Xbox users can now stream games they own on their consoles
Microsoft just announced that Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One owners can now stream select games they own directly from the console. This feature is exclusive to Game Pass Ultimate members.
What's the point of this? It's intended to save both time and hard drive space. Gamers can jump right in immediately, without having to download and install a giant file. It doesn't work with every game. As of this writing, there are over 100 titles that enable this feature. They include standouts like Assassin's Creed Shadows, Animal Well, Baldur's Gate 3 and Hogwarts Legacy, among others.
All you have to do is peruse your library and look for the cloud icon accompanying a game. Playable titles can also be filtered in search. The Store app even displays this icon, allowing you to start playing as soon as you hand over some digital cash.
Xbox players could already do this on devices outside of an official console. Throughout the past few months, the feature has been popping up on select smart TVs, Amazon Fire TVs and Meta Quest VR headsets. It also works on browser-supported devices like PCs, tablets and smartphones. A beta test for Xbox consoles started in December.
Microsoft also just announced that backward compatible games from the Xbox and Xbox 360 will now be streamable via remote play across all supported devices. That significantly increases the library of available titles. It's worth noting that the company has removed remote play from the official Xbox app on mobile, but it still works via browsers.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/xbox-users-can-now-stream-games-they-own-on-their-consoles-173739687.html?src=rss