Resource pack

The resource pack system is an API which provides a way for players to customize textures, models, music, sounds, languages, the end poem, splashes, and fonts, without any code modification.

Behavior
Resource packs can be placed in the folder  within the   folder. Each resource pack is either a sub-folder or a  file within the   folder. Once in the folder, a resource pack can be added from the options, where resource packs can be moved between "Available resource packs" and "Selected resource packs". "Selected resource packs" will also contain the default assets on the bottom, which cannot be removed.

Resource packs will load their assets based on the order of the packs on the list. The bottom most pack will load first, then each pack placed above it will replace assets of the same name with its assets.

Default resource packs
A resource pack can be bundled with a world by saving it under the name  and placing it directly in the world's folder. When playing the world, that resource pack will appear as the default right above the default resource pack. A default resource pack can also be set on a server by adding a link to a  file download after the line   in the server properties file. Users can still opt out of using the resource pack or choose not to download it though.

Java Edition
In Java Edition, the old (pre-Java Edition 1.14) textures are available in a resource pack titled "Programmer Art".

Bedrock Edition
Similarly to skins, resource packs can be bought or made in Bedrock Edition. As of Alpha 0.15.0, iOS users can download resource packs on the system itself with the  and   file names. When these files are opened, they are automatically imported into the game without any need for file system access.

Legacy Console Edition
In Legacy Console Edition, mash-up packs are the equivalent of resource packs. They are available as downloadable content that can be bought from the Xbox Marketplace, PlayStation Store, Nintendo eShop, or the downloadable content section of the game. Mash-up packs also come with a skin pack and a themed world.

New Nintendo 3DS Edition
In New Nintendo 3DS Edition, mash-up packs are the equivalent of resource packs. They are available as downloadable content that can be bought from the downloadable content section of the game. Mash-up packs also come with a skin pack and a themed world.

Contents
A resource pack is identified by Minecraft based on the presence of the file  in the root directory, which contains a JSON file with the following information:


 * The root tag
 * Holds the resource pack information
 * Pack version. If this number does not match the current required number, the resource pack will display an error and required additional confirmation to load the pack. Requires  for 1.6.1–1.8.9,   for 1.9–1.10.2,   for 1.11–1.12.2,   for 1.13–1.14.4, and   for 1.15–1.15.2.
 * : Text that will be shown below the pack name in the resource pack menu. The text will be shown on two lines. If the text is too long it will be cut off.
 * : Contains a raw JSON text object that will be shown instead as the pack description in the resource pack menu. Same behavior as the  version of the   tag, but they cannot exist together.
 * : Contains additional languages to add to the language menu
 * Language code for a language, corresponding to a .json file with the same name in the folder assets//lang.
 * : The full name of the language
 * : The country or region name
 * : If true, the language reads right to left.

The root directory also contains an optional image called pack.png, which will show as the thumbnail for the pack on the resource pack selection menu.

Language
Resource packs can create language files of the type  in the folder. Each file will either replace information from a file of the same name in the default or a lower pack, or it will create a new language as defined by.

Each line in the  file is in the standard json format of   followed by a comma in case it is followed by another value in the next line. is the name that the game looks for to determine the name for something, and as such it should not be changed. is the name that is displayed. For example, stone in the default language file is, with   being the identifier, and   being the displayed name. Blank lines are ignored. The file needs to be valid JSON syntax, meaning it starts with a, has a comma after every key value pair except the last one, and ends with a.

Language files only need to add lines that are actually changed by the pack, any names that are not in the pack will be loaded from the pack below, or default if no pack changes the names.

Models
Models are files in JSON format with the extension, which determine the shape and textures of blocks and items.

Blocks use a block state file from  to determine which model is loaded for each variant from the folder. Meanwhile, each item has an item model in  to determine its model, which either loads from a block's model, contains data for its own custom model, or uses the default "flat" or "entity" model.

Models and block states used in packs below the top one will still be loaded unless overridden in the top pack, which may cause some textures and models used by the top pack to no longer be loaded.

Sounds
Resource packs load additional sounds with the file type of. Each sound placed in the pack will override the sounds from packs below, and packs also contain a file called  which is placed within. Unlike most other files in resource packs,  will merge sound information from packs below the top pack, rather than each   file overriding the previous completely.

Textures


For block or item textures to function, they must have equal width and height (or height that is a multiple of the width if animated); otherwise it will display as a magenta and black checkerboard. For most other textures, the file will simply be stretched to fit the required dimensions.

