160°

Publishers are the biggest obstacle for certain Xbox 360 games not appearing on Xbox One

Publishers are the biggest obstacle facing some Xbox 360 games being backwards compatible on Xbox One, according to Microsoft.

Partner director of platform management Mike Ybarra explained that game selection is based on two factors. One is fan feedback - which it is assessing through an online poll now - and the other is whether publishers will allow their games to carry forward.

"The biggest challenge we have is getting the publishers and developers to approve them. Once we get the approval, it's pretty simple," he told Digital Spy at E3 2015.

"Then we look at, what's the fan feedback on titles that they want, what's the most used Xbox 360 games right now - we take all of that and prioritise the list based on that criteria."

When asked about Xbox Original games, Ybarra said that Xbox 360 games are "our focus".

"Right now we're really focused on the fan feedback that we have on getting 360 games there," he said. "We'll have to go look at the data and see what all the fan feedback is on Originals."

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digitalspy.co.uk
fermcr3263d ago (Edited 3263d ago )

"Publishers are the biggest obstacle for certain Xbox 360 games not appearing on Xbox One"

Of course they are. If they allow their games to be BC with the X1, how would they justify the remasters/remakes?

UnHoly_One3263d ago

Yes, that is what worries me.

I'd love to have a bunch of old 360 games playable on the XB1, but I'm not holding my breath for "everything" to be made available.

bouzebbal3262d ago

the way they announced the BC was like full 360 library. Now we get a half BC.
Of course in this case publishers will be the obstacle. They need to justify the remasters they have been planning for a while.
PS4/X1 remasters from previous gen don't really add much compared to HD remasters from PS2 days. I bought almost all HD remasters from PS2 on PS3 because they added so much.
I still have my PS3 and 360 so unless there is a massive enhancement, games from last gen will stay on last gen consoles.

Mikefizzled3262d ago (Edited 3262d ago )

They didn't announce it like it was the whole library at all. They said there will be over 100 titles for its launch later this year.

If you were under the impression otherwise it will be journalists skewing their words.

freshslicepizza3262d ago

"the way they announced the BC was like full 360 library. Now we get a half BC."

it was their goal, they never once said they will have full bc. watch the e3 conference, they said 100 titles by the end.

if they have the games to also be purchased for those who want to play them but don't have the disk then this is good for those developers. it also builds new interest which can also help the publishers.

i have a suspicion certain publishers like activision will not be very supportive. they want you to buy the new call of duty games and not keep the servers going for online.

bnoyes3262d ago (Edited 3262d ago )

Why spend resources remastering a game when you can just have MS add it to the BC list and sell it for $10-20 on the Xbone. They can make money by literally doing nothing. I'm guessing most publishers would be fine with that.

I doubt that enough people bought the Games on Demand versions on the 360 for them to lose a ton of sales because people already own the games digitally.

twiggytree123262d ago

Why would someone pay $10-$20 for a game on the x1 when they could just get it used at gamestop for $4-$6 and just pop it in the x1?

dkp233262d ago

First nobody will rebuy the games and second there would be huge backlash if people were forced to repay for a game that plays exact Same as original, not even a graphics update like remasters.

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holysmokesbatman3262d ago

BUT it's also an Easley way to increase sales on old games without spending money creating remastered versions of every game. It's a no brainer.

CYCLEGAMER3263d ago

Finally....This is the first article I have seen on this. I like MS new approach of pretty much leaving everything up to the developers, but this scares me because these devs might not want people to have access to their games on the new systems. I don't see RDR coming because they probably want to milk us with a $40-$60 remaster.

I like this, because it puts the pressure on the devs, a lot of times Sony and MS get blamed for a lot of things while the devs/publishers sit back and play the innocent role. For this...you cannot blame MS if your favorite game is not BC, its on the devs now.

dkp233262d ago

Or ms has no authority to release games on a new console.

Christopher3262d ago

No s*** Sherlock.

Who puts DRM in games? Publishers
Who sells off bits of games as DLC? Publishers
Who makes ridiculous exclusive deals? Publishers
Who will not enable BC on any console if they don't get any more money from it? Publishers

thecowsaysmoo3262d ago (Edited 3262d ago )

They should have an option to buy 360 games through xbox live and play them on xbox one. This will convince a lot of publishers to release their games.

