Rumour: Xbox Is Working On Next-Gen Cloud Gaming, Including PC-Based Streaming

Dumb question maybe, but how different an experience would it be if, say, you streamed Ghostwire Xbox vs Ghostwire Xbox PC? When this rolls out at the end of the journey, I mean.

Not that it makes any difference to the user - everything is still streamlined with cross-play and cross-save. I'm just curious as to what differences there would be. Are cloud-based games on PC streamed better or something?

The standardization between PC and console will allow cloud gaming to overcome one of its biggest limitations— up until now, cloud servers were based on Xbox hardware with their limits. That won’t be the case going forward, and this shift will truly allow Xcloud to take off, leave its beta phase behind, and compete effectively with players like GeForce Now, with 4K 60 FPS

@Kaloudz: A PC architecture is far more scalable than console hardware—both in terms of performance and cost. One of the key reasons Xcloud has struggled to stay competitive against services like GeForce Now is because its servers have been built around Xbox consoles.

With PC-based machines, everything becomes more efficient. Hardware between PC and console gets standardized, which not only boosts overall performance but also creates economies of scale that reduce costs. This shift could truly unlock the full potential of Xcloud.

I think I'm right in saying that at the moment you get the series s version of games on xcloud, up to a maximum of 1080p 60fps, and the bitrate fluctuates wildly here in the UK making it often a frustrating experience.

Unlocking the bitrate and allowing higher resolution profiles is all I really want

Geforce now have already done this and frankly mastered it. Xclouds got alot of work to do to reach the standards of geforce now.

@Kaloudz Xbox PC always has the best versions of games with the highest settings available, as long as the hardware underneath supports them.

Console versions only have console-specific settings, which even on the most powerful consoles (Series X and PS5 Pro) are no more than equivalent to a mid/low-end PC.

I am not interested in streaming games. In fact I think I may take a break from gaming in general.

More evidence that next Xbox is in fact a PC. Evidence just keeps on stacking up.

I think Xbox's cloud gaming, in the future, will become some sort of a standard to play my library of game's (which is small) and then if I don't pay for the service or I am randomly in a predicament were i cannot afford to pay for WiFi, I won't be able to access them.

No thank you.

Edit: and that is why my library of games with Xbox is small because i don't want to invest in their possible future ambitions.

@trev666 Yeah I agree. GeForce now is extremely usable for Mobile, Xbox and more. Heck I think it's on switch 2. But XCloud is console based and the few times I tried to use it it was awful. I would rather Amazon Luna or something. GeForce is also free, not counting the prices of the games. Also its not just Xbox PC it's also Steam and Epic.

@Kaloudz Certain PCs can run better than a series X. And they have better settings and performance and such.

@Cakefish

Whether the Xbox faithful see that as a good or a bad thing is up for debate. Guess we'll find out soon enough.

That being said, welcome to the PCMR!

@HardRockGamer now personally ive never had a problem with xcloud its always worked for me fine. but others like playstaion and geforce now offer better quality

but switching over to pc Microsoft have have alot of catching up to do with geforce now

@trev666 I completely agree. PC cloud is dominated by GeForce but for Xcloud it can help series s players run beefier games.

Ultimate about to go up to $40 a month!! LOL

@fatpunkslim @Gabrie @HardRockGamer Thanks guys. With all of that in mind, I'm confused as to why they wouldn't lead with PC versions to begin with. I mean, if they run and work better than console counterparts, why not?

It's not like it makes any difference to the gamer right? Aint the achievements and all that tied to one unified experience regardless as to where you play? Or is that only to XPA?

@Kaloudz Xcloud was mainly used for Console as NvidiaGeforceNOW Dominated PC streaming. Console games have different refresh rates and run different to their PC counterparts. A keyboard press registers faster than a console button and may throw a few Console players off. Some console versions are completely different from Xbox versions. And it is only tied to XPA.

@Kaloudz To answer the first question, yes, it'd only be Xbox Play Anywhere games that are unified and the only games they could offer period are those that are available on the Xbox PC store. That's a lot less potential games than those available on Xbox consoles.

