Retro EMULATORS for Xbox Series X|S / One - Download Links, NO MODDING, NO DEV-MODE

01011001

01011001

Gold Member
Emulators are on Xbox One/Series X|S for a while now. And you might have heard you can use them in Developer Mode (which costs 20€/$) or you can get whitelisted to use them in "Retail" (normal) mode
Well now you don't need either it seems... at least for now (who knows if MS will remove the apps) so get them fast!



How to Download the Emulators

DISCLAIMER: CURRENTLY GETTING THE EMULATORS REQUIRES LINKS POSTED IN THE DISCORD SERVER LINKED ON THE DOWNLOAD LINK BELOW. SOMEONE IS REPORTING THE APPS TO MS WHICH MEANS THEY GET TAKEN DOWN FASTER, SO THE UPLOADER WANTS THEM TO BE LESS PUBLIC









ABOUT PLAYSTATION 2 EMULATION
The Developers of PCSX2 (Called AetherSX2 on Xbox) are for whatever reason really against people uploading them to the Xbox Store.

Now there is a new branch of the Emulator mabe by a different person, that also has no issue with uploading it to the retail store, called XBSX2

CURRENTLY WORKING METHOD:
XBSX2 is now available in Gamr13's app store





1:

After downloading one of these Apps/Emulators you have to IMMEDIATELY start them at least once
or you risk loosing access to them!

These Apps and Emulators often get deleted from the store, and you will not be able to use
them anymore after that if you didn't at least start them once before that happens!

Starting one of these Apps/Emulators activates your license to use them!
Which will not work anymore after they have already been deleted...

So always start them after the download is finished to make sure your Emulators and Apps still work in the future.

2:

There have been reports from people that they lost access to their Emulators when they were installed on
an external drive.

So I would suggest to always install these Apps and Emulators onto the internal drive of your Xbox!






How to set up Retroarch



this is a PS2 Tutorial for DEV MODE, but it should basically be the same in RETAIL MODE


I made this USB Setup Tutorial for XBSX2.
Use this tutorial if you want to have all your stuff (games, saves, settings etc. externally)




say thx to gamr13 for providing these downloads ;)
​
 
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TLZ

TLZ

Member
Nice one. I installed the qz version a couple days ago. Is this better?

Also, I can't see the images in your post.
 
01011001

01011001

Gold Member
TLZ said:
Nice one. I installed the qz version a couple days ago. Is this better?

Also, I can't see the images in your post.
Click to expand...

YES! the other version is categorized as an App it seems (maybe you can confirm this. is it in you Games library or App library?) and "Apps" have way less resources available! This means it will run way slower!
the version I linked is set up so it is actually seen as a "Game" meaning it will be able to use the full power of the system

why you don't see my images I don't know. I use a pretty good file hosting site that works perfectly usually and I can see them in Edge on my PC and in the Samsung Browser on my Phone 🤷‍♂️
 
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Kilau

Kilau

Gold Member
Great write up, I can see the images just fine.

Still trying to figure out wide screen hacks but it's pretty dang cool.
 
TLZ

TLZ

Member
01011001 said:
YES! the other version is categorized as an App it seems (maybe you can confirm this. is it in you Games library or App library?) and "Apps" have way less resources available! This means it will run way slower!
the version I linked is set up so it is actually seen as a "Game" meaning it will be able to use the full power of the system

why you don't see my images I don't know. I use a pretty good file hosting site that works perfectly usually and I can see them in Edge on my PC and in the Samsung Browser on my Phone 🤷‍♂️
Click to expand...
qz is under apps. So this should definitely be better. But I think it's out of date compared to qz, which uses RA 1.9.6.

The images thing is weird. I can see them in Firefox, but not in Chrome or Edge.
 
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S

Sir Vilhelm

Member
I got it downloaded but when I get to run it I get an error "to use this here, first remove another device" problem is I have no other devices.

Edit: In case anyone has this error like I did, you have to unlink any old devices from your store account. This is different than what the error says which is to go to your devices list and delete old devices.

