# Xbox Preservation Team "Announced" "[EXCLUSIVE: Xbox President Sarah Bond has set up a new team dedicated to game preservation and forward compatibility](https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/exclusive-xbox-president-sarah-bond-has-set-up-a-new-team-dedicated-to-game-preservation-and-forward-compatibility)" by Jez Corden for Windows Central via [VGC](https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/xbox-has-established-a-team-dedicated-to-game-preservation/) Let's give Xbox credit where it is due though, but not too much. > "We are moving full speed ahead on our next generation hardware, focused on delivering the biggest technological leap ever in a generation." This stance has been proclaimed quite a bit lately; I think since the announcement that four Xbox titles would be making the jump to other platforms. I believe them. Next-gen hardware is out there looming on the horizon. And plans for said hardware were likely locked in a while ago, certainly the R&D was. The real question is whether or not Xbox will do the whole "two consoles at once" thing again and kneecap their entire development baseline. This is also a good statement to just throw out into the wind with the next console from Nintendo and the PS5 Pro seemingly being much closer to reality than a next-gen Xbox. Think about it. This generation, Xbox doesn't believe in [[Phil Spencer, Founder of the Modern Day Mid-Gen Refresh, Thinks Mid-Gen Refreshes Cause “A Bunch of Issues”|mid-generation refreshes]]. Please don't confuse this with the leaked and "adorably all digital" Xbox Series X redesign. That was more a physical refresh, not a power shift like the Xbox One X and PS4 Pro were. Just mentioning the next generation Xbox and how big of a technological leap it will be is enough to plant a seed. "Oh, I heard the next Xbox is gonna be crazy powerful. I'll just wait." It's a PR way of being "first" without being committal. > "We have formed a new team dedicated to game preservation, important to all of us at Xbox and the industry itself. We are building on our strong history of delivering backwards compatibility to our players, and we remain committed to bringing forward the amazing library of Xbox games for future generations of players to enjoy." Xbox does have the longest tail for supporting backward compatibility. I respect that. Let's not forget though that they are [[Xbox 360 Digital Store Shutting Down Next Summer|shutting down the 360 digital]] store this summer.[^1] There are [[Phil Spencer Wonders how Xbox can Preserve Digital-Only 360 Games After Announcing Closure of 360 Digital Store|220 games]] there that aren't back-compat on Xbox and will ostensibly vanish. Building a team to address this kind of problem is good. But I'd rather wait to see the team, their work, and their stances on preservation before giving Xbox all the credit. Hopefully, we will hear more about this at their Summer Showcase, as reported. In the end, this comes off as the kind of email you want to leak. It's all good news: It's just good news that isn't polished with shiny advertising paint. The skeptic in me believes the idea it was seeded to press, just like they are seeding next-gen Xbox tech prowess. But I like the "news," or maybe I should say I like the idea of the news. I want Xbox to keep making dedicated hardware. Bring on the Xbox handheld in the sea of all these handheld PC consoles. Bring on a souped-up Xbox Series Y or whatever terrible name they'll give it. I want there to be a preservation team. Keep allowing for ways to play games and consoles years later. Keep physical media access around. Keep the Xbox legacy alive. But until Xbox officially announces these things and releases them, we shouldn't give them full remarks. [^1]: In fact, I just bought that digital-only Alan Wake game the other day because it was on sale for $3 or something.