There's a lot of positives and negatives on either side. PC architecture and hardware is the way to go for the best experience, but you run into a lot of issues actually getting games available and cost. Game availability is the big bottleneck Google Stadia ran into. Everything had to be ported over to run properly on the architure. It was a lot of work and greatly limited what they could offer customers. From what I understand, the only real work (or most difficult) that goes into making an Xbox console game available on the cloud is licensing. It also gets a lot more expensive once you're scaling up to that better hardware and that changes the cost to consumers. Nvidia GFN for example goes from free to $20 a month, and you'd still have to buy each individual game on Steam or like the MS store (the best way to use GFN is actually probably with a PC game pass sub). And yeah there's free tiers but those also have time limits and far lower quality. At the very least I think you'd want to spend $10 a month and let's say you got that $10 sub to stream and now you want games so you get PC game pass, well you're already spending MORE than what GP Ultimate currently costs. Xbox Cloud Gaming is significantly lower quality, but it's also treated as an included perk and with that you get you unlimited play time hours. Once they do start making these changes to catch up with Nvidia, people will probably start screaming bloody murder at the prices or that there's suddenly time limits. Like a comment joked about $40 for game pass ultimate, but no that'd be in the ballpark for what a cloud streaming service as good as Nvidia + Game Pass is worth. Nvidia is ONLY streaming. Even Amazon Luna doesn't have the library of Xbox Game Pass (last I checked; haven't kept up to date with it). The one thing Xbox Cloud Gaming has over its competition is it's reach and the console architure has enabled that. People complained when GPU went up to $20 partially citing that XCloud hasn't improved, but GPU predates XCloud and the price increases never happened BECAUSE of XCloud (inflation or COD being added are more clear causes).

I'm personally really curious how Microsoft plays it, because you have to admit that if Xbox introduced an ad cloud tier like Nvidia they'd get blasted online or if they raised the price of GPU again or if imposed time limits and it wouldn't matter how good XCloud is. Had they started with PC architecture, I'm not sure XCloud would've grown like it has. Xbox now is still struggling to grow on PC and get devs to support their store.

@trev666 Indeed.
GeForce now is already the service the Microsoft is claiming this will be.

And guess what, very few people actually use it!

@WildConcept6 @HardRockGamer Thanks for the info guys. As always, both of you, I appreciate the input. It's always fascinating to learn about things like this, especially if, like me, you don't know much about certain areas in gaming.

One does wonder though, will they cherry pick which games run from PC and which run from console, or will that not really matter? For instance, Stardew Valley. Would that not make much difference from where it was run from (from a technical standpoint, and from the standpoint of a user?).

I'm interested to see where this goes. Perhaps MS has found a way to make it work and a way to balance it? Or perhaps they're banking on a surge of new users through their next gen push? Or perhaps they'll even reinvent their services down the line with this in mind? It just feels like one piece of a much larger puzzle now that you have both put them points forward lol.

@Kaloudz Personally I prefer PC streaming, But it would be nice to have like a toggle or something. And as for Stardew Valley that would not make much of a difference as it's a pixelated game. A game that it would make a difference for would be something like Halo Infinite or Doom the Dark Ages. For example: I played Arkane's PREY on PC but the Console version has some impressive visuals but ultimately it felt off for a PC gamer like myself. I think that their console based streaming is a good way for people with a series S to play beefier games but I think PC streaming with something like GeForce Now is the more accessible option. Plus it's not limited to Xbox. But with the next Xbox reportedly being a Gaming PC it will be interesting to see how this goes. Heck with the Steam functionality being added to the Xbox app they might be headed more in the PC direction than we thought.

@WildConcept6 I actually think they give you access to some games with the subscription. I don't mind using the free plan on mobile though.

@HardRockGamer Thanks for that. What I have to ask, considering all I have learned in this thread from yourself and others, is, are some of the issues we've seen with xCloud so far been due to console streaming. Like, will PC streaming do away with some of the issues? If it's better I mean.

