asset-extract

name	asset-extract
description	Extract assets/materials from DC3 .ark archives and .milo/.dta files. Use when you need game assets for the native port, debugging rendering, or inspecting data.
argument-hint	[command] [options]
allowed-tools	Bash, Read, Grep, Glob

Asset Extract Skill

Extract and inspect assets from the DC3 game archives (.ark + .milo_xbox + .dta/.dtb).

Arguments

$ARGUMENTS

Quick Reference

The argument $0 determines what to do:

Command	Description
extract	Extract the full ark to orig-assets/extracted/
extract --inflate	Extract + decompress all .milo_xbox files
extract --dta	Extract + convert .dtb → .dta text
extract --all	Extract everything (inflate + dta convert)
inflate <file>	Decompress a single .milo_xbox file
inflate --dir <dir>	Decompress all milos in a directory
find	List all extracted assets with type summary
find --type milo_xbox	Filter by file extension
find --grep pattern	Search by name pattern
find --tree	Show directory tree
info <file>	Show milo compression info
inspect <file>	List object types/names inside a milo scene
inspect <file> --search Foo	Search raw milo bytes for a string

Workflow

1. Full Ark Extraction

Extract the DC3 ark archive. This is the starting point — run it once.

# Basic extraction (files only, no decompression)
scripts/milo/extract_ark.sh

# Full extraction with milo decompression + dta conversion
scripts/milo/extract_ark.sh --all

# Custom output directory
scripts/milo/extract_ark.sh /tmp/dc3-assets --all

The ark header is at orig-assets/gen/main_xbox.hdr with 10 ark segments (0-9). Uses arkhelper ark2dir from ../milo-executable-library/dance-central-3-deluxe/dependencies/linux/arkhelper.

2. Find Assets

After extraction, search and list assets:

# Summary of all asset types
python3 scripts/milo/find_assets.py --summary

# Find all .milo_xbox files
python3 scripts/milo/find_assets.py --type milo_xbox

# Search by name
python3 scripts/milo/find_assets.py --grep "glitterati"

# Browse a subdirectory
python3 scripts/milo/find_assets.py --path world --tree

If no extracted dir exists, it falls back to the pre-extracted library at: ~/code/milohax/milo-engine-libs/harmonix-repos/milo-rnd-library/dc3/

3. Decompress Individual Milos

For working with specific .milo_xbox files (e.g. for the native port viewer):

# Decompress a single file
python3 scripts/milo/inflate_milo.py path/to/file.milo_xbox

# Decompress with custom output
python3 scripts/milo/inflate_milo.py path/to/file.milo_xbox output.milo_xbox

# Show compression info without extracting
python3 scripts/milo/inflate_milo.py --info path/to/file.milo_xbox

# Batch decompress a directory
python3 scripts/milo/inflate_milo.py --dir orig-assets/extracted/world/

4. Milo Compression Formats

Version	Magic	Description
A	0xCABEDEAF	Uncompressed
B	0xCBBEDEAF	zlib compressed
C	0xCCBEDEAF	gzip compressed
D	0xCDBEDEAF	Hybrid (mixed compressed + uncompressed blocks)

DC3 Xbox 360 typically uses version D (hybrid).

5. Inspect Milo Contents

Inspect objects inside a milo scene file (searches the raw binary data):

# List object types in a milo scene (parses entry table)
python3 scripts/milo/inspect_milo.py path/to/file.milo_xbox --summary

# Search for a specific type string in raw bytes
python3 scripts/milo/inspect_milo.py path/to/file.milo_xbox --search "EventTrigger"

# Filter entries by type
python3 scripts/milo/inspect_milo.py path/to/file.milo_xbox --type PropAnim

Use --search for definitive presence/absence checks (raw byte scan, no format assumptions).

Pre-Extracted Assets

Some assets are already available without extraction:

~/code/milohax/milo-engine-libs/harmonix-repos/milo-rnd-library/dc3/
  config/gen/metamaterials.milo_xbox
  flow/gen/*.milo_xbox
  sfx/gen/*.milo_xbox
  ui/gen/*.milo_xbox
  world/glitterati/gen/glitterati.milo_xbox
  world/dclive/gen/dclive.milo_xbox
  char/main/gen/main.milo_xbox

Tips

• The ark is ~6.2 GB across 10 segments — extraction takes a few minutes
• --inflate decompresses milos in-place during ark extraction (saves a second pass)
• --dta is useful for reading game scripts (menus, flow logic, song data)
• Use find_assets.py --grep to locate specific materials, textures, or meshes by name
• Decompressed milos can be loaded directly by the native port's milo-viewer