The Xbox series is the one to invest in if you care deeply about backward compatibility, and the new Xbox Series X and S are no different. If you like digging through your old favorites, you’re going to want to hear what Microsoft has planned for its new consoles.
How Xbox Series X and S Backward Compatibility Works
You can learn more about how the enhanced backward compatibility works over on the Xbox Wire. While Microsoft wants its new consoles to play older games without a hitch, it also wants to enhance the classics further using new technology.
For one, the new consoles won’t downclock to handle old games. Downclocking is when a system devotes only a portion of its resources to run old software. This means the powerful modern-day system specifications don’t cause the software to run oddly.
However, the new Xbox Series X and S won’t do this. Instead, it will use its powerful new technology to help older games load faster, run at a smoother framerate, and feature the best visual quality possible.
This will go so far as to allow older games to run at 60FPS when they could previously only manage 30FPS. For instance, the video below shows Fallout 4 running on an Xbox Series S at 60FPS.
Speaking of visual quality, the new Xbox consoles will retroactively apply high dynamic range (HDR) to old games. The technology is called “Auto HDR,” which gives a post-release touch-up to all games developed before HDR’s invention.
That’s not to say that Microsoft is slapping new technologies onto a library of thousands of games and calling it a day. Microsoft has a team of backward-compatibility testers that have clocked in 500,000 hours on past titles to ensure they run smoothly on newer hardware.
Microsoft’s Unique Trait in the Console Market
This may seem like a lot of effort to allow gamers to play older games, but Microsoft takes a unique stance compared to its competitors.
For example, some of the best games on PlayStation Now are older classics, but the service doesn’t feature every game released on PlayStation consoles. Furthermore, Nintendo’s habit of changing up its game storage media makes backward compatibility tricky.
As such, it makes sense for Microsoft to invest a lot of time and effort into its backward compatibility. While other consoles force its gamers to rebuy old games as remastered or emulated versions, Microsoft wants you to dig out your old Xbox library and play them without repurchase.
Looking Backward While Moving Forward With Xbox
If you’re a big fan of rummaging through the attic for your old childhood favorites, Microsoft wants you to continue your hobby for years to come. When we get our hands on the next generation of Xbox consoles, hopefully, we won’t be disappointed with the results.
Microsoft has always made it easy to play your old games on newer hardware. For instance, the Xbox One can run Xbox 360 games with the utmost ease.
Image Credit: Shuang Li / Shutterstock.com
