Replay AC1 and AC2 Story Missions on Xbox 360
An Xbox Memory Unit and Transfer Kit make it possible for a user to replay any assassination mission almost directlyAn Xbox Memory Unit and Transfer Kit make it possible for a user to replay any mission almost directly. You can skip to a point just before an assassination mission, which saves a tremendous amount of time. It takes some money and effort to set this up, but it is well worth it since it makes the game vastly more pleasant to replay.
Note that this process works exactly the same way on both Asssassin's Creed 1 and 2. The main difference is the filename: "assassin.sav" on AC1 and "ASSASSINSCREED2SAVEGAME1" on AC2.
Purchase the following items:
Xbox 360 Memory Unit
Transfer Kit for Xbox 360
If you have an Xbox Arcade configuration without a hard drive, you CAN get away with using a single memory unit and running it back and forth between the Xbox and PC. However, it will be more convenient to use two memory units. Treat one of the memory units as your "hard drive" and follow the steps in the video.
Create the following folders on your PC:
MB2 - Tamir
MB3 - Garnier
MB3 - Talal
MB4 - Abul
MB4 - William
MB4 - Majd
MB5 - Sibrand
MB5 - Jubair
MB6 - Robert 1
MB6 - Robert 2
Never start a game using the Memory Unit as your storage device. It only contains "golden" savegames and must not be updated by the game's auto-save mechanism.
Start a new game. Play through the game as you would normally, but archive your savegame each time you've completed your investigations. Quit the game. Copy your savegame from the hard disk to the memory unit. Take your memory unit to your PC and copy it to the folder with the appropriate name (using the Transfer Kit and XPort 360 software). Relaunch the game, talk to the Bureau leader, and continue playing.
If you want to replay an assassination, reverse the procedure. Copy the savegame from your PC to the memory unit using XPort. Then copy from the memory unit to your Xbox hard drive. Your mission will reload in the Bureau. Don't leave for the assassination yet - you still need to talk to the Bureau leader first.
The gameplay isn't the same as when you simply reload a previous memory block from the Animus. This has some benefits and disadvantages. Here are the main differences:
1) You may not have as much health. Ordinarily, the bonus sync bars that you earn by completing viewpoints and save citizens can be applied to previously played Memory Blocks that are reloaded using the Animus. Typically, this extra health only really matters when performing stunt assassinations.
2) You will be penalized for injuring civilians. This also means that you can easily commit suicide to restart an assassination attempt. Just kill a few civilians.
3) You will have more abilities in some missions. For example, if you played Garnier before Talal in Memory Block 3, your savegame of Talal will have throwing knives.
4) You won't have Eagle Vision unless you are fully synchronized.
5) Any new viewpoints and save citizens will not be saved for future gameplay, so you can't build up your sync bar.
6) Flags and Templars will not be saved for future gameplay. This makes it easy to replay Templar assassinations.
Thanks to IanXO4 and mshi for their contributions to this strategy.
There is an analogous process on PS3 and PC. For PS3, see this video. For the PC, go here.
It's USBXTAFGUI.
This sounds like a bad idea. The Xbox wants the memory card to have a certain format, which I suspect the camera will clobber. So you will end up reformatting the memory card before each use. It will do in a pinch but it would be more convenient to have two memory cards. USB memory cards must be a dime a dozen. I've never had to buy one because every time I turn around somebody's giving me one for free.
You have two options when formatting the memory card, configure and customize. Configure formats the whole card, but customize formats only part of it (how much space you choose). I've done this since backing up save files and no problems have occurred.
Gamertag:THBmemberAurel
Bartolomeo: "What do you mean?"
Ezio: ...
Bartolomeo: "Why?"
Did you use USB Xtaf Xplorer, Modio or something else?
I think it was something like that. What's very convenient about all this is the same memory card from the camera I use to record the videos I also use to transfer the files. That's killing two birds with one blade there. 
And lets not forget having to change the save file name back or the xbox won't recognize it.
Gamertag:THBmemberAurel
Bartolomeo: "What do you mean?"
Ezio: ...
Bartolomeo: "Why?"
stabguy wrote:
Did you use USB Xtaf Xplorer, Modio or something else?I think it was something like that.
Oh, sorry. That was a multiple choice question:
- USB Xtaf Xplorer
- Modio
- None of the above
What's very convenient about all this is the same memory card from the camera I use to record the videos I also use to transfer the files.
