Xbox users discover hack to recover delisted games using free new feature

Xbox users have discovered a way to recover delisted games using a new feature launched on Xbox consoles.

Xbox’s new disc-to-digital program launched for the Insiders program last week, allowing players to convert their physical Xbox discs into digital licences.

If you have a disc for an Xbox game but also have an Xbox Series S, it’ll mean you’ll be able to play your physical collection on the digital-only console at no extra charge.

Some users have even found that they can use discs for delisted games in order to acquire a digital copy, even if the game was delisted years ago.

“Testing out Xbox's new Disc To Digital program and have to say I'm pretty impressed,” writes X user Storm360 (via DualShockers). “Tried to test as much edge case stuff as I could think of and the only failures I had were SEGA games (tried 4) and Dead Rising 3. Even delisted games and physical only releases worked.”

Some of the delisted games that Storm360 claims can be added to your account using a physical disc include Lego Dimensions (delisted in 2017), Avicii Invector (delisted in 2019), and Deadpool (delisted in 2017).

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Xbox's Disc to Digital program also works on Xbox One

They add that Xbox One consoles can also claim digital licences for Series X/S games, even if they’re not compatible with the Xbox One. Therefore, if you own an Xbox One but upgraded to Series S, you’ll be able to access your physical library of games using the new Disc-to-Digital tool.

However, as Storm360 says, there are some games which are incompatible with the new feature. Users over on Reddit are also making lists of the games they’ve tested so far, with mixed results depending on the publisher.

It seems that games released by Sega or Ubisoft are not compatible with the feature, as users have reported that series like Assassin’s Creed and Yakuza seem to not be granting a digital licence. It seems that many publishers need to opt-in to the feature, hence why some may be absent right now.

Bandai Namco games also appear to not be working either, with franchises like Dark Souls and The Dark Pictures Anthology being incompatible with the feature.

However, Electronic Arts games appear to be mostly working. Some games, like A Way Out and Need for Speed Rivals don’t work, while many Battlefield and sports games published by EA seem to be working.

If you were hoping for the delisted Forza games to also make an appearance here, you'd be out of luck. Presumably due to the way car licences work in those games, these aren't included.

The Xbox community is still building out this list, so a full list of titles which are compatible is not currently available. However, you can check what’s been tested so far by heading to this community-run spreadsheet.

Over time, we expect more titles will become available for the Disc-to-Digital program as more publishers opt in.

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