Xbox are rolling out no less than 104 old Xbox 360 titles into the Backward Compatible scheme, with the first wave of games allowing owners to play those exact same games from yesteryear on their new shiny Xbox One console. But is it really all worth it? How many of those initial 104 am I going to play? Short answer…None!
Long answer? It’s still none, but let me explain some more.
It’s no secret that I’m not at all bothered by the latest feature to hit Xbox One. Backwards compatibility means nothing to me. After gaming exclusively on Xbox since the original console back in 2003, I’ve taken in my fair share of Xbox games. I’ve played the vast majority of releases at least once, sometimes twice and occasionally more than that. I’ve sunk more hours than I care to imagine into my Xbox life and on the whole, I’ve been more than happy with what I’ve played.
Single player campaigns have been great to me over the years but do I really want to go back and experience Kameo: Elements of Power again when I could be sinking my time into Fallout 4, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Black Ops III or one of many other pure AAA Xbox One titles? Nope, no thanks.
Hell, with the Xbox One digital library having seen a huge rise in its game numbers over the summer, there is even a ton of stuff on there that should be played prior to going back to spend five minutes with Earthworm Jim HD, Rayman 3 or Tron Evolution. Velocity 2X, Penarium, Whispering Willows or even Beyond Eyes are just four titles that I’d take every day of the week over any of the Xbox 360 offerings that are coming to our new generation consoles.
But surely there must be something in the Backwards Compatible list that takes my fancy? Well, I absolutely loved Ms. Splosion Man and Fable II, whilst the brilliant Assassin’s Creed II should never be overlooked. Hell, I’d even be tempted to sink another 50 hours or so into the original Viva Pinata…IF I HADN’T DONE SO MANY YEARS AGO! Part of me is slightly tempted with a few of those on offer, but then the brain kicks in and urges me to leave them in the past with fond memories, instead of taking them in again for a few minutes, realising how far gaming has moved on and souring everything that was good about the 360. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate over ACII? Yeah I think so.
If I was to look into the multiplayer titles that kept me gripped until I upgraded to Xbox One, then Dirt 3 stands out above all else. But hey, who needs Dirt 3 when you’ve got Forza Horizon 2 or the newly rebooted Need For Speed? Not this gamer! Not even for free thanks to the Xbox Games With Gold promotion.
The promise of even bigger names such as Bioshock and the original Black Ops dropping onto the scheme at a later date don’t fill these miserable bones with much joy either. Yes, they were good back in the day but who in their right mind is going to be back playing Black Ops for too long when they can experience the latest and greatest that Treyarch have to offer?
Will I even be going back to purchase a game from the list that I never previously played, one that has been heavily discounted in the latest Xbox Live Deals With Gold sale? No chance. If I wasn’t interested in the game the first time round, then I sure as hell don’t have any enthusiasm for it now.
That said, if you’re completely new to the Xbox eco-system, only just hopping aboard the gravy train with Xbox One, then surely the scheme will allow you to finally check out one of those great Xbox 360 titles that I’ve already mentioned. Yes, yes it will, but yet again I really can’t see many people sticking with those titles when they can grab the new, ‘proper’ Xbox One stuff so easily.
So, is the Xbox One Backward Compatible scheme just a load of old rubbish? In my eyes yes, but I’m sure there will be many out there who will see some attraction in it. I’d love to hear what the draw is though…perhaps you could change my mind ever so slightly. Or perhaps I could be saying ‘I told you so’ after you’ve spent the time and your broadband limits downloading Perfect Dark Zero before deleting it again five minutes later.
Feel free to prove me wrong though!
You see Jared and Darren have the right idea in life. I’m guessing many others will too, just not yet able to admit it 😉
I pretty much agree with you Neil, it’s bad enough trying to find the time to play all these new games let alone go back to playing 360 ones. And I’ve done exactly what you’ve mentioned downloaded an old title played 5 minutes and deleted lol.
I might give Fallout 3 a try. I’ve never played any of them and figure I should start there since I picked it up for like $5 before dropping $60 on 4. Other than that I feel the same way. There are too many XBone games I haven’t played to go back and play one from years ago.
I’ll be playing Gears of War 3, Nights into Dreams, and Fable 2. Neil you’re a Sony cry baby fanboy…jealous and bitter person. Now the Xbox One has options.
Close but no cigar. Although I was forced to use a PS4 controller once or twice last year. My hands came out in a rash afterwards and the headaches still remain.
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