Xbox games will soon boast an updated retail box art design

Despite doing their best to communicate which Xbox games work with which generation of console properly, Microsoft hasn’t always made it easy to delineate between titles with an Xbox Series X version or are simply “compatible” with Xbox Series X. Well, this confusion looks like it will soon be cleared up, because Xbox games are about to get new box are that more clearly displays this information. It’s an update that comes less than a year after the new Xbox’s launch.

News of this change was first spotted by Twitter user @_XboxNews, who shared what appears to be a legitimate piece of Xbox marketing showing how the new and old retail boxes are different:

The most notable change is in how the black bar on the top left of the case has been replace with a much clearer white box. Meanwhile, both the Smart Delivery and Xbox Series X logos remain at the top of the box on the other side, yet overall these small design changes do a much better job at presenting the details clearly and giving the box art itself slightly more room to shine.

Another nice touch is in how, going forward, games that are only compatible with Xbox Series X will say so in the new box art’s white box. Previously Microsoft’s position was that all Xbox games would be compatible for both console generations, but this – coupled with the platform’s recent E3 game showcases – indicates that this won’t be the case for much longer.

Expect to see the new Xbox game box art pop up on all major online retailers. We’ve already glimpsed it a few times. However, there’s still no word on whether Microsoft will reverse its position on having the discs located on the left-side of the case, which has always been weird.