The next Xbox may be backward compatible with every past Xbox generation, if publishers agree

A leaked internal memo suggests the next Xbox console, codenamed Project Helix, could play games from every generation the company has ever released. If true, that would make it the largest game library on any console, especially since it’s also said to support PC games.

Backward compatibility for four console generations

The Verge‘s Tom Warren has obtained a document that Microsoft reportedly sent to publishers, outlining its plans for Helix to run games spanning every past Xbox generation. It states that Helix could support games for the original Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Xbox Series consoles, on top of new Helix titles and PC games.

However, that doesn’t mean playing old Xbox games on Helix will be as straightforward as inserting a disc, because Microsoft reportedly still hasn’t settled on whether the console will even include a disc drive.

The memo itself is essentially a pitch. Microsoft is asking publishers to sign off on backward compatibility for their old titles, permission it wouldn’t need if the goal was simply letting people replay games they already own on disc. That points to digital sales being the real ask, and the memo reportedly says so directly. One section titled “Why publishers win” explicitly states that publishers will benefit by reselling old titles.

Xbox One and Series discs get a shortcut through Disc-to-Digital

Not every part of this may require publishers to opt in. Xbox One and Xbox Series titles are expected to convert into portable digital licenses through Microsoft’s planned Disc-to-Digital program, which the document reportedly states requires no publisher action per title and would carry over to any Xbox device, Helix included. A separate leaked roadmap points to an August rollout for that program.

Original Xbox and Xbox 360 games are where that permission problem actually kicks in. Getting those titles running on Helix means real technical backward compatibility, not just a license swap, and each publisher has to approve every title individually, set its own price, and decide whether it lands in Xbox Game Pass or stays a standalone purchase. A gradual Xbox 360 rollout is expected to begin only in 2027, reflecting how slowly those approvals tend to move.

If Helix really is going to carry four generations of Xbox history, getting there depends less on the console’s hardware than on how many publishers Microsoft can convince to say yes, one game at a time.