Mario Bautista
UPDATE (June 8, 2025): A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed to me today that Xbox console and Windows Phone games appearing in the Xbox PC library is, indeed, a “bug.” But, I can’t help but feel like there are efforts going on behind the scenes to unify all those store fronts … #TinFoilHat. The original article continues below.
The Xbox PC app for accessing Microsoft Store PC games and PC Game Pass has been steadily getting better in recent months, but lately, something has gotten broken.
A little while ago, I noticed that Microsoft seems to have begun unifying the back ends of the Xbox One store powering the previous console and the Xbox Series X|S consoles. How did I notice? Well, I saw that beta tests for deactivated games like Bleeding Edge and Xbox 360 backward compatible titles began showing up on my Lenovo Legion Go. Needless to say, I wasn’t exactly excited about all the added unplayable clutter.
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I recently wrote an article about how much the Xbox PC app and Xbox Game Bar have improved in recent months, but one critical area of weakness remains library management. You cannot hide games, nor can you see the status of cloud saves uploading and syncing. Today, it seems the problem got even worse.
I received some DMs on Twitter asking me why Xbox 360 and Xbox One games were beginning to show up on the Xbox PC app. With the Xbox Showcase slated for Sunday, speculation began running rife that Microsoft is gearing up to announce that all Xbox console games are now playable on PC or something along those lines.
While that would be fantastic news, there are of course significant hurdles both technological and legal (licensing) that would need to be solved for that to happen. Although, what I think we’re seeing here is potentially, at least, some of the ground work to work towards that goal. Or, maybe Microsoft truly will surprise the world on Sunday by letting me play my Xbox versions of Blasphemous and Cult of the Lamb on my Lenovo Legion Go.
I somehow doubt it, though, because the section of the Xbox PC app titled “My PC games” is definitively not showing my PC games. In fact, it’s showing dead Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 tablet and phone games, many of which won’t even function or run. It’s showing beta tests that have been dead for years, some for over a decade, in fact.
Naturally, when you click on these non-PC Xbox games, they do not work, simply linking you out to the Xbox console store on the web. It’s incredibly annoying.
So, what’s going on?
Microsoft is working hard and putting a ton of resources into improving Windows 11 PC gaming right now, with specific focus on the Xbox PC app. This is ahead of a possible announcement for Project Kennan, which many suspect could be revealed during this weekend’s showcase festivities — but it may be far too early still.
If I had to guess, what we’re seeing with the libraries crossing over in this weird, inconsistent way, is Microsoft unifying its back end systems to improve the experience for developers, if I had to guess. The downside is that its resulting in an absolute clusterfuck for any Xbox gamer who also actively uses devices like the ASUS ROG Ally, Lenovo Legion Go, or Xbox / PC Game Pass on an every day gaming PC. Although, if you’re a weirdo like me and actually purchased Windows Phone games back in the day, your PC library likely looks even more insane than most right now.
I’ve asked Microsoft to comment on what’s going on (and with the Xbox Showcase going on, I’m sure they have bigger fish to fry right now.) But, this has been going on for a hot minute at this point. I first noticed it a few weeks ago, but it definitely got worse over the last few days.
So, is this innocuous tidying up of backend systems, or is Microsoft working towards truly unifying the Xbox and Xbox PC stores into one glorious digital gaming ecosystem? Time will tell.
