Xbox Series X's First-Party Titles Will Run on Xbox One

Microsoft is re-writing the rulebook when it comes to launching a console. In years past, the release of shiny new hardware would render any predecessors instantly obsolete, little more than oversized paperweights with flashing lights. The upcoming Xbox Series X won't doom the Xbox One to the same fate: the first couple of years of new games from first-party Microsoft studios have been confirmed to run on both generations of hardware, PC too for that matter. Only after a couple of years (2021/2022) will first-party titles require ownership of the Xbox Series X.

In a recent interview, Matt Booty (Head of Microsoft Studios) compared Microsoft's vision for Xbox to the PC gaming market: “As our content comes out over the next year, two years, all of our games, sort of like PC, will play up and down that family of devices.”

This more flexible approach to console generations reflects the company's overall change in attitude over the past few years. From encouraging cross-platform play, to allowing its properties to enter competitor's marketplaces (Gears 5 is now on Steam, to give a somewhat recent example), the company has been making some seriously drastic consumer-friendly moves. Microsoft is clearly not afraid to fight industry norms and put in the work to regain customer favour after the Xbox One's infamously poor launch.