Updated: November 25, 2020 3:50:41 pm
You should be able to stream Xbox games like Halo and Forza Horizon 4 to your TV
Microsoft is serious about turning your smart TV into an Xbox game console. In an interview with The edgeXbox Director Phil Spencer has revealed that a dedicated Xbox app for smart TVs is in the works and may appear sometime next year.
“I think you will see [an Xbox app for smart TVs] in the next 12 months. I don’t think anything is stopping us from doing that. … What we used to call a television was a CRT that just throws an image onto the back of a piece of glass that I’m looking at, ”Spencer said.
The reveal of an Xbox app for smart TVs points to Microsoft’s long-term vision of bringing console-quality games to any device. The future of Xbox is not hardware, something Spencer has clarified several times in the past.
Under Spencer, Microsoft is betting on an entirely new strategy for its Xbox gaming division. While Sony wants to dominate the console war with the recently released PlayStation 5, Microsoft is transitioning to a services model. The company currently offers Xbox Game Pass, a video game subscription service, as well as xCloud (formerly Project xCloud), a legitimate video game streaming service with the promise of bringing high-quality console-level games to smartphones and other devices.
Having a cloud-based gaming service means that Microsoft is now competing against Google and Amazon. Both tech giants have recently entered the gaming market with cloud-based gaming services Stadia and Luna. In a way, Microsoft is not competing with Sony and Nintendo, who rely heavily on the sales of the consoles and games they sell for profit.
Xbox Series S review: a different kind of next-gen gaming console
While Microsoft has no plans to exit the hardware market, it does want to diversify its portfolio. The launch of the Xbox Series S is a clear example of how Microsoft wants to reach the masses and families with the next generation offering. “I don’t think these are the last big pieces of hardware we ship,” says Spencer. The head of Microsoft’s Xbox division previously hinted at a Chromecast-like device made for cloud-based gaming service XCloud, though he did not reveal when the device will hit the market.
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