As we step into the new year, many of us are looking for fresh ways to play, connect, and explore. That’s why we’re excited to announce a new partnership with V (formerly VIDAA) that expands where your gaming adventures can happen: the Xbox app is coming to select Hisense and V homeOS-powered Smart TVs in 2026.
This partnership is all about giving you more freedom and flexibility to play how you want. Xbox Game Pass subscribers – including Ultimate, Premium, and Essential subscribers – will be able to stream hundreds of games, from new releases to fan favorites, directly through the Xbox app on supported TVs via Xbox Cloud Gaming.
With the Xbox app, you’ll be able to explore a variety of great games including Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, Hollow Knight: Silksong, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and many more. As an Xbox Game Pass subscriber, you’ll also unlock unlimited cloud gaming, giving you the flexibility to play games across different devices, including select games you already own. It’s all about giving you more freedom to play your way.
Expanding the Xbox Cloud Ecosystem
Our vision is to make sure your games, your community, and your achievements are always within reach. Bringing the Xbox app to select Hisense and V homeOS-powered TVs is another step toward making gaming available across a broad range of devices, to meeting you wherever you want to play. We’ll share more details on the Xbox Cloud Gaming experience with Hisense TVs in the coming months. Stay tuned to Xbox Wire and follow our social channels for the latest updates.
Consoles and PCs now have a powerful new partner offering even more ways to play: the cloud. With Xbox Cloud Gaming, you have access to a huge and dynamic library of the latest and greatest titles, wherever there’s a compatible screen, a stable internet connection, and a cloud-supported Xbox Game Pass subscription.
Xbox Cloud Gaming is now out of beta and available with Xbox Game Pass Essential, Premium, and Ultimate subscriptions, meaning it’s easier than ever to check out cloud streaming. Overall cloud gaming hours have gone up 45% since this time last year as the service has rolled out to millions of new gamers around the world, with particularly strong uptake in Argentina and Brazil.
Below we’ll go over where you can play and everything you need to get started (which you’ll likely already have).
What is Xbox Cloud Gaming?
Xbox Cloud Gaming is a benefit included with most Game Pass plans that allows you to play games anywhere you have a compatible, internet-connected device (such as a PC, TV, or even your phone). Xbox Cloud Gaming lets you stream your games like you stream your shows and movies, through apps and browsers on the devices you already have – and it’s playable with a variety of game controllers and other input methods.
What You Will Need
Xbox Game Pass
Unlimited cloud gaming is included with Xbox Game Pass Essential, Premium, and Ultimate plans. Xbox Game Pass is our monthly subscription service that provides access to an ever-growing library of games, online multiplayer, in-game benefits for popular favorites like League of Legends and Call of Duty: Warzone, store rewards, and more with each plan. In addition to streaming from the cloud, you can also download Game Pass titles directly to your preferred console, PC, or handheld device for offline play.
Xbox Game Pass Essential offers unlimited cloud gaming for as low as $10/month and access to more than 50 games. Xbox Game Pass Premium includes everything from Essential as well as access to 200+ games across console, PC, and supported devices for $14.99/month. For the best all‑around experience, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate delivers unlimited cloud gaming, 400+ games across console, PC, and more devices, day‑one new titles, online console multiplayer, plus added benefits like EA Play, Fortnite Crew, and Ubisoft+ Classics, as well as in‑game benefits across Riot titles and Rewards with Xbox — at no extra cost.
Supported Platforms
The following devices currently support Xbox Cloud Gaming (with more details here):
Xbox Consoles – Xbox One and later. Why stream games to a gaming console? It can be a great way to try a title before you download, or to play newer Xbox Series X games on your trusty Xbox One.
Windows PCs – Windows 10 version 20H2 and later
Mac Computers – MacOS 14.1.2 and later
Windows Handhelds – Including ROG Xbox Ally, ROG Xbox Ally X, Logitech G Cloud, and Razer Edge
Steam Deck
Android Phones and Tablets – Android OS 12.0 and later
Apple Phones and Tablets – iOS 14.4 and later
Smart TVs and Streaming Devices – Including those from LG, Samsung, and Amazon Fire
Meta Quest VR – Including Meta Quest 2, Meta Quest Pro, Meta Quest 3, and Meta Quest 3S
Whatever device you choose to play on, it’s recommended that you have an internet connection speed of at least 20 Mbps to ensure a stable connection while cloud gaming. If you don’t know what your connection speed is, you can use any number of free online speed tests, such as Speedtest.net, Fast.com, or MeasurementLab.