I've used it before and whilst I've not had a huge amount of issues, I have had to deal with the odd disconnect, some lag, some screen distortion, and other mild stuff. Despite having 1gb internet.

@Kaloudz
On the server side I would think they will replace everything with the next gen PC version. If the hardware is designed to run console specific games as well as next generation playanywhere games then it wouldn't make sense to run the old hardware. Especially if it could provide resolution/framerate upgrades.

I think the origins of having the consoles in the data center was that the AMD console chips were best optimized based on what they knew to stream games at the time. Now that they have run this for a while, and learned the pros and cons of the design. Therefore, they will take these learnings and integrate it into the next AMD chips.

You also have to remember that MS has acquired some of the biggest tech in gaming through publisher/tech purchases over the past decade. Activision's CoD engine, Rare platforming engine, Activisions platforming engines, DoubleFine's platforming engine, World of Warcraft/Diablo's RPG engine, Bethesda's id Tech, Bethesda's RPG engine, the Havok physics engine, etc. Really the only major engines that MS does not have is the Unreal and Unity engines. Add to that the Forza engines and The Coalition's expertiseof Unreal and you would think with all this tech and expertise they could learn to optimize the streaming experience more. I would expect the new AMD chips for next generation consoles/PCs will be a much more optimized experience for gaming and game streaming since MS owns a ton of some of the best gaming tech now.

Microsoft is playing a much different strategy then the other console manufacturers. While Sony and Nintendo are playing to win the hearts and minds of console fans, I think MS is trying to hook all gamers that use dedicated gaming devices. Handheld, console, and PC. And MS is a software and services company, not a hardware company, therefore I expect this is a strategy to become the goto software and services company and set the bar for hardware through their own "console" manufacturing. Then, encourage, Asus, Dell, HP, Acer, etc through their gaming hardware brands to ship PCs based on the next gen PC gaming chips they are developing with AMD.

@Kaloudz Those are all really good questions with how Microsoft will handle it. And they can even be extended beyond cloud gaming. Microsoft clearly wants a ubiquitous ecosystem across Windows PC, Xbox Console, and Xbox Cloud and they want Xbox to clearly and plainly mean all of it. But like... how? Xbox Play Anywhere is only a solution for future releases, and even then it's an optional solution they can't force on developers & publishers. Microsoft supports two versions of the Xbox store (one on PC and one consoles) and as a result they service some games twice with different versions they can't easily coalesce. So like really, how? What is Microsoft going to do if they start introducing or moving to PC based cloud gaming servers? What is Microsoft going to do to fully embrace the "Xbox everywhere" idea? Who knows? I'd bet my bottom Microsoft doesn't even fully know and they're also clearly not 100% focused on investing in it (because they're Microsoft and they are massive and AI and Azure are their current cash cows).

I think everything will become a LOT more clear in 2026 and hopefully the vision is fully painted across a canvas by 2027 (though we probably won't be able to touch that canvas for years and the wet paint might never stop drying). The Asus ROG Ally is Xbox's first real push to change the narrative of what an Xbox is and expand it to PC (though they've had a native Xbox PC launcher for 6 years now and Microsoft windows gaming is far older). Microsoft probably sees that as the first real start of their plans and then they'll cascade out from there. I don't really know though. There's so much speculation about what the AMD announcement means and what Xbox is planing and what the next Xbox will even be. We don't know. Like no one really knows. All I can even suspect is that Microsoft is trying to change the game up entirely.

@WildConcept6 @NeoRatt Yeah I think you're both right. I think we're seeing a lot of baby steps towards a broader picture that probably wont come to fruition for a while yet - and then we'll get a "BAM" moment where everything makes sense.

I've said it a bunch of times but I cant see MS dropping tens of billions to pursue what a few folks think they're pursuing (a bow out of the industry altogether). They make a fair few mistakes, I wont deny that, and they could really do with exhibiting better communication practices, but I don't think that that equates to anything that signifies the end of times - if that makes sense?

