Patching XBEs

This page aims to document information about commonly applied XBE patch types, such as HDD fixes or resolution patches.

HDD Fix Patches

Some games require certain patches to run correctly from a hard drive as unpacked/extracted/raw files. By default, these patches should be applied if you ripped the game using DVD2Xbox, but if your DVD drive has since died, you can instead patch it manually. However, some games also included very long (>42 character) filenames, which are not supported by the Xbox filesystem. Individual game patches can be downloaded for these, and the long files renamed, but the DVD2Xbox application will patch these automatically.

Below is a list of these games. Most of these games have patches available to fix said files, while others do not have patches and must be mounted using an XISO loader.

Patching on Jayxbox.com

The majority of these patches, (and more), have been gathered, formatted and provided here: Jayxbox.com's Patch Hub

Patching with QWIX

QWIX has the option to patch a single XBE file to run from a hard drive, but it will not fix games with very long file names. Transfer the XBE file from the game directory onto your PC, open QWIX, navigate to Tools → Patch XBE, and select it.

Games with Long File Names

Games with Misc. HDD Fix Patches

Resolution Patches

Resolution patches are a way to force an original Xbox executable (.XBE) to launch in Enhanced Definition, or even High Definition, that would otherwise run in standard definition (only 480i, though most Xbox games support 480p natively). There exist a number of solutions to achieve this. High Definition in this context is usually forcing 720p (1280x720), whereas Enhanced Definition is 480p (usually 640x480 on the Xbox)

Overview

A resolution patch is the result of manipulating the little-endian HEX data inside an original Xbox executable. The functions inside an executable rely on hard-coded data (integers/floats/decimals) to set-up the display modes of any given application. These functions are sometimes very similar to other executables. Patching these hard-coded values to something different, in theory, allows the executable to launch in Higher Definition.

Here is an example list of little-endian values that exist in the binary of executables which are typically targeted in resolution patches:

• 8002 (640 - int16)
• E001 (480 - int16)
• 00002044 (640 - Float32)
• 0000F043 (480 - Float32)
• ABAAAA3F (1.333 - A Float32 conversion of the decimal representing Aspect Ratio 4:3)

Patching Methods

There are multiple methods to obtain resolution patches.

Jay's Magic Patches

Created by "Jay", Jay's Magic Patches, (or .JMP files), are a system that exists simply to break down patches for more human-readable understanding. .JMP patch files are explained in more detail on the Xbox Magic Patches GitHub, but for summary, they contain patch record lines which find and replace data in an executable. You can find and apply these patches all on a single page here:

Jayxbox.com's Patch Hub

.JMP patch files can be opened with any text editor. There is a supplementary web-based Magic Patcher available to apply .JMP patch files to their respective executables. This patcher is integrated into the Patch Hub. Many OgXHD patches have been ported to .JMP patch files to both better explain what the patch does, and to circumvent legal issues.

BPS/PPF/IPS/Xdelta Patches

These are called "differential patches". They are typically very small files that contain only the data that is to replace the original data in an executable. They often use offset locations, or are diff aware. Out of these four filetypes, Xdelta is the most recommended patch type.

These can be applied by their respective tools:

• Xdelta
• IPS & BPS
• PPF

Find & Replace

Some people like to post patches in the form of find & replace hex code. The first line would be the value to search for in the executable, and the second is what it gets replaced with. This method is simple and requires the use of a hex editor like HxD.

Creating your own patches

Below is a list of patching methods that can be utilized to create resolution patches.

BrutusOGX - Online

A newer, web-based tool that aims to replace OgXHD by offering more features with tighter control. Created by "Jay", BrutusOGX - Online is functionally the same as OgXHD but with the possibility of custom values to search for and replace. It offers a more intuitive way to select and/or deselect value matches. It also features a much larger 16:9 database to match values against. For people familiar with OgXHD, this tool should be easy to adopt.

OgXHD

OgXHD is an older, more established method to force executable files to run in 720p. Created by "MarvelousMirth", OgXHD offers a GUI that allows importing executable files and offering multiple methods of auto-patching.

It uses .DAT (database) files to lookup and replace any matching lines that exist within the executable. The purpose of the the database(s) is many of the values have had some success in other .XBE files. It's other main focus is widescreen which looks for common widescreen values to change. This method of patching is some-what "blind" in the sense that it will change many values matching on anything that exists in the binary, not exclusively the values that matter. Because of this, finer tweaking is available via the 'Scan Range' section of the GUI, in the hopes of reducing catastrophic results to the executable itself.

