These are the games that players do not understand are not backwards compatible on Xbox

5. Backward compatibility on Xbox: the games players miss.

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Over the past few days, a seemingly simple question has sparked a massive debate among Xbox players: what game surprises you that is NOT retrocompatible on the Xbox Store? The conversation, born on Reddit, has quickly filled up with responses that reflect a shared frustration that has been building for years.

• You might be interested in: All retrocompatible games available on Xbox

What’s striking is not just the number of titles mentioned, but the historical weight of many of them. We’re talking about games that are closely tied to Xbox’s identity, complete sagas, exclusives from their time, and titles that, due to licenses or commercial decisions, still can’t be played officially on Xbox Series.

The games that the community misses in Xbox’s retrocompatibility

Below, we’ve compiled all the titles mentioned by players, which are surprising for not being available as retrocompatibles or for not being able to be purchased currently on the Xbox Store:

• Mercenaries 2: World in Flames

• Halo: Combat Evolved (original Xbox version)

• Halo 2 (original Xbox version)

• True Crime: Streets of LA

• True Crime: New York City

• The Godfather

• The Godfather II

• Scarface: The World Is Yours

• The Saboteur

• Alpha Protocol

• Anarchy Reigns

• MadWorld

• Forza Motorsport (saga prior to FM5, especially Forza Motorsport 4)

• Jet Set Radio Future

• Ninety-Nine Nights

• Ninety-Nine Nights II

• Ninja Blade

• Spider-Man: Web of Shadows

• Deadpool

• Lollipop Chainsaw

• Soul Calibur V

• Fahrenheit (Indigo Prophecy)

• Batman: Arkham Origins (not available on the Store)

• Condemned 2: Bloodshot

• Max Payne 3 (non-compatible DLC)

• Transformers: War for Cybertron

• Transformers: Fall of Cybertron

• Burnout 3: Takedown

• The Simpsons: Hit & Run

• Project Gotham Racing

• Project Gotham Racing 2

• Project Gotham Racing 3

• Project Gotham Racing 4

• Brute Force

• Blinx 2: Masters of Time & Space

• Fable (original Xbox version)

• Fable: The Lost Chapters (original version)

• Fuzion Frenzy 2

• Guilty Gear 2: Overture

• Call of Duty Classic

• Grid

• Dirt

• Dirt 2

• Army of Two: The 40th Day

• Amped

• RalliSport Challenge

• RalliSport Challenge 2

• Arctic Thunder

• Mad Dash Racing

• Kung Fu Chaos

• Whacked!

• Way of the Samurai

• Way of the Samurai 2

• Way of the Samurai 3

• Need for Speed: Most Wanted (2005)

• Need for Speed: Carbon

• Trials Evolution

• Cloudberry Kingdom

• Star Trek: Legacy

• Space Invaders Extreme

• Pirates of the Caribbean (Bethesda)

• Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit

• Persona 4 Arena Ultimax

• Sonic Heroes

• Sonic Riders

• Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)

The list makes it clear that the problem doesn’t have a single cause. In many cases, music licenses, brand agreements, film rights, or defunct publishers come into play. In others, it’s surprising that titles closely tied to Xbox’s history remain outside the program.

The debate once again shows that, although Xbox’s retrocompatibility program has been one of the most ambitious in the industry, there are still many highly sought-after gems that players hope to be able to reinstall someday without having to dust off an Xbox 360 or an original console.