xbox Launches Cloud Gaming in India for game โคPass Subscribers
Microsoft has โlaunched โXbox cloudโ Gaming โin India, makingโค its extensive โคlibrary of games accessible to Xbox Game โคPass subscribers without requiring dedicated gaming hardware. This marks aโข meaningful stepโข in bringing AAAโ gaming to a wider audience in theโ country, though challenges related to network infrastructure remain.
The launch positions Xbox as a major player in โIndia’s emerging cloud gaming market,competing with existing services like JioGamesCloud (offeredโ by Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd in partnership with Krafton,the maker of Battlegrounds โขMobile India) and OnePlay.Though, xbox boasts a considerable advantage with its catalog of games developed by its gaming studio subsidiariesโ – a breadth of content other firms may findโข tough to match.
Cloud gamingโค offers a โperhaps โmore affordable entry point into high-end gaming, bypassing theโ significant cost of purchasing a powerful gaming PC or console. โHowever, the Indian gaming landscape is heavily dominated by mobile โgaming, presenting a challenge to the growth of console andโฃ PC-based gaming.
Acknowledging the unique demands of the Indian market,โค Arjun Varma,โ who โขheads Xbox’s strategic expansion โin India, stated, “We โขhave to cater to the marketโฆ What gamers in Indiaโ want, what gives them valueโฆ We want to offer them choice andโ flexibility.They want to playโค across a range of devices, it’s a mobile โฃfirst market.” He also noted โฃthat the availability of Xbox hardware thru authorized retailers has been subject to “market forces” for several weeks.
A key factor for successful cloudโฃ gaming is low latency – ideally under 30 โคmilliseconds -โ to ensure a smooth experiance.While mobile networks (including โ5Gโค from Bharti Airtel Ltd., Vodafone Ideaโฃ Ltd., and โReliance Jio Infocomm Ltd) often struggle to consistently achieve this due to network โฃarchitecture, home fiberโ broadband โand WiFi networks are better equipped toโ handle the demands. โInitial testing at Xbox’sโ launch event in Noida showed โa latency of 140ms, while โฃone โฃGame Pass subscriber โin Mumbai reported latency as low as 22 โขmilliseconds.
Currently, Xbox โฃhas not partnered with a telecom or internet service provider to optimize โlatency. Mr.โ Varma indicated a “phased approach” to the India launch, adding, “Our teams woudl love to work and understand โhow we can collaborate with partners inโข India.” Leaked documents from a 2020โค court case revealed previous discussions โคbetween Xbox and Jio regarding cloud gaming,though a partnership did โnot ultimately materialize.
The launch โขtook place on November 12, 2025.