Where possible, it’s recommended that you play over a wired, Ethernet connection, but it’s also possible to play over 5 GHz Wi-Fi or 5G with capable devices. If your wireless router is dual-band, broadcasting at both 5 and 2.4 GHz, you may need to make sure that your device is properly set up to only connect over the 5 GHz network.
Controller
Most games require a gamepad to be connected to your device, either wired or wirelessly. If you have nearly any kind of contemporary game controller, Xbox Cloud Gaming probably supports it, allowing you to use whatever hardware you already have on hand. This includes Microsoft’s own official Xbox controllers and those made by direct partners, as well as a wide range of verified controllers from third-party manufacturers, such as 8BitDo, GameSir, Backbone, or even Sony’s DualSense.
Many games are also playable by mouse and keyboard as well as touch, for devices that support those respective modes of input.
If you really want to game in style, check out the Xbox Design Lab for a variety of special branded and customizable controllers to suit your personal sense of style.
Supported Regions
Xbox Cloud Gaming is supported in a growing list of currently 29 countries all over the world, including India most recently. If you’re not sure whether yours is included, find out here.
What You Can Play
Xbox Game Pass
In total, the Xbox Game Pass library includes hundreds of games across all genres, ranging from indie curios to the biggest AAA blockbusters. At this time, more than two thirds of those are enabled for cloud streaming, with more coming all the time.
Game Pass Ultimate subscribers are also given access to EA Play and Ubisoft+ Classics, which adds additional cloud-playable titles to their libraries from those respective publishers.
Stream Your Own Games
Many titles not included in Game Pass are still cloud playable, which means that you can stream them if you own them. Progress is saved and shared across all platforms, so you can pick up and play your games your way, wherever you are. See the full list.
How to Get Started
The main division between ways to play with Xbox Cloud Gaming is whether you connect through an app or through a web browser. While the means may be slightly different, the results are the same.
App
For consoles, the process is as simple as tabbing over to your library and Game Pass, then selecting a cloud-enabled game. The other devices listed above might just require the additional step of going to their respective app store and downloading the Xbox app first if it’s not already installed, then opening it and signing in to access your library.
Browser
For devices running Android, MacOS, and iOS, the cloud streaming works through a web browser, rather than a dedicated app. First make sure that your browser version is supported here and update if necessary. Then navigate to Xbox.com/play, sign in, and start gaming on the cloud. Selecting the Menu button, then Add to Home Screen will make it easier to access directly.
Steam Deck requires going to desktop mode and installing Microsoft Edge, with detailed instructions linked above.
See You in the Cloud
That should cover everything you need to get started with Xbox Cloud Gaming. If you have any additional questions, our rigorous support pages have you covered. Otherwise, you should go check out the available library and start playing something.
We’re bringing Xbox to more players around the world across devices including console, PC, and mobile, making it easier than ever to connect and play. With more ways to play, thanks to Xbox Cloud Gaming, more people can jump in and play their favorite games, meaning more people to ready up with, throw down against, and build memories with.
Players are streaming their games more than ever — cloud gaming hours from Game Pass subscribers has increased 45% compared to this time last year. And, console players are embracing flexibility, spending 45% more time cloud streaming on console and 24% more on other devices.
People play across the globe in many different ways and our ambition at Xbox is to reach players wherever they live and however they choose to play. Earlier this month, we expanded Xbox Cloud Gaming to India, the fastest-growing gaming market in the world, which surpassed 500 million gamers this year. With the addition of India, Xbox Cloud Gaming is now available in 29 countries. We’re also seeing exciting momentum in Latin America in countries like Argentina and Brazil which have shown double digital growth in play time and active players. Players in Argentina and Brazil can also now stream using the Xbox app on LG TVs and Amazon Fire TV, adding even more ways to play. To keep pace with this demand, we’ve expanded in-region server capacity, delivering shorter wait times for gamers. This expansion is all about meeting the community’s enthusiasm and making sure every session is instant and seamless.
Xbox Cloud Gaming Brings Great Games to a Variety of Devices
What sets Xbox Cloud Gaming apart is the ability to quickly jump in and play great games on devices you already own, including consoles, PCs, handhelds, smartphones, tablets, Smart TVs, Fire TV, VR headsets like Meta Quest, and yes, even coming soon to cars! This fundamentally changes how and where players experience games, from action-packed adventures like The Outer Worlds 2 to independent gems like Ball x Pit and Blue Prince.
