Xbox is pushing its unified gaming experience further with the Xbox App on mobile. While it’s blandly named, the utility tool is a godsend to many Xbox players.
The Xbox app on mobile is available on beta and only on Android devices. The feature-rich support app is a great add-on for players. It manages various Xbox services and allows pre-loading Xbox titles.
Xbox mobile app introduces quality of life improvements
The Xbox mobile app offers a bevy of quality of life improvements gamers want. For starters, it manages party chat, allowing players to join in without a hitch. It also helps view and clear notifications, share clips, and screenshots with ease.
What makes the app a superb support tool, however, is the addition of Xbox Game Streaming. Gamers can play and stream their games from their Xbox to their Android phone. Doing so gives players additional freedom to move away from their couch.
The streaming is different from xCloud, which takes games straight from the cloud server. This service instead brings the streaming from a player’s Xbox One to their phone. It’s easy to assume that the same service will be available once the Series X is around.
However, what’s crazier about the Xbox mobile app is that the XGS is not its defining feature. Its best feature is the ability to queue downloads. Even if the player doesn’t own the game yet, they can pre-download it on their console.
Queueing a download from the app will have “If you do not already own this game, purchase will be required to play this game. Game sold separately. ISP fees may apply.”
Queueing Xbox games helps players plan out purchases
It’s hard not to love the new Xbox app for mobile. For people who have issues with their ISP, the ability to queue a download is crucial. Players who buy physical copies will also benefit from this new queue option.
For starters, those who get physical copies can evade the long wait for Day 1 updates. It lets players pop in the game and start without gigabytes of patches. The queued download is also media-agnostic so that players can use physical or digital downloads.
Gamers can sell the physical disc and buy the same game digitally and still use the same install. Players in remote areas with metered or low-speed internet would love it too.
By pre-loading the games they want, then buying it, they can plan out the purchase.
Players can get the game and updates first, then buy later and get started. Players can download the Xbox app for mobile from the Google Play Store.
Images [1], [2], [3] courtesy of Xbox/Official Press Release