Go to https://account.microsoft.com/devices/content and unlink all old devices you have. This solved for me.

Thanks 01011001 01011001
 
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01011001

01011001

Gold Member
TLZ said:
qz is under apps. So this should definitely be better. But I think it's out of date compared to qz, which uses RA 1.9.6.

The images thing is weird. I can see them in Firefox, but not in Chrome or Edge.
Click to expand...

it's usually not super important to have the newest version of Retroarch to be honest. as far as I know there haven't been many big leaps recently that would make it necessary to have 1.9.6 over 1.9.5
everything up to Dreamcast runs pretty much perfectly already, and PS2 and Dolphin are highly dependent on the emulator version you copy your system folder over from.

so until there is an important jump in features 1.9.5 should be plenty for now. I hope whoever uploaded the version I linked will update it over time. the guy who first whitelisted people did update it every so often. but he stopped at 1.9.0 I think
but now there's apparently a new guy whitelisting people or something?
 
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Quasicat

Quasicat

Member
I got whitelisted a while ago and set this up only to be disappointed due to the apps and power of the system. The Nvidia Shield I use seems to run Retroarch better. This may be what I’ve been waiting for since it runs as a game instead. Thanks for the update OP.
 
01011001

01011001

Gold Member
Little Chicken said:
What is Saturn emulation like? I wouldn't mind playing Shining Force 3 (all parts).
Click to expand...

I personally haven't tried Saturn yet, but here is a guide for setup and settings


(I will eventually add more tutorials, including this one and setup videos in the OP but it's late over here and I'm tired and on my phone now lol

that channel is a good source for tutorials on this tho, so for other systems look up his videos)
 
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Little Chicken

Little Chicken

Member
01011001 said:
I personally haven't tried Saturn yet, but here is a guide for setup and settings


(I will eventually add more tutorials, including this one and setup videos in the OP but it's late over here and I'm tired and on my phone now lol)
Click to expand...
Great vid, thanks.

Does the screenshot function work while using Retroarch?
 
01011001

01011001

Gold Member
Sir Vilhelm said:
I got it downloaded but when I get to run it I get an error "to use this here, first remove another device" problem is I have no other devices.
Click to expand...
oh, maybe you need to have your Xbox set up as your "Home Console"??

if this does not work, I already aked it in my first response to your comment but, what console are you on?
it's helpful to know the system. someone on Xbox One might run into issues not found on Series S or X etc.
 
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TLZ

TLZ

Member
01011001 said:
it's usually not super important to have the newest version of Retroarch to be honest. as far as I know there haven't been many big leaps recently that would make it necessary to have 1.9.6 over 1.9.5
everything up to Dreamcast runs pretty much perfectly already, and PS2 and Dolphin are highly dependent on the emulator version you copy your system folder over from.

so until there is an important jump in features 1.9.5 should be plenty for now. I hope whoever uploaded the version I linked will update it over time. the guy who first whitelisted people did update it every so often. but he stopped at 1.9.0 I think
but now there's apparently a new guy whitelisting people or something?
Click to expand...
You mean I can just replace the Pcsx2 with a better up-to-date version?
 
j0hnnix

j0hnnix

Member
Got it, going to keep an eye on the thread and circle back setting this up at a later date. Thanks OP.
 
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Anki

Anki

Banned
Hmm cannot install it, i click on install to my xbox home console but noting happens. I restared the console still nothing.

Edit: Found a solution, had to install another app so it started downloading both apps.
 
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Dr.Morris79

Dr.Morris79

Gold Member
01011001 said:
Retroarch is on Xbox One/Series X|S for a while now. And you might have heard you can use it in Developer Mode (which costs 20€/$) or you can get whitelisted to use it in "Retail" (normal) mode



Well now you don't need either it seems... at least for now (who knows if MS will remove the app) so get it fast!

STEP ZERO

if you have downloaded this version before:
Called "QZARCH-[XS]" you might run into performance issues!!! this is because that upload is categorized as "App" which means it gets treated like
your standard Youtube or Netflix app on your system. These Apps do not have the full hardware power of your Xbox available to them!!!

