Jake Widman
Saturday, 06 February 2010 07:58
Your IT -
Entertainment
Page 1 of 2
Microsoft has announced that Xbox Live online play will no longer support the original Xbox or its games, even if the games are played on an Xbox 360.
In a letter
posted today on the Gamerscore blog, Xbox Live general manager Marc Whitten says that "on April 15 we will discontinue the Xbox LIVE service for original Xbox consoles and games, including Xbox v1 games playable on Xbox 360 and Xbox Originals."
Expressing sadness over the decision, Whitten cites Halo 2 as having "fundamentally changed the way we play video games," saying that it maintains a dedicated community even five years after launch.
But, he continues, to "harness the full power of Xbox 360...we need to make changes to the service that are incompatible with our original Xbox v1 games."
One of the issues may be the upcoming implementation of Project Natal, the motion control system for the Xbox 360. Whitten writes, "I couldn't be more excited about what we have in store with 'Project Natal' and Live."
Xbox Live players who still play Xbox v2 games will also get the news on their consoles and via e-mail.
For a selection of affected games, see Page 2.