Xbox’s eighth-gen game console, the Xbox One generation, had many ups and mostly downs. But one of the biggest ups was the existence of Xbox’s backward compatibility program, which allowed users to play Xbox 360 and Original Xbox games on the hardware. Jump forward a console generation and the expansion of Xbox Cloud Gaming, we now ask, can Xbox Backwards Compatibility help make Xbox Cloud Gaming more desirable?
Xbox Has Several Disadvantages Compared To Nintendo and PlayStation
Right, let’s start with the biggest point, Xbox lacks a library that’s as widely available as PlayStation and Nintendo. This isn’t just based on Xbox Cloud Gaming, but also the fact that Xbox has seemingly abandoned backwards compatibility. Meanwhile, PlayStation and Nintendo have opened their legacy game vaults and uploaded several notable games to their own subscription services. Sure, Xbox Cloud Gaming has some notable classic games. Such as the titles in the Gears of War series on the Xbox 360 and Rare Replay. That said, Xbox Cloud Gaming is missing the breath of classic games its main competition has.
With Xbox now being a sister division within Microsoft Gaming to Activision Blizzard, many people can make the assumption that Xbox Backwards Compatibility could have been reborn starting with ABK games and slowly moving on to getting more classic games on Xbox Cloud Gaming.
The Xbox 360 Store Died, So Now Is The Perfect Time
Recently, Microsoft shutdown the digital storefront for their most popular console, the Xbox 360. In this move, hundreds of popular games and indie games you may have forgotten about have now been delisted and are unable to be purchased. Xbox has a huge opportunity here with its backwards compatibility service. It could also be huge for Xbox Cloud Gaming. With hundreds of classic Xbox 360 games delisted, Xbox could be helping these developers to bring these games to modern Xbox platforms and license a number of them for Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming.
Final Thoughts
Xbox Cloud Gaming needs to do something to grab the attention of more gamers. Backwards compatibility is the easiest way to grab some attention. If Xbox can convince more developers to allow their classic Xbox and Xbox 360 games run on Xbox Series X/S hardware, that would have huge benefits for the Xbox Cloud Gaming service, especially when Xbox allows you to stream owned games. With the Xbox 360 digital store now being shuttered, it is the perfect time to work with small developers to make those games available on modern Xbox products and license those games for Xbox Cloud Gaming.
I’m not saying Xbox needs to directly compete against services like Antstream Arcade. Their whole platform is built around games from between the 1970s and the 2000s. But what I am saying is backwards compatibility for a number of classic Xbox 360 indie games and more well-known Original Xbox games which can then be licensed to Xbox Cloud Gaming could help attract many new interested gamers to Xbox Cloud Gaming.
What do you think? Do you think Xbox Backwards Compatibility Could Help Grow Xbox Cloud Gaming? Let us know on social media.
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