So before you set it all up and have to to it all over again, uninstall the "QZARCH-[XS]" app and download the verison of Retroarch I am linking in Step 1
that version is categorized as "Game" and therefore has access to the full hardware power of your Xbox!

STEP 1

HERE IS THE DOWNLOAD LINK:
Get Retroarch69+ - Microsoft Store en-GB

(the following is a guide on PC. if you do it through a phone browser it's pretty self explanatory)

click on "Get"



at which point the Windows Store will open




first click on install (the Store will then try to install it on your PC... stop the install by pressing the X that will appear)
then click on the 3 dots you see next to install (excuse the german store... I can't be asked to switch my PC to english for this)

if you do so this will appear


click on the Xbox you want to install Retroarch on. at which point the console will automatically download the app the next time you turn it on


STEP 2

next, for ease of use and easy file transfer from PC to Xbox,
click on this link and do the exact same as seen above to install the app:
Get [DurangoFTP] - Microsoft Store en-GB

this is an FTP client, which will allow you to use a PC FTP Program like "Filezilla" or "Flash FXP" to transfer files/roms over. this is important to easily get into your bios "system" folder

BE AWARE WHEN TRANSFERRING OVER MULTIPLE FOLDERS WITH SUBFOLDERS! THIS APP MIGHT SCRAMBLE AROUND THE FILES,
SO WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO IS YOU HAVE TO MANUALLY CREATE THE FOLDER STRUCTURE (NAME EVERY FOLDER 100% CORRECTLY)
AND THEN FOLDER FOR FOLDER COPY OVER THE FILES ONE FOLDER AT A TIME!!!

I am writing this in caps and red because it is important, especially for Dolphin and PCSX2 folders!!!
games will not launch if you didn't put every file in the exact place it needs to be.
this can be a bit annoying to do but you only have to do it once or once every few months at most, so not as bad as it first seems

it is important to do it, I didn't at first and just copied over my whole collection, and all the SNES games for example,
which I have in folders from "0-9" to "Z", were in the "0-9" folder after I bulk copied over everything.
so I had to go in, create the SNES folder, then create each folder for each letter, and then copy over all the games starting with each letter into their corresponding folders.
I now use a USB drive for almost all the ROMS, but this still applies when you copy over your PCSX2 Emulator folder, or your Dolphin folder... or your Dreamcast folder etc.

maybe this is an issue on my end and an issue with the FTP program I use on my PC, but you can test it out and see if the files and subfolders get copied over correctly for you.


STEP 3

After installing Retroarch on your Xbox, open it for the first time (do this before attempting to copy over any files, as the following steps will create some of the file structures)

you will find a screen that will look something like this:


not very appealing looking right? well, what you have to do is click on "Online Updater" which will lead you to the following screen:



on this screen Click on EVERY SINGLE THING that says "Update..." and wait for the bar on the bottom left to complete the action for each item!
this will update all the important files needed, including the graphics and icons of the emulator
once you click on "Update Assets" Retroarch will give you a black screen for a moment, DON'T PANIC! This is normal!

and after you updated the Assets it will look like the pic below (still continue to update all the other menu points tho!)



now you are basically ready to play games! BUT NOT ALL OF THEM! Some consoles/cores will need BIOS files (PS1, NEOGEO, CPS1/2, Amiga etc.)
(I will not link any, since downloading ripped BIOS files is illegal! either rip your own bios files from your own systems, or... use shadier ways)

the "Duckstation" or "Swanstation" core for PS1 for example works WITHOUT BIOS! which means if you have your ISO of your game ready, it is ready to go!

here is a link with all the info for each Core and infos about BIOS files
BIOS Information Hub - Libretro Docs


USING THE CROSS MEDIA BAR

So I bet you want to use this menu here right?



well that is easy! If you followed all the steps above, you already have it! all you need to do is select it!

first go to Settings and click on "Drivers"


then click on "Menu"


And from here you select the option "XMB" (standard is "ozone")
now after you did this just close Retroarch and restart it again. it now should look like the image above

(if icons are not displaying correctly in the XMB menu, you might need to change your Video driver to either GL or D3D12, you do this in the same "Drivers" menu shown above)


So, enough from me. there is a guy on Youtube who does really good tutorials on this called "Archades Games", and I will link a few of his videos here (and some from other people), just click on the spoilers below that are of interest for you!

