Report: Xbox Disc-To-Digital Feature Will Allow You To Digitise Your Physical Collection
Image: Pure Xbox

Back in May, we highlighted a rumour from Windows Central about a potential disc-to-digital feature being implemented by Xbox in which you'd be able to receive digital entitlements for your physical games.

The outlet said at the time that it was very unsure on the specifics, but The Verge is now reporting a lot more details today, unveiling how it's expected to work when it's presumably revealed "in the coming months".

Firstly, the website says that the disc-to-digital feature will only support Xbox One and Xbox Series X games, and not original Xbox and Xbox 360 titles. The idea is that you'll insert the disc into one of those consoles and receive a digital entitlement that's locked to the disc itself.

Here's a bit more:

"This digital entitlement is tied to the specific disc, and it will move from account to account if you swap the physical game with a friend or log in to a different Xbox profile and try to play a disc-based game."

If the digital versions of those games support Xbox Play Anywhere or Xbox Cloud Gaming, you'll also be able to access those features as part of this. The only potential issue is with certain Xbox One discs - Microsoft has apparently been telling testers of the disc-to-digital program that "it all depends on how and when the disc was manufactured", although that might just be a quirk of the testing process.

Finally, it's mentioned that the discs will still work even after you've digitised them, and the digital entitlement won't disappear unless you loan the disc to a friend or sell it on permanently.

"Discs will still work after they’re digitized, and you’ll only lose a digital entitlement if you loan the disc to a friend or sell the disc to someone else."

"Microsoft is currently testing this new feature internally, and I expect we’ll hear more about it in the coming months."

It remains to be seen when Xbox will pull the curtain back on this feature, but it seems hopeful that it'll be before the end of the year. For what it's worth, The Verge says Microsoft "hasn't fully finalised" whether Project Helix will ship with a built-in disc drive or not, although Windows Central is of the belief that it won't.

Interesting stuff, eh? We'll let you know if and when Microsoft reveals more on this disc-to-digital feature.

What do you make of this? Let us know down in the comments section below.