Backwards Compatibility On The Xbox Series X Sounds Incredible

Backwards compatibility on the Xbox Series X is going to be next level. Microsoft have promised thousands of BC games at launch and those games will run and look better than they have ever done in the past.

BC Next Gen

Yesterday, Jason Ronald, Director of Program Management for Xbox Series X, shared with us what backwards compatibility will look like on the XSX via a blog post on new.xbox.com. Follow the link to read the full piece. Needless to say, Microsoft are going big with BC games next gen.

First and foremost, all backward compatible games will take full advantage on the Xbox Series X hardware. BC games will run natively on the machine allowing them to harness everything the GPU, CPU and SSD have to offer. This will allow BC games to run at steady frame-rates and and render at higher resolutions while still maintaining visual quality.

BC games running on the XSX will also be able to take advantage of HDR lighting. This will true for both Xbox 360 and original Xbox titles. HDR will be handled by the platform itself and will have no impact on the games performance. This is an incredible feat when you consider that HDR didn’t even exist when these older games were initially released.

As well as HDR, BC titles will also take advantage of Fast Resume on the XSX. Fast Resume is the ability to have multiple games running at once on the system. Allowing you to jump from one title to another almost instantly and pick up exactly where you left off.

Of course, the extra power afforded by the Xbox Series X will also allow “select” backwards compatible game to run at even higher frame-rates. Games which previously ran at 30fps could now run at 60fps. And games that ran at 60fps could potentially run at 120fps. Microsoft have not said how many or which games will take advantage of this. But hopefully, at the very least, it’ll include all Xbox Game Studio titles.

Leading The Charge

This is excellent news for Xbox One owners planning on picking up an Xbox Series X later this year. Knowing that the games you own already are not only going to work on the XSX, but the fact that will run better than they have ever done before, and at no extra cost to you, is a very pro-consumer and welcome move from Microsoft. Backwards compatibility is one of the stand out features this gen from Microsoft. And it looks as though they are going the extra mile next gen to make the experience even better.

Sony, on the other hand, have been very quite regarding their own BC plans. We know that most PS4 games should run on the PS5. But what we don’t know is how this is going to be achieved or how many titles will be available at launch. It also looks as though, BC on the PS5 will be limited to PS4 games only. We’ll have to wait a bit longer to see exactly what Sony has in store, but for now at least, it looks as though Microsoft and the Xbox Series X will be leading the backwards compatibility charge heading into next gen.

Are you happy with Microsoft’s BC plan for the XSX? What games would you like to see added to the existing library? Please feel free to leave any thoughts you have in the comments below.

Image Credit gears5.com