TUTORIAL VIDEOS I FOUND ON YOUTUBE THAT WILL HELP YOU

if you want your games easy to go through and neatly lined up like this, with Icons for each console etc.

then click on the "PLAYLIST" spoiler below


If you use the Retail mode app linked here. you will have to use the FTP app I linked in order to move the files over.
Ignore all the dev mode size increase stuff and everything that has to do with DEV MODE in the video since that is irrelevant for Retail mode
also read my instructions below the link of the FTP Durango app!
which you will find in the spoiler tab labled "IMPORTANT NOTES FOR USING THE FTP APP"

once you familiarized yourself with the FTP client it should be no issue translating what is shown in the video to the retail mode app

IF YOU WANT TO PLAY PS2 GAMES YOU NEED TO USE THE D3D12 VIDEO DRIVE WHICH YOU CAN SELECT IN THE "DRIVERS" MENU IN THE RETROARCH SETTINGS. at least I think it's D3D12 it could be D3D11, just don't be surprised if it doesn't work instantly

ALSO PS2 games NEED to be on the internal storage! USB does not work for gams that are larger than about 2GB!

TERRIBLE AUDIO I KNOW... yeah, but it shows how to use the FTP app pretty well

I'll add more links tomorrow
Click to expand...
I... Think I love you

Just kidding, I dont think, I know I do.
 
  • LOL
Reactions: Isa
J

JORMBO

Darkness no more
According to this this version is not official. If MS zaps it does it delete it from my XB if I install it? I don't want to get invested in playing a game only to have the install removed.

 
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01011001

01011001

Gold Member
RobRSG said:
Can you be banned by using this?
Click to expand...
no, people have been doing tis for months through different sources and methods

JORMBO said:
According to this this version is not official. If MS zaps it does it delete it from my XB if I install it? I don't want to get invested in playing a game only to have the install removed.

Click to expand...
no these uploads are never officially done by LibRetro, they are of course official builds of the game but uploaded to the store by others

Spukc said:
Aaand it’s gone 🤣
Click to expand...
? I can still click on the link and click on "get" if I log out
 
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01011001

01011001

Gold Member
oldergamer said:
So when you use the FTP software, where should you be looking to put your updated dolphin or other emu cores?
Click to expand...
pretty sure you can't update cores manually in retail. that is one of the downsides using this.
but this one should have relatively up to date cores I think.
 
Soodanim

Soodanim

Member
It's crazy that something like this is possible on a console so new. I wonder how long it will last. I don't mean QZArch, I mean the entire method of running the emulator and file transfer, and if it will be patched out.
 
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01011001

01011001

Gold Member
Soodanim said:
It's crazy that something like this is possible on a console so new. I wonder how long it will last. I don't mean QZArch, I mean the entire method of running the emulator and file transfer, and if it will be patched out.
Click to expand...

I mean, it is there for a long time already, multiple people have done this over the months. I'm pretty sure Microsoft is well aware of this by now. the version I linked is already on the store for at least half a month it seems. I think they won't really do too much about it as this sort of thing keeps the Xbox from being jailbroken. The Xbox One is not yet jailbroken while the PS4 is, I bet one of the reasons is that you can just run homebrew on Dev mode on Xbox One/SX and through tricks like this you don't even need dev mode.

so it is beneficial for Microsoft to let this happen to some degree I bet.
I am honestly of the opinion that they should even start endorsing it. Retroarch is 100% legal to use and the download here is also 100% legal as it doesn't contain any copyrighted material. Google and even to some degree Apple have no issue letting emulators onto their mobile storefronts.
 
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J

jaysius

Gold Member
Excellent guide, if I have the old one via whitelist is there anyway to salvage the cores and iso files that. I already have on my Series X? Do I need the other FTP program or will the one I‘ve been using still work?