If they are indeed going to be pushing towards Xbox PC (that's what it's called now, right?) then I guess the real question is what difference does that make to us as consumers? There's no real difference is there? I mean, I honestly don't know. I'm very casual myself and all I really care about is booting up a device and playing games.

Let's pretend the next Xbox runs PC versions of games rather than console versions - to me, I don't think I'd notice. Not if all I care about as a user is loading up a game and playing it. If XPA / Xbox PC games mean that they uphold the unified front (progress, achievements ect...) then does it really make any difference at all?... and as far as streaming PC versions go, if they are indeed better to pull from and offer better results, then I guess what you've all said makes a lot of sense.

@Kaloudz
I think it depends on how well MS implements the "XBox PC". Consoles are know for their simplicity to both manage and use. Consoles are also known as reliable platforms that can play any game that ships on it. If MS keeps that simplicity then you are correct. And if games work properly on all types of console devices under the XB brand then there is really no difference.

They get any of that wrong, then XB falls to "just another PC". They get it right and the XB brand becomes synonomous with reliable gaming and simple devices to manage and play for games.

The problems in PC land have been well documented although many have improved. Poor performance of games on outdated or not maintstream hardware, how PCs can become bogged down with all the other stuff installed on them, the complexity (though very flexible) user interface of Windows, etc. These things turn off people that just want to easily connect their device to a nice TV, turn the device on, enjoy playing their favourite games, and shut it down. No keyboard, no mouse, just a controller. This is what MS really needs to get right. How do you run Windows as a console without really feeling like you are running Windows.

@NeoRatt @Kaloudz
Just to add to this the price is a big concern as well. Not that the pricing this generation hasn't already been awful, but the thing with a console is we as consumers accept caveats (more closed ecosystems, specicialized software (limited functionality compared to a PC), paid online, less storefronts, no mods, etc.) and in turn we get a lower priced entry compared to what a PC would cost for similar performance. An Xbox PC wouldn't be able to benefit from any of that. Like the upcoming ASUS ROG Ally it'll be priced like everything else in the PC market that surrounds it, which is expensive. Most console gamers aren't on forums or even YouTube videos seeking performance numbers, most are super casuals who can't even tell name the different resolutions. Paying PC hardware prices is a big ask for them. I think paying the prices Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo are already asking this Gen is a big ask for them. If we're to say console gaming has an issue getting new customers, well it won't help if consoles are just worse PC shells or seen that way.

Me personally, I wouldn't even try converting the Xbox console to a PC. I'd keep doing what Xbox is doing with the ASUS ROG Ally and just extend it to all windows gaming OEMs. Xbox PC in my view should be a windows gaming standard and almost entirely refer to the software side of things: I think it should just be the gaming experience on windows with OEMs still doing the hardware. The traditional Xbox console in my opinion should remain as is. And again all the work be done on the software side with a stronger push (if not a requirement) for every game to be Xbox Play Anywhere. I look at the Microsoft Store now and there's a non-zero number of games launching as Xbox Play Anywhere and cloud enabled without being a part of game pass (largely Japanese and indie titles (off the top of my head Eden's Zero just did this)). That and the upcoming Xbox mode launching with the ASUS Xbox ROG Ally is all I want personally. I want to buy myself a $300 Xbox Series S or $500 Series X, turn it on and get a full optimized home console experience, AND THEN for every game I buy to be a true Xbox play anywhere title with Xbox PC and Xbox Cloud support at launch. I'm more than happy for Xbox on PC to just be Microsoft finally getting their act together with windows gaming and properly optimizing the PC gaming experience under Xbox branding (which I do think all their gaming operations should be encompassed under Xbox).

