Quick Xbox 360 modding question about import games

Retr0gamer

I just want to know if you can mod a 360 so that it can play import games and avoid getting banned from xbox live. I would really like to play Deadly Premonition.

Myrddin

Retr0gamer wrote: »

I just want to know if you can mod a 360 so that it can play import games and avoid getting banned from xbox live. I would really like to play Deadly Premonition.

This is tricky to word right, ok here goes. Yes you can have your 360 play games from different regions. The first step would be to have the firmware flashed on your drive, but this alone isnt multi-region capable. Usually the bold boys who put the 360 games up on the internet will remove the region protection which is in built to the game. Therefore your newly flashed drive will be able to do what you want.

If your 360 is jtagged, you can actually edit the consoles region, allowing it to NATIVELY play games from whatever region you set it to. This is rarely needed, because as I said above, the region information is usually removed by the bold boys.

If your using official game discs, then you would have to go down the jtag region change road.

Retr0gamer

Well I could buy the game and play a 'backup' but what's the story with not getting myself banned from xbox live? I'm really not familiar at all with 360 chipping and this is the first game I want to play that can't be played on a PAL console.

Myrddin

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Well I could buy the game and play a 'backup' but what's the story with not getting myself banned from xbox live? I'm really not familiar at all with 360 chipping and this is the first game I want to play that can't be played on a PAL console.

Xbox live with a modded console is a show stopper the last I read (which was a while ago). There is new drive firmware out called iXtremeLT - I havnt heard of anyone getting banned with that (but as I said, since I jtag'ed my console, Ive left the world of drive firmware long behind)..

Have a look at the firmwares website & do some research on it, they have a forum too which should answer your questions. If its not looking good, I guess you could always pick up a cheap import console and use a standard power block with it as you wont need any power convertors etc...

Docenter/Wittnessmenow should be able to tell you for sure about Xbox Live functionailty with unofficial drive firmware (there is not "chipping" involved, its all down to flashing firmware).

Its VERY risky though

Retr0gamer

Ok thanks for the help. Might be best to get a cheap console and firmware mod that for imports. Really annoyed that the game isn't coming to europe, region protection is a crock of ****. Thank god the PS3 isn't region protected.

Myrddin

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Might be best to get a cheap console and firmware mod that for imports.

Thats the safest option. Even pick up an already banned one if your not gonna risk LIVE, adverts.ie is a good start

TouchingVirus

Patching firmware to read backups is fine, iXtreme Lite Touch (LT) is the current firmware of choice for most 360 users (people with older drives - samsung and hitachi, don't have an LT firmware just yet). The firmware's only purpose is to allow you to play backups. It does nothing to modify the region capabilities which are controlled by the xbox 360 dashboard software.

If you have a jtag console with freeBOOT running on it then you can play any game you like - freeBoot has a region patcher built in so it'll make any NTSC/NTSC-J game playable. It is definitely unsuitable for Live, you'll get banned with 99.9% probability.

Even if you acquired an NTSC/NTSC-J console to play imports on once you modify the firmware and play online anything can happen. People thought they were safe with iXtreme 1.6 and then came the banhammer last October. People think they are safe now with iXtreme LT - a lot of effort has gone into that firmware to make it very very hard to detect, but that's not guaranteed to work and one day you could get banned. If you acquire the backup and modify it to be region free to play on your PAL console this is very detectable too

The best solution would be to either wait for a PAL release, information is very thin on the ground as regards this game, or to get an import original and a console of the same region. Then play away.

Myrddin

TouchingVirus wrote: »

The firmware's only purpose is to allow you to play backups. It does nothing to modify the region capabilities which are controlled by the xbox 360 dashboard software.

Well, incase Retro couldnt read between the lines, the point I was trying to make was that most of the backups illegally available online will have their region locks removed. Nobody here is condoning piracy, but hypothetically if I were to download the game the OP is talking about - there is a high chance that game image will NOT have any region restrictions.

