Xbox One will support second hand games, for a fee

Microsoft has confirmed that the Xbox One will allow used games to be played on it, though for a small fee.

This runs contrary to many of the rumours in the run up to the launch of the Xbox One, and will come as a relief both to those not able to afford the cost of full-price games and those that like to play a game once and sell it on.

Individual games will be tied to Xbox Live accounts, such that Microsoft can detect whether a game has been sold to a retailer and repurchased, or handed from one friend to another.

Precisely what that fee will be hasn't yet been revealed but a spokeperson for the company said Microsoft was "designing Xbox One to enable customers to trade in and resell games".

Also confirmed was that the new console won't require an always-on internet connection, with users able to watch TV, play Blu-rays and game when disconnected.

In fact the system will require mandatory installation of games onto the system's hard drive, with further installations on other consoles incurring a fee.

One thing to note, though, is that although the Xbox One doesn't require it, developers still have the option to implement a constant-connection requirement.