Red Dead Redemption Comes to Xbox One, Here’s How to Get It [UPDATE]

[UPDATE] Microsoft’s Xbox Support Twitter account advises against using the workaround laid out below to access Red Dead Redemption, as it may be a violation of the Xbox Live Code of Conduct.

@mvp_xbox_mex Hey there! This game isn’t available for back compat according to https://t.co/37S0QilKFY. We suggest not doing what is… ^AK

— Xbox Support (1-5) (@XboxSupport) February 7, 2016

@mvp_xbox_mex … shown in the video. Playing a game before it’s been authorized to play on the service is against the Code of Conduct. ^AK

— Xbox Support (1-5) (@XboxSupport) February 7, 2016

Xbox Live’s Code of Conduct (via IGN) states that you should not “play a game before it has been authorized for play on the service.”

Additionally, some people on NeoGAF who were able to successfully download Red Dead Redemption on Xbox One are reporting that the game now fails to launch. It is apparently still playable offline, but you can’t save your game.

We will update this story with new information as it becomes available.

The original story is below.

It looks like Rockstar Games’ celebrated 2010 western Red Dead Redemption is coming to the Xbox One‘s backwards compatibility program. A NeoGAF user reported today that the game is now available to download, though it doesn’t appear to be showing up in search. Another NeoGAF member points out that you can search their Gamertag, “rockohoward,” and view their profile to find a download link.

GameSpot tried this and it does seem to work. However, right now it appears you need to have purchased the digital version of Red Dead Redemption for Xbox 360 to play it on Xbox One. It looks like physical copies aren’t supported, at least not yet.

If you don’t own a digital copy of Red Dead Redemption, you’ll see “Bundle Only” from the purchase options. Clicking this returns no results. However, you can pick up Red Dead Redemption from the Xbox.com store for $30, return to your console, and it should show up.

Other Xbox 360 games that are playable on Xbox One in this manner reportedly include Left 4 Dead 2, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night–and maybe others as well.

As for the unceremonious nature of Red Dead Redemption’s release on Xbox One (and those other games), there is an explanation. Last month, Microsoft announced it would launch new titles into the backwards compatibility program as they became available, not on a standard monthly schedule.

“What this means for you is that you won’t have to wait to find out the latest titles,” Microsoft said at the time. “We’ll release whatever is available, when they’re available, once each title has received the engineering and publisher stamp of approval.”

Some are also wondering how Red Dead Redemption runs on Xbox One. One person encountered the bug you see below, though it’s possible this would have happened in the Xbox 360 version, too. Other people on NeoGAF are reporting that the game runs as smoothly as they remember.

Lmfao hahaha #reddeadredemption #xboxone pic.twitter.com/ax7dQxmgpU

— Justinator5000 (@Justinator5000) February 6, 2016

Red Dead Redemption was the third most sought-after game for the Xbox One backwards compatibility program on the Xbox Feedback website, behind only The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Call of Duty: Black Ops II. Those two games are not in the program, but Microsoft is in discussions with all major publishers.

There are now at least 131 games in the Xbox One’s backwards compatibility program. You can see the full list here.

Were you able to download Red Dead Redemption on Xbox One? Let us know in the comments below!

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