Xbox Game Pass may be what finally attracts me from iPhone to Android

I have had an iPhone since the iPhone 3G in 2008 and currently have an iPhone XS Max. i love the iOS ecosystem and, besides some forgettable little annoyances here and there, I have never had a problem with it. That’s until now. Op August 4th Microsoft announced the full version of Xbox Game Pass will come to Android phones, but not iPhones. Now, for the first time in a long time, my plans are to upgrade to the iPhone 12 have been cast into doubt.

Xbox Game Pass is Microsoft’s subscription-based Netflix-like game service. Currently, you can download and play around 200 games on the Xbox One family of systems or PC. However, from September 15, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will allow subscribers stream over 100 games to an Android phone or tablet. As an avid Xbox gamer who does not have Android mobile devices, this has put me in a puzzle.

I’m mostly an Xbox gamer

Having owned an Xbox One since its release in 2013, I’m fully invested in the Xbox ecosystem and intend to take full advantage of everything Microsoft has to offer. De Xbox Series X is my first choice in the next generation consoles due to features like backwards compatibility (all the way back to the original Xbox), free and automatic upgrades for old and some current games, fast CV and faster loading times. In all likelihood I will get the PS5 as well, which is expected this holiday season, although I probably won’t pull the trigger until 2021 for the first time. I’ll be buying an Xbox Series X when it’s released in November, and I’m seriously considering the yet to be announced Series S for the home office.

Xbox Game Pass lets me download more games and then try what I really have time for. And with the Ultimate membership, I’ll also have the option to stream more than 100 Game Pass games to my phone. Well, not my phone – an Android phone, actually. Which, again, I did not.

Instead, I’m left to make a Green Goblin-like sadistic choice: stay in the iPhone ecosystem and buy an extra Android phone just to stream Game Pass games, or drop the iPhone and switch completely to Android.

Apple and Microsoft

Despite the fact that there has been one test version of Xbox game streaming, formerly known as xCloud, on iOS for the last 10 months, there has been no official word from Apple as a full version will be released. Microsoft said in a statement earlier this month, “Apple stands alone as the only general-purpose platform to deny consumers cloud gaming and gaming subscriptions such as the Xbox Game Pass.” And things did not look particularly good when Microsoft added the fact that the company “has no way of bringing our vision of cloud gaming with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to gamers on iOS through the Apple App Store.”

Apple’s answer for that, their customers “enjoy great apps and games from millions of developers and gaming services”, and that gaming services can “absolutely launch in the App Store, as long as they follow the same set of guidelines applicable to all developers including game submission” individually for review and appearance in graphics and search. “

What Apple basically says is that, because not every player that is available to stream on Game Pass and can not evaluate the quality of each game individually, it throws the baby with the bathwater and game streams in. the App Store massively not. ,

I’m not sure why Apple takes this particular attitude and honestly I can not really care. The decision is the reason why I can not stream Xbox games on my iPhone, and the company actually forces me to consider switching my phone to achieve this.

iPhone or Android?

So now I’m in this pickle. Do I buy a cheap Android phone like the Pixel 4A and keep my iPhone? Or should I dive completely into #TeamAndroid and get some premium as a Note 20 Ultra?

Due to my job at CNET, I happened to own a business Galaxy S20 Plus at hand that I can use as a reference. I do not have it, but it will allow me to try the Game Pass Beta to see if it works for me before upgrading my entire phone life. It’s certainly not a permanent solution, and I know other iPhone users in the same situation as me are not lucky enough to have a spare Android in the house. And since I was looking forward to streaming Xbox games on my phone, such as buying the iPhone 12, the prospect that I would have to switch OSes definitely piqued my enthusiasm.

What do you think? Let me know if I need to make the jump or keep my iPhone a little longer. For anyone who recently switched ecosystems, was it as horrible as I think it will be? What Android features then Game Pass will make the switch worth it? Sound off on the comments below and in the meantime, let’s hope Apple and Microsoft work on this soon.