Long-Awaited Xbox Feature Lets You Make Digital Copies of Your Physical Discs
On Wednesday, Microsoft announced a new program that lets you make digital copies of your Xbox games. Although the program doesn’t use the “Disc2Digital” project name teased earlier this summer, it works the way we expected.
Through this program, players can insert an Xbox One or Xbox Series X disc into a compatible console and launch the game to receive a digital version of the same title. After claiming their copy, players can use it with services like Xbox Play Anywhere and Xbox Cloud Gaming, and anyone they share a console with will also receive access to the digital game. The disc will continue to work as usual.
Some outlets have reported that each digital entitlement is linked to its respective disc, not a player’s account, but Microsoft hasn’t confirmed this. Wednesday’s announcement offers no details regarding how (or whether) a digital license transitions to someone who buys or receives a physical disc as a gift.
Microsoft does claim that this change will let players maintain their current game libraries as hardware and distribution methods change. Good timing, too: The announcement comes after Sony said all new PlayStation games will be digital-only starting in January 2028. That decision sparked a large “Don’t Kill the Disc” petition and a recent boycott, giving Xbox the perfect opportunity to sweep up gamer loyalties.
Xbox Insiders can test the disc-to-digital program starting August 31. At launch, Microsoft already plans to support thousands of titles, with more added over time. We haven’t heard anything yet about whether Xbox 360 or original Xbox games will eventually be supported.
