Xbox Cloud Gaming: A Growing Hit Around the World

Xbox Cloud Gaming is making waves across the globe. It's now live in 29 countries, including the latest addition, India. This country is a big deal in gaming, with over 500 million gamers expected by 2025. Microsoft has been busy boosting server power in Argentina and Brazil. This move comes after seeing a big jump in players and playtime in these countries. It seems Xbox Cloud Gaming is on the rise worldwide. In fact, Game Pass users are spending 45% more time gaming in the cloud compared to last year. The way people play is changing too. Console gamers are spending 45% more time streaming in the cloud, and other devices see a 24% increase. Microsoft is making it easier to play on more devices. You can now use the Xbox app on LG TVs and Amazon Fire TV devices, in addition to PCs, consoles, smartphones, tablets, and even VR headsets like the Meta Quest. Soon, you might be able to game in your car, though it's not clear how popular that will be. There's some good news for Game Pass users. Before, only the Ultimate tier had cloud gaming. Now, multiple plans include it. Plus, the list of games you can stream is growing. There are hundreds of games ready to go in Xbox Game Pass and over a thousand more in the 'Stream your own game' catalog. New games are added all the time. But there's a catch. Microsoft's XCloud technology, which runs Xbox Cloud Gaming, isn't as good as NVIDIA's GeForce NOW. Even with recent upgrades like 1440p support for some games, it still has room for improvement. There's a rumor going around that Xbox Cloud Gaming might go free, but with ads. If that happens, it could be a real game-changer.