Microsoft’s xCloud service streams Xbox games to PCs, consoles, and mobile devices
https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/8/17950878/microsoft-xcloud-game-streaming-xbox-games-features
Microsoft is unveiling its game streaming service for the first time today. Dubbed Project xCloud, it’s designed to work across consoles, PCs, and even mobile devices. “Scaling and building out Project xCloud is a multi-year journey for us,” explains Microsoft’s cloud gaming chief Kareem Choudhry. “We’ll begin public trials in 2019 so we can learn and scale with different volumes and locations.”
Microsoft has built custom hardware for its datacenters, as The Verge previously exclusively reported, so that existing and future Xbox games will be compatible with the services. Games will be streamed to devices, and Microsoft has been testing the xCloud service with Xbox wireless controllers connected to consoles, mobile devices, and PCs. Microsoft says its research teams are “creating ways to combat latency” via advanced network techniques combined with video encoding and decoding. This should make game streaming viable on 4G networks, too.