eXoWin9x Project Preserves 662 Windows 95 Games in Single Portable Archive

The ambitious preservation effort solves the long-standing technical hurdles of Windows 9x emulation, delivering a pre-configured library of titles from 1994 to 1996.

For years, the preservation of MS-DOS software has been largely a solved problem, thanks to the mature ecosystem surrounding DOSBox. However, the era immediately following it, the transition to Windows 95 and 98, has remained a thorn in the side of archivists. The complexity of the operating system, driver conflicts, and the sheer size of hard drive images made a comprehensive, portable collection seemingly impossible.

That changed this week with the release of eXoWin9x Volume 1, a massive preservation project that packages 662 Windows games from the 1994–1996 era into a single, functional archive.

The project is the latest from the team behind eXoDOS, a long-running initiative to catalogue and preserve every DOS game ever made. Writing on the official project page, lead developer eXo and contributors TaraLonger and Dutchmagic detailed the technical innovations required to make the collection viable.

The "Duplicate Data" Problem

The primary obstacle to a Windows 9x collection has always been storage. Unlike DOS games, which are self-contained, Windows games require an installed operating system to function. In a typical emulation setup, each game would require its own virtual hard drive (VHD) containing a full copy of Windows 95 or 98. With hundreds of games, this would result in hundreds of gigabytes of redundant operating system data, making the pack unwieldy for distribution.

The eXoWin9x team circumvented this by developing a differential VHD system. The collection uses a single "parent" image of the Windows OS. When a user launches a game, the system references this parent image and applies a smaller, game-specific "child" image that contains only the unique files and registry changes required for that specific title.

This method allows the 662 games to fit within a 262GB footprint, a fraction of the space required if each title were isolated.

Technical Features and Scope

Volume 1 covers the formative years of 32-bit Windows gaming, including titles such as Command & Conquer, Diablo, and SimCity 2000, as well as obscure multimedia titles that have become difficult to run on modern hardware.

The collection utilises DOSBox-X and 86Box for emulation, ensuring that games run in an environment that mimics the original hardware behaviour rather than relying on modern compatibility layers. The release includes several key features designed to lower the barrier to entry:

• Portability: The entire collection is self-contained and does not modify the host operating system.
• Automated Networking: IPX networking is pre-configured, allowing for multiplayer support via a virtual tunnel without complex user setup.
• Curated Metadata: The pack uses the LaunchBox frontend to present games with standardised genre tags, developer information, and scanned manuals.

Future Volumes

This release is explicitly labelled "Volume 1," covering only the first three years of the Windows 9x lifecycle. The team has indicated that work is ongoing for subsequent volumes that will cover the years 1997 through 2000, a period that saw the explosion of 3D acceleration and significantly larger game files.

For archivists and enthusiasts, eXoWin9x represents a significant step forward in digital preservation. It moves the conversation from simply having the files to ensuring they remain accessible and functional in their original context.

The full project, including the game list and technical documentation, is available via the Retro eXo website.