No backward compatibility? Problems and solutions regarding the migration of games to the next generation

We are in the midst of the infamous "generational transition” of video game consoles. At this moment, developers and publishers have a difficult dilemma to solve: should they invest in current consoles, which already have a significant installed player base, or should they aim for the future, making games for the new consoles?

Worse still is the torment of the players, who always end up suffering some inconvenience during the transition. To spice things up, Sony and Microsoft confirmed that their next gen offerings would not support the so-called backward compatibility (the ability to play titles from previous consoles on the current ones). For those who had already built a solid library of physical and even digital titles, distributed by Xbox Live and PlayStation Network, it was a tremendous disappointment to discover that these games would not be supported by their (possible) new consoles.

In a cold analysis, the reasons given by both companies for the omission of this functionality are to some extent convincing. Both the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4 use completely different hardware architecture from its predecessors. Running previous-gen games natively would be virtually impossible. An emulation solution, unfeasible. There is the possibility of attaching some components of their own predecessors in the new consoles, like the PS3 did in its release model, which housed the PS2's Emotion Engine inside its own cabinet. The problem with this solution is that it greatly increases costs, size and power consumption of the device. I don’t need to remind you of the reactions to the absurd launch price of the PS3 in 2006 ($599.00 for the 60GB model).

Thanks to digital distribution and the influx of smaller games, the PS3 and Xbox 360 have managed to build an extremely large game catalog when compared to their retail-only predecessors, and losing access to all of that during the transition seems like a big waste. This perspective is further compounded if we put in question the fact that platforms which compete directly with Sony’s and Microsoft’s consoles, namely the gaming PC and the Nintendo WiiU, do not suffer from the same problem of lack of backward compatibility.

Workarounds

To mitigate the situation, both companies are developing alternatives and solutions to migrate previous generation games, making them available on the new machines.

During the Tokyo Game Show 2013, Shuhei Yoshida (president of Worldwide Studios, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.) confirmed that by 2014, game streaming service Gaikai will allow players to access their PS3 digital library on the PS4.

Sony bought Gaikai for about $380 million in 2012.

In addition, Sony unveiled an upgrade program for PS3 games, targeting recent games that are being developed for both the PS3 as PS4 simultaneously. Through this program, consumers who purchase the PS3 version may pay an additional amount ($ 9.99 US, £ 9.99 UK and € 9.99 rest of Europe) to download a digital version of the title for the PS4, which would feature improved graphics and performance.

Microsoft presented a similar solution, detailing a game exchange program, which will allow the consumer to take his/her Xbox 360 disc to one of the participating stores and exchange it for an Xbox One disc of the same game by paying a fee ($ 9.99 US).

Neither solution, however, is satisfactory. Both programs only apply to a very restricted number of titles, which does not solve the issue of “making a waste out of last gen’s library”. Even if this number was expanded in the future, encompassing older games, it would be necessary for developers and publishers to be interested in investing money, time and resources into making improved versions of their old titles. Even if there was a large acceptance to this kind of measure (which I highly doubt), many games would not be covered by this treatment, and would stay forever “in the past”.

So far, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Madden NFL 25, Battlefield 4, Need for Speed: Rivals, NBA 2k14, FIFA 14 and Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag are the only games supported by Microsoft’s migration program.

When it comes to Gaikai’s stream solution, it has other peculiarities. Although it can reach a larger number of titles more easily, it is also still very far from ideal. The streaming experience needs Internet access all the time to function. Moreover, it tends to add input delay and relative degradation of visual quality, which makes the experience in several aspects inferior to that of local direct output. Even when input delay is reduced to a minimum, consequences are great for more frantic, competitive and fast-paced games (like fighting games, shoot ‘em ups or rhythm games, for example).

What then would be the ideal solution for this problem?

Straight ports: key to the solution

Even after the failure of the PS3 launch, Sony managed to reverse the negative situation through a series of price cuts and expansion of catalog. These cuts, however, came at the price of axing some of the console’s features, such as the backward compatibility.

Later, Sony began offering downloadable versions of PlayStation 2 games on the PlayStation Store through a program called PS2 Classics. These versions are actually straight ports, without any improvement. These games avoid features that are mandatory for normal PS3 releases, such as native support for high definition resolutions, the trophy system, among others.

The positive side of this distribution method is the fact that it makes the process of republishing a game much easier, faster and more straightforward. Developers use tools and documentation (some developed and provided by Sony itself) to rewrite and recompile the game so that it is comprehended by the new system’s software and hardware architecture. Then, the title goes through quality control (to avoid unexpected bugs caused by the conversion) and, finally, it is published on the PlayStation Network. There are some additional steps (scanning and embedding the game’s manual, marketing etc), but overall, it’s a pretty “soft launch”-like approach. The investment is small, and rewards are very variable, depending on the title’s popularity. Most of the time, the investment is worth it on the long run, as the game continues to sell over time and may also have popularity spikes at times (when it goes on sale, or when a new title on that particular franchise is announced, for example). 

This kind of port is the major key to solving the problem of migrating the PS3’s and Xbox 360’s library to the PS4 and the Xbox One.

Released in late 2011, Sony’s PS2 Classics program already has more than 200 titles. Unfortunately, most of the games are only available in specific regions.

Sony and Microsoft should develop “straight port programs” for their new consoles, making the process of publishing ports quick and painless. And this must be done as soon as possible. The longer PS3 and Xbox 360 games are unavailable on the PS4 or Xbox One, the less attractive these consoles will become for gamers who have already built a large collection of games. A lot of previously loyal console-gamers are willing to keep their old consoles and invest on a high-end PC for the next generation, for example. As of right now, for console owners, transitioning to a next generation console is as much of a hassle as transitioning to PC Gaming is: you lose everything you have until now, and begin anew. 

What about the library accumulated by the consumer? When available, companies should provide very cheap, or even free solutions for those who already bought the previous version to download the ports. After all, a straight port has no direct improvements, and does not justify extra charge. It is an attitude of respect for consumers, who should not be forced to buy back a game they already have. The benefit for companies would be manifold: direct ports would also be readily available to new audiences, people who did not purchase the games before, or did not own their original platforms. In addition, people who still didn’t migrate would not hold back when purchasing games for their systems, knowing they’d still be playable should they ever decide to buy a next-gen system and get rid of their old ones.

For the migration process itself, we propose the following solutions:

I will try to illustrate the above possibility: You insert an Xbox 360 DVD or a PS3 Bluray Disc into the Xbox One or the PS4 and launch the game. Instead of simply refusing the disc, the Xbox Live / PSN servers would check whether there is a port available for it. If there is one, they would download it as if it was an update for that particular game. Playing the game through this method would require having the disc inside the tray at all times, even though the port files were downloaded from the internet, to prevent possible fraud / undue distribution of game content.

Another great idea for publishers, which Sony could take advantage of, is the launch of "double" or “flex” games on Bluray. It is common knowledge that very few PS3 games utilize the full 25GB of storage space available on the Bluray Disc. Therefore, publishers could already include two content packs simultaneously into the disc: one compiled to run on the PS3, and another to run on the PS4. That would make it so that the disc essentially works on both consoles without any need for updates. Sony itself could benefit from this program of "PS4-compatible PS3 discs" as it would make the PS3 version of multiplatform games more attractive. It would be a really interesting strategy for these transition times. For consumers, the convenience of buying just one disc and being able to play it on any of the platforms would certainly be well received.

These are all plausible, if not a little bit optimistic predictions and suggestions. The question is whether companies will adhere to similar ideas, or if they really want to “leave the past behind” and just focus on new content.