Having the drive flashed will allow booting of such hypothetical possibilities

TouchingVirus

EnterNow wrote: »

Well, incase Retro couldnt read between the lines, the point I was trying to make was that most of the backups illegally available online will have their region locks removed. Nobody here is condoning piracy, but hypothetically if I were to download the game the OP is talking about - there is a high chance that game image will NOT have any region restrictions.

Having the drive flashed will allow booting of such hypothetical possibilities

Yes, it will allow a playing of the game but you would be mad to consider playing a game that's been modified (even with just a region remover) on live, even more crazy to consider it safe

Myrddin

TouchingVirus wrote: »

Yes, it will allow a playing of the game but you would be mad to consider playing a game that's been modified (even with just a region remover) on live, even more crazy to consider it safe

Absoloutely, that kinda thing should be kept away from LIVE

pH

EnterNow wrote: »

Well, incase Retro couldnt read between the lines, the point I was trying to make was that most of the backups illegally available online will have their region locks removed. Nobody here is condoning piracy, but hypothetically if I were to download the game the OP is talking about - there is a high chance that game image will NOT have any region restrictions.

Having the drive flashed will allow booting of such hypothetical possibilities

This is a new one for me - many games are released region free and show up as *RF* by the "bold boys" but AFAIK there's no way to remove the region locking by altering the backup in anyway.

If you know any different then let me know (PM?) - I'd be interested to know what you consider a scene release that's RF that wasn't released by the publisher RF.

RealistSpy

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Ok thanks for the help. Might be best to get a cheap console and firmware mod that for imports. Really annoyed that the game isn't coming to europe, region protection is a crock of ****. Thank god the PS3 isn't region protected.

It is but its also about making money. If everything is region free I might aswell get all my games from South America

pH

RealistSpy wrote: »

It is but its also about making money. If everything is region free I might aswell get all my games from South America

Indeed, but the counter argument is that companies like Microsoft (and not just them) want to have their cake and eat it, in that they use a global economy to source the cheapest components and labour to source their products from around the world, yet are not happy with a global price for things they sell.

If someone suggested that for the xboxs they sell in Ireland they pay the Irish minimum wage and have Irish work conditions, you'd hear them crying foul soon enough.

Anyway back OT - as TV said above - ignore the "hints" earlier in this thread, there is no way a DVD image can be altered to make it region free. Flashing the DVD drive and getting backups will not make any more games RF than were published RF - however many games *are* published RF, sites like play-asia normally make it clear.

Again as above pick up a cheap JAP console on ebay (or similar), buy the originals from play-asia (or similar) and enjoy!

I'm in a similar boat, I wanted to play culdcept saga which never got a PAL release

pH

EnterNow wrote: »

I suggest you educate yourself before dismissing users' suggestions in future. You can start the education process here

from your own link:

"With XexTool you can do pretty much anything you want to an xex file except sign it for a retail Xbox360."

So no, you're wrong, you can alter the xex to be region free, it's just that if you put that back into the iso and burn it, an non-jtagged retail console won't play it. This is because the altered xex lacks microsofts signature.

Myrddin

pH wrote: »

Anyway back OT - as TV said above - ignore the "hints" earlier in this thread, there is no way a DVD image can be altered to make it region free.(

I suggest you educate yourself before dismissing other users' posts like that. XeXTool would be a good place for you to begin your education. DVD images CAN be altered to remove the region protection, the problem lies with resigning the image for use on retail units. Jtagged units can play games form any region from a normally locked iso because XBR doesnt have signature check protection.

Myrddin

pH wrote: »

there is no way a DVD image can be altered to make it region free.(

pH wrote: »

So no, you're wrong, you can alter the xex to be region free

You cant be right about everything...so which is it?

Edit - I removed my original post incase the link violated the charter. It was a link to a tool called XexTool, which amongst other functions can remove the region info on images. Ph seemed to think it couldnt be done. I was wrong in that I thought image releases had their locks removed, I guess some of the wording from NFO's gave me that impression.

pH

EnterNow wrote: »

You cant be right about everything...so which is it?

Both my statements are correct, if you own a jtagged or dev console then you could mess around with a xex tool to your hearts content. What you can't to is use the common flashed DVD drives which play backups to also play altered xex (for example with region protection removed).

