The next-gen Xbox will not be backwards compatible with Xbox 360 games, according to a report published on Bloomberg.
Microsoft has decided to switch to new AMD chips for its next Xbox, fueling speculation that the company’s next-gen console will play Xbox 360 games, a new report on Bloomberg has claimed.
The move is part of a strategy aimed at cutting the costs of manufacturing the new console and getting more developers interested in creating games for it, the report said, citing “people with knowledge of the matter” as its source of information.
The new console’s architecture marks a shift to a new x86 format that means Microsoft is dropping the Power PC tech in the Xbox 360 console, effectively meaning the next-gen machine won’t play the discs that run on its predecessor.
The news shouldn’t come as too much of a shock to analysts and players alike. After all, the Xbox 360 didn’t play games made for the original Xbox and Sony has already announced the PS4 won’t be backwards compatible with the PS3 – although Sony has also said its exploring the possibility of making games on its other platforms available through Gaikai’s cloud streaming technology.
The new console will also be branded simply ‘Xbox’, the report said.
