When Microsoft announced the Xbox 360, one of the big questions people had was whether it would be backward-compatible with original Xbox games. Microsoft
originally promised compatibility with "the most popular Xbox titles," leading some to speculate that the list wouldn't go much beyond the two Halo games. In
fact, the full list of compatible games--shown below--is more than 200 titles. Naturally, a few titles you think would be on the list aren't, but Microsoft
has said titles will be added, and we'll update the list as Microsoft expands it. In order to play these games on your Xbox 360, you'll need a model with the
hard drive attached for storing the software emulator code required to run the game. A broadband Internet connection enables quick, easy, and
free
downloads of the emulators from Xbox Live, but you can also obtain the code by burning a disc with data from Xbox.com or signing up to have it delivered for
a nominal fee.
For complete details of compatibility with older Xbox games, read the
Q&A with Microsoft's Todd Holmdahl, corporate vice president of the Xbox product group, at Xbox.com. A
complete list of technical issues for currently compatible games is also available for your
perusal on the site.
List too daunting? The CNET editors have picked the six best backward titles and listed them here.
Latest additions (November 27, 2007):
Full list of compatible games:
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