The Next Step

Everyone is dismissing Microsoft from the console space. The simple fact is there will always be dedicated hardware-based consoles until cloud gaming really takes off and can become a streamlined option for the vast proportion of players out there. Whether that includes Xbox remains to be seen, but the platform in itself out of hardware is going nowhere! Microsoft has partnered with leading cloud platforms that give you the option of playing your Xbox games without the need for any hardware.

The next step is going to be how cloud gaming can really accelerate and actually be something that people care enough about. NVidia’s GeForce Now could be the partnership that actually accelerates that process. I haven’t tried yet as I am awaiting a 900MB broadband connection to be installed. Everything though is pointing to it being a game-changing experience that offers you the opportunity to have the PC experience beamed to any device that you have ‘potentially’ rendering the console needless. I say that loosely because there are a lot of asterisks to the user case situation that cannot be ignored until it’s absolutely the perfect scenario. Your router being one of them. Until WiFi 7 can offer a standard of low latency and our devices catch up to that standard organically, it’s going to be tricky. Unless, of course, you go the Ethernet route, which is preferred anyway.

As Microsoft leads the charge on it’s next Xbox console. They’re aiming to go all-in on cloud gaming and are already leaving their mark on this industry. We’re getting to the point where players can really take advantage of that kind of cloud streaming service. ‘Almost’ the technology is there.

However, there are a few things that make cloud gaming an obstacle to being perfect. The drawback is no longer the broadband speeds. Nor is it latency because that’s improving all the time server-side and client-side. The drawback is how these services are streamlined for the user experience. Until they get to a point where Boosterioid is this experience that ‘just works’. One that connects to all your relevant gaming accounts seamlessly It’s going to be a hard take from the majority that this service is aimed at.

What I will say, though, is the gaming library’s are another factor in this as well. You cannot have a situation where Boosteriod has more games to play than NVidia’s GeForce Now. Nor can there be a situation where people are having to do guesswork on what game they can or cannot play.

That’s the pros and cons of cloud gaming at this point. Xbox has the edge in user experience with xCloud and it’s baked into their eco-system. However, it doesn’t on the 4K gaming situation (as of yet) until they implement that potentially for the next generation. We all know they’re going big on cloud gaming.

The point of all of this? Well, as you can see. Microsoft is laying the groundwork to go big in cloud gaming. They’re partnering with key cloud services like NVidia’s GeForce Now and Boosteriod. In a world where console hardware is getting expensive. Where games on closed-eco systems like PlayStation can set their own prices at £70 per game. This is all pushing people towards other options. PC and Cloud Gaming. I think both will get a big push and improve a lot going into the next few years. People are just done with being ripped off. That’s their reasoning to switch it up. The only gaming company that’s keeping it ‘original’. Well, Nintendo, and we all know everyone is excited about their next console. Because exclusives matter, but they’ve also stuck to their origins.

Xbox hardware might be dying in essence of consumer interest, but the platform itself couldn’t have a brighter or greener future. If all of this comes together in the right way, Microsoft might be returning to theirs. The potential is there for a vastly better entry into the world of gaming than ever before. Who is leading that charge? Well, Microsoft with Xbox, of course.