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What’s really stopping Microsoft from adding one of the Xbox One’s most wanted features?

Published Jun 4th, 2014 4:50PM EDT
Xbox One Backwards Compatibility

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Microsoft has done a lot to make the Xbox One a better deal for gamers over the last year but there’s still one feature that many are clamoring for: Backwards compatibility with Xbox 360 games. SlashGear points out that many Xbox fans are still banging the drum and asking the company to announce full support for backwards compatibility at next week’s big E3 gaming show.

However, SlashGear thinks that’s unlikely to happen for a simple reason: It wants to release a comprehensive box set of all the Xbox 360 Halo games for the Xbox One and it wouldn’t make any sense for Microsoft to allow for Xbox One backwards compatibility until that release is out of the way.

While this probably isn’t a satisfactory answer for many gamers, it strikes us as a plausible one and we really can’t blame Microsoft for wanting to milk the Halo cash cow for as much as it can. Plus, we have to admit that the prospect of replaying all of the original Halo games with upgraded Xbox One-caliber graphics is very enticing, which is presumably what Microsoft is planning to do to add value to the Halo package.

Regardless, you probably shouldn’t go into E3 next week with high hopes that Microsoft will announce support for one of the features you’ve been clamoring for.

Brad Reed
Brad Reed Staff Writer

Brad Reed has written about technology for over eight years at BGR.com and Network World. Prior to that, he wrote freelance stories for political publications such as AlterNet and the American Prospect. He has a Master's Degree in Business and Economics Journalism from Boston University.