Psychonauts will be playable on Xbox 360 [update 1]

by Ross Miller { Jun 19th 2006 at 2:55PM }

It looks like Tim Schafer's e-mail campaigned paid off, with many Psychonauts fans (who suffered from a variety of life-threatening illnesses) are getting their wish to have the title backwards compatible on their Xbox 360. 1UP is reporting forum chatter that the BC Ninjas working at Microsoft took the call and are now working on the title. Indeed, at least a few Joystiq readers received similar assurances.

Whether these e-mails are earnest or just a means to assuage the longing, we will find out soon enough. They can not just wait for all of those people with fake life-threatening illnesses to just fake-die and ignore it.

[via Xbox 360 Fanboy]

[Update 1, 6/22/06: Not so fast, Psychonauts is still not guaranteed to be backwards compatible, says Emulation Ninja Alan Stuart. Technical limitations ... you know the song.]

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

ncdign @ Jun 19th 2006 3:06PM

Hallelujah! I'll have to pick up a copy I never did finish it on my original Xbox. Now how about Beyond Good and Evil. Michel Ancel unleash the rabbids on MS until they give you you BC!!

el nico @ Jun 19th 2006 3:15PM

looks like M$ is really pushing to keep us happy. how funny that to computer geeks, M$ is the devil incarnate, but in the realm of console gamers, M$ is slowly developing a positive reputation. That's the magic of trying to play catch up with the market leader.

Joe @ Jun 19th 2006 3:16PM

Linda, I'm coming!

Noel @ Jun 19th 2006 3:18PM

I would love to see Sid Meier's Pirates! finally make it onto the list.

Yan @ Jun 19th 2006 3:26PM

Well this is great news!

Currently waiting for them to get DOA:XBV compatible.

LunarDuality @ Jun 19th 2006 3:32PM

I find it amusing that now that we've gotten a much loved game prioritized on the B.C. list, 3 of the first 4 comments here are about *other* games. Guess you can't satisfy some people...

RogueStorm @ Jun 19th 2006 3:48PM

Seriously, can someone explain to me the seemingly cult following of this game? I'm just not seeing it. Reviews for the game were alright, but it never even came close to game of the year or anything anywhere I've looked. Guess I will have to rent it when it's BC on the 360.

matthew @ Jun 19th 2006 3:54PM

I wrote a letter to MS about this and included Beyond Good and Evil as well on my two-game-only "Must Have Wishlist." I'll be happy if just this one makes it though. Voodoo Vince would be nice as a third. BUT once again, if this comes out I'll be pleased as punch.

matthew @ Jun 19th 2006 3:59PM

RogueStorm- The reason this game has an intense cult following is because it is a wonderful game. The character's are unique, the tim burton-esqe art work is fantastic and the story is unbeatable. The platform gaming feels fresh especially as you collect the different merit badges. The concept is a blast. Have you read the basic printed-on-the-box plot line? That should basically answer your question outright. It didn't sell because people stay away from what they don't know. For some reason this game came out and every one decided they'd rather play another FPS or Madden title instead of checking out something new. I hope you'll soon be one of this games biggest fans.

Woody @ Jun 19th 2006 4:01PM

am I the only one surprised by this. I have to give MS some credit for this. The game did not sell a lot of units. its pretty incredible. I don't own a xbox or 360, but its moves like this (and the dashboard changes) that are changing my opinion of MS.

OTAM @ Jun 19th 2006 4:01PM

I sent an email to them complaining about it missing from the BC list along with everyone else. By the looks of it,it worked!

I've actually been playing older games on the 360 now with the BC actually resonable. I've been playing Half-Life 2,Doom III and now going to be playing Psychonauts soon if this is any indication. I still have Conker Live & Reloaded to play along with Panzer Dragoon Orta,they are sitting in my cd booklet just waiting to be played :)

Dan @ Jun 19th 2006 4:06PM

RogueStorm:

Seriously, can someone explain to me the seemingly cult following of this game? I'm just not seeing it.

I think this, like all personal preferences, can be suummed up as "different people like different things." I never got into Halo, for example, but that doesn't mean it's not a great game to lots of other people.

matthew @ Jun 19th 2006 4:08PM

One more thing: To everyone who wrote in asking for this to happen, remember to PLAY the game on your 360. MS may be doing a little research here, giving us what we wnat and then watching to see if we actually wanted it. So once it's playable, fire it up and don't play anything else for a week or so, until you've beaten 5 times or something. Let's show them that if they add it we will play. This could really help our fellow gamers who's favorite game is still not on the list in their endevours.