Manual Disassembly

Using reverse-engineering tools like IDA Pro or Ghidra, a user with a firm knowledge of assembly can dig deep and get a much more clear understanding of how the resolution and display settings of an executable are presented.

One could essentially write their own new code in code caves and force the executable to do things it otherwise wouldn't. This is practically not possible with any of the aforementioned tools. This level of control ensures the best method for resolution patching. An example of what can be achieved is the Halo 2 HD patch by Grimdoomer. For Ghidra, there is a dedicated XBE extension.

Games which need 480p Patches

Below is a list of games that will not run correctly in progressive scan unless patched. These games can also be good candidates for HD patches if available. It also includes a list of games that will not run at all unless your display is PAL 50hz.

1.6 Xbox 480p Patches

These problems and solutions are only applicable to version 1.6 and 1.6b Xboxes.

Version 1.6 and 1.6b Xboxes have an Xcalibur video encoder, which is affected by a kernel bug present in all official BIOS and most modded BIOS; this causes some games to be broken in 480p. The games will either show a scrambled screen or fail to boot altogether. The only proper way to fix it is in the BIOS, but for an alternative software-based solution, some of these games can be patched using JCRocky5's Game Loaders script, or existing 480i fix patches.

BIOS Fix

Only 3 BIOS currently fix the kernel bug that improperly sets up the Xcalibur encoder, they are as follows:

• CerBIOS
  • As of version v2.4.0, Cerbios supports correcting the 1.6 Xbox 480p video mode problems. XBE patching is no longer required to correct the scrambled screen or boot failures from on 1.6 consoles when using Cerbios v2.4.0 or later. Video mode XBE patching in XBMC (i.e., flicker filter) and other homebrew dashboards should be disabled to support this fix.
• EvoX M8+ (XboxHD+ patched only)
• StellarOS (all versions)

These are the only complete proper way to fix it. There are software patches, but they aren't perfect and do not fix all problematic games; see the following sections for more information on this.

Patching Games

You will need XBMC or XBMC-Emustation set as your dashboard or launched as an app. If you are running XBMC4Gamers, you can skip downloading the script, as it’s built into gamers. ( Settings > Skin Settings > Scripts )

• Download JCRocky5's Game Loaders script for XBMC (mirror) or XBMC-Emustation (mirror).

• With XBMC open, copy the "scripts" folder into the Q partition to merge it into your current scripts folder.

• Navigate to the Scripts section of the dashboard and launch "480p Game Loaders". It will do an initial setup, then choose "auto install" to have it scan your hard drive and patch any games that need patching.

• Manual install mode will allow you to individually select the game you want to patch.

• Alternatively, you can run the "default.py" file to launch it from any variant of XBMC v3.5.3 onwards.

Games that Can be Played in 480p (with script patch)

• Arctic Thunder
• Battle Engine Aquila
• Commandos 2: Men of Courage
• Dark Summit
• Fable
• Galleon
• Gun Metal
• Gunvalkyrie
• Hunter The Reckoning: Redeemer
• Jet Set Radio Future
• Metal Slug 3
• MLB Slugfest 20-03
• NightCaster: Defeat the Darkness
• Over the Hedge
• Panzer Dragoon Orta
• Quantum Redshift
• Serious Sam
• Tetris Worlds (standalone disc)
• The Sims 2*
  • This game functions in 480p on a 1.6 console without patching, however running this game in widescreen video mode with 720p enabled will cause a dirty disk error.
• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3
• Voodoo Vince
• Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions (Double S.T.E.A.L.)

Games that Cannot be Played in 480p (without custom BIOS)

These games must be run at 480i on a 1.6[b] Xbox, unless an all digital HDMI mod is installed, or the console is using a BIOS that contains the fix to correctly access the Xcalibur, such as Cerbios v2.4.0 or later, patched EvoX M8+, or StellarOS.

• Dennou Taisen DroneZ
• Hello Kitty: Roller Rescue
  • Screen is undersized in places.
• Jacked
  • Screen is undersized in places.
• Men of Valor
  • Scrambled video
• NBA Inside Drive 2004
  • Scrambled video
• Pirates of the Caribbean