The future is now: Sony and Microsoft working on cloud gaming solutions

As technology advances, people are expecting more from gaming and gambling companies. Different trends continue to pop up and today, many are shifting their focus on cloud gaming. Both Sony and Microsoft are now working on cloud gaming services and many gamers are excited about it.

Many are saying that cloud gaming will change the gaming industry forever and why would it not? It's a great solution to making gaming available to people worldwide. People to play video games through remote servers in data servers which they can play games on any device with an internet connection.

Just think of Netflix but instead of streaming a series or movies, you get to stream the games that you’d like to play. Basically, cloud gaming can remove the gaming barriers of different consoles, allowing you to play an Xbox, PC, or PlayStation game with any device.

Microsoft Cloud Gaming Services for iPhone and PC

Microsoft has been working on its own cloud services called xCloud, its latest beta version was rolled out recenlty for iPhone, iPad and PC users. So far, the availability of xCloud is still by invitation only. 

Xbox Cloud Gaming was initially released in beta testing in November 2019. It was in September of the following year that its Xbox Game pass ultimate subscription became available.

This cloud service from Microsoft was set to be fully launched last year but Apple released updated rules for its App Store in September which impacted services like Xbox Gaming and Google Stadia.

The updated rules made companies, like the ones mentioned earlier, use web browsers to redesign their service. They are required to offer the games as an individual download instead of offering a gaming library just like Netflix does for its content.

As expected, Xbox Cloud Gaming is a paid service or subscription. The current price is at 14.99 USD a month for an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate plan which will allow the users to have access to over 100 game titles.

According to Microsoft, this cloud gaming service will be available in 22 countries. Users will only need a Bluetooth or USB controller to play games with any device that can connect to the internet including smartphones. Once it goes live, players should be able to play any games and even access and play online casinos in the UK or any sites with casino games with any device.

It was only last week that Microsoft announced through a blog post that that Xbox Cloud gaming testing will come to Windows 10 PCs and iOS device users.

Sony’s Take on Cloud Gaming

Sony is also working on its cloud services and the company is also talking to Microsoft about it. It’s not exactly something new as Sony has been leaning on its partnership with Microsoft for two years now.

Jim Ryan, Sony’s CEO recently talked about what they are doing with Microsoft. Ryan said, "We're still talking to [Microsoft] about exchanging ideas, and there's some very interesting stuff, so when the time is right, we'll announce our cloud strategy. We could conceivably use the cloud (Azure) for our technical infrastructure, but the cloud gaming experience we're offering will be unique and only on PlayStation."

Azure is a cloud technology that powers a lot of web apps and streaming services by Microsoft. This is what they will use to support Sony with its cloud gaming plans. This is what Microsoft said in its announcement of the partnership with Sony two years ago.

“Under the memorandum of understanding signed by the parties, the two companies will explore joint development of future cloud solutions in Microsoft Azure to support their respective game and content-streaming services.

“In addition, the two companies will explore the use of current Microsoft Azure data center-based solutions for Sony’s game and content-streaming services.”

With this, people are interested to see how the cloud gaming services with these two huge tech companies will affect PS5’s life cycle. When asked about this, Sony CEO said, “It’s hard to answer that question right now, but history shows that sales peak in the third or fourth year. At the end of the cycle, the cloud may play some role. I’m more optimistic about the future than I was a year ago.”

“We have just released PS5, so at this point, it’s time to learn how people are enjoying it, and then we’ll take the time to think about the future of PlayStation.”