Conker: Live and Reloaded is day four of our series on 15 Xbox classics you can still play on Xbox Series X|S. It was one of the first games Rare made after Microsoft bought the studio, and in 2026 it’s in Game Pass and leading Xbox’s push to bring original Xbox games to more devices.
Conker: Live and Reloaded at a glance
Developer: Rare
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Original release: 21 June 2005 (North America), 24 June 2005 (Europe)
Original console: Xbox
Xbox Store price: £8.99 / $9.99
Game Pass: Essential, Premium and Ultimate
Backward compatible since: 17 April 2018
Xbox Play Anywhere: yes
What is Conker: Live and Reloaded?
Conker: Live and Reloaded has two halves. The first is a remake of Rare’s 2001 game Conker’s Bad Fur Day, a crude, film-parodying platformer about Conker, a hard-drinking red squirrel trying to get home after a very bad night out. The story is the same as the original, with new graphics, reworked controls and camera, and a new strafing and targeting system.
There’s one new joke in the tutorial chapter. When Conker hits a gargoyle with a frying pan on a bridge, it doesn’t fall off as it did in the original, and the two characters talk about why.
The second half is a brand-new multiplayer mode that’s very different from the original game’s. Two armies fight it out: the Squirrel High Command (SHC) and the Tediz. Players choose a class, such as the Thermophile with a flamethrower, the Long Ranger sniper or the heavily armoured Demolisher. Each class is strong against some and weak against others, with its own weapons, abilities and vehicles. Modes include Capture the Flag and Deathmatch, and terminals around each map hand out vehicles and special weapons.
Conker’s history on Xbox
Microsoft bought Rare in 2002, and work on Conker: Live and Reloaded started almost immediately. It was originally called Conker: Live and Uncut and was meant to have a completely uncensored single-player mode. That changed during development. The finished game bleeped more of its dialogue than the 2001 original did, which drew criticism from fans of the original.
The game was named IGN’s best-looking Xbox game of E3 2005 and launched that June, carrying the same Mature rating and spoof content warnings as the original.
Its new multiplayer was built around Xbox Live. That online service for original Xbox games closed in April 2010.
Conker joined Xbox One backward compatibility on 17 April 2018. On 22 July 2026, it was one of the first four original Xbox games made playable on PC through Xbox backward compatibility, and it’s now in every Game Pass tier.
Why it matters
Conker: Live and Reloaded marks the point where Rare became an Xbox studio. It takes one of the studio’s most adult games and rebuilds it for the console, then adds an online mode designed for Xbox Live.
It’s also now one of the games leading Xbox’s newer backward compatibility work. Along with Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge, BLiNX and Fuzion Frenzy, it’s reported to be one of the first four original Xbox games lined up for achievements, as we covered in our story on original Xbox games appearing in achievement lists. They aren’t available yet, there’s no confirmed date, and progress made before any update reportedly won’t count.
How to play Conker on Xbox Series X|S today
Conker: Live and Reloaded has been backward compatible on Xbox One since 17 April 2018, so it runs on Xbox Series X|S too. You can buy it from the Xbox Store for £8.99 or $9.99.
It’s included with Game Pass Essential, Premium and Ultimate, and with PC Game Pass. Our Game Pass tiers guide explains the differences between the plans.
It’s an Xbox Play Anywhere game, so one purchase covers both the Xbox console version and the PC version. The store lists it as Xbox One X Enhanced, but it doesn’t have FPS Boost.
If you own the original Xbox disc, an Xbox One or Xbox Series X will recognise it and download the backward-compatible version.
More on Conker
Head to our Conker: Live and Reloaded hub for the essentials and future updates, including achievements. Tomorrow, the series moves on to Ninja Gaiden Black.
