Xbox 360:Original Xbox Games

By default, OEM Xbox 360 hard drives come with a built in original Xbox emulator. However, the emulator would not boot all games, and hacked third party hard drives usually did not include the emulator at all.

This guide will walk you through installing a hacked Xbox emulator with a JTAG/RGH Xbox 360 which will allow you to boot any original Xbox game.

In 2019, the hacked emulator was updated to enable the Xbox 360 guide and gamechat while playing original Xbox games and to coincide with an offical emulator update. The official update also fixed compatibility with the PAL version of Panzer Dragoon Orta.

Xbox_360:DashLaunch needs to be installed to run the emulator. See the manual:

with the included patch set, launch.xex acts as a helper to detect when xbox1 emulator loads, allowing memory unlock patch and xbox1 emulator to function together.

Original Xbox Games Compatibility List

Stealth server plugins often times will prevent original Xbox games from running.

Installing the Emulator Partition (JTAG/RGH)

This step is only required if you have an unofficial hard drive without an HddX partition. OEM hard drives sold by Microsoft should include the official emulator files and partition.

1. Download HDD Compatibility Partition Fixer.
2. Extract the default.xex and the Media folder to your flash drive. Plug your flash drive into your Xbox.
3. Launch your desired dashboard and open the default.xex from the flash drive.
4. Press A to install the partition, and press B when completed.
5. Restart the console. You can check if the HddX partiton was made by going in the dashboard's file manager.

Installing the Hacked Original Xbox Emulator

This process only works if there is a hard drive in your system, and will not work on flash drives.

1. Download the Hacked Compatibility Files and extract the Compatibility folder inside of the HUD_xgamechat folder to a flash drive.
   • If you do not wish to use the Xbox 360 guide / gamechat during play, you can use the Compatibility folder in the Regular folder instead.
2. Open XeXMenu and copy the Compatibility folder from your flash drive to your HDDx partition (Partition2).
   • If you already have the official emulator in this partition, you can back up and/or replace the files with the hacked files.

Improving performance with 720p games

1. Some games are rendered at 720p on Xbox 360 even though they were 480p on original Xbox and yields low frame rate. To improve this behavior, you can go into display settings and set the system resolution to 480p.
   • Example games:
     • Grand Theft Auto III
     • Grand Theft Auto Vice City
     • Counter Strike
     • Halo Combat Evolved
2. If the Xbox games are scrambled and unplayable after this change, also disable the display discovery option. Your TV is probably sending an incorrect EDID to the Xbox 360.