Edit: Also, there isn't that many companies making hd remasters / rereleases other than Sony and Capcom.

@Christopher

Those games are remakes and not remasters. Unlike sony/capcom games they actually put effort into those games.

Christopher3262d ago

Microsoft (MCC and GoW Remastered)
Square Enix (Tomb Raider, Sleeping Dogs)

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Bytor3262d ago

IF you could play it strait off the disk then there would be nothing they could do.

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150°

10 Biggest Xbox Mistakes of All Time (So Far)

The Xbox brand has done a lot of good over the years, but their various blunders are pretty wild to look back on in their magnitude.

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culturedvultures.com
piroh5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Ironically number 9 can save them at this point (releasing games on multiple platforms)

ChasterMies3d ago

By “save them” you mean make more profit for Microsoft. Xbox will still be a dying hardware platform.

OtterX4d ago

You could add the naming scheme for the consoles, it just confuses customers. I know they wanted to avoid traditional numbering bc it would always be lower than their competitor, but this whole 360 then One then Series thing is confusing af. Imagine a Soccer Mom trying to figure this stuff out. I still mistakenly call the Series X the One from time to time on accident.

RNTody4d ago

Don't forget about the Xbox One, Xbox One X and Xbox Series X! Good luck to Soccer moms around the world.

S2Killinit3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

They did that on purpose to confuse and direct attention away from the generational numbering.

MS doesn’t like reminding people that they joined the industry after others had already been involved in gaming.

For instance, they called the xbox “360” to combat PlayStation “3” because they wanted to seem like “more” than “3”, so instead of xbox 2, they opted for xbox 360. Also this had the additional benefit of selling consoles to uninformed parents who might purchase a “360” instead of a “3” by mistake, or because they thought 360 was more than 3. Kind of a disingenuous move.

They have been continuing with their confusing naming patterns for pretty much the same reasons. Frankly, it fits with who and what they are as a brand.

FinalFantasyFanatic3d ago

I can understand their reasoning, but whoever came up with that naming scheme should be fired, bad naming schemes have killed consoles (I'm pretty sure it was the major reason for the downfall of the WiiU). They should have had unqiue names like Nintendo and Sega have had for their consoles, far less confusing for the consumer.

rob-GP2h ago

@FinalFantasyFanatic "They should have had unqiue names like Nintendo..."

lol, you mean:

NES, SNES
GameBoy, GameBoy Advanced, GameBoy Colour, GameBoy SP
DS, DSi, DSXL
3DS, 3DS XL, New 3DS, New 3DS XL
Wii, Wii U
Switch, Switch OLED

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 2h ago
Cacabunga4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Phil Spencer is the worst that has happened to Xbox.
They built a respectable brand up to Xbox one. Then this guy took over and things became a joke

Reaper22_4d ago

He still has his job. Something you can't say about Jim Ryan.

Cacabunga4d ago

Both bad execs. One is on job and one thankfully retired.

FinalFantasyFanatic3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

I didn't like either person, both people damaged their respective brands and produced worse outcomes, but Phil did save the Xbox brand from being retired by Microsoft. Although in hindsight, he should have just let it die, rather than languish in limbo like it is now.

Rainbowcookie2d ago

Yeah but the one that was "bad" didn't even affect sales.

bunt-custardly4d ago

Phil Spencer was also on the team back when 360 was around, alongside Shane Kim, Peter Moore etc. I think the damage that did the most harm was the Don Mattrick "Always Online" console (ahead of its time basically). They handed Sony and Nintendo a free-pass when that was revealed. It went downhill from there. Then the corporate machine went into full swing to try and recover. They have to a degree as a games company for the masses, and less so for the core gamer. Outside USA, the Xbox brand does not sell as well as Japanese based consoles (citation needed).

Cacabunga4d ago

Want a decision maker. The always online and TV plans was a disaster yes, but they caught up by announcing 1st party games that gamers actually kept the hype going.. until this moron took over and introduced the PC day one release.. e all know where that ended..

