Xbox
As we advance at greater strides within the new generation of consoles, the thinking of many gamers often falls on platforms such as PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and for how long they will be supported by Sony and Microsoft. We already know that many titles and exclusives will come out in cross-generational format, but there are already some games that are real new generation exclusives for several reasons, especially technical ones.Inside a recent post published on the official blog, Microsoft mentioned that in the future games that will be released on Xbox Series X | S will be playable safely even by owners of Xbox One. This will happen thanks to xCloud, the streaming gaming platform that the Redmond company has been carrying out for several months now, and which very soon will no longer be linked only to mobile devices, but also to some Smart TVs and Xbox family consoles. .
That can only mean one thing, which is that 2013 hardware will be able to run Series X-exclusive games, extending the lifecycle of what would normally be detachable and showcase consoles. “For the millions of people playing on Xbox One consoles today, we can't wait to share more about how we will bring many of these next-generation games, such as Microsoft Flight Simulator, to their console via xCloud, just like we do with devices. mobile, tablet and browser ", says Will Tuttle, editor-in-chief of Microsoft's Xbox Wire.
At the moment it is not clear when the xCloud service will also be activated on consoles, but we know that this possibility of streaming can be used by subscribing to the Xbox Game Pass service in the Ultimate version.
While waiting to get your hands on the next games coming out on Microsoft consoles, you can buy your copy of Forza Horizon 4 on Amazon at this address.
The big winner at E3 2021 is... Xbox Game Pass
© Provided by CNET MicrosoftAt an all-virtual E3 video game show with only a handful of standout surprises, the biggest news to me was just how central Xbox Game Pass has become to the Xbox ecosystem. Microsoft's subscription service was already a must-have to many gamers, but it's now becoming the first stop for many of the biggest upcoming Xbox games.
Originally, Xbox Game Pass, which costs $10 to $15 per month, was a bit like classic Netflix or a second-run theater. Some older games, some indie games, but not likely to be the only way you find things to play. With the launch of the Xbox Series X and Series S, plus the addition of EA's EA Play library, it's become a much more premium all-you-can-eat subscription service.
Starfield and Halo Infinite are the stars of Microsoft's Xbox 2021 event
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But at E3 2021, Microsoft took it several steps further, committing most of the bigger 2021 Xbox games to the service. Almost every big preview during the Xbox E3 livestream was tagged as being available on Xbox Game Pass at launch.
Read more: Xbox Series X review
That includes Psychonauts 2, Back 4 Blood, Forza Horizon 5, Halo Infinite and, next year, Starfield, the sci-fi sure-to-be blockbuster from Bethesda, as well as Stalker 2. Cult hits like Hades and Among Us are coming to Game Pass as well.
© Provided by CNET Xbox Cloud Gaming on a PC. Dan Ackerman/CNETI've previously called the lower-cost Xbox Series S the perfect Game Pass machine, and it reinforces my belief that, much like video streaming, gaming is moving toward a subscription model -- and eventually a cloud-based model. Just before E3, Microsoft talked -- in the most vague terms -- about its plans to incorporate cloud gaming into future smart TVs and even an Xbox streaming stick.
The long-term picture is that the actual hardware will become less important over time, as games become device-agnostic, cloud-streaming like a Netflix movie to almost any laptop, tablet, phone or smart TV.
Read more: Xbox Cloud Gaming beta hands-on: How to play Xbox games on your iPad or laptop
Many of the Game Pass games listed by Microsoft at E3 2021 are also coming to Xbox Cloud Gaming, which means they'll play in a web browser or app on your iPad, iPhone, Android device or laptop. Note that you'll need the more expensive $15-a-month Game Pass Ultimate subscription for that feature, which also includes PC game access and Xbox Live Gold.
That cloud access is where I'd bet the future of gaming is headed. As far back as in 2013, I urged Sony and Microsoft to go all-in on cloud gaming instead of building ever more powerful consoles. I may have been about 10 years too early on that one.
For now, however, the pitch is that instead of spending $60 to $70 each on, for example, Halo, Forza or Back 4 Blood, you've already covered the $180 annual cost of an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate membership. With the selection from Sony's PlayStation Plus feeling anemic compared to Game Pass, and Nintendo's retro-only section for Switch Online, the emergence of Game Pass as the future of Microsoft's gaming business model is the biggest news to come out of E3 2021.
© Microsoft