Several weeks ago rumors surfaced that Windows 8 would have some sort of integration with the Xbox 360. The particular rumor stated that it would allow for Xbox 360 games to be played in Windows 8 utilizing the Games for Windows Marketplace.
That previous rumor was not suggesting that you could place a game in the DVD drive and play but would have to re-download the game from Microsoft for a nominal monthly fee. This rumor was largely dismissed because the power needed to emulate the Xbox 360 could possibly be greater than what is available to the consumer at this time.
But, not wanting to let a rumor die off as being nothing more than speculative garbage, Win8Italia has found evidence within the Windows 8 Kernel to the Xbox 360. Specifically, they found the following strings, "XBOX_360_SYSTEM_CRASH" and "XBOX_360_SYSTEM_CRASH_RESERVED”. Does this mean that the previous rumor is true, while we don’t know that answer we can take a few educated guesses.
While it is possible that the platform could support Xbox 360 games, the strings could also be references to a link between a Windows 8 based device and the Xbox 360. If this is the case, the strings in mention would be used if the Xbox crashes and the link between the two devices is broken.
It could also be nothing more than a feature that Microsoft wanted to implement but later canceled. At this time, there is little to go on until Microsoft provides an official statement on the feature. Until then, we can only hope that one day we will be able to play all the Xbox 360 favorites with a keyboard and mouse.