Xbox Game Pass for Console, PC, and Android

Dakhath wrote:

WHAT?! How... does xbox make money?

Well, they're also raising the price to $10/mo.

Pink Stripes wrote:
Dakhath wrote:

WHAT?! How... does xbox make money?

Well, they're also raising the price to $10/mo.

To their credit, they've been pretty clear since the PC Game Pass rolled out that $5/mo. was a temporary price and that it would be going up to $10/mo. eventually.

Just a taste, to get you hooked...

So thinking about the Game Pass PC 'price increase' is probably everyone looking at it the wrong way. More correctly, the beta discount is ending and now we will all be paying the normal price, that has existed since the start.

mrtomaytohead wrote:

So thinking about the Game Pass PC 'price increase' is probably everyone looking at it the wrong way. More correctly, the beta discount is ending and now we will all be paying the normal price, that has existed since the start.

I completely agree. A while back, I paid a total of $6 for two months and I played SO MANY games! My only issue with game any sub is that I feel I need to use it enough to get my money's worth. I cancelled because there were too many games I already own that I wanted to get caught up on.

My likely plan is that I'm going to wait a bit for next gen to spin up, also wait for xCloud to come to PC, then pull the trigger on a Series S and GamePass Ultimate.

I’m going to switch to console only pass, I think. I never game on my PC.

I'll probably upgrade to Ultimate from console just because (A) xCloud is something I want to play around with and (B) I'd never play Microsoft Flight Simulator enough to justify the cost, but, well, I could fly around and find my house. I want to fly around and find my house.

After my trial with PC pass I am interested but for that price I want to know the games will work on PC. I canceled after having a few fail to install correctly. For $1.00 I am ok if some big games fail to install. For $10 everything should just work. Otherwise I can wait for a gog/steam sale.

Microsoft announced the launch lineup for xCloud streaming, and as expected, it's everything on console Game Pass:

A Plague Tale: Innocence
Absolver
Afterparty
Age of Wonders: Planetfall
ARK: Survival Evolved
Astroneer
Batman: Arkham Knight
Battletoads
Battle Chasers: Nightwar
Black Desert
Blair Witch
Bleeding Edge
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
Bridge Constructor Portal
Carrion
Children of Morta
ClusterTruck
Crackdown 3: Campaign
Crosscode
Darksiders Genesis
Darksiders III
DayZ
de Blob
Dead by Daylight
Dead Cells
Dead Island Definitive Edition
Death Squared
Deliver us the moon
Demon’s Tilt
Descenders
Destiny 2: Shadowkeep & Forsaken expansion (September 22)
DiRT 4
Don’t Starve
Double Kick Heroes
Drake Hollow
Dungeon of the Endless
Enter The Gungeon
F1 2019
Fallout 76
Farming Simulator 17
Felix the Reaper
Fishing Sim World: Pro Tour
For the King
Forager
Forza Horizon 4
Fractured Minds
Frostpunk: Console Edition
Gato Roboto
Gears of War 1: Ultimate Edition
Gears of War 4
Gears of War 5
Goat Simulator
Golf with Your Friends
Grounded
Guacamelee! 2
Halo 5: Guardians
Halo Wars 1: Definitive Edition
Halo Wars 2
Halo: The Master Chief Collection
Halo: Spartan Assault
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
Hello Neighbor
Hollow Knight (Renewal)
Hot Shot Racing
Human Fall Flat
Hyperdot
Hypnospace Outlaw
Indivisible
Journey to the Savage Planet
Katana ZERO (Coming soon)
Killer Instinct DE
Kona
Levelhead
Lonely Mountains: Downhill
Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite
Metro 2033 Redux
Middle Earth: Shadow of War
Minecraft: Dungeons
MINIT
Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight
Moonlighter
Mortal Kombat X (Not available in Korea)
Mount & Blade: Warband
Moving Out
Mudrunner
Munchkin: Quacked Quest
Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden
My Time At Portia
Neon Abyss
New Super Lucky’s Tale
NieR:Automata
Night Call
Night in the Woods (Coming soon)
No Man’s Sky
Nowhere Prophet
Observation
Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Overcooked! 2
Oxenfree
Pathologic 2
Pikuniku
Pillars of Eternity: Complete Edition
Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
ReCore: Definitive Edition
Remnant: From the Ashes
Resident Evil 7 Biohazard
Rise & Shine
River City Girls (Coming soon)
Sea of Thieves: Anniversary Edition
Sea Salt
Secret Neighbor
Shadow Warrior 2
Slay the Spire
Sniper Elite 4
Spiritfarer
State of Decay 2: Juggernaut Edition
Stellaris
Stranger Things 3: The Game
Streets of Rage 4
Streets of Rogue
Subnautica
Surviving Mars
Tacoma
Tell Me Why Episode 1 – 3
Terraria
The Bard’s Tale IV: Directors Cut
The Bard’s Tale Remastered and Resnarkled
The Bard’s Tale Trilogy
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Tactics
The Elder Scrolls Online
The Gardens Between
The Jackbox Party Pack 4
The Long Dark
The Lord of the Rings: Adventure Card Game
The Messenger
The Outer Worlds
The Surge 2
The Touryst
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
The Escapists 2
The Talos Principle
The Turing Test
The Walking Dead: A New Frontier – Episode 1 through 5
The Walking Dead: Michonne – Episode 1 – 3
The Walking Dead: Season Two
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
Totally Accurate Battle Simulator
Totally Reliable Delivery Service
Touhou Luna Nights
Tracks – The Train Set Game
Trailmakers
Train Sim World 2020
Two Point Hospital
Undermine
Untitled Goose Game
Void Bastards
Wandersong
Warhammer Vermintide 2 (Coming soon)
Wasteland Remastered
Wasteland 2: Director’s Cut
Wasteland 3
We Happy Few
West of Dead
Wizard of Legend
World War Z
Worms W.M.D
Xeno Crisis
Yakuza 0
Yakuza Kiwami
Yakuza Kiwami 2

