Microsoft is about to do something that has never been done in the gaming industry before.
Microsoft has revealed plans to bring its Xbox Live video gaming platform to the Nintendo Switch, Apple’s iOS, and Android devices, an effort that will connect players across different devices and bring Xbox games to a new audience according to Eurogamer.
Xbox Live encompasses the online components of Microsoft’s video game services. Players use Xbox Live to connect and play games together, download new releases, build their own friend lists, voice chat, and share messages and video clips. Until now, Xbox Live has mostly been exclusive to Microsoft’s Xbox One video game console and Windows computers.
This new relationship between Xbox Live and non-Microsoft games and platforms marks a new era where players could theoretically earn Xbox achievements while playing a game on the Nintendo Switch, something that has never been available before.
Combined with Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass, the company is trying to create a Netflix for video games, with a subscription that gives you access to games no matter where you intend to play them. If Microsoft can convince developers to allow it to handle the social and multiplayer aspects of games, then its subscription game service will look a lot more promising to gamers on rival consoles and mobile devices.
