After researching why I was unable to successfully play Halo 2 on my Xbox 360, I found numerous articles that have brought me to the conclusion that I bought a counterfeit hard drive off of eBay a couple years ago. (source 1, source 2)
Sadly, it seems like I'm not going to be playing Halo 2 with this hard drive since it is missing the second partition that allows for reverse compatibility with original Xbox titles. According to the sources I've read, my only option is to get a new hard drive.
While I really don't want to have to buy a new Xbox hard drive, would it be possible for me to play original Xbox titles using an official Xbox 360 flash drive?
I saw one of this nifty 8GB storage flash drives, and I think that would work best for me if they work with the second partition that my Xbox seems to lack. It's the 8 GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive by SanDisk that I'm looking at.
Hopefully I can get to play some original Xbox games with a flash drive!
Best Answer
No, you need a Microsoft Hard Drive for your Xbox 360.
The flash units that you can pop into the front of the Xbox only provide space for save games and do not come with the requisite software to support Xbox games. The ones that says certified by Microsoft or certified for Xbox, like that sandisk unit, only means they match the speed requirements the Xbox 360 places on these units.
So, your only option is to buy a new disk.