A viral report about Xbox and Xbox 360 games coming to PC through emulation has been shot down by industry insiders.
For a few hours earlier today, excitement was running high across social media. This was because a new rumor claimed that Microsoft was planning to bring original Xbox and Xbox 360 games to PC through official emulation, under a supposed project titled “Xbox Classics.”
The idea was that these older titles would be playable through a modern emulation layer, with better visuals and full integration into the Xbox ecosystem, including Game Pass and xCloud.
The rumor quickly gained traction after being shared by YouTuber Extas1s, who cited internal sources and mentioned collaboration with the Xenia Canary emulator team. The claim was picked up by major media outlets, fueling a lot of excitement from longtime Xbox fans who were thrilled at the idea of playing titles like Fable II, Skate 3, or Gears of War 3 on PC with modern enhancements.
But now, it looks like those dreams may need to be put on hold, if not shelved entirely.
OG Xbox and 360 PC Emulation Rumors Are “False”
Shortly after the rumor started making headlines, two highly trusted journalists weighed in, and they didn’t mince words. Jez Corden, from Windows Central, directly addressed the claims on X (formerly Twitter). In a quote tweet responding to the original rumor, Corden wrote:
“Xbox is gunning to bring Xbox games to more devices, but this particular scenario isn’t a thing at the moment,” He followed that up with a comment: “This is false.”
Meanwhile, Tom Warren of The Verge, another reliable voice when it comes to Xbox news, also responded to the same post with a simple but clear reaction: “lol”
Update, June 19, 2:25 PM PT: On Xenia’s official Discord server, team member ZolaKluke dismissed the claim that Microsoft is collaborating with the emulator team to bring older Xbox titles to PC.
“It’s not real,” they said. “Microsoft has their own Xbox 360 emulator, they’d never even consult Xenia.”
Original Story: Both replies suggest that the emulation project described in the original leak doesn’t currently exist, at least not in the way it was presented. This doesn’t mean Microsoft has no interest in expanding access to its classic titles, but the specific “Xbox Classics” emulation platform for PC doesn’t appear to be real, according to their sources.
As of now, Microsoft has not released any official comment on the rumor.
Interestingly, this all comes at a time when there are other Xbox-related rumors floating around, including claims that a planned Xbox handheld device was canceled. It’s been a confusing week for fans hoping to see the brand make big moves in the legacy and portable space.
What do you think? Should Microsoft bring its OG Xbox and 360 catalog to PC through emulation? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
