Huzzah! Psychonauts on 360, Soul Calibur, Conker too
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Dec 14th 2006 at 9:45PM }
We won't be satisfied until every Xbox title is compatible on 360, but today's backwards compatibility update is a major step in that direction. Sure, we knew the patch was coming, but it's a relief that it's here, Pyschonauts now playable -- as are Shenmue II, Indigo Prophecy, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, Dead or Alive Ultimate, Buffy, Destroy All Humans, and others.The update's final list of games also features some additional surprises (unrevealed during the premature posting on Xbox.com), most notably Soul Calibur 2 (North America only) and Conker: Live and Reloaded. Still, each of these bc updates is bitter sweet, inevitably lacking games we've been longing for. It's been a year, and still no Panzer Dragoon Orta?
New additions/updates:
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- Burnout 3: Takedown [updated]
- Conker: Live and Reloaded
- Dead Or Alive Ultimate
- Destroy All Humans!
- Dynasty Warriors 4 / Shin Sangokumuso3
- Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick
- Ex Chaser (Japan only)
- Family Guy
- Far Cry: Instincts
- Fahrenheit / Indigo Prophecy
- I-Ninja
- Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude
- Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
- MotoGP
- Incredibles / Mr. Incredible (J)
- Muzzle Flash (Japan only)
- MX Unleashed
- Open Season
- Pariah
- Plus Plumb 2 (Japan only)
- Psychonauts
- Psyvariar2 Extend Edition (Japan only)
- Rainbow Six: Lockdown
- Rapala Pro Fishing
- Rent-A-Hero No. 1(Japan only)
- Scarface
- Shark Tale
- Shenmue II
- Soul Calibur 2 (North America only)
- Splinter Cell: Double Agent
- Tenerezza (Japan only)
- The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie
- Ultimate Spider-Man
- Wakeboarding Unleashed: Featuring Sean Murray
- Whacked!
- Winback 2: Project Poseidon
- Xiaolin Showdown
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Heishiro @ Dec 14th 2006 9:51PM
Where is Panzer Dragoon Orta... sigh....
killploki @ Dec 14th 2006 9:54PM
who cares. i dont have a 360 yet and i have stopped playing my xbox because i have seen what the 360 is capable of. i cant stand to go back to the old games after that.
Joe @ Dec 14th 2006 9:56PM
I only need to see Panzer Dragoon Orta and X-Men Legends 1 & 2 and then I will be happy but until then I will be mad.
Andy S. @ Dec 14th 2006 10:00PM
And where's The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind?
Dark Jaguar @ Dec 14th 2006 10:02PM
"Who cares"? Well, Heishiro and James Ransom for one. I can also be added to the list.
The question "who cares" is a pretty stupid one. What you want to ask is "who ELSE cares", and the answer to that is still a pretty large amount.
It's fine that you want to move on, but a lot of us like to play the old as well as the new. I still buy really old games for my Atari 2600 every now and then (and at 50 cents a pop, it's not a bad deal). Nothing wrong with either, or neither if you don't like games. Just don't go around asking that all purpose "I'm not a loser" idiot question, "who cares?". Whoever brought up the topic, that's who!
Panzer Dragoon Orta, that's a game I want to play 360 style myself. For that matter, Time Splitters 2, Mech Assault 1, Blinx (well, not really that high on my list), Silent Hill 2 (4 is supported at least), and Lord of the Rings: The Third Age. Some of those are on other systems, but I have the XBox version, not those other versions. After that, fix some of the odd glitches with existing games on the list and you've satisfied my BC desires.
Figcoinc @ Dec 14th 2006 10:06PM
Now if they put the Street Fighter Anniversary Collection on this thing I'd be happy!!!
Chad @ Dec 14th 2006 10:08PM
Who cares about BC. Just because you get a new system doesn't mean that you automatically get rid of your old system.
Scott @ Dec 14th 2006 10:09PM
Until every game is made backwards compatible, there is always going to be people complaining about "X" game missing from the list.
LordMinogue @ Dec 14th 2006 10:19PM
I'd like to point out that 38 games is a significant number, and applaud the development team for getting this far.
Eventually, every game will be playable so long as the developer is around to provide the needed materials. An emulator (to my knowledge) uses an advanced chip to mimic a weaker chip's architecture in real time, and so each emulator does not have to be game specific. You make your code more accurate, and many games will work better. They dont try to code for "Barbie's Wild Adventures," they just add to the emulator and see what games now work.
aegies @ Dec 14th 2006 10:24PM
I posted this elsewhere as well, but I still feel it's pertinent: I'd like to think that sites like Kotaku and Joystiq, as well as the Psychonauts fan community at large, had a large part to play in getting Microsoft on it. It's nice to see that they are listening to more than just the sounds of sales numbers. I say more on our site about it, but the movement to get the damned thing working was enough to make me actually write an email to a game company, something I'd never done before and something I don't think I'm especially likely to do again, which I'll excerpt below.
