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Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers can cloud-stream games on both Xbox Series X and Xbox One this holiday season, Microsoft announced Tuesday during Gamescom 2021. The expansion will mean Xbox One owners can play Xbox Series X games on their console, provided the title is among Game Pass’ streamable library of more than 100 games.
That’s “will mean” because the ability to stream Series X games to Xbox One — a statement from Microsoft used Microsoft Flight Simulator and The Medium as examples — is “coming in the future.” The expansion of cloud gaming to consoles is also undated, although typically Microsoft has rolled out large updates and improvements to its Xbox operating system in November.
When it does arrive, Microsoft says that Xbox Cloud Gaming will support up to 1080p resolution at 60 frames per second, the same as the Cloud Gaming that Game Pass offers for Windows PC, Android, and, just recently, Apple iOS devices.
For Xbox Series X owners, in particular, the update means players have access to “over 100 high-quality games in the Xbox Game Pass library without having to use valuable storage space.” The Xbox Series X has about 802 GB available on its 1 TB hard drive; the Xbox Series S has 364 GB.
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Image: Xbox Game Studios
Tuesday’s announcement did not say that all games in the Xbox Game Pass library would be available for cloud gaming. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers also have access to EA Play titles, for example. Compatible titles will be marked with a cumulus cloud icon. Tuesday’s statement included a dashboard mockup showing Microsoft-published titles like Minecraft Dungeons and Forza Horizon 4 as cloud-streamable, alongside Bungie’s Destiny 2.
Xbox Game Pass launched in the summer of 2017. The standard subscription, for both console and PC, is $9.99 per month; that does not include Cloud Gaming. For $14.99 a month, subscribers get everything Game Pass offers — Cloud Gaming, PC and mobile device access, EA Play’s library, and Xbox Live Gold.
