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Microsoft has announced its Xbox Console Streaming preview has expanded to all participants in its early access Xbox Insiders program.
Initially, the streaming preview was only available in the US and UK, but now Xbox Insiders across all Xbox One-supported countries can sample the service in order to feedback issues and bugs to Microsoft.
“Xbox Console Streaming is our new system feature that enables you to play your owned and installed Xbox One games, including Xbox Game Pass titles, on your Android phone or tablet, streamed from your home console,” Microsoft said in an Xbox Wire update. “We view the public preview as an important step in our journey to deliver game streaming to Xbox players around the world! We are learning from Xbox Insiders like you whenever you participate in these new technologies.”
Microsoft revealed it was “pleased and encouraged” by feedback to date, and acknowledges the community “has provided invaluable feedback that has already improved the experience”, much of which will reportedly be implemented in the latest update rolling out to all Xbox Insiders.
Microsoft confirmed it had added enhancements to its standard Xbox Developer Kit (XDK) to support streaming and Project xCloud mid-2019. According to Kareem Choudhry, the team was particularly excited about new API “IsStreaming”, which allows any game to know if it’s streaming from the cloud, and therefore “cue features and functionality to enhance the streaming experience, for instance adjusting font sizes for smaller displays or hosting multiplayer matches on a single server to reduce latency”.
“The power of Project xCloud – the seamless compatibility for developers and the new places to play for gamers – comes from Azure datacenters spanning the globe, with hardware that shares a common set of components with our Xbox consoles,” said Choudhry at the time. “We’ve already deployed our custom Project xCloud blades to datacenters across 13 Azure regions with an initial emphasis on proximity to key game development centers in North America, Asia and Europe. Leading global development teams such as Capcom and Paradox Interactive now have the ability to easily test their games directly from Project xCloud without having to port to a new platform.
“This is just the beginning of our buildout, with our ultimate goal of supporting gamers in Azure regions around the world.”
