While the masses focus on the Xbox Ally and next-gen Xbox console strategy, one pillar of Microsoft’s gaming empire has remained somewhat hidden in the shadows.
Xbox Cloud Gaming is the most future-facing aspect of Microsoft’s gaming ecosystem in my view. While Xbox Cloud Gaming is still in “beta,” the service is better than ever, with thoroughly playable latency, a growing library of Xbox Cloud buy-to-own games, and hundreds of titles via Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
Xbox Cloud Gaming is available via the web at xbox.com/play, and is installable as a web app on Android, iOS, and many Samsung and LG TVs. You can play cloud games on virtually any modern device, as long as you have an Xbox controller and a stable internet connection, preferably over 5 GHz Wi-Fi or better. Even on lower latency connections, there are many 2D and turn-based games that work well, such as XCOM 2 and WH40K: Rogue Trader.
But, what if you don’t want to compromise? Xbox Cloud Gaming does suffer from latency issues occasionally, it’s not as fast as NVIDIA GeForce Now either, nor does it offer the same bitrate and resolution options on the higher end. The library could also be better, even some of Microsoft’s own games like Diablo 4 aren’t available (yet) for a variety of reasons.
So, what does the future hold for Xbox Cloud Gaming? Here’s a collection of hopes, dreams, and informed rumors from me to you.
Lower latency, boosted bitrate and resolution
One point of contention that revolves around Xbox Game Pass focuses entirely on its performance versus competing solutions. NVIDIA GeForce Now is generally considered the benchmark to beat both for quality and speed, and it’s worth mentioning that it also supports PC Game Pass anyway. But if you wanted an all-in-one Xbox console solution, Xbox Cloud Gaming is your best bet.
Where Xbox Cloud Gaming tends to shine is in games with fixed camera angles or that run in 2 dimensions. The image quality algorithm seems to have an easier time handling frames when the entire picture doesn’t need to refresh, and latency boosts come along with it.
It’s not exactly a revelation to know that Microsoft is looking to improve the situation here. I’ve heard that Microsoft is already testing PC-based, rather than Xbox console-based servers for its next-gen cloud provision, while retaining backward compatibility with the existing library. Microsoft announced a partnership with AMD specifically to maintain Xbox console backward compatibility on its future chips, despite the broad expectation that they will be PC-oriented.
So, you can expect Microsoft’s next-gen Xbox cloud to sport higher bitrate and resolution options, getting closer to NVIDIA’s 4K GFN Ultimate tier. Microsoft’s current-gen options reach for 1080p and 60 FPS at most, although it’s not always able to hit those targets based on a variety of factors.
Microsoft has invested heavily in trying to reduce queue times in recent months, too, which may have contributed to stock issues for Xbox Series X|S consoles, since it’s all the same silicon in essence. One thing that often contributes to queue times is less about server load, though, and more about game installation speeds.
If a game isn’t “installed” on the best node for your connection, it has to pull the files from the network before the game can launch. Especially for larger games, this can induce long waits. As Microsoft scales up its local storage capacities for its data centers, this should be a less common issue.
Reduced waiting times, boosted resolution, and improved bitrates are all well and good, but Microsoft is working to shave latency from the user’s end as well. Our sources tell us that the next-gen Xbox controllers (both standard and Elite models) will come with three separate signals. One is for Bluetooth, one is the current-gen Xbox wireless, and the other is Wi-Fi.
By connecting your Xbox controller directly to your home Wi-Fi, it will send those signals directly to Xbox Cloud servers, rather than passing through your connected device first. This will be a huge boost for gaming on TV sets, given that these types of devices aren’t often equipped with the best Bluetooth radios.
A cheaper Xbox cloud-only subscription?
One advantage (but also disadvantage) NVIDIA GeForce Now has over Xbox Cloud Gaming is in its subscription tiers. NVIDIA GFN actually has a totally free tier at 1080p, although it comes with video ads and a “1 hour per session” time limit. The higher tiers go up to 1440p and 4K, respectively, without ads and 6 and 8-hour sessions.
Xbox Cloud Gaming keeps things a bit more simple. There are no time limits or ads, but there’s currently one tier, via Xbox Game Pass Ultimate at $20 per month. This gets you PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Core for online play on Xbox consoles. But what if you’re a cloud-only gamer and don’t need all the console bells and PC whistles?
One thing Microsoft is exploring is cloud-only subscription tiers. It’s unknown whether these will match NVIDIA GFN or do things a bit differently. Microsoft and other platform holders have been exploring video ads for free games for quite some time, so it wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibility that we get a free Xbox Cloud Gaming tier supported by purchases and ads.
I would expect Microsoft’s basic cloud gaming tier to be cheaper than Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, but I wouldn’t be surprised if, eventually, there’s a premium Xbox Cloud Gaming tier that prioritizes 4K resolution and maybe even comes with other benefits.
To speculate, perhaps Microsoft will split its Xbox Cloud Gaming tier game libraries up similarly to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. I could see a standard cloud gaming tier that doesn’t come with all the day-one games, similarly to Xbox Game Pass Standard. We’ll have to wait and see.
An expanding library of games and features
Every few weeks, Microsoft expands the number of games you can play on Xbox Cloud Gaming. There are new titles you can buy to own, like the recent addition of Cult of the Lamb (thanks for that), and also games hitting the Game Pass library, such as Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4.
Microsoft has also been laboring to unify its user interface across all devices. The Xbox Game Bar, Xbox console, and now, Xbox Cloud Gaming web UI all have a very similar “Xbox Guide” menu. I expect these stylings and features will converge further over time, so that users get a consistent experience regardless of device and modality. I wouldn’t be surprised if Xbox Cloud Gaming gains the ability to record clips and screenshots too in the future, connected to your OneDrive account.
Perhaps we even get some sci-fi features down the line, too, such as Quick Resume session hand-offs from console to PC to cloud. I wouldn’t say no to cloud save upload indicators either … for whoever is reading this.
In short, Microsoft wants to create a cohort of players who are cloud-first, and maybe even cloud-only, and treat them like first class citizens alongside console and PC players.
In any case, Xbox Cloud Gaming continues to be a bit of an understated pillar of Microsoft’s overall gaming ecosystem. Microsoft did say during its last financial report that Xbox Cloud Gaming continues to drive record playtime hours for the firm, and with buy-to-own games, it represents a new opportunity for developers to find bigger audiences.
In short, Microsoft wants to create a cohort of players who are cloud-first, and maybe even cloud-only, and treat them like first-class citizens alongside console and PC players.
It remains to be seen whether “cloud” gaming will ever truly be mainstream, but as someone who uses it frequently as a companion platform, I’m encouraged by the ongoing investments.
