Xbox
To celebrate Microsoft's 20 years in the console market, the Redmond giant released a video in which it showed 20 years of Xbox evolution in just 21 seconds.It ranges from the classic 2001 Xbox and games such as Halo: Combat Evolved, Project Gotham Racing and Dead or Alive 3 to the recent Xbox Series X and S and the many games that hopefully will soon come to embellish their lineup, such as Halo Infinite, Microsoft Flight Simulator or the next Fable.
In the middle there was in 2005 the glorious Xbox 360, which thanks to games such as Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey, Tales of Vesperia, Enchanted Arms and Eternal Sonata was the most popular and loved version of the brand and Xbox One, of 2013, which due to a somewhat slow start made of Kinet, sport and Call of Duty slowed the spread of the brand. Despite this it was the home of Forza Horizon, of the return of Halo and Gears of War.
The video, however, celebrates only the consoles, showing the evolution of their design, rather than their functionality. Consoles that are no longer central to Microsoft's plans, as player involvement is. The Xbox brand, on the other hand, is increasingly at the center of the plans of the Redmond giant, in the present, but above all in the future. This is demonstrated by the many investments, as well as the gaming features of the new Windows 11.
Have you noticed any errors?
Xbox cloud streaming finally comes to Apple devices and PC
Photo credit: Microsoft
Xbox may have released both the Series X and Series S last year, but traditional consoles are only part of Microsoft's plan nowadays.
The tech giant previously trialed Xbox Cloud Gaming on Android devices, and last week they finally brought it to Apple devices (iOS and Mac) and PC, meaning you can play dozens of big-name games on your phone or laptop as if you were streaming a film on Netflix.
As long as you have a subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and a compatible controller – which can even be a PlayStation 4 one – you're good to go. No Xbox console necessary.
Photo credit: Microsoft - Apple
Related: Nintendo responds to Switch Pro console rumours
Aside from the obvious caveat of needing a constant internet connection to stream, the selection is missing some of the titles on the console and PC versions of Game Pass, and Fable II kept freezing at the main menu for us, but it is still in beta at the moment.
Your save files and achievements sync across your streaming devices, as well as on console and Windows 10 store games on PC. A good chunk of games also have touch control options, and we don't just mean games that have also been released on smartphones, we mean big-blooded games like NieR: Automata and Dragon Quest XI.
Don't forget that EVERY SINGLE Microsoft Studios (now including Bethesda) game will come to Game Pass on the day of retail release for no extra cost. That includes Halo: Infinite, the Fable reboot and Psychonauts 2, among many others.
Photo credit: Square Enix
Related: The best Xbox Series X and Series S games
The streaming is available through web browsers rather than an app, but don't worry that the URL says it's a US-based website, your UK Xbox account and Game Pass Ultimate subscription will work fine.
If you aren't subscribed to Game Pass Ultimate (regular Game Pass doesn't include streaming), the flat rate is £10.99/month (currently £9.85 on ShopTo) or £29.99 for three months (currently £24.85 on ShopTo).
However, Microsoft are also offering to upgrade however many months of Xbox Live Gold you have to Game Pass Ultimate for just £1.
Story continues
Since you can have up to three years of Gold on your account at one go, buying three years of Gold for £119.55 from ShopTo and paying the £1 upgrade fee is an absolute steal. Just make sure you say no when asked to convert a year of Gold to three months of Game Pass Ultimate when you add that to your account.
This month, Digital Spy Magazine counts down the 50 greatest LGBTQ+ TV characters since the Stonewall riots. Read every issue now with a 1-month free trial, only on Apple News+.
Interested in Digital Spy's weekly newsletter? Sign up to get it sent straight to your inbox – and don't forget to join our Watch This Facebook Group for daily TV recommendations and discussions with other readers.
You Might Also Like