Xbox held its Gamescom 2021 live stream last night, and while it lacked the pomp and circumstance we’ve come to expect from such presentations in the past, given it’s virtual, it did not disappoint in terms of announcements, especially for the Xbox online ecosystem. To that end, the company confirmed that its game streaming service, Xbox Cloud or xCloud, will be porting to consoles during the upcoming holiday season.

All three of Xbox’s latest console offerings will support the feature, Microsoft confirms, with it being available on the Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One systems.

“We’re bringing cloud gaming to Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One this holiday, enabling Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members to play 100+ games right from the cloud and discover new games with the click of a button. It’s a way for console gamers to play some of their favorite games as quickly as possible, jump into games with friends more easily, and try out Xbox Game Pass titles before installing them,” Jake Rosenberg, senior program manager at Xbox, explained in a blog post.

He added that those with Ultimate would have the ability to:

• “Discover and play over 100 high-quality games in the Xbox Game Pass library without having to use valuable storage space or wait for installs.
• Quickly jump into the fun with your friends in multiplayer games, like Sea of Thieves, as soon as you get the invite so you can set sail without waiting for an install.
• Play Gen 9-only Xbox games like Microsoft Flight Simulator and The Medium on your Xbox One via the cloud – coming in the future.”

Other features that will be rolling out on the console version of xCloud include support for up to 1080p at 60fps. No word on 4K at the moment, but perhaps it is in the offing as we get closer to the holiday season rollout.

Unfortunately there is no precise date during the end-of-year holidays for when xCloud will be available on the aforementioned consoles, but those with an Xbox Insider membership, will gain early access within the next couple of months. It is also unclear if region specificity will impact access for now, but hopefully more details will follow.

While streaming games, akin to Stadia, is yet to really take off, the xCloud offering is certainly tempting and adds another string to Game Pass’ already strong bow.