Back in July, Microsoft said its game streaming service Project xCloud will exit preview in September. Well, we now know that the service is officially launching tomorrow, and it has a pretty long list of games that will be available to play at launch.
In fact, Microsoft is saying that subscribers will be able to play over 150 games starting tomorrow. Also, the service isn’t going to be called Project xCloud anymore. In fact, it’s not going to be available as a standalone subscription at all. The Redmond giant is going to bundle its cloud game streaming service with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions. That means, if you want to stream games on your smartphone, you will have to subscribe to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
The long list of games that are available on xCloud from tomorrow will unfortunately not include EA’s Play titles. Microsoft has announced that EA Play titles are being added to Project xCloud, but they will not be playable till the holidays. So you’re gonna have to wait a while.
Meanwhile, thanks to Apple’s App Store policies, the streaming service will only be available on Android phones and tablets. Even with Apple’s recent “relaxation” of its policies, the Cupertino giant has rather silly demands of Microsoft and Google for their game streaming services. Apple wants the games that will be available to stream with Project xCloud (or Google Stadia) to also be available as standalone packages within the App Store.
Microsoft has so far decided against doing that, calling the move a “bad experience for customers”. However, it remains to be seen if Apple changes its policies to allow game streaming services on the iPhone or if Microsoft gives in and plays by Apple’s rules.
