Microsoft’s Xbox One launch was nothing short of an absolute mess. Bad decisions, bad policies and bad public relations had gamers raging right from the console’s unveiling all the way up to its release. Sony’s PlayStation 4 took an early lead in the next-generation console war as a result, and the Xbox One hasn’t been able to make up the ground it lost in those early days.
Many of the Xbox One’s wrongs have been righted at this point. In fact, some of Microsoft’s biggest mistakes were corrected even before the console debuted. And now, Microsoft used E3 2015 to set to stage for the next phase in what could be a comeback for the ages for the Xbox One.
Here are the five most important things the company announced on Monday morning.
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Xbox One backwards compatibility
Xbox 360 owners were absolutely enraged when Microsoft announced that the Xbox One wouldn’t play Xbox 360 games. Well, that’s about to change.
Microsoft announced on Monday that backwards compatibility is indeed coming to the Xbox One ahead of the holidays this year, allowing users to play games that they purchased for the 360 on the company’s current-gen console. Not all games will be compatible, but this is a huge win for Microsoft.
Also of note, Sony’s PS4 doesn’t currently support PS3 games.
Xbox One Elite Wireless Controller
There’s a new gaming controller coming for the Xbox and Windows 10 computers, and here’s your first look at it:
The new controller will be a more customizable version of the current unit, and it’ll cost $149.99 when it launches this fall.
Play Pre-release Xbox Games
Microsoft also announced that beginning today, Xbox One owners will be able to purchase games and play them before they’re even finished, let alone released. The Long Dark and Elite: Dangerous is the first pre-release title that will be available as part of the program, which is very similar to what Steam does on its platform.
New exclusive Xbox One games
There are tons of new Xbox exclusives coming in the near future — watch all the trailers right here.
Minecraft for HoloLens
Ahhhhhhhhhh!
Watch the mind-blowing demo video right here.
