In an unexpected announcement, Microsoft has revealed that players traveling as passengers in certain vehicles will be able to stream Xbox games. The ability to play console games in the car has always been a fantasy for many players and was previously reserved for portable consoles. Now, Xbox has taken a very bold step into the market. This marks yet another experiment Xbox has taken in relation to Game Pass, one which could prove to be very successful.
According to Vice President of Xbox Marketing, Chris Lee, Xbox has partnered with LG Electronics to enable players to access the Xbox app to stream and play games while traveling as passengers. Those with a Game Pass Ultimate subscription will be able to play games as if they were at home, including games that they already own. The announcement encourages the use of the new feature during long road trips. To those resistant to motion sickness, this could be a great way to clock in hours of play time on longer games or play a quicker game during shorter trips.
Xbox extended the announcement of the upcoming feature to their YouTube channel as well. In the video, Xbox seems to demonstrate some self-awareness regarding how strange this new technology is with the title, “This Is an Xbox That Goes Vroom”, and the description, “This car is an Xbox”. The preview details a player in the back seat playing on a screen behind the seat in front of them. Other than that, it says only that the feature is coming soon.
One of the most important aspects of the gaming industry has always been innovation. This is true not just for games, but for consoles and gaming companies themselves. While it is uncertain how practical or widespread this new development by Xbox will be, it does mark a healthy willingness to experiment with what is traditionally thought to be possible with console gaming.