Xbox Cloud Gaming debuted this year, allowing Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers to stream PC games to supported Android smartphones. But the service, formerly known as Project xCloud, doesn’t currently support other platforms.

That changes next year.

Microsoft has announced that a Xbox Cloud Gaming beta is coming to Windows PCs in 2021. It’s also coming to iOS devices… via a web app.

That’s because Apple has pretty strict rules for apps distributed via the App Store, and game streaming platforms would have to jump through quite a few hoops to comply. So Microsoft, along with  Google, NVIDIA, and Amazon, are taking the web app approach, delivering a game streaming service that works through the Safari web browser on iPhones and iPads.

Microsoft says iOS users will be able to use touchscreen controls to interact with games, but the company hasn’t said much else about how its web app will work.

PC users will also be able to use the Xbox Cloud Gaming web app, but Microsoft indicates it will also be available through the Xbox app for Windows.

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3 replies on “Xbox Cloud Gaming coming to PC and iOS in 2021”

  1. I find it weird that these commercial game streaming services are beholden to these rules but Steam Link and Moonlight exist on the app store already. I can play any game I have on my PC with those apps, no listing required for each, because nobody is charging me to use those apps?

  2. Been looking into using cloud gaming on my 2016 iPhone SE. I wonder how these web app workarounds will perform and if they’ll have the same features as the standalone apps on other platforms.

    1. shadow.tech has an official iOS app. I’ve been using their service for over a year and I really like it. It’s definitely not perfect and sometimes … it just won’t work. But overall I love it. The other ‘downside’ is it’s access to a cloud based pc versus a subscription model for games. So you can only play the games you own (like steam or origin), however, to me, that’s a selling point.

      https://shadow.tech/shadow-apps/

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