Crowbar vs Game Extractor

Crowbar is a free modding tool for working with GoldSource and Source models and game packages. It can decompile MDL and related files into QC, SMD, and other related files, and can compile models when the game’s authoring tools or SDK and Crowbar’s studiomdl.exe are available. Viewing models likewise requires the game tools or SDK and Crowbar’s hlmv.exe. For archives, Crowbar can unpack, view, and search Valve VPK, Garry’s Mod GMA, Bloodlines VPK, Tactical Intervention FPX, and Fairy Tale Busters APK files. It can pack folders into VPK and GMA packages and supports batch extraction. Workshop functions allow downloading and publishing items for supported games. Game setups can link a game folder to its compiler, viewer, and package tools. On Windows, file associations and drag-and-drop can open VPK, QC, MDL, and folder inputs. The requirements page lists.NET Framework 4 and Windows XP or later, or Linux or Mac OS with a way to run a.NET Framework program. Crowbar is listed at free; donations are optional.

Game Extractor is a Windows application for opening game archive files, viewing their contents, and extracting files to a PC. Its site says it supports archives from over 5,700 games across PC, mobile, and console platforms, including titles using Unity 3D, Unreal Engine, and Value Source Engines. The free Basic Version reads archives and extracts files. The one-time Full Version adds archive editing and saving, previews for many image, audio, and 3D mesh files, image and mesh conversion, and a format scanner for locating images and audio in unknown or unsupported archives. Supported formats include game containers, common archive and data files, and image and audio types. Optional FFmpeg and Java Media Framework integrations can extend preview support. Every version requires Java Runtime Environment 8 in its 32-bit form; the site says it comes with the application. Downloads are linked through GitHub and SourceForge. Tutorials are available as PDFs and videos, alongside in-program help. The site cautions that some supported games use archives its plugin cannot open, and edited archives are not guaranteed to work in games.