Xbox Cloud Gaming (xCloud): A portrait of Microsoft’s service

Similar to Google Stadia, Xbox Cloud Gaming is a video game streaming service. This means that by subscribing to xCloud, you as a user have the ability to stream and play video games over the Internet. You can read more about how exactly this works and how membership to Microsoft’s gaming service works here.

xCloud belongs to the guild of so-called cloud gaming services - a form of cloud computing. From a technical point of view, this means that the games are no longer run on the user’s own computer, but instead in the cloud on the operator’s server resources. To use the service, in addition to a membership with the cloud gaming provider, you need a stable Internet connection and a supported device for playing. Your inputs are then automatically sent to the servers in the data center and synchronized.

If you want a more detailed answer to the question “How does cloud gaming work?”, we recommend the linked article.

A big advantage of xCloud is the cloud gaming aspect itself: Games no longer need to be installed and kept up to date individually. Also, you no longer need the most advanced and expensive hardware to run demanding titles because the games run entirely over the Internet and requires a minimal computational capacity. The majority of the computing load is on the operators’ external servers, which are also maintained on a regular basis.

The second big advantage of Xbox Cloud Gaming is the Game Pass. This includes an enormous game library, the contents of which are immediately available in the cloud. With one account, you have instant access to hundreds of hours of exciting gameplay and full-length, blockbuster-quality entertainment. All of this comes via instant access through your Internet connection and can also be used on the go. Use on multiple devices is part of the xCloud concept, as the save states of the individual titles are also stored in the cloud and can thus be accessed at any time via PC or mobile devices.

If you live in a region where fast Internet is not available, game streaming is not really a viable option. A permanent downstream of multimedia content with simultaneous upload of controller inputs is only possible with a correspondingly powerful Internet connection. If this is not available, Xbox Cloud Gaming practically can’t be used. Adding to this is the fact that the offer can only be used as part of Game Pass Ultimate and is not available as a separate service.

Although the list of compatible end devices is relatively long with computers, tablets, and smartphones, Xbox Cloud Gaming cannot be used on TVs. Those who like to enjoy cinematically staged blockbuster games on the big screen are left on the sidelines due to the lack of compatibility for TV sets.

The game library linked to Game Pass is large and titles are added monthly - however, many popular titles from Xbox and Xbox 360 are not playable via cloud gaming. It’s a similar story with private servers for multiplayer titles: Since the computing operations take place in the cloud, it is also not possible to create your own servers. So anyone who wants to set up their own Minecraft server, for example, will have to look for a corresponding alternative.