Our library keeps growing with hundreds of games ready to stream through Xbox Game Pass, plus over a thousand more in the Stream your own game catalog, with new games being added all the time. Xbox Cloud Gaming allows players easy access to games they already own, with no downloads required, on any screen. And now, multiple Xbox Game Pass plans include access to Xbox Cloud Gaming, offering more choice, flexibility, and ways to play.
This expansion reflects our commitment to making gaming more fun and accessible no matter how, where, or what you play – and this is just the beginning, with more great experiences and games to come across devices.
It’s been quite the week for Xbox news. A lot of people are still coming to terms with Microsoft’s veritable gut-punch of that the price of a Game Pass Ultimate subscription is about to soar by 50 percent. And if that has already pushed you into with Xbox , it looks like Microsoft may soon attempt to tempt you back by giving away its cloud gaming service for free. That is, an extremely limited version of it, with ads.
According to , Microsoft is preparing to announce an ad-supported version of Xbox Cloud Gaming, which finally exited beta this week. Sources said to be familiar with Microsoft’s strategy told The Verge that game streaming with ads is already being tested internally with employees. You’ll reportedly be able to play select games that you own as well as a selection of Xbox Retro Classics titles. Microsoft will also offer Free Play Days games, an initiative that already lets Xbox users try games over a weekend. All of this will be possible without a paid Game Pass subscription.
But the inevitable catch, beyond the restricted catalogue of available games, is that you could have to watch up to several minutes of ad content before getting into a game, and it sounds like there are a number of time-based restrictions as well. It’s currently being tested with a one-hour time limit, up to five times per month, though that could change come launch.
Microsoft could launch its ad-supported Xbox Cloud Gaming tier in beta soon, and it will reportedly be available on PC, Xbox, handheld devices and on browsers. What isn’t clear is what streaming quality will be offered on the free version. Xbox Cloud Gaming’s 1440p option is going to be exclusive to Game Pass Ultimate, with Microsoft saving the “best quality” streaming for its most expensive plan. You’ll be capped at 1080p on the Premium and Essential tiers.
All three paid Game Pass tiers include unlimited cloud gaming, but wait times get longer the further down you go. It’s fair to assume that any free cloud service not tied to Game Pass will be hit with longer wait times, though perhaps the enforced ads would hide those pretty well anyway.
Microsoft just launched a service for Xbox Insiders that brings all cloud-playable games, along with play histories, to the official Xbox PC app. This includes console exclusives spanning multiple generations and hundreds of other releases. The service extends to games owned by the player and Game Pass titles.
The big hook here is that recently-played games will follow people across devices, including Xbox consoles, PCs and Windows handhelds. This will make it easier for folks to jump back into something, even when going from, say, an Xbox Series X to a PC.
The new “play history” section of the PC app and Xbox console UI will display cloud games as recently-played titles, and this list follows people wherever they go. It includes cloud-powered game saves, so there will be no wasted time. Being as this is all part of Xbox Cloud Gaming, players will be able to start a game on a console and finish on a PC, even if that title isn’t available natively on the second platform.
There’s also a new search filter in the library section for cloud games, along with a “jump back in” list on the home screen of the app. “While the large tiles highlight games you’ve recently played on your current device, the play history tile shows games you’ve played across any Xbox device, making it easy to pick up where you left off,” the company wrote in a blog post.
This is all thanks to the redesigned library feature for the Xbox app. This allows games purchased from various platforms to all be launched from the same place.
Update, August 29 2025, 12:05PM ET: Microsoft has confirmed that cross-device and cloud-playable play history is now rolling out to everyone, following a successful testing phase for Xbox Insiders. If you’re playing on an Xbox console, you’ll find the play history tile on your home page, while on the Xbox PC app it sits under the Most Recent section in the sidebar menu, as well as in its dedicated tab in My Library.
Microsoft is expanding Xbox Cloud Gaming’s streaming capabilities to support titles that aren’t on Xbox Game Pass, reports. The company has stated its plans to let users stream games from their own libraries numerous times over the last few years, going back to the announcement of , but the feature hasn’t yet materialized. Now, Microsoft is ready to start testing it among Xbox Insiders in November, with plans to ultimately support thousands of games, according to The Verge, which cites sources “familiar with Microsoft’s plans.”
Xbox players have long been asking for the option to stream games that they’ve purchased, rather than only those that are available on Xbox Game Pass. If the testing period goes as planned, more players could soon see the ability to do this. The report comes on the heels of Xbox president Sarah Bond’s announcement on Friday that Android users will be able to starting next month.
