80%
Probable
Despite the current questionable management of the brand, there's no denying that Xbox did some things right in the past. Chief among them is the backward compatibility program that makes select legacy games playable on current generation system, allowing more users to enjoy them without having to track old systems and copies of these games. In the future, Xbox backward compatibility could become even better, potentially expanding to Windows PCs and the ROG Xbox Ally, if a rumored effort bears fruit.
Over on the ResetERA forums, reliable insider Nate the Hate, who consistently provides correct insider information, commented on the future of the Xbox ecosystem, suggesting that there's a chance backward compatibility could be expanded to more platforms.
"There exists a hope to make legacy Xbox (OG and Xbox 360) games BC on ROG and Windows. Whether they succeed is the unknown; but there is an effort being made," the insider wrote. "The other unknown would be how extensive will the initiative be in offerings. Will it be what we currently have on Series or will BC expand to add more titles across the Xbox ecosystem."
This isn't the first time we heard that legacy Xbox games could be coming to PC, but even if the effort is ongoing, there are many hurdles to overcome to accomplish this. One of the biggest issues that would prevent a larger library from being available on PC and the ROG Xbox Ally would be licensing issues, as reportedly, publishers are not willing to allow an Xbox game license to be converted into a PC game license.
What seems almost certain at this point is that the next-generation Xbox, rumored to be powered by the AMD Magnus APU, will be backward compatible with previous-generation games. The above licensing issues wouldn't apply in this case, allowing legacy games to remain playable on a current gaming system.
Regardless of what Xbox has planned, news about the ecosystem will be shared in 2026, which will mark the 25th anniversary of the brand. As such, we may not have to wait much longer to learn if this ongoing effort will bear fruit, and legacy games will indeed become available on PC.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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