AVS File

What are AVS files and how to open them

Are you having problems opening an AVS file or are you simply curious about its contents? We're here to explain the properties of these files and provide you with software that can open or handle your AVS files.

What is an AVS file?

AVS files have multiple uses, and Argonaut Games Video is one of them. Read more about the other uses further down the page.

Argonaut Games Video File

Argonaut Games Video File (extension .avs) is a full-motion video format developed by Argonaut Games for use in the game Creature Shock (1994). It stores animation sequences that combine video, audio, palette (colour) updates and occasional accessory game data.

In typical use the game engine writes .avs files to contain pre-rendered scenes, cinematics or similar animated sequences, with both sound and imagery in a tightly‐packed, interleaved format. The file is read at runtime by the game's playback system to display those sequences. Outside of the game, tools that decode or convert .avs files (e.g. FFmpeg's avs demuxer/decoder) separate out video frames, audio tracks and palette data for rendering or conversion.

Files begin with a two‐byte signature 0x77 0x57, followed by a 16‐byte main header (header size typically 0x0010), which includes dimensions like frame width. Data blocks include video, audio, palette updates and game‐specific metadata, each marked by a block type code. Palette entries use 6‐bit red, green, blue values (0 - 63) per component.

How to open AVS files

We have identified two AVS openers that are compatible with this specific type of AVS file.

Programs that open Argonaut Games Video files

Last updated: August 22, 2026

All known file formats using extension .AVS

While Argonaut Games Video File is a popular type of AVS-file, we know of 3 different uses of the .AVS file extension. Different software may use files with the same extension for different types of data.

AVSS Video

We know that one AVS format is AVSS Video. We have not yet analyzed in detail what these files contain and what they are used for. We're working on it.

While we have not verified the apps ourselves yet, our users have suggested ten different AVS openers which you will find listed below.

Winamp Advanced Visualization Studio File

Winamp Advanced Visualization Studio Preset files store the settings for visual effects created using the Advanced Visualization Studio plugin for Winamp. These visuals respond in real time to music, allowing combinations of effects, color changes, waves, feedback, motion, shapes and formula-based transformations. Preset files capture the arrangement of effects, their parameters (like colors, thresholds, motion formulas), and the sequence in which they are applied so that the same visual output can be reproduced.

The plugin that writes these presets is Advanced Visualization Studio, developed by Nullsoft. Winamp installs it as a visualization plugin; users build visuals by opening the AVS Editor within Winamp, adding effects, tweaking settings, then saving to a preset file. When a preset is loaded later during music playback, Winamp (through AVS) reads the preset and applies the stored chain of modules and parameter values to generate visuals in sync with the music.

Files in this format begin with the ASCII signature "NullsoftAVSPreset" at offset zero. This header identifies them distinctly among other types using the same extension.

Various apps that use files with this extension

These apps are known to open certain types of AVS files. Remember, different programs may use AVS files for different purposes, so you may need to try out a few of them to be able to open your specific file.

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