Game Explorer Builder for Windows Vista




7th September 2008 Download Beta1 (Version 1.0)
(269 KB, Microsoft Windows Vista 32/64 Bit)

14th October 2008 Download Beta2 (Version 1.0)
(272 KB, Microsoft Windows Vista 32/64 Bit)
Game Explorer Builder is a tool for Windows Vista which allows you to...
  • Create, install and delete games for the Windows Game Explorer
    • Resource files are created which are registered *officialy* to Windows
    • Existing games are not required/overwritten/touched

  • Modify (reinstall) existing games from the Vista Game Explorer
    • Game Explorer Builder provides all data from an existing game to reinstall it
    • This allows to modify existing games without updating the original game in registry/on disk

  • Extract information from games in the Vista Game Explorer
    • Extract game definition file (GDF XML-File)
    • Extract icons
    • Extract thumbnails (boxart)
Which game information are supported?

Windows Parental Controls are ignored by the game explorer when the file which stores the game information is not validated. To validate a file, the Platform or DirectX SDK is required. These packages contain tools to create certificates etc. - for more information visit this link.
  • Title and Description
  • Windows Experience Rating
  • Version, Genres and Release-Date
  • Developers and Publishers
  • Icon (.ico) and Thumbnail (any image)
  • Execution- and Support-Links (right-click in Game Explorer)
  • Parental Control (e.g. ESRB-Ratings) are not supported
How does Game Explorer Builder work?

When the user installs a game in Windows Vista, the installer registers a special file from the installed game to Windows using the Platform API. This special file contains a XML file which stores all metadata for the game and the icon/boxart which is used to show the game in the Vista Game Explorer. In addition to the XML file some information can be stored in the registry.

Game Explorer Builder generates the XML file which contains the metadata and uses a resource compiler and linker to create a new DLL file. This file is then *officialy* registered to the Game Explorer using the Platform API (just like an official game).

Screenshots from the beta version

Game List:
Screenshot1 Screenshot2

Edit Game:
Screenshot1 Screenshot2 Screenshot3 Screenshot4

Install Game:
Screenshot1

Contact and Error Reporting

Please help to improve Game Explorer Builder. Send information about your system, Windows version and error messages to this mail address.