Coming soon:

  • Company of Heroes 2 (PC) - Sept. 17th
  • Destiny 2: Shadowkeep & Forsaken (Android/Console) - Sept. 22nd
  • Halo ODST (PC/Android) - Sept. 22nd
  • A Night in the Woods (PC/Android/Console) - Sept. 24th
  • Warhammer Vermintide II (Android/Console) - Sept. 24th

Leaving September 30

  • Bad North (Console & PC)
  • DiRT Rally 2.0 (Console & PC)
  • Dishonored 2 (Console & PC)
  • Panzer Dragoon Orta (Console)
  • Westerado: Double Barreled (Console)
  • Yooka-Laylee (Console)

So can I stream xCloud to my PC?

staygold wrote:

So can I stream xCloud to my PC?

Annoyingly, no, unless there's some trickery that lets you run Android apps on your PC. Right now, xCloud is only on Android, but I really, really hope that they have PC and console clients for it soon.

ClockworkHouse wrote:
staygold wrote:

So can I stream xCloud to my PC?

Annoyingly, no, unless there's some trickery that lets you run Android apps on your PC. Right now, xCloud is only on Android, but I really, really hope that they have PC and console clients for it soon.

FYI, I tried xCloud streaming to my kids' Chromebook. The video quality and framerate seemed very stable. Loading times were longer than I expected. Lag looked like it could be an issue, but I couldn't really tell because neither of the wired controllers I tried mapped correctly. Most of the button inputs were wrong and a bunch were missing.

So, overall, it was that all too common experience of, "Looked like it worked great, but was also unusable."

It's worked great on my phone using an Xbox One controller. I'll have to try it on one of the Chromebooks I have access to.

ClockworkHouse wrote:
staygold wrote:

So can I stream xCloud to my PC?

Annoyingly, no, unless there's some trickery that lets you run Android apps on your PC. Right now, xCloud is only on Android, but I really, really hope that they have PC and console clients for it soon.

They definitely have a pc client. When/if it launches is still unknown.

ClockworkHouse wrote:
staygold wrote:

So can I stream xCloud to my PC?

Annoyingly, no, unless there's some trickery that lets you run Android apps on your PC. Right now, xCloud is only on Android, but I really, really hope that they have PC and console clients for it soon.

