Microsoft's game streaming service is now in open beta

Microsoft's game streaming service, xCloud, is finally available for all. Does this mean that the days of owning consoles are limited? Probably not.

When Netflix began offering streaming services in 2007, it changed the game.

No longer did movie fans need to purchase physical discs or digital copies, but simply just had to pay a monthly subscription fee for a massive catalogue of on-demand films.
Since Netflix's domination, many other media companies have since followed suit with their own platforms, now including Microsoft.

Instead of streaming movies to your TV or phone, Microsoft's newest platform will let you stream video games.

For a flat monthly fee, gamers can fully play a selection of more than 100 PC and Xbox games without the need for the actual hardware itself.
The service has recently entered into open beta, which means anyone can give it a try but may encounter some bugs.

Similarly to the demise of Blu-Ray players thanks to Netflix, streaming video games may cut into future gaming system sales (i.e. consoles and PCs).

Since the game is rendered directly to your device from Microsoft's data centres, the middleman is effectively being cut out.
In many regions around the world, access to computer hardware is extremely limited, resulting in a reliance on mobile phones for gaming pleasure.
This service, once more refined, will potentially allow anyone anywhere to play high-quality titles that normally require powerful hardware.

Microsoft isn't the first gaming company to develop their own game streaming service.

Despite not being first, many gamers are excited to join xCloud through the sheer value you receive from being a subscriber.

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