@Kaloudz @NeoRatt
However, it really does seem like Microsoft just wants one platform and for that to become PC and that's where I, if I can get opinionated, think they'll fly too close to the sun. It is true consoles have an issue growing now across all platforms, but there could be an effort put in to introduce consoles to more audiences. I had always thought the Series S in particular should have been better positioned and marketed to introduce brand new gamers. But either way I don't think completing collapsing console and PC on top of each other is the answer. What Microsoft really risks here is losing the control they currently have (Microsoft doesn't really have any control over the PC gaming market despite Windows being the primary platform) and consumers risk losing a budget optimized experience. Actual Microsoft made Xbox hardware could just become the new Surface: overpriced and mediocre. I think Microsoft is rushing toward a future that doesn't benefit them or us as much as they think it would. Personally I just want them to invest in what they already have, because in my eyes the proof of concept is perfect. If every game launched play anywhere and cloud gaming enabled, and if every windows PC had the option for an Xbox mode that turned off unnecessary windows resources and pulled together everything gaming related on your PC hardware, then I'd at least be golden. And again we already have those things out in the wild (or coming very soon). They just need to push those for now and not chase the pipe dreams that might be more like nightmare scenarios in reality (I really don't think Steam on Xbox will be the holy grail people want it to be, because financially that'll completely upend how consoles operate). But yeah, only time will really tell. I don't think the communication is the big issue now. Microsoft has kinda now screwed themselves if Steam isn't available on the next Xbox console because of the wording of the announcement and nature of the internet. All anyone is talking about is Steam on the next Xbox; they aren't talking about Epic or Battle Net or anything else, just Steam. All the headlines and all the buzz is about Steam on Xbox and they act like it's been confirmed. They'll disappoint a LOT of people if that isn't the case. But if it is the case they'll have to answer a LOT of questions about the financials, subsidizing hardware, and what to do about game libraries. A lot of people on PC already hate having to use multiple storefronts, and if Steam comes to Xbox how long until some publishers stop skipping the MS store on Xbox like they do on PC? I'm more on the cynical side right now because I think they're pushing too hard and too fast when there's no need to. I mean, this whole thing started with how Xbox Cloud would reconcile it's next Gen upgrades and game compatibility, they should tackle stuff like that first. Push the complete console and PC coalesence off until the next next box or just stop at have a ubiquitous software ecosystem.

@WildConcept6
All fair comments and questions.

Personally, I think MS is trying to consolidate the existing gaming market on one platform. I am not sure they are overly concerned about stores because strategically they need the platform not the stores. There may be a requirement on the next XB that if you want to publish on XB stores you have to publish on all of them. That would ensure each store is equal from a content perspective.

As for the hardware. Surface is mediocre today, but when introduced it was exceptional. MS used Surface to get PC manufacturers off their butts and make them make devices that could compete with Apple's thin and elegantly designed devices. It succeeded. Now there are all kinds of PC devices. And most have very cool designs.

As for MS' gaming power. They have a lot of power having all the studios they own. I think they are using it to get everyone on the XB track. Telling Steam, Epic, etc. Get on the platform and abandon your own. We will let you have the store, we provide the platform, network, and gaming services. Win-Win. And a win for XB gamers. Especially, if you can buy once and play anywhere.

@NeoRatt I think it all works out in an ideal world, but I'm not sure we'll get there in reality. Even in the best case scenario I'd see Xbox going the way of surface in that there's just left on the wayside and becomes a joke. And then all we're left with are PC gaming OEMs, and I don't expect those to have the price and optimization of a traditional console.

Microsoft could very well enjoy gains becoming basically tencent but with ownership of windows. But they also become heavily reliant on all the other players (steam and hardware manufacturers for example) to keep playing ball. This is the problem Microsoft has right now with mobile. They gave up control over that markert (didn't even really try) and now their mobile aspirations are non-existent because they are completely at the mercy of Google and Apple. This is the problem with windows PCs now where they have to service so many different types of hardware and support so much legacy software that the entire OS just becomes a bloated mess. I don't want that for Xbox. And maybe that wouldn't be the case, but I have to say I just don't know.

But eh, we're talking in circles about things we can't really know. I'll say the only reason I'm even gaming these days is Xbox Play Anywhere and the vision Xbox painted for me way back in 2016 of my games everywhere. I want them to succeed here: let's just say your cautiously optimistic and I'm optimistically cynical here. Honestly for me the issue right now is cost and that's what I'm least sure they'll have worked out if they go full PC.