Xbox’s Disc-To-Digital feature is now available to everyone

Xbox’s Disc-To-Digital feature is now available to everyone

Last August, Microsoft revealed its plan to help physical game owners evolve their libraries in an increasingly digital landscape. This is a new feature that essentially allows players to make digital copies of their physical games. Initially exclusive to Xbox Insiders, Microsoft is now rolling out its disc-to-digital licensing program to all users.

As detailed in an Xbox Support article, the new feature is limited to Xbox Series X and Xbox One games. Exactly how many games will be supported at launch in the vast combined library of both console generations is unclear, but Microsoft says that, for a number of possible reasons, this is not the case. all games are eligible. And as of now, no Xbox 360 or original Xbox games support the new feature.

All you have to do to claim a digital license for a game is insert a disc while signed into your Xbox account. A pop-up message will tell you when the license has been created, and you will then be able to play the game in question without needing the corresponding disc to be in its drive. If you don’t get a confirmation, it’s probably because you’ve already generated the digital token for that game. Either that or it’s not supported.

Scanned games will have a badge next to them in your games library, so you can easily see which ones you still need to add. If you want to add a whole bunch in sequence, Microsoft recommends turning off the “Autoplay Disc” setting on your Xbox, so you can easily swap discs without being booted straight into one game every time you load another.

When an Xbox game is part of the Xbox Play Anywhere program, it can also be installed and played on your PC. The discs will continue to function as normal once you have your digital license, but the license is tied to that disc, rather than your account, so if you sell it or lend it to someone else, the license will transfer to their account when they insert the disc into their console. This sounds more dramatic than it is, because it simply means that the second-hand market will continue to operate as it always has.

Microsoft has provided a detailed FAQ for niche cases like Ultimate Edition games or multi-disc titles, so be sure to read it if you’re unsure about certain games in your library. Obviously, the Xbox Series S isn’t a solution here, as it doesn’t have a disc drive.

Xbox rolling out this technology now seems to suggest that it future-proofs existing game libraries ahead of the next Xbox, which is still codenamed Project Helix, and may not include a disc drive. PlayStation has yet to announce a similar feature, despite controversially announcing earlier this summer that it would cease physical game production for new PS5 games in 2028.

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