According to Wccftech, a reliable industry insider known as Nate the Hate claims Microsoft is making an effort to expand its Xbox backward compatibility program. The goal is to make original Xbox and Xbox 360 games playable on Windows PCs and devices like the ASUS ROG Ally. The insider commented on the ResetEra forums, stating the scope of the initiative and which titles would be included are still unknown. This isn’t the first rumor about bringing these legacy games to PC, but significant licensing issues with publishers reportedly stand in the way. The next-generation Xbox console, rumored to use an AMD Magnus APU, is expected to maintain backward compatibility more easily. Official news about the Xbox ecosystem’s future is slated for 2026, which will be the brand’s 25th anniversary.
The Big Licensing Wall
Here’s the thing: the technical challenge of emulating these old consoles on PC is probably the easier part. Microsoft’s engineers are wizards when it comes to this stuff, as their work on the Xbox Series X|S backward compatibility proves. The real monster in the room is licensing. Think about it. When a game was published for the Xbox 360, that deal covered… the Xbox 360. The contract likely didn’t include a clause for a PC release fifteen years later. Getting publishers to agree to convert those old Xbox licenses into PC licenses? That’s a legal and financial nightmare. Some publishers don’t even exist anymore. So even if the “effort” is real, the library might be painfully small.
Why Now and What’s the Point?
So why even try? It all points to Microsoft’s long-term vision of the “Xbox ecosystem” being bigger than a plastic box under your TV. They want Game Pass and your game library to be accessible anywhere. Bringing a curated list of classic, first-party Xbox titles to the Windows Store and PC Game Pass would be a huge value add. It strengthens the brand’s legacy. And for a device like the ROG Ally, it suddenly gets a massive back catalog of proven games. But I’m skeptical. Will publishers see enough value in re-licensing a 15-year-old game for what might be a niche audience? Some might. Most probably won’t.
The Safer Bet: The Next Xbox
What seems far more certain is the path for the next console. The insider notes that the rumored next-gen Xbox won’t face these same licensing headaches for backward compatibility. That makes perfect sense. Playing an Xbox 360 game on a new Xbox is just continuing the existing license on a new piece of Xbox hardware. It’s a platform update, not a port to a completely different platform like Windows. This is the low-hanging fruit. So, while the dream of playing Jet Set Radio Future natively on your laptop is cool, the safer bet is that you’ll play it on the next Xbox console instead.
A 2026 Reveal on the Horizon
Basically, don’t hold your breath for an announcement tomorrow. As highlighted in the ResetEra discussion, the big roadmap reveal is apparently timed for 2026—the 25th anniversary of Xbox. That gives Microsoft a lot of time to negotiate, develop, and maybe even scrap this idea if it proves too difficult. It’s a tantalizing rumor, and the “effort” is probably real at some engineering level. But turning that effort into a product you can actually buy? That’s a whole different game.
