extension section for bone-weighted animation.
The future of the RenderWare engine. RenderWare versions 4 and later no longer use .dff files in favor of other file formats. In 2006 the division that was in charge of RenderWare was closed, and the engine is no longer available for purchase. The project is officially discontinued, so .dff remains frozen at the GTA 3D-era releases (III, Vice City, San Andreas).
Security & safety
RISK: LOWA DFF is passive model data and does not execute code. The practical cautions are about modding sources, not the format: GTA mod packs from random sites can bundle scripts, trainers or installers that carry malware, so get tools from their official repos (DragonFF on GitHub, GTAMods wiki, zmodeler3.com) and scan downloaded mod archives. A bare .dff itself is safe to import.
Format details
in a nutshell- OpenEXR (.exr alternative / legacy) - Some pipelines historically used .dff for depth/data frames; unrelated to RenderWare models.
- ESRI / database export files - A few GIS and database tools emit .dff data dumps that share the extension but are not 3D models.
Programs that open DFF files
Windows5 apps
ZModeler
Paid Open the .dff directly (legacy ZModeler 2 was the classic GTA tool; ZModeler 3 is the current paid release). Import the .txd for textures. 
RW Analyze
Free Inspect and edit the raw RenderWare section tree of a DFF (low-level tool for modders, not a 3D viewer).
Blender + DragonFF
Open-source Install the free DragonFF add-on in Blender, then File → Import → RenderWare DFF. Import the matching .txd for textures.
Autodesk 3ds Max + Kam's GTA Scripts
Free (script; 3ds max is paid) Load Kam's DFF IO maxscript, then use the DFF import button to open the model in 3ds Max.
Magic.TXD (companion)
Open-source Not for DFF itself - opens the matching .txd so you can see/extract the textures a DFF references. Technical details
deep spec| Encoding | Binary (RenderWare binary stream) |
| Byte order | Little-endian |
| Root section | Clump (type ID 0x0010) |
| Section header layout | 12 bytes per section: 4-byte type ID, 4-byte data size, 4-byte RenderWare version stamp |
| RW version stamp | Per-section field encoding the RenderWare library build (e.g. 0x1003FFFF for GTA III / RW 3.1, 0x1803FFFF for GTA San Andreas / RW 3.7) |
| Top-level sub-sections | Frame List, Geometry List, Atomics, Material List |
| Texture handling | Texture names stored as strings inside the model; actual bitmap data lives in a companion .txd texture dictionary |
| Skinning / bone support | Optional Skin extension section for bone-weighted meshes (player and pedestrian models) |
| Compression | None - vertex positions, UV coordinates, and normals stored uncompressed |
| Typical file size | 10 KB - 5 MB depending on model complexity (map props to full vehicle models) |
| MIME type | application/octet-stream |
| Typical deployment | Packed inside a .img container archive (e.g. gta3.img, gta_sa.img) |
| Target platforms | Windows (PC), PlayStation 2, Xbox (original) |
| Released | RenderWare 3.x era; GTA III (2001) onward used .dff for models |
| Latest version | RenderWare 3.7 stream (GTA San Andreas, 2004); version encoded per-section in the stream header |
| Specification | gtamods.com |
DFF conversions
Community Q&A
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