Play Halo or Tomb Raider on your phone without console or subscription? It will soon be possible, thanks to a free version of the Xbox Cloud Gaming currently in preparation. Microsoft is currently testing unaccompanied access to its video game streaming technology … but not without counterparts. And some players are already wondering if this gift is not poisoned.
Revealed by Tom Warren from the media The Verge, this new version of the Cloud Gaming Xbox would work according to an advertising model. Users will have to view about two minutes of advertisements before each game session. In exchange, they will be able to access certain games they already have, free weekend titles or a selection of Retro Xbox classics, without going through the Game Pass.
A very supervised freedom of play
On paper, the idea is attractive: democratize the cloud gaming by allowing anyone to play from a smartphone or a connected TV, without console. But reality promises to be much more restrictive. Sessions limited to an hour, with a five -hour ceiling per month, are being studied. This considerably reduces the interest of the service for regular practice.
Another expected limitation: technical quality. No official details have filtered on resolution, flow or latency, but you should not hope better than 1080p and 12 Mbit/s, depending on the current standards of the Game Pass. What to cool the most demanding players.
A “gift” to make you forget the price increases?
This initiative comes in a tense context for Xbox. The price of the Game Pass Ultimate has recently jumped 20 to 30 dollars, arousing strong criticism. As for the Xbox Series X, it is now displayed at 650 dollars, 100 more than its direct rival, PlayStation 5.
In this climate, offering a free service could seem like a gesture of appeasement. But with such strong restrictions, some see it as a marketing strategy to attract curious people before converting them to the paying subscription. For the moment, Microsoft provides for a public test phase before any official launch. The players remain shared between curiosity and mistrust.