Microsoft is reportedly planning to bring Xbox 360 games to PC as part of its backward compatibility expansion, according to leaked documents seen by The Verge. The move follows the company’s plan to bring original Xbox games to PC.
The documents suggest Xbox 360 games will run on the Project Helix console, Xbox PCs, and handheld devices. Microsoft’s Xbox PC emulator will handle the technical process, including local PC execution, certification, compatibility testing, storefront listing and merchandising, player support, updates, regressions, and ongoing maintenance.
Developers will not need to make engineering changes to their games. They will only need to opt titles into the program and provide commercial details such as pricing, Game Pass availability, promotions, and brand approval.
Microsoft disc-to-digital feature
The leaked documents also reveal details about Microsoft’s planned disc-to-digital feature for Xbox One and Xbox Series X games. The feature will allow players to receive digital licenses for supported physical discs.
Xbox employees have reportedly tested the feature after references to “enable Disc2Digital” appeared in the Xbox PC app code in May. It will reportedly support Xbox One and Xbox Series X discs only and will not work with Xbox 360 or original Xbox discs.
Players will reportedly be able to insert a compatible disc into an Xbox console with a disc drive and receive a digital entitlement linked to the physical disc and their Microsoft account.
The digital license will remain available across Xbox devices while the player owns the disc. If the physical disc changes hands, the license will transfer to the new owner, while the previous owner will lose access to the digital version linked to that disc.
Xbox backward compatibility availability timeline
The leaked roadmap suggests the following rollout:
- July 2026: Disc-to-Digital Insider public beta and backward compatibility early access for original Xbox titles.
- August 2026: Disc-to-Digital general availability for Xbox One and Xbox Series X owners.
- October 2026: Original Xbox games available on PC through Game Pass and the Xbox Store.
- 2027–2028: Xbox 360 catalog gradually rolls out across next-generation Xbox devices.
Microsoft has not officially confirmed Xbox 360 games support on PC or the leaked roadmap. The details are based on a report using internal documents and may change before release.