List of Non-Backwards Compatible Games That Need to Come to Xbox Series X|S

As mentioned in my previous article, “Five Things I Want to See in Xbox Series X|S“, while there are plenty of new Xbox experience I’m looking forward to, continuing the backwards compatibility program is also very important to me, as I’ve amassed a good few games from generations prior to the Xbox One as well.

Here, then, are twelve classic Xbox games I’m still champing at the bit to see arrive as playable titles on the Xbox Series X|S.

Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing

I just had to start with this one, and I can’t even begin to tell you how much I love this game and what it means to me. I even interviewed the executive producer, Steve Lycett, for the game’s 10th anniversary earlier this year (go check it out).

Admittedly, we do already have Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed backwards compatible on the Xbox One, though not without issues. And while I do love that game for the innovation it brings with its awesome transforming vehicle gimmick and the stages which accompany it (and characters who didn’t make the cut in the first), there’s just something about the pure, individual ground-based racing of the original that neither Transformed nor its follow-up, Team Sonic Racing (released for Xbox One, among other platforms) manage to hit. Each game brings something to the mix that the other two don’t, and that’s why all three are great.

And while I already have this on Steam, it’s just not the same without being able to use my Xbox Avatar, or having Banjo and Kazooie there, making the Xbox 360 version the ultimate version of the game.

Of course, if SEGA were to release some sort of all-in-one Sonic Racing trilogy for Xbox Series X|S that includes the 360-exclusive content, I think I might be able to withdraw this from the list. Then again, that could arguably be said for most of this list, so I’ll just leave it here at that.

Burnout 3: Takedown

Not to dismiss the first two Burnout games, but Burnout 3: Takedown is the one I own and the one that got me into the series, and remains my favorite in the series to date. The others just somehow aren’t quite as chaotically cathartic in their car-based carnage to me. This game just managed to nail it, and while I have Burnout Revenge (which is backwards compatible), it doesn’t quite stack up the same to me. Meanwhile, I could just never quite get into Burnout Paradise (also BC).

If Electronic Arts still did anything with the Burnout series these days, maybe the desire for Takedowns and Crashbreakers wouldn’t burn so strongly in me.

Seriously, I don’t think I’ve played another game before or since that’s as cathartic as this after a day of working retail. It just feels so, so good.

Dead Or Alive series

It’s bizarre to me that a series that was so synonymous with the original Xbox is nowhere to be seen, save for the most recent releases, Dead Or Alive 5 and Dead Or Alive 6. All three Ninja Gaiden titles are backwards compatible, but none of its sister-series.

Personally speaking, I’ve got Dead Or Alive Ultimate and Dead Or Alive 3 (and would like to get the fourth as well), and would like to play them again sometime. Sure, the new games have somewhat more realistic graphics, but there’s a certain early aughts charm to the first few entries that I miss.

Maybe Koei Tecmo think that if they allow these to be re-released as backwards compatible titles, people will stop shelling out for all their microtransactions? I don’t really think there’s much to support that notion, though.

King of Games Trilogy

Seeing as how I have an entire category of this site dedicated to “Fast Food Culture“, how could these three games not be on here? I’m still the proud owner of King Games’ “King of Games” trilogy: Sneak King, Big Bumpin’, and PocketBike Racer. So naturally, as a fan of both Xbox and Burger King, I’d love to see these get the backwards compatibility treatment.

Of course, I also understand the likelihood of this is probably among the lowest on this list — they are promoting a different console at the moment, and Xbox is partnered with Taco Bell for the Series X|S launch, after all. Still, that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like to see it happen.

SoulCalibur IV

SoulCalibur and SoulCalibur II HD are both already backwards compatible, and I guess it makes just as much sense to add the third and fifth games as well, but this is the one (besides the original SoulCalibur II) that I own. Like Burnout, it’s another weird instance of some older games being available, but not others, though this feels a little more random in that respect.

Bionic Commando Rearmed

This is a biggie for me. Bionic Commando was one of my favorite games of all time for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), and while Capcom has effectively kept that locked away in the deepest and darkest depths of their library (save for that one time they let it out for a Game Boy Advance 3-pack), this remake is brilliant enough to satisfy most of my craving for it.

