Xbox Dead For Almost A Year, 360 Compatibility List Extends

Micosoft released a new backwards compatibility update over the Xbox Live service, adding another 21 titles to the already over 200 original Xbox games that can be played on the Xbox 360. Standing out from the crowd like a bursting BFG is the long yearned for Doom 3 game, accompanied by other noticeable entries such as Dreamfall: The Longest Journey, FlatOut, LEGO Star Wars, Silent Hill 4: The Room, Spider-Man or Star Wars: Battlefront. Some Japanese-only Xbox titles were also added, listed below along with the rest of the "western" games:

June 2006 Back Compat titles added:

1. 4x4 EVO 2

2. Amped 2

3. Bad Boys 2

4. Big Mutha Truckers

5. DOOM 3

6. Dreamfall: The Longest Journey

7. Fatal Frame

8. FlatOut

9. Grabbed by the Ghoulies

10. Intellivision Lives

11. LEGO Star Wars

12. Minority Report

13. MLB SlugFest 20-04

14. The Punisher

15. RalliSport Challenge

16. Silent Hill 4: The Room

17. Spawn Armageddon

18. Spider-Man

19. Star Wars Battlefront

20. State of Emergency

21. Zapper

Additional Japanese-only titles:

Bistro Cupid 1

Flight Academy

Othello Seminar

Igo Seminar

Shogi Seminar

Mahjong Seminar

Major Nelson also points out that, for those Xbox 360 owners that do not have access to Xbox Live, the update is now available for download from Xbox.com.

The update comes at the same time as "Xboss" Peter Moore went on record to clear up confusion over comments he made recently, regarding Xbox 360 backwards compatibility, claiming that they did not reflect a lack of commitment from Microsoft:

"My words... That nobody's concerned about backwards compat were misinterpreted as no one cares about backwards compat; that's not the case at all.

I want to be clear that my comments were not about nobody cares - of course we care, and we're going to continue to try and get as close as we can to our stated target of every Xbox game being backcompat to the 360, and I'm hopeful we get there."

Ok, so Microsoft does indeed care about backwards compatibility, even if they're not concerned about it. And they should be, because soon enough there may no longer be any old Xbox consoles left for sale! According to the author of "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked" book, Dean Takahasi (quoted by Games Radar), Xbox production "ended in July last year. Everything that's been sold since has been inventory - Xboxes waiting to be sold". In other words, MS pulled the plug at least three months ahead of the 360's November 2005 launch, making it perfectly clear just how dead and burried the old Xbox really is.

UPDATE: Psychonauts Creator Demands 360 Back Compat.

(N.B. Archive text, links removed)