On the other one I had slight but ever present jutter in Super Mario Galaxy, is this still there in this version?

Also, I think the FTP and whitelisted Retroarch we’re showing up in the games section for me before.
 
01011001

01011001

Gold Member
jaysius said:
Excellent guide, if I have the old one via whitelist is there anyway to salvage the cores and iso files that. I already have on my Series X? Do I need the other FTP program or will the one I‘ve been using still work?

On the other one I had slight but ever present jutter in Super Mario Galaxy, is this still there in this version?

Also, I think the FTP and whitelisted Retroarch we’re showing up in the games section for me before.
Click to expand...

well, first of all ROM and ISO files should not be placed inside your Retroarch folder. the reason is there is a size limit in play here. the folder of the "game" can only get so big before it will keep you from adding new games.
you should place your ISO files inside your "My Documents" folder on your Xbox, which can get as big as you want as far as I know, and it is also easily accessible by most "File Explorer" apps on the Store. so you can copy over files from a USB drive way more easily that way

everything that's smaller than ~2GB also works from USB, so that's also a great way to store most of your games.

as for salvaging anything. I mean you can try I guess. there are playlist files etc. you can find inside your Retroarch folder that you could try moving over to the new one, like save files etc... as for cores, you can't really add or change cores in Retail, you are stuck with the ones that are in there. BUT Bios files and stuff should simply be copy/paste-able for the most part.
you could look for ways to transfer files from one version to the next for the PC version. because generally the UWP/Xbox version works very similarly to the PC version of Retroarch, the only difference is the folder structure in some minor ways

the old FTP app still works, the one in the link above is the exact same app. and yes the old whitelist version was set as a "Game", only some newer uploads by other people are set to "App" which is basically unusable for more demanding games. specifically the one I linked in my warning in the OP should not be used, but apparently some people also made a white-list for such a version running as "App"

as for judder, sadly that has to do with the shaders compiling while you play. I think Dolphin currently has no option to do all of that before playing, so I think we're stuck with some stutter for now.
 
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S

Sir Vilhelm

Member
01011001 said:
oh, maybe you need to have your Xbox set up as your "Home Console"??

if this does not work, I already aked it in my first response to your comment but, what console are you on?
it's helpful to know the system. someone on Xbox One might run into issues not found on Series S or X etc.
Click to expand...

I am on a Series X and it is set to my home console. Not sure what to do so I guess I wait it out
 
01011001

01011001

Gold Member
Sir Vilhelm said:
I am on a Series X and it is set to my home console. Not sure what to do so I guess I wait it out
Click to expand...

have you uninstalled and redownloaded? also try rebooting the console if you use it in standby often.

AND install it internally! do not install it on an external drive. this could cause issues AFAIK
 
Rob_27

Rob_27

Member
Can i use a different FTP client? ive only got a crappy 32bit win 10 device.

Or will it allow USB stick with something on that instead..

Cheers.
 
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Fredrik

Fredrik

Gold Member
01011001 said:
YES! the other version is categorized as an App it seems (maybe you can confirm this. is it in you Games library or App library?) and "Apps" have way less resources available! This means it will run way slower!
the version I linked is set up so it is actually seen as a "Game" meaning it will be able to use the full power of the system
Click to expand...
How is this compared to the old Retroarch version that was put up around X|S launch?
No idea if it’s a game or app
 
S

Sir Vilhelm

Member
01011001 said:
have you uninstalled and redownloaded? also try rebooting the console if you use it in standby often.

AND install it internally! do not install it on an external drive. this could cause issues AFAIK
Click to expand...
Yup, done all that. What is strange is the Microsoft store shows my old xbox consoles and my new SX but when I go to my Microsoft account to manage devices I only have my XS. Seems its a problem with the store.
 
T

TwoHearted

Neo Member
Regarding the video guide for the FTP client. On my PC with Flash FXP I click on quick connect. And while I'm connected to my Series X, I cannot seem to find the Retrospective file. I do have retroarch downloaded and I've updated everything.
 
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