Texture format.

This page describes texture format types available with CreativeStudio.

For details on texture formats, see the separate document Introduction to CTR Graphics.

Texture Format Types

List of Texture Formats

List of Texture Formats

Component to configure a texture format for

Texture format. Component
RGB Holds color information.
R = Red component
G = Green component
B = Blue component
A (Alpha) Holds transparency information.
L (Luminance) Holds grayscale brightness information.
ETC (Ericsson Texture Compression) Compresses an RGB texture in 4x4-pixel blocks.
HILO Holds only the R and G components.
You can maintain a system of 256 gradations for each color component by treating the R component as the normal in the X direction and the G component as the normal in the Y direction.

Texture Size

The height and width of the texture image being used do not need to be the same size. Rectangular textures are also supported.

However, the height and width must both be a power of two.

The following figure describes the maximum and minimum size of textures.

Texture Size

Texture formats include a minimum size that cannot be reduced any further.

Texture Format Properties

This section describes the properties of each texture format.

Alpha Format

This format stores only the alpha component.

Although the image is usually used as transparent, it can also be expressed as a grayscale.

Format RGB Alpha Description
A4 Alpha 4-bit -- This format uses 4 bits per texel.
The alpha component can be expressed in 4 bits (16 levels).
A8 Alpha 8-bit -- This format uses 8 bits per texel.
The alpha component can be expressed in 8 bits (256 levels).

Luminance Format

This format stores only the luminance component.

Although usually used as a grayscale, this format can also express alpha values.

Format RGB Alpha Description
L4 Luminance 4-bit -- This format uses 4 bits per texel.
Brightness can be expressed in 4 bits (16 levels).
L8 Luminance 8-bit -- This format uses 8 bits per texel.
Brightness can be expressed in 8 bits (256 levels).

Luminance Alpha Format

This format stores luminance and alpha components.

Format RGB Alpha Description
LA4 Luminance 4-bit Alpha 4-bit This format uses 8 bits per texel.
Brightness and alpha can both be expressed in 4 bits (16 levels), respectively.
LA8 Luminance 8-bit Alpha 8-bit This format uses 16 bits per texel.
Brightness and alpha can both be expressed in 8 bits (256 levels), respectively.

ETC Format

The texture size can be reduced by compressing the RGB texture.

The higher the resolution and smoother the variation in color of the image before compression, the more reproducible it will be.

Format RGB Alpha Description
ETC ETC -- This format uses 4 bits per texel using compression technology.
RGB components are compressed and stored in 4 bits.

ETCA Format

This format is the same as the ETC format with an added alpha component.

RGB component properties are the same as the ETC format.

Format RGB Alpha Description
ETCA4 ETC Alpha 4-bit This format uses 8 bits per texel using compression technology.
RGB components are compressed and stored in 4 bits. The alpha component can be expressed in 4 bits (16 levels).

HILO Format

This texture format is used for normal mapping.

You can express quasi-bumps and depressions on a polygon's surface applying normal mapping to that polygon.

Format Images (RGB) Alpha Description
HILO HILO -- This format uses 16 bits per texel and is used for normal mapping.
X and Y components for normal information are stored for the R and G components using 8-bit precision.

RGB Format

This format stores only the RGB components.

Format RGB Alpha Description
RGB565 RGB565 Bit -- This format uses 16 bits per texel.
Colors can be expressed in this format using 5 bits (32 levels) for the R component, 6 bits (64 levels) for the G component, and 5 bits (32 levels) for the B component.
RGB8 RGB 8-bit -- This format uses 24 bits per texel.
This format can express each of the three RGB components in 8 bits (256 levels).

RGBA Format

This format stores the RGB components and alpha component.

Format RGB Alpha Description
RGBA4 RGB 4-bit Alpha 4-bit This format uses 16 bits per texel.
Each RGBA component can be expressed in 4 bits (16 levels).
RGB5A1 RGB 5-bit Alpha 1-bit This format uses 16 bits per texel.
The three RGB components can be expressed in 5 bits (32 levels) and the alhpa component can be expressed in 1 bit (transparent or opaque).
RGBA8 RGB 8-bit Alpha 8-bit This format uses 32 bits per texel.
Each RGBA component can be expressed in 8 bits (256 levels).
Although the number of colors is greatest on the one hand, the data size is also the largest.

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