Xbox Game Streaming app is now live on Windows—via a sneaky download

• 

  This is not a drill: Xbox Game Streaming now works on Windows 10 PCs. I left my entire Windows 10 interface visible to prove that out. [credit: Sam Machkovech ]

Surprise: Xbox Game Streaming, the Stadia-like service that delivers over 200 games for a flat $15/mo rate, now works on Windows 10 PCs. The catch, for the time being, is that this Windows port is not officially out yet.

After the service's 2019 beta premiere on Android, a Windows-specific workaround quietly leaked in late 2020. This week, it's finally making the rounds thanks to recent Reddit and YouTube shares, and as of press time, Microsoft has yet to block this method of accessing Xbox's game-streaming service on your PC. It requires accessing and downloading a Windows app that is otherwise buried in an official Microsoft database, then using a one-time unlock phrase to get it functioning.

But the steps are simple and safe enough, as I've tested, to recommend it to anyone eager to test Xbox's streaming option on their favorite Win10 laptop or desktop-and to finally see how Xbox Game Streaming (formerly known as Project xCloud) performs on wired Ethernet connections.

Read 8 remaining paragraphs | Comments