Microsoft has started testing its game streaming service xCloud in the iOS and iPadOS browsers and on PCs via Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, according to a new report.
Microsoft's xCloud service allows subscribers to play games via streaming from the cloud, rather than having to download the entire game locally on the device. But Apple's App Store policy does not allow the deployment of such an application. As a reminder:
Apple said in August that cloud gaming services would be allowed on the App Store, but that they would have to be made available as individual game apps. Submitting hundreds of games to the App Store is not something any cloud gaming service wants to do, so these services will be available as a web version in Safari in the future.
Therefore, Microsoft has to switch to the iOS or iPadOS browser. Now reported The Verge reports that Microsoft has started initial tests. Screenshots provided to the platform show xCloud running on the desktop via the browser.
iOS & iPadOS: xCloud on Safari to follow
However, the whole thing should look exactly the same on iOS or iPadOS. Users will be able to select a title and play it directly in their browser. The exact resolution in which the game will be streamed is not known, however. Usually, such services automatically adjust the resolution to the respective network capacity. At launch, xCloud will only support browsers based on Chromium, such as Edge and Chrome on the PC. However, Tom Warren, senior editor of The Verge, stated that he expects support for Safari to be added after internal testing. In addition, The Verge believes that the release will take place shortly. So it remains to be seen when Microsoft will comment on the matter. (Photo by Leszek Kobusinski / Bigstockphoto)
