By The greater the tier, the superior the service
Amidst all the excitement surrounding new levels, pricing adjustments, and a multitude of fresh games for Xbox Game Pass, you might have overlooked that Xbox Cloud Gaming is undergoing considerable enhancements throughout all tiers of the service.
To begin with, Xbox Cloud Gaming will now be accessible in an “unlimited” manner to members of the Essential and Premium Game Pass tiers. Cloud-enabled games in both levels, alongside select “Stream Your Own Game” titles, will be part of this. Premium subscribers benefit from shorter waiting periods compared to their Essential peers.
“The Essential library is now entirely playable on PC, showcasing standout titles like Hades, Cities: Skylines – Remastered, Stardew Valley, and Warhammer 40,000: Darktide. Unlimited cloud gaming is included, allowing you to enjoy games, including select titles you own, on your preferred devices — granting you increased freedom to play as you wish.”
“Cloud gaming is also advancing in Premium. Subscribers now experience unlimited cloud gaming, which includes select games you possess, and newly added in-game benefits in some of the biggest titles like League of Legends, Call of Duty: Warzone, and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege X, instantly unlocking cosmetics, characters, and additional enhancements to elevate your gameplay.”
Additionally, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate receives the finest iteration of Xbox Cloud Gaming to date, with streaming quality now enhanced to 1440p and the briefest waiting times possible. As a part of this, the service has also transitioned from a “Beta” state.
“Ultimate subscribers uniquely benefit from our best-quality streaming and quickest wait times, making it simpler than ever to dive into your beloved games. Xbox Cloud Gaming has officially moved out of “Beta,” reflecting our dedication to providing smoother and more responsive gameplay. We will continue to expand the Stream your own game collection for all subscribers.”
Of course, there are occasional situations where Xbox Cloud Gaming does not necessitate an Xbox Game Pass membership, and it appears that this will persist – Fortnite has proven exceedingly popular as part of the service over the last couple of years.
We’ll need to see how the new 1440p option performs for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members (Digital Foundry recently assessed it and left quite impressed), along with how lengthy those wait times eventually become for the Essential tier, but on paper, these are some commendable enhancements if you’re a dedicated xCloud user.
What are your thoughts on this? Share with us in the comments section below.
Fraser serves as the News Editor at Pure Xbox, where he dedicates his time to covering the most significant stories in the realm of Xbox and beyond.