"the policy of microsoft to focus on top selling xbox games for emulation on the 360 is understandable, but there has to be an effort made for quality games that may have been overlooked as well. the fans of these games may, in fact, be a minority, but they are a very vocal minority. they are the ones that take chances on new IP, that help build grass-roots support for games still in development, who champion consoles within the internet community, and who take chances on new consoles that have launch libraries that consist largely of ports. these are the people that sit quietly and patiently for their replacement xbox360s to arrive in the mail, rather than creating 14 different web identities in an ill-considered vendetta against a company that isn't sony or nintendo or apple. i love my xbox, and i love my xbox360. and i would be able to say i love it that much more to everyone who would listen if i could play what very well may be the most brilliant platfomer since mario's debut on the nintendo 64. please, please, make this a priority. make it happen. the developers of the game have pledged to work with microsoft's backwards compatibility team to make it happen. the mindshare generated by a backwards compatible psychonauts on the xbox360 stretches beyond those who own the game. it would be seen as a gesture on the part of microsoft to their fans that goes beyond simple monetary motivations, and toward supporting the community that has grown around their gaming products. and that is a very valuable thing in the months leading to the xbox360's effective moment of truth amidst the release of its two main competitors."
Yes, I'm a nerd. But I'll be playing Psychonauts on my 360 tomorrow. So I'm a happier nerd.
http://eat-sleep-game.com
Alex Keen @ Dec 14th 2006 10:28PM
Still looking for Phantom Dust and Kung Fu Chaos. Less Kung fu... but fun nevertheless.
Joe Cam @ Dec 14th 2006 10:38PM
Laziness abounds. Does anybody know the current number of titles on the list? I don't feel like counting them all myself. Anybody got a solid number?
Swiper @ Dec 14th 2006 10:44PM
There are currently 297 titles on the backwards compatibility list.
Kamizar @ Dec 14th 2006 11:00PM
Phantom Dust now plz...
Tel @ Dec 14th 2006 10:52PM
I love that MS can add over 30 games to the BC list, and the reaction from 33% of people is to go right into whining about how game XYZ is still not working.
Honestly – shut the hell up. They’ll get to the other games. Give them a chance to catch their breath before slinging more childish behaviour their way.
killploki @ Dec 14th 2006 10:54PM
i stick by what i said whether you think it is stupid or not. if you want to play your older games go and play them on the original system they came out for. i still have my 3do, my snes and my dreamcast and the odd time i do feel like re trying those old games it pains me to see how bad they look today. if you want to go out and buy your atari games for 50 cents a pop, you do that. im sure you will have minutes of fun with them. backwards compatibility is a waste of time, so again i say who cares. next gen is supposed to be about innovation and moving ahead, not spending more money to play the old outdated sorry looking games.
Saint Jouten @ Dec 17th 2006 8:16PM
How many total games did Xbox have?
Zack11190 @ Dec 14th 2006 11:12PM
Still no Star Wars Republic Commando.
hyperion @ Dec 14th 2006 11:31PM
I agree with #2, who really cares?
microsoft could release an updated list with 600 new games added, and the blog/gaming press would find some obscure game with a cult following that wasnt on the list.
and yes i am specifically thinking of Panzer Dragoon Orta.
hyperion @ Dec 14th 2006 11:32PM
after actually reading through the comments, #5,#11,and#17 prove my point quite nicely.
Richard @ Dec 14th 2006 11:39PM
I NEED MY WARRIORS FIX NOW!!!!!
m bowen @ Dec 15th 2006 2:32PM
I just read Major N's blog, and it didn't say anything about Indigo Prophecy. Are you sure about that one?
Fred Wood @ Dec 14th 2006 11:47PM
Panzer Dragoon Orta and Jet Set Radio Future / Sega GT combo pack will have made my $400 so much more worthwhile. Especially JSRF, I mean, it came with most people's systems, and if they don't have it, it's only $2.99 at gamestop used. And if they've got the discount card, they save 29 more cents!
Andy S. @ Dec 14th 2006 11:49PM
Tel– This is a place to comment, correct? Am I not allowed to speak? Why do you have the right to tell me to "shut the hell up?" If there weren't people to complain about the back compat, do you think Microsoft would be pumping them out? If all we did was "shut the hell up," who here thinks they'd care? I don't think that you or anyone else should "shut the hell up," because this is a place where we can make our voices heard.
I'll say it again–GIVE ME MORROWIND!
And who needs to "catch their breath?" Microsoft? The console has been out for a year! And I don't care how hard they say it is to emulate these games. It seems like Apple is able to create a system called "Rosetta," in which ANY program written for the PPC-based systems can be run on Intel-based systems. It would seem that being able to write code that would allow ANY program to work would be harder than for MS to emulate a few hundred games.
John @ Dec 15th 2006 12:08AM
Dude, if no one else is gonna say it, I'm gonna have to. MIDNIGHT CLUB 1, 2 OR 3.. What, it was fun!!