S2Killinit3d ago

I dont think they were ever a respectable brand, not since the beginning, when their goal was never to be involved and share in the gaming space. I think the OG xbox was an exception because MS as a brand was still getting its foot in and so the people behind that were people of the gaming industry.

FinalFantasyFanatic3d ago

The 360 was the brand in its prime though, everything went downhill towards the end of that generation. Its staple games like Halo, Forza and Gears are what kept the console relevant and afloat for so long.

MaximusPrime_4d ago

Really good video.

I remember the days with RRoD was big news on here, N4G.

Microsoft had it turbulence number of years.

Looking at the success of Sea of Thieves despite being 6 years old, time to release Halo, Forza horizon 4 & 5 on PS5. It'll help their revenue

shinoff21834d ago (Edited 4d ago )

2 of the 4 games they did already sold really well. So it's definitely going down. Idk about halo or forza but I feel those studios they've bought in the last 5 years, their coming

ChasterMies4d ago

I found this video painful to watch. Can someone list them out?

Top 10 for me from are:
1. 2013 reveal presentation
2. Bundling Kinect 2 with Xbox One
3. RRoD or why rushing to market with hardware is always a bad idea.
4. Buying studios only to close them.
5. Ads on the Home Screen
6. Letting Halo die.
7. Letting Geard of War die.
8. Every console name
9. Charging for Xbox Live on Xbox 360 when Sony let PS3 players play online for free.
10. Cancelling release of OG Xbox games after the Xbox 360 launched.

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150°

Microsoft to Add Copilot AI to Video Games

Microsoft recently revealed its plans to incorporate Copilot directly into video games, with Minecraft being the first showcased example.

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xpgained.co.uk
Fishy Fingers8d ago (Edited 8d ago )

F*** AI

"Hey Copilot, what's a good meme to prove I dislike AI".... https://giphy.com/clips/sou...

Einhander19728d ago

Two trillion dollar company that just can't wait to put as many people possible out of work as fast as possible.

It feels like every single thing they do is making gaming worse and destroying the industry.

8d ago
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8d ago
darthv728d ago

....you know it takes people to program the AI.... right? It isnt like it is sentient. We haven't reach skynet level of situation or anywhere close to the matrix just yet.

That's next Thursday.

Einhander19727d ago (Edited 7d ago )

It takes a people to program the AI then that AI is used for who knows how many games eliminating countless jobs which only grows as AI is used for more and more game creation functions.

What you're saying is so ridiculously short sighted and truly larking any kind of understanding and foresight.

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CaptainFaisal8d ago

Why all the hate? Im actually excited about this! Always wanted this kind of immersion, and an AI companion with me all the time helping me out knowing the status of my skills/inventory/progress and giving me tips on the best approach or how to craft something specific is game changing for the industry.

Hate all you want about AI, but this is just the start and I can see the potential already. You wont be complaining in the next 5-10 years about this, but rather complain if a game hasn’t implemented it.

MrDead8d ago

Yes we can't wait for the work of others to be used without the need to pay them so that MS can profit even more from the people they fire.

I_am_Batman8d ago (Edited 8d ago )

There is no chance I'd ever use something like this, especially if it's not part of the core game design, but a layer on top of it. It's way too much handholding. Many games already feel like busy work, because they don't let the player figure things out on their own. Having a real-time interactive guide defeats the purpose of playing the game in the first place in my opinion.

If this were to become the standard like you predict, we'll see more and more video games get away with bad design, because people will just be used to ask for help from the AI companion anyway.

Number1TailzFan8d ago

Well Nintendo don't need this with some of their games these days, with invincible characters, items, easy bosses etc.. they do the hand holding built in

helicoptergirl8d ago

Takes "hand holding" in games to a whole new level.

BlackDoomAx7d ago

Because human nature xD Almost every new technology had these kind of comments.

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70°

Activision team is opening a new game studio in Poland 'Elsewhere Entertainment' to build new AAA IP

Microsoft's Activision subsidiary announced today that it is opening a new game development studio to take advantage of the huge talent pool growing in Poland. It'll be the second Activision studio based in the region, joining Infinity Ward Krakow, although this studio is, in fact, not working on Call of Duty.

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windowscentral.com
Psychonaut8512d ago

They’re not working on Call of Duty? Give it time.