This sounds like a bad idea. The Xbox wants the memory card to have a certain format, which I suspect the camera will clobber. So you will end up reformatting the memory card before each use. It will do in a pinch but it would be more convenient to have two memory cards. USB memory cards must be a dime a dozen. I've never had to buy one because every time I turn around somebody's giving me one for free.
And lets not forget having to change the save file name back or the xbox won't recognize it.
I never change the name of the file to begin with so there's no need to change it back. To identify and organize save files on the computer, use descriptive folder names like "AC2/S2M3 - Uberto Alberti". I will address this in the updated video as it could be a common pitfall.
Well I changed the game file name back and it worked! Thanks a bunch, Jedted. 
Gamertag:THBmemberAurel
Bartolomeo: "What do you mean?"
Ezio: ...
Bartolomeo: "Why?"
this is coming up as a private video. can you change the youtube settings back to public?
Huh. I wonder how that happened. Fixed.
Recent news indicates that sometime in the near future Microsoft will be releasing a new feature update for the Xbox 360 which will enable using "USB mass storage devices" in lieu of a hard drive and/or memory unit. The device must be at least 1GB in size, as up to 512MB of 'system data' is also saved onto the device.
1GB USB thumb drives are pretty cheap these days and you can find them everywhere. Even 7-Eleven sells them. Once this update hits, you won't even need a memory unit to backup your saves.
Microsoft will be releasing a new feature update for the Xbox 360 which will enable using "USB mass storage devices" in lieu of a hard drive and/or memory unit.
This update is now available. It is a mandatory update when connecting to Xbox Live.
Asaic wrote:
Microsoft will be releasing a new feature update for the Xbox 360 which will enable using "USB mass storage devices" in lieu of a hard drive and/or memory unit.This update is now available. It is a mandatory update when connecting to Xbox Live.
About that. When I put the game save on the usb and then tried to put it on the computer it didn't show up. But luckily someone had a program that could extract the game save file. But later when I tried to put it back on the xbox it didn't work. 
It still shows it as a game save file when I go to memory but doesn't show up when I go to the Assassins Creed start menu. Does anyone know anything about this? Perhaps someone could make a video on the new way to back up save files (please).
Gamertag:THBmemberAurel
Bartolomeo: "What do you mean?"
Ezio: ...
Bartolomeo: "Why?"
When I put the game save on the usb and then tried to put it on the computer it didn't show up.
The USB will contain one hidden folder called "Xbox360". You can either type that name into Windows Explorer or tell Windows to show hidden files, folders and drives. Inside the folder will be a bunch of files called Data0000, Data0001, etc. Most of these files represent 1GB of free space on the drive in the Xbox filesystem format. Access to this raw data is of little use.
But luckily someone had a program that could extract the game save file.
Did you use USB Xtaf Xplorer, Modio or something else?
Perhaps someone could make a video on the new way to back up save files (please).
I'm planning on it. My new Xbox doesn't have a memory unit connector, so I have to update my procedure anyway. It will be a good opportunity to also update the video to AC2, the title that benefits most from Skipping.
If you change the name of the file then the game doesn't recognize it. Also you can't have two identical save files in the same folder either.
Hope this helps, i've only a little bit of experience with this so i don't know much.
If you change the name of the file then the game doesn't recognize it. Also you can't have two identical save files in the same folder either.Hope this helps, i've only a little bit of experience with this so i don't know much.
HOLEY FREAKAZOID!!!! That explains it. If you change the name back will it work again?
Gamertag:THBmemberAurel
Bartolomeo: "What do you mean?"
Ezio: ...
Bartolomeo: "Why?"
Asaic called my attention to this cheap alternative to the Transfer Kit:
http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110502038559
It also works with the Xport and Xplorer software. This auction ends on April 2, 2010. For future reference, the item name is "PC to XBox 360 Memory Unit Card USB Transfer Adapter". Search eBay and you'll currently find many hits (some as low as $0.99 plus shipping).
Thanks for the tip, Asaic.
Some copies of the Transfer Kit come with a disc containing the application XChange 360 rather than the preferred XPort 360. For those unlucky few, download XPort 360 here:
http://us.codejunkies.com/support/article.aspx?article_id=272
Newer versions of XPort come with an installer that does not automatically install the Memory Unit drivers. When Windows asks for drivers for the newly-found hardware, direct it to the folder in which you installed XPort 360 (usually C:\Program Files\Datel\XPort 360\ for 32-bit Windows or C:\Program Files (x86)\Datel\XPort 360\ for 64-bit Windows).