4 Free Ways to Run Android Apps on Your PC. I've heard of BlueStacks before and seen someone use it - I'm installing now. I've never (really) used Android before, and have no idea how to get the xCloud app installed, but whatever, I'm up for some quirkiness.

Edit: BlueStacks installed. "Xbox Streaming" app installed, but only shows a black screen. Seems it's not quite compatible. Regardless, an xCloud PC client has been confirmed for this year.

merphle wrote:

Regardless, an xCloud PC client has been confirmed for this year.

Where are you seeing that?

merphle wrote:

"Xbox Streaming" app installed, but only shows a black screen.

I believe the Xbox Streaming app has been disabled. It was only for the testing phase. You want to install the beta Game Pass app, or wait until tomorrow and install the regular Game Pass app.

ClockworkHouse wrote:
merphle wrote:

Regardless, an xCloud PC client has been confirmed for this year.

Where are you seeing that?

Admittedly, nothing recently. A few sources from 2019 though. 1 2

ClockworkHouse wrote:
merphle wrote:

"Xbox Streaming" app installed, but only shows a black screen.

I believe the Xbox Streaming app has been disabled. It was only for the testing phase. You want to install the beta Game Pass app, or wait until tomorrow and install the regular Game Pass app.

The beta app worked! I was able to run Halo 5 streaming from xCloud, using BlueStacks. My wired USB controller didn't quite work, and performance was suboptimal, but it did at least launch.

I'll wait for the Win10 app.

ClockworkHouse wrote:

Microsoft announced the launch lineup for xCloud streaming, and as expected, it's everything on console Game Pass:

list of games not including Rare Replay

Seems to be missing the only one I care about.

Yes, it does seem to be missing Xbox 360 games and a couple others like Rare Replay. Good catch.

This may get me to buy an android tablet. Are there any good ones in the same price range as a iPad?

xCloud streaming will (almost certainly) come to iOS (hopefully soon). They were lined up to release it alongside the Android version on Sept 15, but had to pull back in August due to Apple being Apple. Valve was able to figure out how to get the Steam Link app onto iOS last year - Microsoft surely will be able to figure out how to work that out with Apple.

Remember the Android app is currently limited to 720p60. That'll look fine on a phone, but it'll be a little fuzzy on a tablet or chromebook. 60 fps is nice, though. Rumor is the Windows app will be able to go up to 1080p60.

merphle wrote:

xCloud streaming will (almost certainly) come to iOS (hopefully soon). They were lined up to release it alongside the Android version on Sept 15, but had to pull back in August due to Apple being Apple. Valve was able to figure out how to get the Steam Link app onto iOS last year - Microsoft surely will be able to figure out how to work that out with Apple.

I wouldn't hold your breath. Apple just posted updated App Store guidelines that would technically allow services like xCloud, Stadia, etc, but it requires that every single game be submitted to the App Atore to have its own app page within the store, and so that Apple Could "review" every single game.

That's not how streaming services work. Microsoft basically told them to go spit.

I'm a fan of Apple hardware, but they've never been strong with games, and Apple Arcade is pathetic compared to these other services. They are blatantly attempting to keep them off of iOS to protect their own services business.

The streaming will require ultimate pass? I guess I’m staying with ultimate.

My next phone to be Android based. My next tablet as well.

edit. Or if chrome book just allows Xbox controllers to connect wirelessly then I’m already set.

I'm hoping xCloud might work well on a base Surface Go. Not sure how much power the client would need. (I have a somewhat irrational dislike of all things Google - including Android.)

I've played Xcloud on a Fire HD 10 tablet, significantly cheaper than an iPad of course but worked perfectly fine for Xcloud. They don't have an Amazon version of the app, but you can still download the apk and install it on the tablet.

The xCloud servers must be getting quite the workout today. Performance is worse today than it's been for the last few weeks in the beta.

So I'm not really clear on how to start streaming. I got a notice from my Gamepass android app to start streaming cloud games and I clicked on it. I only see options to queue downloads for my consoles though. The website doesn't provide any more information. Probably missing something obvious. (I do have ultimate).

Edit: It looks like there should be a "cloud" option that isn't appearing.

Edit 2: Forced an app update and there it is! It probably shouldn't have sent me the notification before the app had been updated.