When Phil Spencer announced back in late 2019 that the next Xbox console would be known as the "Series X", it immediately sparked conversations over whether the naming convention had become too confusing. After all, we already had the Xbox One S and Xbox One X, and by late 2020 we also had the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
Over time those conversations inevitably died down, but it's clear that even in 2024, there's still plenty of confusion surrounding this topic. A couple of notable examples come via the Amazon reviews of EA Sports College Football 25:
Amazon Reviewer: "This is not a review of the game itself because we couldn't play. Xbox One S (or X) is not equal to Xbox Series S (or X). We bought this thinking S worked, but that was not specific enough research apparently. Our fault, but what an absolutely horrible naming convention. And they don't make it easy to find out the model you have either."
Amazon Reviewer: "I have an Xbox one x….. I did research and says the x|s and ones can use series x games and it doesn’t even allow me to play. It says it is not compatible and you can’t even return the item because once you open the packaging it’s no good and considered used….. waited sooo long for this game and used to play the old ones just to find out I spent $75 on a game I can’t play."
This is far from the first time we've spotted comments along these lines. Have a browse on the Xbox Store and you'll find "reviews" from disappointed Xbox One users who wanted to play the latest Series X|S games, but simply didn't understand the naming convention. Of course, you could argue that people should research these things more thoroughly - but you could also argue that giving the "X" and "S" monikers to multiple consoles is asking for trouble.
It doesn't help when certain games have multiple editions that make things difficult for the buyer...