Update: The leaks for Xbox's plans for the future of Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming were confirmed this morning via an Xbox News Post titled "Xbox is Building the Gaming Platform for the Next 20 Years" This post confirms all that we had heard previously including that Xbox Cloud Gaming will be coming to Samsung TVs, curated demos from indie developers will be coming (as well as a confirmation that these developers will be compensated), and that Xbox Cloud Gaming will be expanding to Argentina and New Zealand.
Additionally Xbox also announced that later this year they plan to expand what's on offer in Xbox Cloud Gaming by making certain non-Game Pass games that users own playable through Cloud Gaming. This will mean if you have Game Pass Ultimate and want to play one of the compatible games that you own, but that isn't on Game Pass you'll be able to load it up at any PC, Phone, or Samsung TV without having your console nearby.
Windows 11 gamers will have a number of updates in the upcoming months. This will include optimizations for games while windowed including Auto HDR and VRR, there will be a new HDR calibration app for better colors in-game, and new Quality of Life features like a Game Pass Widget and Controller Bar for easy access hopping into and out of games. Microsoft Edge will also be getting a number of improvements to make Xbox Cloud Gaming more reliable.
The last piece of news from this release is that Xbox Design Lab is back. With it new pastel colors have been added, and the program will be launching in 11 new countries. The new countries are Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Czech Republic, Greece, Hundary, Norway, Slovakia, and Switzerland. Taiwan will be added later on this year.
Original Story: Leading up to the Summer Game Fest, Xbox has been teasing various announcements including a number of games and additions to services like Xbox Game Pass. Among them is the rumor that it will be unveiling timed demos available to subscribers of Xbox Game Pass. This would allow players to get a sense of the full game through a limited session. This rumored announcement will happen before the Summer Game Fest begins this week on June 9th.
Xbox Timed Demos And Services
There have been all kinds of buzz about the future of Xbox Game Pass including the rumors of a streaming stick that will allow players to access Xbox Cloud Gaming on any TV. The rumor of timed demos comes shortly after Sony solidified plans for their newly upgraded PlayStation Plus program, which also includes timed demos as an option. Limited time gameplay access has been part of EA's service for some time now giving players a chance to try before they buy.
This demo program will be an opt-in service, game developers who sign up will be able to take advantage of necessary data needed for game development. Developers who opt-in to the Game Pass demo service will reportedly be compensated for promoting the service as well as financially assisting in indie game development.
The final piece of rumor from this news is that in partnership with Samsung the TV manufacturer's devices will gain access to Xbox Cloud Streaming natively. This will mean those with participating devices will be able to connect an Xbox controller and stream Xbox Game Pass games directly to their TV.
At the moment all of the above are still in the stages of being rumors but with a projected announcement time of June 9th, we don't have long to wait one way or another.
