The one thing people have been clamoring for since the Xbox One was released is backwards compatibility to allow playing of all those collected games from the 360 era. Microsoft is granting that wish, though it will be gradual.
Today the company is publishing a list of the initial games that will be available. In all, it entails 104 titles and includes some big names. Among those in this release are Assassin's Creed II, Bejeweled 2, Gears of War versions 1, 2 and 3, Halo: Spartan Assault, Mass Effect, Plants vs Zombies and many more.
Microsoft's Larry Hryb promises "If you don’t see your favorite Xbox 360 title on the list and you want to try and get it added, visit the Xbox Feedback website and vote on the existing nominations or submit your own".
This all rolls out on November 12th and Microsoft's Mike Ybarra made the formal announcement, telling us "Today, I’m happy to unveil to you the first 104 Xbox One Backward Compatibly games. Some of my favorites are included, like the complete Gears of War catalog, Assassin’s Creed II, Fallout 3, Borderlands, and Castle Crashers. The full list of the first 104 games is below and can be found at the Backward Compatibility page at Xbox.com. And, as I said at gamescom, going forward, all Xbox 360 games available through Games With Gold after Nov. 12 will be playable on Xbox One".
This should gain an even bigger user-base for the console, given the number of Xbox 360 customers who were likely reluctant to give up their games.