Another case where we got the sequel but not the original, Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 — itself not a remake of anything, just a whole new sequel made to follow the remake — is on the backwards compatible list. I don’t know if there’s some mentality where someone thinks that just because we have the sequel means we don’t want/need the original, but I can assure them that this is not always the case, and certainly not here.

Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection

This sort of falls into the notion I just mentioned, if we were to consider SEGA Genesis Classics a sequel to Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection. While both are collections of classic SEGA Genesis titles, they are not equal. Some games are common between the two, yes, but several others are not.

In the case of Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection, it’s less the Genesis games that are the prize to me (with a few exceptions) than the bonus content, featuring several arcade and Master System releases that just don’t get the same kind of spotlight as their 16-bit home console brethren. If I’m being honest, though, I’d be just as happy — probably more so — if SEGA would just release a “SEGA Master System Classics” or something (especially since Alex Kidd in Shinobi World isn’t on here, anyway).

After Burner Climax

This is an odd one out on the list, as it’s a game I actually didn’t buy for the Xbox 360. Sadly, it came at a time when money was tight, and got pulled before I got the chance to go back and get it, presumably due to licensing issues. That didn’t stop me from playing the demo, though!

That said, they’ve done other After Burner stuff since then that managed to get around that, and I’m perfectly fine if we can’t have the authentic military hardware experience, so long as the game is available to play again.

OutRun Online Arcade/OutRun 2/OutRun 2006

Same story as After Burner Climax, except I did own OutRun Online Arcade, and man, do I love it. It’s what got me into OutRun as a whole, and I miss playing it from the comfort of my sofa.

That said, there are several versions of the game, with various pluses and minuses thrown in the mix. If SEGA and Sumo Digital were to just give us an “ultimate” definitive version of the three releases in a single package, I’d be more than happy to fork over my money again. But until then, this is what I’m hoping for.

Incidentally, the game was originally pulled because of their license with Ferrari running out. Frankly, like with After Burner Climax, I can do without the license — nice as it was, that was never the main draw for me. They’ve since released Out Run on Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo Switch with edits to make the cars not-Ferraris, and I’d be perfectly fine with that here. Maybe for those who simply must have actual Ferraris, they could have DLC that helps cover the license? Just a thought.

1942: Joint Strike

Back in the late aughts, Capcom was releasing new sequels to their classic franchises. Like, really classic. Pre-NES era, even.

Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando 3 was one such release, and it is backwards compatible. 1942: Joint Strike is another, and it is not.

Bring it on, I say!

DarkStalkers Resurrection

Here’s another in the pantheon of “I wish I’d bought it when I had the chance” releases. DarkStalkers just gets a raw deal all around, but at least it’s still available… on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. I’d leap on it now, but… well, that’s where this list comes in. It’s not backwards compatible, so my hands are effectively tied in this case.

TMNT: Danger of the Ooze

The one game on this list that, in my estimation, is even less likely to be re-released as a backwards compatible title than the Burger King games or SEGA’s planes, trains, and automobiles, this one is, again, down to licensing. Simply put: Activision no longer holds the license to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, or many of the other properties they had their hands on for a while there.

Sadly, this one inexplicably never made it to Xbox One — it was ported from the Nintendo 3DS to Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in October 2014, almost a year after those consoles’ successors came out.

I do own the original Nintendo 3DS version of this one, and WayForward did a bang-up job on it. Based on the 2012 Nickelodeon version of the franchise, it’s got a nice 2D Metroidvania style to it, and tons of charm right out of the show. It’s just really good.

I wish I could see it in high definition up on a nice, big television screen, but I’m resigned to the fact this will likely never come to pass.

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And that’s it! Twelve games I’d love to see come to Xbox Series X|S (and heck, Xbox One in the meantime until I can upgrade) via backwards compatibility. Some are certainly more likely than others, but all are welcome in the end. With the way Microsoft is doing things now, though, with any luck, there won’t be a need for more recent titles to be added to such a list for a long time to come.

As noted in my previous article, though, it sounds like those of us with a keen interest in our older titles may have something to look forward to come November 10th. You know my fingers are crossed that this involves some of the above titles.

Thanks for reading!

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David Oxford is a freelance writer of many varied interests. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.