What is Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation?

Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation is an open-source recompilation of Need for Speed: Most Wanted. The original game's compiled code translated into a native program for a new platform, usually a PC port.

Do I need the original game files to run Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation?

Yes. The project does not include the original game's assets, so you need your own copy.

How is Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation licensed?

project: GNU General Public License v3.0 (project). The repository itself is the authoritative source.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation

RecompilationActive

The original game's compiled code translated into a native program for a new platform, usually a PC port.

Based on Need for Speed: Most Wanted

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Image of the original game, Need for Speed: Most Wanted. This project has no screenshots of its own yet.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted (original game, not this project) — Image of the original game, Need for Speed: Most Wanted. This project has no screenshots of its own yet.

Links, repository & details

About

A static native recompilation of Need for Speed: Most Wanted (2005) for Xbox 360, built on the ReXGlue SDK. The README says it is not an emulator: the PowerPC code in default.xex is translated ahead of time into C++ and compiled to a native x86-64 binary, while the SDK provides the Xbox 360 kernel calls, filesystem, audio, input and a Xenos GPU to Direct3D 12 translation. It describes the game as playable with rough edges.

Getting started

You need your own ISO or GOD dump of the Xbox 360 game and a Windows 10/11 x64 machine with Visual Studio 2022 Build Tools, CMake, Ninja, Clang 20+ and Python. The build scripts extract default.xex from your ISO, patch and rebuild the ReXGlue SDK, run the code generator and package a portable build folder.

Known issues & limitations

Vulkan renders a black screen on Intel; it has not been tested elsewhere.

What you need to run it

Original game files required. The project ships code only; you provide your own copy of the game.

You need your own ISO or GOD dump of the Xbox 360 game.

Features

The game is playable from boot through the prologue and into free roam.
D3D12 graphics work, with two selectable EDRAM emulation paths; the faster path roughly doubles frame rate on integrated GPUs.
Internal resolution scaling works up to 4×.
Save games work.
V-sync and frame limiting work through a local patch.

Summarised from the project's README.

Status & roadmap

The README says boot, menus, free roam, audio, Direct3D 12 graphics, controller and keyboard, and save games work; Vulkan renders black on Intel, and multiplayer does not work.

Additional notes

Performance: It is reported to run through the prologue into free roam on an Intel Iris 540 at roughly 18-38 FPS at 854x480.

FAQ

What is Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation?: Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation is an open-source recompilation of Need for Speed: Most Wanted. The original game's compiled code translated into a native program for a new platform, usually a PC port.
Do I need the original game files to run Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation?: Yes. The project does not include the original game's assets, so you need your own copy.
How is Need for Speed: Most Wanted Recompilation licensed?: project: GNU General Public License v3.0 (project). The repository itself is the authoritative source.