You may have heard the term “backward compatibility” thrown up in conversations about current and next-gen consoles. In particular, Microsoft’s addition of backward compatibility with Xbox One has resonated greatly in the gaming world.
You may be wondering what the big deal is. What is Xbox backwards compatibility?
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Meaning of backward compatibility
The concept of backward compatibility is quite simple. When a company releases a new version of a media device, it can still play media created for its predecessor. In some cases, it may also work with some accessories designed for older machines.
Backward compatibility was actually quite common in the past. For example, Sega Genesis (aka MegaDrive) is actually compatible with the Sega Master System. All you need is a cartridge adapter. Similarly, PlayStation 2 is fully backwards compatible with PlayStation 1 Game.
This means that players have no reason to hold back from upgrading to a new console. They know their existing game library will work on the new machine.
However, providing backward compatibility can be both difficult and expensive when there are fundamental and fundamental differences in hardware between this console generation and the next. Thanks to a number of experiments by console manufacturers in the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 eras, Xbox backwards compatibility has come to the fore.
However, with the next generation of consoles looking to stick with the current generation architecture, it could once again become a standard feature from this point forward.
Summary of Xbox console generations
There are three generations of Xbox consoles available, with a fourth coming at the time of writing:
- Xbox (now called “Original Xbox”)
- Xbox 360
- Xbox One (Including Xbox One X Enhanced)
- Xbox Series X (next generation coming)
Each of these has their own backward compatibility characteristics. So let’s see which games will work on which console.
Xbox backward compatibility by console
The original Xbox had absolutely no backwards compatibility. This makes perfect sense, since this is the first generation of Xbox. It was released to compete with the PlayStation 2 and so its games look like most titles from that gaming era.
Xbox 360 is backward compatible with original Xbox titles. However, it is not compatible with all of them. There is a rather short list Original Xbox games are certified to work on Xbox 360. You also need an Xbox 360 with a hard drive as compatibility for these games is added through system updates.
Xbox One didn’t launch with backwards compatibility, and no one expected it, given how different Xbox One hardware is from Xbox 360 hardware. Then the geniuses at Microsoft had a breakthrough with their Xbox 360 emulator and now there is a long list of tested and certified original Xbox 360 and Xbox games that will work on Xbox One.
As for the console that will follow the Xbox One, it will almost certainly be backwards compatible with Xbox One games, but according to the system designers, the aim is to make this new console backward compatible with every previous generation of Xbox. Time will tell whether they succeed or not.
How to play backwards compatible Xbox games
If you’re an Xbox 360 owner, all you have to do to play original Xbox games is insert the disc. After making sure that you are running the latest version of the system software. You can also find the original Xbox games as digital downloads on the Xbox Live store, but you’ll have to buy them of course.
The process is largely the same. When you insert an Xbox 360 disc into your Xbox One, the console downloads a digital copy of the game that has been optimized to work with the Xbox 360 emulator on Xbox One. The disc itself is only used to verify that you own a copy of the game.
If you’ve purchased digital Xbox 360 games that are on the backward compatible list, you can simply download them to your Xbox One. These do not require the original disk in the drive. If you put an Xbox 360 game on your Xbox One that isn’t on the backward compatibility list, you’ll get an error message saying the game isn’t working yet.
Make sure to update your system software, in case that header has been added in the meantime. Although at the time of writing, Microsoft has paused the certification project.
Limitations and things to keep in mind
Xbox One is not backward compatible with previous generation consoles at the hardware level. Which means it uses to compete to play older titles. It’s basically a software technique that creates a virtual version of an older console, tricking the software into thinking it’s running on the original hardware.
Virtualizing an entire console takes quite a bit of processing power, so it’s quite impressive that the Xbox team was able to make it work so well with the limitations of the base Xbox version.
If you’re lucky enough to own one of the improved Xbox One X consoles, certain Xbox 360 titles will offer “Xbox One X enhanced” The way. These games have higher resolutions, faster and more consistent frame rates, and often run much better than they did on the original console.
However, thanks to the reliance on emulation, it’s unlikely that every previous generation game will be added to the list. At least not when it comes to Xbox One. With a more powerful Xbox generation coming, we could very well see the list of compatible titles expand significantly.
