Microsoft’s Xbox TV app now available on Amazon’s Fire TV Sticks

The Sways

3 months ago

You can now stream Xbox games to select Fire TV devices.

Xbox Cloud Gaming is coming to Amazon's Fire TV Sticks in July - The Verge

Microsoft is launching its Xbox TV app on select Amazon Fire TV Sticks today. The app, which Microsoft first announced last month, provides access to Xbox Cloud Gaming, allowing subscribers of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to stream a variety of Xbox titles to some Fire TV devices.

Microsoft is working to allow Xbox Cloud Gaming to stream your entire Xbox library, and not just titles that are part of Game Pass. That’s expected to arrive in the coming months, albeit likely with some games excluded due to publishers that aren’t willing to be part of Xbox Cloud Gaming.

The Xbox app will initially be available only on the Fire TV 4K Max (2023) and Fire TV Stick 4K (2023) and will be identical to the same app available on Samsung’s recent TVs and monitors. All you’ll need is a compatible Fire TV Stick, a Bluetooth-enabled wireless controller, and an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription to stream Xbox games.

The Xbox app launch on Amazon’s Fire TV Sticks marks the first time such an app has launched on a device other than Samsung’s TVs and monitors. Microsoft has been leaning into getting its Xbox TV app on more devices, rather than producing cloud gaming hardware. Microsoft also worked with Meta to launch an Xbox Cloud Gaming app for Quest VR headsets, and I’d expect to see this same Xbox app continue to show up on more devices in the future.

Microsoft previously promised that Xbox Cloud Gaming would support your existing game library by the end of 2022, but that has been significantly delayed. Microsoft also scrapped plans to launch a dedicated subscription version of Xbox Cloud Gaming, and a dedicated Xbox cloud gaming console was canceled due to pricing issues.