In summer 2018, Microsoft announced "Project xCloud," its attempt at a cloud-based video game streaming service powered by Xbox hardware. While the project was met with much skepticism upon its announcement, word of mouth quickly spread after its closed beta launch on certain Android devices in November 2019. Xbox Cloud Gaming has been part of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for Android users for over half a year now, and after struggling to meet Apple's App Store guidelines, Xbox Cloud Gaming will start its limited beta test on iOS devices and PC tomorrow.
Upon announcing Project xCloud at E3 2018, Microsoft revealed its plans to launch the service worldwide on both Android and Apple mobile devices, with PC support also planned. The service runs on Microsoft's Azure cloud service and utilizes server blades similar in hardware to an Xbox One S. Microsoft has confirmed plans to upgrade these servers to Xbox Series X hardware later this year.
While Xbox Cloud Gaming has seen success on Android devices, where the service has become a full part of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, with most games on the service featuring cloud streaming support, testing on iOS devices was halted in August 2020 as Microsoft struggled to design the service to work around Apple's App Store policies, which deemed that cloud-based streaming services were designed to bypass Apple's security checks, and required that Microsoft release individual App Store versions of every game that utilized Xbox Cloud Gaming. Shortly after this, Microsoft announced its plans to release Xbox Cloud Gaming in iOS as a browser-based experience.
As part of this, Xbox has confirmed that iOS and web browser Xbox Cloud Gaming testing will begin tomorrow as an invite-only limited beta test and will allow players to experience over 100 Xbox games through Microsoft's own Edge web browser, Google Chrome, and Apple's Safari. The beta will be available to players in all 22 countries supported by Xbox Cloud Gaming and invites will be limited to current members of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
After months of waiting, this growth of Xbox Cloud Gaming sets Microsoft back on course for delivering a convenient, cloud-based solution for experiencing Xbox Game Pass Ultimate's growing library of exclusives, third-party, and independent titles from Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. The service has been met with praise from the Xbox community and the games industry at large, with many nothing that it could become a compelling offer for players unable to afford an entire Xbox console. Microsoft has also discussed bringing the service to smart TV devices and streaming sticks in the future, further growing the Xbox ecosystem.
Source: Xbox Wire