Jay @ Jun 19th 2006 4:09PM

well, I can see why the developers would want to get their games on the BC list. When Dreamfall was announced, I went right out and bought the game. Psychonauts will probably sell a couple thousand more copies if it gets on the BC list just because, early in a systems life, there aren't many games coming out ... with this quarterly BC release list, I bet some people shop it for a new game to play. :)

WTF @ Jun 19th 2006 4:13PM

WTF!

COUNTER-STRIKE!!!!!!!!!!

whats the point of making a crappy SP game BC? why not not make one of the most popular online games BC before??

oh right i forgot

IT WILL KILL HALO2 IF THEY MAKE COUNTER-STRIKE BC.

lolersticks @ Jun 19th 2006 4:18PM

WTF: Counter-Strike...um...how should I put this gently?

It sucks. Yeah, that's it.

Corpseoftheyear @ Jun 19th 2006 4:20PM

15 : Ummm. No.

Bloo @ Jun 19th 2006 4:37PM

Wow. So now the 5 people who played it on Xbox 1 can play it again on the 360. They should add Panzer Dragoon Saga to the Live Arcade so no one can play that again too (one of the best RPGs ever!)

GTgamer @ Jun 19th 2006 4:38PM

Gotta tip the hat to lolersticks, that had me laughing my ass off...I forsee a silly argument over preferences ensuing, but you've got to appreciate a well-formed comedic insult.

Anyhow, it's nice to know that 'nauts is making the BC list soon. Unfortunately, without any way to get my save games over to my 360, the inpiration to boot Psychonauts (or any other Xbox games) up again on my 360 is slightly dulled.

Plus, it just means I'm right back into that damn rising water level....I'd say that's the only part of the game I played that I'd say was poorly designed and is not much fun at all. People warned me about it and damn they were right. That level made me put down the controller for awhile...then I ended up moving and never unpacked my Xbox games because I knew I was about to get a 360 within a couple of months.

Watership @ Jun 19th 2006 5:01PM

It's fantastic that Psychonauts is coming to the BC list.

But lets be honest with ourselves. This is the internet. As soon as Psychonauts is out, people will latch onto another game that hasn't be BC'd, and we'll just start the whole process over again.

And then when 99 percent of all games are BC, people will still be unhappy. Then when 100 percent are all BC, people will pick and bitch about some glitches and performance issues. Then when every game is 100 percent BC and works FLAWLESSLY, people will start to say how the PS2 has a better Backwared Compatible library. There is no way everyone will be happy, there is no win for Microsoft. There is only Zuul.

DeezNuts420 @ Jun 19th 2006 5:25PM

I'm with you on Counterstrike. Best online experience to date!!!! (Halo2 is for the kiddies)

epobirs @ Jun 19th 2006 5:48PM

Not to rain on the parades of those who wrote in, but did anyone get a replay specifically saying that Psychonauts was being given any more attention than before?

From those replies I've seen reproduced, the emulation guys just said they are working on it. But they were working on it before, along with 600+ other games that still aren't supported on the 360.

Psychonauts will work when the emulator has advanced tot he necessary point of completeness. There are likely numerous other games that have fewer areas where they access bits of the Xbox the emulator does not yet properly replicate. Those games are going to be running on 360 sooner just because they can only fix one problem at a time. Not due to any favoritism. There are many games that are orders of magnitude more popular than Psychonauts that aren't running yet. If it were convenient to play favorites, wouldn't those have long since been given the attention needed if it were simple as that?

LongshotX @ Jun 19th 2006 6:36PM

Frickin' do Panzer Dragoon Orta Please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

qbix @ Jun 19th 2006 6:44PM

Sweet!! I'll be sure to give this game another run. I got rid of my original Xbox and I was satisfied with the halos, splinter cell titles and prince of persia but now that this title will be BC I'll be a happy camper. I still have a bunch of games for Xbox but this is the one I missed the most. I truly don't care if they don't make the rest of my original titles BC after Psychonauts. This is not to say I don't expect MS to stick to their plan of making almost every Xbox game BC.

Hopefully people will give this game a try at least to see how original and creative this game was.

mcw @ Jun 19th 2006 10:01PM

Rather see Morrowind made backward compatible.

WTF @ Jun 20th 2006 3:26AM

COUNTER-STRIKE!!!!!

Shouldn't there be some kind of online "BC game vote" or something? wether Microsoft does an official one on Live! or one is made unnoficially on the internet, there should definetly be one.

Even an unnoficial one would show microsoft the BC priority path they need to follow.