What Original Xbox Games Should Come to Xbox One? July 5, 2017

At E3 2017, Microsoft announced that they would do the unthinkable and offer backwards compatibility with original Xbox games on the Xbox One. While the feature is still in development (and there’s a lot we still don’t know about it), we thought the time was right for us to give our thoughts about which original Xbox games we would like to play on the Xbox One.

Just a note before we get started, we just want to make it clear that we have no insider information about upcoming Xbox plans, and so this list is purely speculation and wishful thinking. Second, you’re free to disagree with this list and if you have a title you think we should have included feel free to post a comment below. Also, Crimson Skies is not included on this list since it has already been confirmed that game will be backwards compatible by Microsoft.

Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 – This one should be no surprise.  These two games put the original Xbox on the map and without them it is highly unlikely that the Xbox platform would have been as successful as it was. I know that both of these games have already been included in the Xbox One compilation game Halo: The Master Chief Collection, but I cannot neglect the fact that many players prefer the original Xbox versions of the game over the Xbox One remaster.  The games just run better on their original platforms, and fans prefer the feel of the game running on its original code over the “enhancements” Microsoft made over the years.  Hopefully if the original games become playable on Xbox One that feel won’t be lost.

Run Like Hell – Run Like Hell (RLH for short) was a huge predecessor for games like Dead Space.  In it, you play as a space station’s security officer. The writing and voice acting are great with a cast including Kate Mulgrew, Clancy Brown and Lance Henriksen. The space station is also filled with Bawls vending machines, which is something I can totally get behind.  While most people consider this game a flop, I enjoyed it’s story, voice acting, gameplay and art style.  I don’t know why, the game just had a special charm that resonated with me and I would love to play it on the Xbox One.

Silent Hill 2 and Silent Hill 4 – Silent Hill 2 is considered by many to be one of the greatest games of all time. Silent Hill 4 is not as critically acclaimed as its earlier titles but I feel it has been given a re-evaluation and over the last few years it has gotten a cult following.  If you are curious why these games are so great, I recommend checking out Dena Natali’s reviews of the games on YouTube.  In case you’re wondering why Silent Hill 3 isn’t on this list, as far as I know the original version of Silent Hill 3 was only released on the PC and PS2, and never got ported to the original Xbox. Still, it would be nice to see some of the Silent Hill games on the original Xbox playable on the Xbox One.

Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel – The only Fallout game released exclusively on consoles, most players consider this game to be no longer canon to the Fallout universe. Well, that and the fact most people think it’s terrible, with no links to Fallout’s themes or gameplay style.  Still, I really want the chance to play it. This request may be a bit too wishful on my part as the rights to it and its licensed soundtrack may currently be in dispute.

Unreal Championship 2 – The original Unreal Championship was mostly a port of the second Unreal Tournament PC game, but its sequel was an all new title made specifically for the Xbox.  I just want to say that as a fan of the Unreal Tournament series I freaking loved Unreal Championship 2.  The game fleshed out UT’s regular characters, and provided a decent story using prerendered cutscenes. While I understand that its controls and gameplay wouldn’t translate well to the PC, I wish Epic could have ported it anyway. Until that happens, it would be nice to play it again on the Xbox One.

Max Payne 1 and Max Payne 2 – Undoubtably two of the best titles of that generation and while they were released on multiple platforms (including the PC), the Xbox version is considered to be the superior console experience.  These games changed my life by showing me the best of video games were capable of.  The story was adult, the graphics were the best of its time, and the gameplay was fluid, well polished and exciting with the best use of Bullet-Time (tm) to date.  It would be great to play those games on the Xbox One.

Indigo Prophecy (Fahrenheit) – This was the only video game directed by David Cage to get released on the Xbox platform and everyone should play it at least once.  To me, this game was the right mix of the real and the supernatural, and the plot kept me guessing what would come next each time.  I first played this game on the PC after checking out its demo, and I have not missed a David Cage directed video game ever since.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords – The original Knights of the Old Republic is considered by many to be not only the best game on the Xbox platform, but also the greatest Star Wars game of all time. While I don’t personally agree with those sentiments I still think it’s an incredible game worthy of that kind of praise.  The sequel is not considered to be as good as the original, (I personally didn’t like it) although it has gotten a re-evaluation in the past few years.  Still, both games are great additions to the Star Wars expanded universe, have solid gameplay and should be ported to the Xbox One.

Jade Empire – Another Bioware game, Jade Empire felt like it laid the groundwork for games like Mass Effect.  I picked up this game solely because I enjoyed Knights of the Old Republic, and found its story to be deeply engrossing. This was a real-time fighting RPG, with solid gameplay accessible to non-RPG players.  While it would later get re-released on the PC (through platforms like Origin), I personally preferred playing it with the Xbox controller and I would love to play it on to Xbox One.

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell 1-3 – After Halo, the second major game to bring popularity to the Xbox console back in the day was Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell.  Seen by many to be some of the best stealth action games of all time, people love this game…at least up to the third one. Personally I felt the franchise kind of jumped the shark after the fourth game, even though many players prefer the Xbox version of the fourth game over the Xbox 360 version. Regardless of which version of the fourth game you prefer, the first three Splinter Cell games still remain some of my favorite Xbox games of all time, and it would be great to play them on the Xbox One.

So those are just a few games for the original Xbox that I think would be great on the Xbox One. By no means is this a complete list and if I get a lot of comments on this article I may write another one. Be sure to stay tuned to this website for the latest Xbox One Backwards Compatibility news.