Xbox One: Will It Play Used Games? Microsoft Says Yes

Xbox One: Will It Play Used Games? Microsoft Says Yes

Gamers have been left confused - though optimistic - after Microsoft announced it will be possible to play second-hand games on the Xbox One console. They just won't say how.

The new machine will introduce new forms of digital rights management, which tie games to user accounts and also allow you to play different titles without swapping the disc.

But while that move comes with some benefits, it also raises questions about how the system will let users swap, trade or sell games - either with their friends or a used games store.

In an interview with Eurogamer, Microsoft's Phil Harrison explained - twice - that it will be possible.

Harrison said that gamers will be able to play the same game if using the same system - say a son and a father living in the same house. And that if you take a game to a friend's house, you can play as long as you're logged in as yourself.

But if you leave, your friend will have to buy the game to keep playing under his own account.

"The bits that are on the disc, I can give to anybody else, but if we both want to play it at the same time, we both have to own it. That's no different to how discs operate today."

Aside from that, many issues remain unclear.

As MCV points out, Microsoft has not explained what happens when you try to sell a disc, either at retail or privately (on eBay, for instance). It says that an announcement is forthcoming.

Microsoft has also left some confused by claiming that the Xbox One will "require" an internet connection, but will not need to be permanently connected.

Prior to the launch, it had been feared that the new Xbox would feature an always-on style of DRM as seen in the recent disastrous launches of SimCity and Diablo III. While that does not appear to be the case, Microsoft is keeping specifics to a minimum on this issue as well as that of pre-owned games.

Close

What's Hot