How to Convert ISO to XBE and XISO? Run Xbox Games on PC

Want to play original Xbox Games on your PC? This guide explains how to convert ISO to XBE and XISO, compatible with Xbox emulators.

Convert ISO to XBE and XISO for Cxbx and xemu Emulator

Have you tried playing your favorite original Xbox games on an Xbox Emulator (Cxbx-Reloaded and xemu) but found that the standard ISO file isn’t working? XISO files are specially designed for Xbox emulation and are compatible with emulator like xemu, on the other hand XBE files are for Cxbx-R emulator, both emulator are capable of running original Xbox games but both are made on different programming language, Cxbx-R uses Windows API, while xemu uses original Xbox kernel. In this guide, we’ll show you how to convert your regular ISO file into an XBE and XISO file, so you can easily play those classic Xbox games on your PC!

What are XBE and XISO?

XBE files (XBox Executable) are the main files that are executed in the original Xbox console, these files are created by game developers for Microsoft's Xbox.

XISO is not a distinct file format like .iso, .zip, or .rar. Instead, XISO refers to a specific type of disc image used for Xbox games. XISO (also known as XDVDFS) is a particular variant that is used to represent Xbox game data. When you download Xbox games or ROMs from third-party sites, they are typically in the .iso format, which is a general disc image format.

Note: Both ISO and XISO files share the .iso extension, but they represent different things:

ISO: This is a general disc image format used for storing the contents of a CD, DVD, or Blu-ray disc. It can be used for various types of discs and software, not specific to any one platform.
XISO: This is a specific type of ISO image designed for Xbox games. Although it uses the .iso extension, it is formatted in a way that is compatible with Xbox emulators and Xbox-related tools. The XISO format includes specific data structures needed to properly emulate and run Xbox games.

How to Convert ISO to XBE?

Step 1: To convert .iso to .xbe you need to download a special script called "extract-xiso".
Step 2: Move the "extract-xiso.exe" script to your game folder, if your Xbox game is compressed in .zip, .rar or .7z format then first extract it using WinRAR to get the original game ROM.

You can check raw Xbox game ISO using PowerISO

Step 3: Make sure your game is in .iso format (You can also enable "File name extensions" from "Folder option" in your windows), now drag and drop the game in to "extract-xiso".

Drag the .iso game into 'extract-xiso.exe' script

Step 4: You will get the folder of game name, .xbe file is in inside.

Extracted folder of game name will appear

Step 5: Open Cxbx-R Emulator and locate the .xbe file in it and press F5 to Run.

Cxbx-Reloaded can run games faster than xemu in some cases and key binding is also easy in it

Done :)

How to Convert ISO / XBE to XISO?

You can not directly convert an .iso file to XISO, first you'll have to convert the ISO to XBE, using the above steps. After that you will get the game folder which will also has the .xbe file in it. All you have to do is that convert that whole main folder into an .iso file but it's little complicalted, if you do it using any software it will not work.

Xbox games often need to be in the XISO format to be properly recognized and used. Therefore, you might need to convert a standard .iso (disc image file) to .iso (Xbox disc image file) to ensure compatibility with Xbox emulators.

Follow the given steps below:

Step 1: To convert XBE to XISO you need extract .xbe and other files in a folder from the game ROM (mentioned above in ISO to XBE).

Inside the extracted game folder, .xbe file is here

Step 2: Paste the "extract-xiso.exe" outside the main folder of game, and hold the "Left Shift" and press "Right Mouse Click" then select "Open PowerShell window here".

Hold Left Shift button and click Right Mouse button to get this option

Step 3: In the PowerShell window, paste this code and press Enter:
```
.\extract-xiso.exe -c "Enter the name of the folder as it is"
```

It is better to copy and paste the code in a notepad or enter manually if not working

Note: Don't forget to enter the same name as folder inside the inverted commas, for example if your game folder name is Max-Payne-2 then enter it as "Max-Payne-2".