Xbox quietly made an announcement this June that barely made a ripple outside of the gaming industry. The games company said that its Xbox TV app would allow streaming games on specific Samsung Smart televisions without the need for a physical Xbox console. The release is limited to the United States for now, and it’s only available on new models (2022 production) of Samsung Smart TVs. So, it seems like quite a niche announcement. After all, it’s a lot more expensive to buy one of those new smart TVs than it is to buy an Xbox.
But it’s actually an important tipping point in the future of gaming. Phil Spencer, Microsoft’s Vice President of Gaming and head of the Xbox division, has made it clear that he envisages the future of video gaming to be an ‘access anywhere’ model – any device, any place, anyone. Spencer sees this as something of a mission, making access to gaming more equitable. Players will need a cloud gaming subscription, but in time, the need for expensive hardware will be phased out.
Cloud gaming means access on any device anywhere
The model works, of course, for other forms of media. If you listen to music or watch movies, you don’t need specific hardware to play songs on Spotify or movies on Netflix. Even certain sections of the gaming industry follow this model. If I were to have an account at a real money online casino Canada site, I would be able to access the full suite of casino games on any device (PC, laptop, tablet, smartphone) as long as the internet connection is good. The casino industry has followed this model for years, and it was one of the first to recognize that games should be optimized across multiple platforms, with an intense focus on mobile gaming.
Of course, the question will be asked about quality of experience. Cloud gaming obviously has its benefits, but it cannot match the performance of a powerful console like the Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5. Even in this nascent trial on sophisticated Samsung Smart TVs, there is not the same overall performance in, for example, refresh rate. But as cloud gaming technology improves, coupled with the roll-out of superfast broadband, 5G, and later, 6G, there is no reason to think a streamed game can’t compete with a console experience.
Spencer wants access to gaming for billions
It’s interesting to hear Spencer talk about all of this. The number of new Xbox consoles sold around the world is expected to reach 30 million by 2023. But Spencer speaks of bringing the Xbox gaming experience to “billions” of people around the world. While it’s quite ironic that one of the foremost producers of games consoles in the world wants to bring about the death of the console, it is admirable to hear Spencer talk of creating more equitable access to premium gaming worldwide. Yes, his first goal is to make money for Microsoft, but he is clearly passionate about access.
As this change occurs in the gaming industry, it will be intriguing to see what comes next with the new generation of consoles. Will there be a follow-up to the Xbox Series X? Will there be a PlayStation 6? Most likely, yes. But there might be a diminishing necessity for these devices. Moreover, there might not be the same sense of disappointment as suppliers ran out of consoles as happened with the ninth-gen hardware. But surely, at some point in the coming years, we are going to witness the death of the games console.
