Xbox Game Pass Ultimate’s “stream your own game” feature now works on Xbox consoles. In effect, you can play games that you’ve purchased without waiting through a long download or installation process.

The “stream your own game” system, which launched in beta late last year, allows you to stream games that normally aren’t available through Xbox Cloud Gaming. The catch, of course, you must own a game before it can be streamed. Over 100 games support the “stream your own game” feature, including brand-new titles like Assassin’s Creed Shadows and popular indie games like Dredge.

Microsoft previously limited “stream your own game” to third-party devices, like Samsung and Amazon smart TVs, Meta Quest headsets, internet browsers, smartphones, and tablets. Today’s update expands the feature to Xbox consoles, where it’s best thought of as a workaround for long game installations. If you purchase a digital copy for Assassin’s Creed Mirage, for example, you can fire it up through Xbox Cloud Gaming and play it before it’s finished downloading to your console.

Obviously, local gameplay is higher-quality and more responsive than cloud gaming. If you’re purchasing a game for Xbox, you should download it for the best-possible experience. The “stream my own games” feature simply saves you the trouble of completing a long game download when you’re in a rush to play something (to be fair, the feature is far more useful when accessing Xbox Cloud Gaming from a streaming stick, smartphone, or other non-Xbox device).

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The internet speed requirements for Xbox Cloud Gaming are pretty mild—the minimum recommended speed is 10 Mbps down and 4 Mbps up with under 90ms of latency. Your home internet speeds almost certainly exceeds these requirements, though I suggest using a wired internet connection to ensure a stable and reliable experience. If your internet router and Xbox console are in separate rooms, a mesh Wi-Fi system may be a worthwhile investment, as it’s the cheapest and easiest way to expand your Wi-Fi range and bring wired internet connectivity to other rooms in your home.

In other news, Xbox is rolling out a new game hub that highlights player stats, achievements, online friends, and more when you select a game to play. Plus, you’ll soon be able to buy games and DLC, join Game Pass, and redeem perks from the Xbox app on mobile. Microsoft is preparing this feature in beta before it greenlights a broad rollout on Android and iOS.

“Stream your own game” is available in all countries that support Xbox Cloud Gaming, but requires a Game Pass Ultimate membership, which costs $20 a month. There are some neat ways to save money on this subscription, but the $20 monthly fee is worth it if you’re a serious gamer—Game Pass Ultimate unlocks the full Xbox Cloud Gaming library, which is genuinely massive and regularly adds new releases on day one.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate

Stream a massive catalog of games to your Xbox console, smart TV, PC, and mobile devices with Game Pass Ultimate. Plus, you can now stream select games in your library that aren’t normally available in Xbox Cloud Gaming thanks to new “stream your own game” functionality.

Source: Microsoft