We've already written about the new Xbox Series X specs we found out about this week, as well as xCloud and why that's so exciting too.
The thing is, they don't actually seem like a logical pairing. xCloud allows for users to play games with the absence of a console, so it seems odd to think of it going well with the Xbox Series X, which is not only a console but an incredibly powerful one.
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Well, during a panel that Microsoft was hosting as part of their Game Stack Live event, they talked a bit more in-depth about these two seemingly disparate bits of technology.
During the panel we got to listen to Catherine Gluckstien, Jason Ronald, Rachel Card, and Chris Novak all talk about the technologies that they are pioneering and introducing, and how it'll all feed through into each other, and also any other tech.
In fact, one of the points they brought up was the idea that the Xbox Series X and xCloud are "better together".
This is because, despite the ability to have one or the other, having both allows for a level of flexibility and portability that you'd only normally find with something like a Nintendo Switch, or the cross-save systems in some games for Switch and PC.
The aim is to allow people to play how they want, when they want, and whatever they want. This certainly seems to hint at the idea of all Xbox Series X games being available on xCloud too, which could well be a huge reveal in itself.
That being said, they talked a lot about the technical challenges of this kind of work, namely things like UI.
You see, xCloud is designed in such a way that all games can use it whether the games are aware of it or not. That means you don't have to take special steps to make them work, they just do.
However, the developers can also make games aware of the fact that they're being streamed by xCloud, which means they can do things like increase the size of the UI, or potentially change the controller settings.
It's a fascinating idea, and it all ties back into the core concept of freedom that Microsoft seems to be leaning into.
It all ties together with things like Game Pass too, because the aim is to make these things services for players, whether they're on Xbox or not.
Though, it's natural to try and make sure it all works slightly better if you do have an Xbox Series X because they'll still need to sell the consoles.