Xbox Game Streaming

Xbox Game Pass cloud streaming w/ Series X backend hits browsers and iOS today, matching Stadia

Ben Schoon | Jun 28 2021 - 12:35 pm PT

One of the best parts of cloud gaming is the ability to play just about anywhere. That’s a goal that Google’s Stadia has been fulfilling for a while, and now, it’s something that Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass streaming is catching up on with its formal debut on your browser and iOS.

As of today, Microsoft has widely rolled out support for Xbox Game Pass streaming, also known as xCloud, to subscribers on both web browsers and iOS devices. This was previously announced earlier this month but is just now available to everyone who wants to try it.

This is one of the biggest expansions for xCloud streaming to date, not just because of iPhone/iPad support, but for browsers as well. Windows users no longer need to download an app to stream games on their laptops that may not be able to run the games locally. The service works through Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, and Apple’s Safari.

Starting today, Xbox Cloud Gaming is available to all Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members with Windows 10 PCs and Apple phones and tablets, via browser, across 22 countries. If you’re a member or want to become a member, simply go to xbox.com/play on Microsoft Edge, Chrome, or Safari on your PC or mobile device to start playing hundreds of games from the Xbox Game Pass library.

This expansion comes several months after Google Stadia made its debut on iOS, also through browser streaming. Google’s platform has also streamed games through the browser since its 2019 launch. Obviously, though, Xbox Game Pass streams many more titles through the browser compared to Stadia’s growing, but still limited library.

Beyond the browser expansion, Xbox Game Pass streaming is also getting a power upgrade behind the scenes. After running on hardware based on the Xbox One S since its launch, the backend is now being upgraded to be based on the “next-gen” Xbox Series X. This delivers higher-resolution 1080p streams at up to 60fps. Google promised similar capabilities for Stadia in background hardware improvements, but has yet to deliver on that (though, notably, Google still provides 4K streams that xCloud still does not).