Will Project xCloud / Xbox Game Streaming come to iOS devices? If so, when?

Essentially, yes. Microsoft has long stated that it intends to bring Project xCloud to “other platforms,” and of course, iOS is among those. While Android enjoys a far larger global market share, Microsoft’s primary markets in the U.S. and UK have a large iOS user base, making it an essential target for xCloud’s growth.

Android is a more “open” platform than iOS, owing to that market share, which makes it less complicated for Microsoft to place services that effectively compete with Google on Google’s own platform. Apple is a different beast, however.

This is pure speculation, but Apple has been known to restrict services on its platforms that compete directly with their own, such as Spotify, and recently, Valve’s Steam Link app. Both apps still operate on iOS today, but there have been hurdles to overcome for both services. It’s not hard to envisage that Microsoft is working on some bespoke negotiations with Apple that may be holding up deployment.

It may also be a simple case of prioritizing the larger platform. Android enjoys a truly massive userbase at a global level, making it an obvious candidate for initial deployment.

So, WHEN will iPhone and iPad get Xbox Project xCloud fun?

At X019 in London in November 2019, some of the demo stations were actually set up with iPhone devices for users to test. This could indicate that the iOS version of the Xbox Game Streaming app may be closer than expected.

During the same event, Microsoft announced that Project xCloud would expand to several new territories in early 2020, including Western Europe, Canada, India, and Japan. It could be that Microsoft is targeting that broader expansion before launching the iOS app. We’ll just have to wait and see.

If you can’t wait until then, however, there are plenty of cheap Android tablets on the market that are totally viable for Project xCloud.