Introduction: The notion of home gaming systems that are free of any physical console or other device has been gaining strength in the recent period. Now, a partnership between Amazon’s Fire TV service and Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass is showing that the notion of streaming video games is no longer just a technical feasibility, but a working mass-market product.
Article: A decade or two ago, playing online video games focused primarily on very basic Flash-built systems which allowed players to simply visit a website and start having fun. Back then, these games rarely offered more than platformer, action, and racing genres. They were almost exclusively made using 2D graphics and the simplest gameplay mechanics. Yet, even games of this level of simplicity regularly obtained millions of monthly players and strong ad-based revenues. Since then, video games that are streamed online – meaning that there is no physical media or device needed for their gameplay, not even the necessity to download an installer pack or a local hard drive installation – have become more and more popular. However, the streaming process and the quality of online-based games have expanded substantially since the days of Flash scripting.
Today, even the most demanding AAA releases can be modified by their creators for streaming services. Using those, players simply get a multifunctional device, like a smart TV or a tablet, where they can play a range of video games through a streaming provider. Some even suspect that the days of physical gaming consoles like Xbox and PlayStation are going to be replaced by streaming services that are available on a range of third-party devices. A recent partnership between Amazon and Microsoft shows that this possibility is something very tangible for the gaming market.
Through that partnership, Amazon provides Fire TV users an access point to the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate liberty of video games. Among those are the latest huge releases and big names, including games like Forza Horizon 5, Fallout 4, and Starfield. To play any of these, Fire TV users only need a Bluetooth-enabled controller and nothing else in terms of hardware or gear. While it will take many months to see if the partnership is providing these companies with a revenue boost, the fact that this service is in the market and operational shows that the future of game streaming is brighter than ever.
Fire TV and Xbox Game Pass
Setting up the Xbox and Fire TV gaming setup is very straightforward. First of all, a Fire TV Stick 4K Max or a Fire TV Stick 4K is needed. These media players are sold by Amazon and cost about 50 USD. With them, the hardware side of the gaming setup is completed. On their Fire TV device, players will need to get their Xbox application from the Amazon Appstore and install it on their media player. Here, a new or existing Microsoft account has to be connected, which will provide players with access to the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Its price somewhat differs from region to region and some parts of the world don’t have access. But, overall, its average monthly subscription sold by Xbox is about 17 USD. With the Xbox pass, players will instantly have access to over 100 video games. The entire library of Xbox is curated and games are hand-picked, which is why the service guarantees a high level of quality with all of them.
Gaming Controller Setup
The good news for all gamers interested in having Xbox Game Pass on their Fire TV is that they will not have to buy any additional gaming gear or even special controllers. Instead, the setup requires nothing more than a standard controller that has a Bluetooth compatibility feature. This means that DualSense and DualShock 4 controllers will work on Fire TV just as well as the Xbox Adaptive Controller and the Xbox Wireless Controller. Third-party controllers could also work as long as they can connect to the Fire TV media player. This is a smart decision by Amazon and Microsoft, being that gamers on any system usually despise having to constantly buy new gear that they already own. Instead, the companies understand that the value of their product comes for regular monthly subscribers, not the one-time sale of custom-made controllers and other gaming gear.
Performance Standards
Amazon and Fire TV are assuring interested users that all Xbox Game Pass Ultimate games will work flawlessly on their setup. That includes all of the local memory features like saving games, progressions, and other factors needed for prolonged playtime. The company is also determined to provide the highest quality of visual presentation and graphic rendering for the Xbox titles. Thanks to that, games like Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II which require a lot of graphic processing power in stand-alone gaming devices, should look just as good on a Fire TV stream as they do on a physical gaming console. Even the type of TV set should not make much of a difference, being that the streaming will utilize the maximum hardware capacity of its display. The only requirement that Amazon is setting out is a stable internet connection. More than bandwidth, the game streaming process requires stable connectivity without huge oscillations in the download and upload of data. If the users have that, all of the games should run smoothly during streaming.
Cross-media Gaming
Amazon is betting big on the cross-media appeal that its partnership with Microsoft provides. The Fallout franchise is a good example. The Fallout TV show began airing on Amazon Prime earlier in the year and became a big hit. Now, with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Prime users will be able to get games like Fallout 4 or Fallout 76 right on their TV sets in a matter of seconds. This immersive approach to media consumption, without the need to switch devices or even accounts, is very practical and provides a new level of customer comfort.
But, beyond the cross-media appeal, which is simply a hook for new users, the real test of the streaming platform will be the game performances that it delivers on a regular basis. Here, Fire TV and Xbox are going to come across the same problem as all game streaming platforms. Can the quality of service provide a growing user base with the same benchmark experience day in and day out? If not, a scenario similar to the canceled Google Stadia is more likely than the possibility that Fire TV will replace all Xbox and PlayStation consoles across the world.
Author: Ivica Milaric, game designer and assistant professor of game design at the Novi Sada Academy of Arts, Republic of Serbia