Edit - I removed my original post incase the link violated the charter. It was a link to a tool called XexTool, which amongst other functions can remove the region info on images. Ph seemed to think it couldnt be done. I was wrong in that I thought image releases had their locks removed, I guess some of the wording from NFO's gave me that impression.

I never said it couldn't be done, all I've been saying that your original hints that somehow backup games may be RF when the original wasn't is incorrect, something you now seem to accept - despite you muddying the water with claims about what xextool may or may not do.

Myrddin

pH wrote: »

Both my statements are correct, if you own a jtagged or dev console then you could mess around with a xex tool to your hearts content. What you can't to is use the common flashed DVD drives which play backups to also play altered xex (for example with region protection removed).



I never said it couldn't be done, all I've been saying that your original hints that somehow backup games may be RF when the original wasn't is incorrect, something you now seem to accept - despite you muddying the water with claims about what xextool may or may not do.

So it cant be done & it can be done. We already know Retr0 doesnt have a jtagged unit, so how can you be right on both counts?

You certainly DID say it couldnt be done my friend, I suggest you re-read your recent posts. I was under the impression that image releases were in fact modified, this was down to the wording on a lot of NFO's (now region free...region protection removed etc etc)...but I have absoloutley no problem admitting I was wrong on that one. Something with which you clearly have difficulty admitting. I referenced XexTool because according to you, "there is no way a DVD image can be altered to make it region free", this is simply not the case. You can change the region, but not all 360's can use the modified image. THIS MAKES YOUR STATEMENT WRONG. Im sorry, but Ive admitted my error, I had to point yours out.

TouchingVirus

In fairness it'd be a lot of hassle to go through because XBR and FreeBOOT have region-free patches so there'd be no need to modify the xex, but yes, it is possible

Myrddin

TouchingVirus wrote: »

In fairness it'd be a lot of hassle to go through because XBR and FreeBOOT have region-free patches so there'd be no need to modify the xex, but yes, it is possible

I fully agree, XBR & FBT nullify the need for XexTool...but when someone says it cant be done I cant help myself And before he says again he never said it cant be done, his post from 12:25 clearly states that there is no way to modify an image.

pH

EnterNow wrote: »

I fully agree, XBR & FBT nullify the need for XexTool...but when someone says it cant be done I cant help myself And before he says again he never said it cant be done, his post from 12:25 clearly states that there is no way to modify an image.

my post says (12:25):

ignore the "hints" earlier in this thread, there is no way a DVD image can be altered to make it region free. Flashing the DVD drive and getting backups will not make any more games RF than were published RF

I stand by that statement, you've admitted you were wrong, in the context of actually getting games to play - "there's no way to modify an image" - sure you can open any iso editor and "modify" it - and if you want to argue that you're correct because you can do that then go ahead - there's no way to modify it and make it RF (or even bootable) -which is the point I was making - anyway - enough of this - I'm done.

Myrddin

pH wrote: »

my post says (12:25):

ignore the "hints" earlier in this thread, there is no way a DVD image can be altered to make it region free. Flashing the DVD drive and getting backups will not make any more games RF than were published RF

I stand by that statement, you've admitted you were wrong, in the context of actually getting games to play - "there's no way to modify an image" - sure you can open any iso editor and "modify" it - and if you want to argue that you're correct because you can do that then go ahead - there's no way to modify it and make it RF (or even bootable) -which is the point I was making - anyway - enough of this - I'm done.

Guess thats as close as getting a "We were both right in our own way" as we're gonna get outta you pH

To summarise;

XBOX 360 dvd images CANNOT be altered & made playable using retail 360's as pH stated. Ths is because when the region info is removed, the MS digital signature is broken, and cannot be resigned using MS credentials. The resulting image being region free however, will NOT be allowed to boot by the retail 360.

XBOX 360 dvd images CAN be altered & made playable using jtagged/dev 360's. This is becasue the 360's will likely be using modified operating systems which will have signature checks removed. The locked image can therefore be extracted, modified & rebuilt and then played on such a system.

I think we have now answered Retr0's question, despite some confusion.