Xbox One backward compatibility ends as Microsoft works on Project Scarlett
Out with the old and in with the new.
E3 2019 for Microsoft is all about its next-gen Xbox console, called Project Scarlett.
As part of that focus, Microsoft on Monday released its final batch of classic Xbox games that've been re-engineered for compatibility with the current Xbox console, the Xbox One. Now, instead of tweaking more older games to work on the Xbox One, the company will start working on making Xbox One games compatible with upcoming iterations of the console.
"We have now shifted our focus to help make the games you love playing on Xbox One compatible with future Xbox hardware," Jason Ronald, director of the Xbox platform, said in a blog post. "After this week, we have no plans to add additional Original Xbox or Xbox 360 titles to the catalog on Xbox One, but we're excited to continue our work on Xbox compatibility across platforms and devices, which remains a top priority."
Microsoft began Xbox One backward compatible support in 2015, first with Xbox 360 games, then eventually with original Xbox games. The company would deliver periodic updates of older titles to make them compatible with the latest console.
Microsoft officially announced its new Xbox console on Sunday during the company's E3 press conference. The next-generation hardware will have an SSD drive, GDDR6 RAM and a CPU and GPU from AMD that'll make the system four times more powerful than the Xbox One, the company says.
Microsoft didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.