Xbox One March update rolling out now — here’s what’s new

Microsoft and its publishing partners may begin seeing a bump in the sales of their older hits today as the company makes it easier to buy certain classics.

An Xbox One update is rolling out today that introduces a number of highly requested features. Key among these is the capability to purchase backward-compatible Xbox 360 games through the Xbox One. This reduces the friction for a player who has money they want to spend on older games. Previously, you had to boot up an Xbox 360 or launch the store page on a computer or mobile device. But this is only one of the improvements coming to Xbox One as Microsoft seeks to remind fans that it is listening to feedback (hundreds of fans requested Xbox 360 games on the Xbox One store using Microsoft’s User Voice site). This is helping the company stay relevant in a gaming space that is worth $99.3 billion, according to market research firm Newzoo, even as the PlayStation 4 dominates in sales.

Other updates look to improve the functionality of the impressive Xbox One Elite Controller and party chat. Here’s everything that is different:

• Xbox 360 games in the Xbox One Store.
• Xbox One Elite Controller update to make thumbsticks more accurate.
• Small additions to the Xbox Accessories app to provide more information about your controllers.
• Twitch broadcasts now include party chat.
• 16-people can now join one party chat.

To get the update for your Xbox One Elite Controller, you’ll need to plug the gamepad into your console with a USB cord. Everything else should roll out as part of the overall Xbox One update, which is going live on most systems today.