The Xbox One and PC are becoming more and more interconnected, with a lot of Xbox exclusive games coming to PC, but can you transfer game save data from your Xbox and play right where you left off on your PC? I decided to find out.
You can only transfer game saves between Xbox and PC if the game is part of the Xbox play anywhere platform as it downloads saves from the cloud, even if you buy games through stream or Game Pass a PC cannot encrypt Xbox save data so data cannot be transferred.
See here for a complete list of Xbox play anywhere games where cross saves are possible via the cloud.
I know it sounds confusing but I will explain why transferring save data across platforms is hard and how to transfer Xbox One recording to your PC!
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Why You Cannot Transfer Xbox One Games To PC
You can transfer Xbox One games and data to a USB drive no problem(see below) but to the PC these data files are encrypted, and your PC cannot understand these save files.
It is possible for your PC to decrypt these files so you can play your Xbox One game data on the PC, but if your PC decrypted these files you won’t be able to play it again on the Xbox One, as the Xbox One will not understand the game data anymore.
If you’re wondering if you can transfer your GTA Online character from PC to Xbox One check my post here.
Transferring non-cross-platform games from Xbox One to PC is only possible with Bethesda games like Skyrim, as certain coders have made tools that allow you to move save data from Xbox 360 to PC, but these tools are platform and game-specific.
For a game that is not Skyrim to be moved from Xbox One to PC like Witcher 3, someone needs to create a tool for that game for Xbox One which is not easy to do. and takes a lot of time and dedication to create.
If your game data is cross-platform like Fortnite or Rocket league or is an Xbox play anywhere game, everything is saved on the cloud and very little is based on your Xbox One so transferring saves is easy.
To understand more about cross-platform gaming and how it works, please check this post.
But why would developers not make cross saves more possible? Different consoles and PCs have different BIOS which is is the console or PCs output/input system, that affect how your device boots up after you turn it on, and different decoding options making cross saves difficult to create.
Every console and specific games would need separate modifications for cross saves, and there isn’t enough interest for developers to make it a fully supported function.
However, you can transfer Xbox One saved data and game files into a USB for storage purposes, as if your Xbox One Is 500GB it will often run out of space, see below for a guide on how to transfer data to a USB.
How To Transfer Xbox Recordings To PC
It is SUPER easy to download your amazing kill streaks or walkthroughs straight into your PC for easy editing, I will walk you through not one but three methods! Look at the above video for a visual explanation.
- Save your Xbox One Clips to your Xbox One’s internal hard drive
- Navigate to your clips and select the ones you want and upload them straight to Microsoft One Drive
- Login to Microsoft One Drive with your Xbox login and download all the clips you want straight to your computer! Easy as pie.
How To Transfer Xbox Recordings To PC Using A Third Party Site
Third-party sites like Xbox Clips(link) allow you to search your gamer tag and download all published video clips or screenshots straight to your PC in MP4 format! Too good to be true right?
The problem with these sites is who knows what these third parties are doing with your information? But still, it makes things so much easier.
- Go https://xboxclips.co/ and search your gamertag
- Download any video or screen shot you ever published via that gamertag!
How To Transfer Xbox Recordings To PC Using USB
If your old school like me, this allows you to download game files straight into your PC in 4K quality! Even better, using a USB whilst recording footage extends your recording to 1 hour!
You will need a USB 3.0 to do this and I recommend the SanDisk Ultra that has super fast loading times which you need for your Xbox One, get it for a AMAZING price around $7.99 on Amazon here.
- Firstly check to see if your USB is the right format by plugging your USB into the PC and right-clicking the USB to check the properties
- If it isn’t back up all the data on your USB either onto a computer or another USB, right-click on USB hit format and see either FAT 32 or ExFAT
- Plug your formatted USB into the Xbox One and your Xbox will say do you want to “use this for media” say yes
- Record your gameplay like normal and everything will be saved into your USB for easy editing!
How To Back Up Xbox One Saves To USB
You will need a USB 3.0 to do this and I recommend the SanDisk Ultra that I mentioned or even better the stupid fast Seagate 2TB external hard drive that will work for your Xbox, and even PS4 and PC! See the best price on Amazon here.
- Plugin your USB or external hard drive into your Xbox One
- Go to settings-system-storage
- You will see your external hard drive, go to an internal hard drive, and tick the games or data you want to transfer.
- Transfer the games into your hard drive/USB!
If it doesn’t work you must format your USB or Hard drive which is mentioned above in this post.
Transform your Xbox and PC gaming experience learn about the best Xbox/PC accessories down below on Amazon.
Recommend Products
SanDisk Ultra 32GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive (Amazon Link)
Seagate 2TB External Hard Drive(Amazon Link)
