Microsoft has confirmed that its upcoming Project Scorpio console will support Xbox 360 games.
Mike Ybarra, Lead Engineer for Xbox and Windows Gaming at Microsoft, revealed the news in a Twitter post, confirming that the next-gen console would support the Xbox 360 backwards compatibility program. It’s not clear which games will be supported, although the Twitter conversation seems to suggest Red Dead Redemption (2010) will be amongst them:
Microsoft rolled out Xbox 360 backwards compatibility for the Xbox One in November last year, offering support for an initial roster of 104 titles, including Borderlands, Just Cause 2, Mass Effect, Fallout 3, Assassin’s Creed 2, and the entire Gears of War series. Then, in December, Microsoft added new games to the support list, including Halo Wars, Halo Reach, Skate 3, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and the BioShock franchise.
It seems likely that Microsoft would be able to offer a similar roster of backwards compatible content on the Project Scorpio content, although we can’t say for certain just yet. In any case, any backwards compatibility at all would be a major coup for Microsoft, given Sony’s refusal to allow PlayStation 3 games to work on the PS4. And unfortunately, the upcoming PlayStation 4 Pro won’t remedy the situation either, giving Microsoft a clear leg up over the competition.
Microsoft announced Project Scorpio at E3 this year, confirming that it would be a hardware refresh of the Xbox One, due for release in late 2017. The console will feature an eight-core AMD APU with six teraflops of graphical computing power – that’s four times better than the current Xbox One. It’s expected that you’ll also be able to play 4K games, and virtual reality should also be supported.