(not that I'm complaining, the fact that MS has almost 300 games on the BC list in 1 year. Nice!)
I'd just like to pop in good ole MC3 Duuuuuuub Edition!
dvdguy @ Dec 15th 2006 12:14AM
Xbox only games like Family Guy and Scarface are now on my list to purchase, thanks to BC. If all new Xbox only titles were BC upon release, they'd sell.
the kenster @ Dec 15th 2006 12:59AM
fahrenheit! fuck yeah!
Cuja @ Dec 15th 2006 2:18AM
They cover two more titles for me DOAU and SC II. MK Armageddon, Incredibles, and Mx Unleashed are future pickups. Still waiting on Panzer Dragon Orta and The Warriors.
obo @ Dec 15th 2006 2:33AM
"They’ll get to the other games. Give them a chance to catch their breath before slinging more childish behaviour their way."
I don't think they'll ever get to, say, NFL 2k5. EA would piss themselves.
Meliv @ Dec 15th 2006 3:25AM
Best backward compatibility patch so far :) Will be picking up Shenmue, Conker and Psychonauts ASAP
ALH @ Dec 15th 2006 3:30AM
UNDERSTAND UNDERSTAND
UNDERSTAND UNDERSTAND
THE CONCEPT OF putting jet set radio future on the list plz :(
Beano @ Dec 15th 2006 3:44AM
I don't own an original Xbox but I bought Psychonauts a few months ago in the hope that it would be added to the list. So to see it now been added makes me very happy. Also I will be buying Conker fairly soon. There's still a lot of great games in the 'old' Xbox-library that new Xbox-users like me are very eager to try.
Daniel D @ Dec 15th 2006 6:34AM
"after actually reading through the comments, #5,#11,and#17 prove my point quite nicely."
-Wow nice going there nostradamus, next you might predict that people will claim an article is "old" or that someone might say "slow news day", I bet you already know who will win the console wars in 2010 with this insight.
VoidXero @ Dec 15th 2006 7:53AM
"UNDERSTAND UNDERSTAND
UNDERSTAND UNDERSTAND
THE CONCEPT OF putting jet set radio future on the list plz :("
Best. Comment. Evah.
I love that they added a few more of the games that I own but I seriously desire JSRF on the 360. Better yet, how about a sequal Sega??? Ain't gonna happin' I know.
Michael @ Dec 15th 2006 8:33AM
Chronicles of Riddick, anybody? Give me Riddick, Orta, and X-men legends. Then update the Halo 2 emulator, and I may be able to officially retire my original xbox.
benjamin @ Dec 15th 2006 9:37AM
What update does the Halo 2 emulator need, Michael?
Just curious.
jdubya @ Dec 15th 2006 10:10AM
i want madden 07 xbox version.....the 360 sucks it.
siddartha @ Dec 15th 2006 10:56AM
At least they start listening to the fans' callings, though I'm still disappointed in not having Panzer Dragoon Orta on the list. *sigh* Is there anyway to petition for Orta?
chimp o death @ Dec 15th 2006 12:32PM
Games I'd like to see added, either becasue I haven't played 'em yet, or want to play again:
Full Spectrum Warrior
Full Spectrum Warrior:Ten Hammers
Brothers In Arms:Earned in Blood
Suffering:Ties That Bind
Chessmaster )laugh if you will, but replay value is second to none)
Riddick:Escape from Butcher's Bay
Panzer Dragoon Orta
Oddworld:Stranger's Wrath
I could probably think up a few more, but overall I am pretty happy with a game here or there I can replay or catch up on between 360 releases.
I was glad to see the non-360 double agent show up, since I'm a huge Splinter Cell fan and it has completely different missions.
faboo @ Dec 15th 2006 1:09PM
this may sound dorky, but my girlfriend really wants karaoke revolution, now that we got rid of our xbox.
i'm just happy to see Indigo Prophecy... now i may actually finish it.
dl @ Dec 15th 2006 4:08PM
Area 51, Dead or Alive XBV, Doom 3 ROE, MechAssault, MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf, Men of Valor, OutRun 2006, Project Gotham Racing, and Project Gotham Racing 2 please!
The Alex @ Dec 15th 2006 7:08PM
Does anyone know if the Doom 3 Reserrection of Evil works for 360? it's not on the list, but Doom 3 is, and I can't imagine them having many differences causing emulation problems...
Thanks in advance.
Dam That River @ Dec 16th 2006 2:39PM
who cares, BC is 4 losrs and all the old games have horribl graffix and if u didnt keep ur old console ur an idiot and uncool OMG !!!1111!
Seriously though, one of the main reasons I bought a PS2 was because it had nearly full backwards compatibility with the PS1 library I had missed out on since I didn't own one.
I still don't own a 360, though I plan to sometime in the future, and hopefully by then the BC list will be bigger so I can check out some of the original Xbox exclusive titles I missed out on that aren't on the list yet.