Most solid blocks will turn any transparent area fully opaque. Some other blocks, which have "cutout" transparency (like glass) will turn all pixels that are less than 10% opaque fully transparent and all other pixels completely opaque. Every other block renders textures with semi-transparency as-is. All items and any blocks or entities which are semi-transparent by default support semi-transparency.

If a file does not exist in any resource pack, including the default, it will display as a magenta and black checkerboard texture using the colors ( and ).

Animation
Block and item textures support animation by placing each additional frame below the last. The animation is then controlled using a  file in JSON format with the same name and   at the end of the filename, in the same directory. For example, the  file for   would be.


 * The root tag
 * : Contains data for the animation
 * : If true, Minecraft will generate additional frames between frames with a frame time greater than 1 between them. Defaults to.
 * : The width of the tile, as a direct ratio rather than in pixels. This is unused in vanilla but can be used by mods to have frames that are not perfect squares.
 * : The height of the tile in direct pixels, as a ratio rather than in pixels. This is unused in vanilla but can be used by mods to have frames that are not perfect squares.
 * : Sets the default time for each frame in increments of one game tick. Defaults to.
 * : Contains a list of frames. Defaults to displaying all the frames from top to bottom.
 * A number corresponding to position of a frame from the top, with the top frame being 0
 * A frame Specifies a frame with additional data
 * : A number corresponding to position of a frame from the top, with the top frame being 0
 * : The time in ticks to show this frame, overriding "frametime" above.

If the  file does not exist in the pack and the texture does, the game will assume the texture is not animated, rather than loading a   file from a pack below that pack. If no  file exists for a texture with unequal dimensions, the texture will appear as a purple and black checkerboard.

Villagers
Textures from  and   support a   file in JSON format containing additional effects to apply to the hat layer. The file is contained in the same directory as the texture, and has the same name as the texture, except appended with. For example, the file  can have a properties file called


 * The root tag
 * : Contains data for the texture
 * : Whether the villager type's hat layer should still render (default), or not full (Unknown what partial does).

If the  file does not exist in the pack and the texture does, the game will load the default settings, rather than loading a   file from a pack below that pack.

Colormaps
Colormaps are 256×256 pixel images which tell the game which color to use in each biome. They are located in. The game contains two colormaps,  which colors plants such as leaves (except birch and spruce) and vines, and   which colors grass and grass blocks. Colormaps can be disabled on individual blocks by removing the  tag.

Fonts
Font files contain a grid of white characters, which are automatically colored by Minecraft as needed in game. The character sizes are automatically determined based on the last line of pixels containing any alpha value. Due to the way fonts are detected, filling the background of a character with a color containing a 5 % alpha background will cause the full width to render without having a visible background to the character.


 * Glyphs 0x20 (space) through 0x7E (tilde) display the standard ASCII characters,
 * Glyphs 0x7F through 0xFF display the Codepage 437 characters (this is no longer the case in Bedrock editions 1.11+).

The font file is located in

The font file used when displaying the enchanting "alien font" is

Properties
Textures from  support a   file in JSON format containing additional effects to apply to the texture. The file is contained in the same directory as the texture, and has the same name as the texture, except appended with. For example, the file  can have a properties file called


 * The root tag
 * : Contains data for the texture
 * : Causes the texture to blur when viewed from close up. Defaults to
 * : Causes the texture to stretch instead of tiling in cases where it otherwise would, such as on the shadow. Defaults to
 * : Custom mipmap values for the texture

If the  file does not exist in the pack and the texture does, the game will load the default settings, rather than loading a    file from a pack below that pack.

Texts
Three  files in UTF-8 format exist in   which are used by the game to determine the text to display.

The file  contains the text of the end poem, using formatting codes to apply the colors to the two speakers, and with the text   being replaced with the player's name. After that file is shown, the contents of  will be shown.

The file  contains lines of text separated using line breaks to determine the splashes to display in game. Any splash can be replaced with different text.

Origin
The old default texture pack icon of the Java edition shows a mountain along with a beachfront and a seaside which as of currently no one knows where it came from. This picture was put into the game in version Alpha 1.2.2 and can be found in the texture pack menu up to version 1.13.2 and in the Multiplayer menu from version Alpha 1.2.2 and up. A group of individuals are still trying to find the origin of the scene in the picture.

A few years ago StoneRuigi started a conversation in the talk section of this page.