Although there are plenty of brand new titles to play on the recently released PS4 and Xbox One consoles, there is always demand for the option to revisit classics. Some games make their way onto the new consoles with HD remakes, like Tomb Raider and (hopefully) Halo 2, but many others aren't quite as lucky, with developers often times opting to release titles for the previous-gen consoles and their larger player bases.

A few months ago, Sony revealed plans for a streaming service called PlayStation Now that will give PS4 owners the opportunity to play games originally released for previous PlayStation consoles. So far, Microsoft has yet to unveil a comparable service for Xbox One users despite their similar interest in pushing the idea of the gaming 'cloud'.

Microsoft may not have revealed an official plan for delivering previous-gen content to Xbox One owners yet, but that hasn't stopped fans and journalists from asking the company for updates on the request as often as they can. Development lead Frank Savage responded to a question about backwards compatibility during the recent Microsoft Build conference. He doesn't confirm plans for an emulator, but he definitely gives hopeful gamers a bit more to think about until a more official statement is released...

"There are, but we're not done thinking them through yet, unfortunately... It turns out to be hard to emulate the PowerPC stuff on the X86 stuff. So there's nothing to announce, but I would love to see it myself."

There's no denying that many gamers would love the opportunity to revisit their favorite Xbox 360 games without having to clutter their entertainment centers by keeping the old console around. Despite the fact that Microsoft is only 'thinking it through,' it's good to know that backwards compatibility is still on the radar.

Multiple representatives from Microsoft have spoken about backwards compatibility throughout the last year, but the company has yet to provide a clear, unified message. Initially, the idea was considered 'backwards thinking' according to Microsoft, but a few months later senior director Albert Penello acknowledged the possibility of a streaming service similar to what is planned for PlayStation Now.

"It could be more complicated things like rendering full games like a Gaikai and delivering it to the box... We just have to figure out how, over time, how much does that cost to deliver, how good is the experience."

Although some gamers may still be holding out hope that they'll be able to access their previously purchased Xbox 360 games without an additional fee on the Xbox One, we would be surprised if that ends up being a reality. If Microsoft does eventually move forward with plans for a 360 emulator, it seems pretty likely that it would be an experience closer to PlayStation Now's streaming plan. So if you already own the game, you might be out of luck, unless they come up with a way to let it recognize your Xbox 360 discs, and uses that to authenticate to allow players to play the emulated version on their Xbox One.

Is backwards compatibility important to you or are you happy spending your gaming hours with new titles? Sound off in the comments.

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Follow Denny on Twitter @The_DFC.

Source: Kotaku Australia