.MAP File Extension

Uncompiled game map created for games developed with one of the Quake engines; saved in a human-readable text-based format; can be compiled into a .BSP binary map file for use in games such as Half-Life, Quake, Quake 2, and Quake 3.

MAP files can be built using several map editors, including Valve Hammer Editor, which also compiles the map into the target BSP format. Another popular tool that uses MAP files is TorquePowered.com's Torque Constructor, which can transform maps into the .DIF format for development. The resulting map files are used for Torque games, which target PC, mobile, and console platforms.

Many game engines use the MAP format, including the Quake engines, Torque Engine, Goldsource Engine, Dark Engine, and Unreal Engine.

NOTE: Valve Hammer Editor 4, which is used for Half-Life, saves map files in the newer .VMF format. The program was previously called "Worldcraft," but is now commonly referred to as "Hammer."

Text mapping file used by TECkit, a program used for text conversion; saved in a plain text format and contains rules that map from one character set to another; compiled into a .TEC file, which can be used to perform the conversion.

Game map used by Halo: Combat Evolved, the first game of the Halo first-person shooter series; also used by Halo: Custom Edition, an unsupported expansion to Halo: Combat Evolved; saves a game map and can include terrain, objects, spawn points, and other level information.

Some Halo maps can be edited with Halo Map Tools.

Weather map format used by Weather Defender, a weather monitoring system designed specifically for Emergency Management Professionals and First Responders; may contain custom geographic and reference layers.

Weather Defender maps can be saved to store custom configurations for forecasting severe weather. These maps can be quickly loaded to view custom weather forecasts.

Map file used by NAVIGON GPS navigation devices; contains a map, including roads and points of interest; used by NAVIGON software to create navigation routes and display map information while driving.

Server-side text file that defines areas of a Web page image that link to different locations; allows users to click on different parts of an image to open different pages.

MAP files are referenced by an .HTML Web page, but processed by the Web server.

File used by Mapjects GRYD, an operations visualization platform for energy management, security management, and logistics; stores a configuration of one or more "Webparts," which are widgets that can be mashed together to produce integrated visualizations; also includes the GIS metadata required to display the data.

MAP files are server-side data files, and they include both the data and program files for the software package. A corresponding .MAPX file is used to display the information in the MAP file to the user through a Web page.

NOTE: Mapject GRYD renders HTML5, Silverlight, Flash, and PHP, as well as code from the ASP.NET Razor view engine.