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How to manually modify Vista's Games interface.

Just did a little snooping, and found the way to edit the Games interface in Vista. When you install a game, it will automatically be added to the Games menu. I've installed Vista twice now, and both times, it incorrectly labeled Half-Life 2 as Half-Life: Source, and did not put in box art for it.

After searching within this interface, I found there is no way to edit it. However, after a little registry searching, I've found where these entries are, and I can confirm that changes work perfectly fine.

Entries are located at Local_Machine/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/GameUX.

Inside is a folder named Games, which is simply the games that came with Windows. In my particular case, there were two more folders under the Games folder that started with S-1*******and so-on and so-on. The first of those two are where my installed games reside, and once you see inside, there is a key for each and every thing you could hope to modify.

If you have games that registered correctly, you'll notice the box art is simply a URL from a Microsoft site. So to input the Half-Life 2 box art, I went to ebgames.com, and input the URL to their box art on the game page, and voila, works perfectly. I also changed the name back to Half-Life 2 from HL:Source, and I'm looking great now!

Hope this helps some of you.

**UPDATE** - Last night after posting this, the Games menu automatically added the Steam client to the list. I decided to keep it, and went to steampowered.com to get a logo for it. I input this URL into the registry, and the logo popped up fine. However, I then decided that I wanted to make my own logo with the correct aspect ratio, so it looked like box art, and blended nicely with the others. I like the look of cleanliness 🙂.

So I made a new logo, input the path from my Pictures folder, and I found that it would not change the logo in the Games menu. It kept with the first one I put in. I tried and tried and tried to get it to change to the new logo, but it was stuck on the first one I entered. What the hell?

I finally spied the entry "TimeToRefreshBoxArt". Since this is all hex code, I went to modify, changed the Base to Decimal, and input a value of just 1. I assumed this was in seconds, and lo and behold, this finally refreshsed my logo. I proceeded to set it back to what it was (make sure you copy the value before changing it!).

This fixed me right up!
 
I've just updated on how to change the box art from your original entry. Once you've input a URL or path name for the box art, it will remember that art for a set amount of time no matter how much change the URL or path to it afterwards.
 
Hi,

Ok awesome thread first off.. I did follow all the directions above, and yet nothing changes in the Games Explorer as far as BoxArt. I can change the name but thats about it. Is there something Im missing???

Thanks for all your help

Mike
 
Not sure bud. The directions listed above are about the extent of what I know. What game are you trying to modify? Did you read and follow the update at the bottom about refreshing the box art? Also, I'm not sure if there is a limit on pixel dimensions with the box art, so maybe make the picture a bit smaller?
 
The instructions are in the top post, all underneath the **UPDATE**. Be sure to read them carefully before trying anything though, I'm not responsible for anything you mess up 🙂.
 
Still didnt change the boxart.. Man I really want this to work..

I used a 155x220 .PNG image of the box... also tried a .jpg

Do they have to be in a certain place in the games registry entry..

The ones that just show up as icons in games explorer. dont have the boxart, and timetorefreshboxart strings in the regisry, so i add them manually..

BoxArt c:\User\Michael\Documents\Startrek.png
TimeToRefreshBoxArt (I modify to Decimal, and set it as 1_

But then I go into Games Explorer and no change
Any other ideas??

Ive also tried putting the EBgames URL into the BoxArt line, yet still no change in games explorer
 
I've tried and tried but unfortunately can't get box art to update. You think it would be a simple task. Maybe someone in the future will create a program that can automate the process.
 
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