Microsoft’s Project xCloud streaming service will let you play Forza on your phone

Project xCloud

Microsoft has just announced a new streaming service that aims to let you play big-name games on whatever device you want, whenever you want.

Project xCloud will leverage Microsoft’s existing data centers across the globe, literally loading up servers with the component parts of multiple Xbox One consoles, and using these to run the games streamed directly to your mobile device of choice.

The end result will be that gamers will be able to play the likes of Halo, Forza and other classic console and PC big hitters on their phones or tablets.

You’ll be able to use an Xbox controller hooked up to your mobile via Bluetooth, or if you want to dispense with that, Microsoft is promising touch controls that will work just fine as an alternative.

Microsoft has already got the system up and running today, and when it’s honed and ready, the company promises it will scale out across 54 Azure regions (with data centers in some 140 countries).

The first public trials are expected to start in 2019, with that beta testing going towards perfecting the technology and then rolling it out across the world.

Latency worries

It’s an exciting prospect, for sure, and if Microsoft can keep a lid on latency to allow for smooth game streaming, that’ll be impressive to say the least. The company promises that it’s working on all fronts to make sure this is a slick experience, including figuring out new ways of carrying out video encoding and decoding.

Of course, as ever with these sort of services, the result will not just depend on Microsoft’s technology, network and data centers, but also the user’s connection.

Microsoft admits that it will be “pushing the edge of what’s possible even with 5G”, and of course when it comes to mobile broadband, 5G is still some way off launching, let alone becoming the norm.

Still, Project xCloud is an exciting glimpse of the future of unshackled gaming, where you can enjoy all those console or PC hits on your phone while you’re out and about.

TOPICS

Darren is a freelancer writing news and features for TechRadar (and occasionally T3) across a broad range of computing topics including CPUs, GPUs, various other hardware, VPNs, antivirus and more. He has written about tech for the best part of three decades, and writes books in his spare time (his debut novel - 'I Know What You Did Last Supper' - was published by Hachette UK in 2013).

Latest in Gaming
NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
NYT Connections hints and answers for Monday, March 17 (game #645)
NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
NYT Connections hints and answers for Sunday, March 16 (game #644)
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2
With discounts of up to 95%, these are the biggest deals I've managed to find in the Steam Spring Sale
WWE 2K25
I've spent days in the ring with WWE 2K25, and it's like a five-star match ruined by the Million Dollar Man
Asus ROG Ally using Steam
I think Asus could be the perfect partner for an Xbox handheld – but I have questions
NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
NYT Connections hints and answers for Saturday, March 15 (game #643)
Latest in News
Google Pixel 8a in aloe green showing
Google Pixel 9a benchmark link teases the performance of the upcoming mid-ranger
Quordle on a smartphone held in a hand
Quordle hints and answers for Monday, March 17 (game #1148)
NYT Strands homescreen on a mobile phone screen, on a light blue background
NYT Strands hints and answers for Monday, March 17 (game #379)
NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
NYT Connections hints and answers for Monday, March 17 (game #645)
Apple iPhone 16 Pro HANDS ON
Leaked iPhone 17 dummy units may have given us our best look yet at all four models
A super close up image of the Google Gemini app in the Play Store
It's official: Google Assistant will be retired for phones this year, with Gemini taking over