The ability to play Xbox 360 games on the Xbox One is a game changer. It's a great incentive for people who haven't yet upgraded to an Xbox One from a 360 to do so, as they no longer have to fear giving up all their old games and starting over.
But it doesn't end at the games. According to a Microsoft support account, the Xbox One's backwards compatibility feature will also allow for gamers to play DLC from their 360 games on the Xbox One, as well as play online multiplayer.
Keep in mind that this function isn't live right now, but it can be done. There are a few catches, however. Playable 360 DLC on the Xbox One requires the permission of individual game publishers in order for it to work. If publishers aren't okay with people playing certain 360 DLC on the Xbox One, they may not allow it. After all, more than a few games launched on both 360 and Xbox One. Publishers may rather force customers to repurchase DLC on their new console for an Xbox One version of the game, even if they already own it on their old 360.
In the online multiplayer department, everything should operate normally as long as a game's servers are still online. That means you could easily play Halo 4 or Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 multiplayer on your Xbox One through the 360 backwards compatibility features.
Other 360 features, like achievements and cloud saves, will also carry over. Cloud saves are especially reassuring. For many games, starting from scratch can be a complete chore. But this way, players can put their save files in the cloud on through their 360 — and they can then use that save when the time comes to upgrade to an Xbox One, never losing progress.
The possibilities here are truly impressive and will likely continue to expand. Right now, only 18 360 games are officially backwards compatible on the Xbox One for Xbox preview members, but Microsoft is surveying Xbox owners about what games they want to see become backwards compatible next. Microsoft says more than 100 360 games will be playable on the Xbox One by the time the feature rolls out to all users later this year.
If you aren't a preview member and want to play a title from the first selection of backwards compatible games, check out this guide.
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