Talking Point: How Important Is Backwards Compatibility To You?

I love backwards compatibility- makes me more likely to upgrade in terms of consoles if I can play the games I hadn’t gotten to.

Very important, I would say it's a must have for me.. Right now i have over 50 physical xbox one games on my game case. The thought of being able to play these games any time i want over to the next generation for another 8 years sounds amazing to me..

Not really bothered, it's a nice bonus but not really necessary

Plus my brother recently game me his old 360s to replace my broken 360 so i don't need it at all

I always keep my old systems

To me, its not important. I always keep my old consoles anyway, but when I dive into a new gen I move forward with newer games, when I buy the series x it will be to play series x games, not Xbox One releases. But, I can see why people would like it

It's a pretty important marketing tool. I think gamers are much more likely to stick with a brand if they're able to carry all of their old games forward to the new console.

But I think the question of Backwards Compatibility is much more important than whether it's essential for gamers. The videogame industy, unlike books, movies, or music, seem to have little care for preserving their own history short of companies like Capcom or Nintendo. If few people care about past games, it's partly because the industry hasn't done enough to be careful stewards of preserving their own legacy.

This became really apparent while I was playing the Metal Gear Solid Series. On Xbox1 it isn't possible to play MGS1 and 4, but on the PS4 MGSV is the only game available. This is a game that relies heavily on the history of the franchise, and many of the emotional call backs are pretty hollow without having played any of the older games. Sure, some people who are gamers have kept their consoles since they started gaming, but there are new people getting into video games all the time. Should a gamer miss out on the rich history of video games because they weren't alive when Super Nintendo and Playstation 1 came out? Watching a let's play is a poor substitute to actually enjoying the game yourself.

It's more than backwards compatibility. It's the games that I love, enhanced. So, yeah, it's very, very important for me.

I think it's important, it's one of the main reasons I got the one X, before Xmas. Other than the couple exclusives I wanted to play such as killer instinct and rare reply (which I think kicked off the BC anyway).

I know it's still a huge library but I am somewhat gutted that there's still alot of favourites that are not BC and more importantly made region free like Tony hawk Pro skater 2X.

I was a bit shocked Halo 1 and 2 weren't BC, I did end up playing them on the MCC on game pass but I was quite looking forward to picking up second hand copies for a quid in CEX so I could add them to my physical library.

Most important to me is that any new games made BC for the Series X are also available on the One X as I won't be buying the Series X any time soon, if at all.

I'd rather they just threw the emulator out into the wild even if there wasn't 100% compatibility with every game because soon enough there would be a full list online with user contributions that details any faults or oddities with certain games running on the emulator.

although I have the OG Xbox up I still feel it’s an amazing option if for nothing else to help keep wear and tear off my old systems. Also, really like the enhancements the series x is bring to these old titles.

Dude, I can't think of anything more important to me than backwards compatibility

I second what @KratosMD posted.

It’s very important to me. I play lots of older games on my Xbox One all the time.

I still have my OG Xbox, 360, XB1S and X so BC is not that important to me. I do like the idea of games being enhanced without the need to buy a remastered version but I rarely replay games I have completed. Remasters though do offer a new set of achievements which is an added incentive to me.

I do think its better to have and not need/use than want and not being available. I have an increasingly large backlog of games and they would be less likely to be played on an older hardware and much more likely if the newer hardware offers a tangible upgrade. I know a LOT play the 360 GwG on their XB1 so that shows its a worthwhile addition. I am more likely to play a 360 game on XB1 than on my 360 now too...

It's a feature that's nice to have, especially early on in a console's life, but one that's rarely actually utilized. Once in a blue moon, I'll have a desire to replay a game from a previous generation, but honestlythe vast majority of gamers will spend the vast majority of their time (if not all of it) using their new console to play new games. The idea of backwards compatibility is so much more important (to most at least) than its actual implementation.
You don't buy a brand new system to play games that you can already play. You buy it to play the new stuff. I'd be surprised if a single person on this site who has an XBox One has spent more than 10% of their time on it playing xbox 360 or xbox original games. This will be no different.

@Bmartin001 Be honest with yourself though; how often over the next 8 years are you going to want to go back and play those 50 last gen games?

@ralphdibny Ok, that's pretty funny. You don't even want backwards compatibility for the next gen, you want it for the current one? How does it help Microsoft to enable more backwards compatibility on a last gen system once the Series X comes out? If having those past gen libraries available to you is that important, you should upgrade. Microsoft is clearly catering to those who prize BC above all else with Series X. If not, suck it up, because I wouldn't expect MS to prioritize making past gen games more compatible with other past gen consoles. They'll be looking ahead.

It's cool but I won't be going back beyond this current gen. Sure I've missed some gems from the past but to be honest there's barely enough time to keep up with current games coming out. Can't play everything but I'm glad it's there for people who want it.

Backwards compatibility is easily the biggest thing that's pulling me back toward MS as opposed to Sony this time around. For a traditional console that's chained to a TV, the idea of support for so many games is appealing to me.

But frankly, I don't care about all this talk of ray tracing, 4K, and all these various specs and numbers. Game play and story are what matter to me, graphics are only a minor issue. I grew up with the NES and Game Boy. Graphics are nice, but not even quite a secondary factor.

New games are nice but at the end of the day, I can’t always afford them. And even when I can, after I’m done with them then what? It’s not like your always getting a deluge of games. And it’s not like your getting a Witcher 3 or Breath of the Wild every month. There is time in between and I’d rather play something I know I enjoy.

To me, BC is super important because I love going back and playing the old games. But apparently a lot of people do or they wouldn’t make remasters. The nice thing with Xbox is you don’t have to rebuy them and often times they end up with enhancements. Final Fantasy XIII comes to mind. It’s not something you can just play on PlayStation, but you can play it anytime on Xbox.

At the moment, I’m playing an Advanced game. Which insisted I play it. That said I know a lot of people keep old consoles and I do too, but space is a premium to me. A system that is newer and still supports my library is very nice.

Old games are like old books and I’d rather not rebuy my collections every decade.

Backwards compatibility is great. There are so many older games that I only discover years after the system is not supported anymore. Case in point, I'm just finishing Dead Space on 360 via my One S. Looks great. Plus the way games are organised on the system means I can always see what I can download to play (which wasn't so clear on the 360).

Very important after enjoying it so much on Xbox One. Microsoft added it free of charge even when including upgrades and enhancements and they're willing to include any game (only limited by publishers and old peripherals). They couldn't have done it better and it's a key part of Xbox now.

For me, as someone who didn't have an Xbox this generation, backwards compatibility is quite a big thing. The ability to play 360 games is quite nifty as well, as there is only so much space under my telly.

It's critically important; in fact the BC for Xbox One didn't go nearly far enough. Titles like Namco Museum Remixed for Xbox 360 and Namco Museum 50th Anniversary, Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics, and TimeSplitters 2 were all left out of the mix this time around. The original Xbox in particular was very poorly represented. The remaining titles in both catalogs need to be added ASAP.

Microsoft made a point of promising full backwards compatibility in all future consoles, so the very next generation is absolutely NOT the time to hope gamers forgot about that promise.

One of the most important feature sin my opinion. That's the feature which made me buy an Xbox One X.