XBOX has confirmed that the new disc-to-digital mechanic is now available globally and is not tied to just XBOX Insiders. The new feature allows users to insert many discs into any XBOX console with an optical drive and unlock digital entitlements for that game on any other XBOX platform.
It’s not comprehensive yet, and the team has advised that ‘eligibility may change over time’, but it’s a huge step forward in the game preservation space that has been met with positive sentiment on social media.
XBOX Disc-to-Digital Licensing Goes Live
In the last couple of weeks, XBOX Insiders have been toying with XBOX’s new disc-to-digital ecosystem, slipping discs into their consoles and unlocking ‘digital licensing benefits’.
There are some caveats to the deal, of course. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows.
The team has stressed that, if you give away, lose, or sell your XBOX disc, you may have your license revoked. That means you can’t just buy a game, get your digital copy, and then sell the game to someone else. It makes sense, but it means if you want to get rid of a game, you run the risk of getting rid of it in all respects.
But that’s basically common sense, so it should be fine.
Also, original XBOX and XBOX 360 game discs are not supported by this technology, and the team confirmed:
Eligibility may vary due to technical, licensing, publishing, manufacturing, or other factors. Microsoft may also change eligibility over time.
It’s a cross-platform deal, too. If you put your disc into an XBOX console and it happens to be an XBOX Play Anywhere title, you’ll unlock access to that game digitally on handheld and PC platforms. If you have a disc-based XBOX collection and a ROG Ally XBOX X, for instance, you can now access that physical library on your handheld device.
XBOX has also given some advice regarding claiming discs in bulk.
RELATED: Complete XBOX Disc-to-Digital Game List
It’s best to navigate to your profile and system settings and switch off ‘Play Disc Automatically’, which prevents your console from automatically booting into a game when the disc is inserted. It’ll still take a lot of time, but at least you won’t need to hit the dashboard from every disc you put in the drive.
Are you going to start transferring your discs to digital licenses on your XBOX console? Let us know your plans on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
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Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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