Microsoft is bringing its Xbox TV app to Samsung's 2022 smart TVs on June 30, letting Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers play 100+ Xbox games without a console
software we download on devices through digital stores — has outlived its usefulness? https://www.nytimes.com/... https://twitter.com/... Brandon Ross / @brandolightshed : Samsung / Xbox lowering the barrier to entry for “console” gaming https://www.theverge.com/... @wario64 : -Xbox App coming to Samsung Smart TVs on June 30th -Xbox Cloud Gaming expands to Argentina and New Zealand -features coming to Game Pass Ultimate members (play games they own in Cloud & new curated demos of upcoming games) -more features for PC gaming https://news.xbox.com/... https://twitter.com/... @nibellion : Microsoft is announcing Project Moorcroft which allows Game Pass members to play “new, curated demos” of upcoming games Rolling out next year https://news.xbox.com/... https://twitter.com/... @nibellion : According to Microsoft's Sarah Bond, Project Moorcraft sounds like a E3 showfloor demo experience at home Also: developers get financial compensation and access to statistics & data of their demo https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/... @nibellion : According to Samsung's press release their Smart Monitor series will get access to the Xbox App as well (since it'll be part of their Gaming Hub) https://news.samsung.com/... https://twitter.com/... Tom Warren / @tomwarren : what does the new Xbox TV app feel like? “almost like the real thing” says @camfaulkner who got to try out the Xbox TV app early. This is a big milestone for Xbox Cloud Gaming. Check out our hands-on here: https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/... Russell Brandom / @russellbrandom : Disappointed to learn that something called “Project Moorcroft” is neither spooky nor English https://www.theverge.com/...
The VergeTom Warren
Context & Ripple Effects
Microsoft had already outlined a plan to pair a dedicated streaming device with smart-TV distribution; the Samsung rollout turns that earlier TV-based Game Pass strategy into a consumer launch. A related hands-on report found that the app works with Xbox and PS5 controllers, while making connection quality a practical requirement.
The move makes Samsung’s Gaming Hub a distribution point for Game Pass rather than merely a TV feature. Microsoft later extended the same app-led approach to Amazon Fire TV Sticks, indicating that the Samsung launch was an initial endpoint rather than a one-off partnership.
First-order effects
Game Pass Ultimate subscribers with Samsung’s 2022 smart TVs can access more than 100 Xbox games without buying an Xbox console, provided their connection supports cloud play.
Samsung gains a gaming-service feature for its supported TVs, while Microsoft gains a new on-screen storefront and subscription entry point.
Second-order effects
Xbox’s hardware business must compete more directly with Microsoft’s subscription offering for casual players, because the TV app lowers the upfront device requirement.
TV-platform partners become more valuable to Microsoft’s cloud-gaming reach; Samsung can use Game Pass access to differentiate its Gaming Hub from rival smart-TV interfaces.
Third-order effects
If Microsoft continues putting Xbox Cloud Gaming on third-party screens, Xbox distribution shifts toward a console-to-service model in which subscriptions and platform access matter alongside dedicated hardware.
Cloud gaming’s addressable audience becomes tied not only to Xbox ownership but also to smart-TV and streaming-device compatibility, giving device platforms greater influence over service discovery.
The trend: Xbox is extending Game Pass from a console-centered product into a cloud service distributed through the screens consumers already own.
Stream Xbox games directly on your TV, no console required Enjoy over 100 cloud games with the Xbox app on your Samsung 2022 Smart TV: https://news.xbox.com/... https://twitter.com/...
This is one of the smaller but ultimately significant announcements from Xbox today. The ability to play games you own in the cloud as long as you subscribe to Game Pass. One step closer to unifying digital SKU + Cloud SKU for all games https://twitter.com/...
i streamed two games through Xbox Game Pass on a Samsung TV, and it was like having a Series X next to the TV. admittedly the connection was fast and reliable. viability might come down to network speed and how much gamers are willing to forgive hiccups https://www.cnbc.com/...
A couple of things about today's Xbox news: 1) Adding early demos to Game Pass is cool. Seems an expansion of one of my favorite things Xbox already does. They've been releasing waves of indie demos during special showcase weeks for at least a year. https://www.axios.com/...
I've been testing out the Xbox app on a Samsung Smart TV - it truly feels like you're playing on console... without a console. More details here: https://news.xbox.com/...
Maybe the whole paradigm of apps — software we download on devices through digital stores — has outlived its usefulness? https://www.nytimes.com/... https://twitter.com/...
-Xbox App coming to Samsung Smart TVs on June 30th -Xbox Cloud Gaming expands to Argentina and New Zealand -features coming to Game Pass Ultimate members (play games they own in Cloud & new curated demos of upcoming games) -more features for PC gaming https://news.xbox.com/... ht…
Microsoft is announcing Project Moorcroft which allows Game Pass members to play “new, curated demos” of upcoming games Rolling out next year https://news.xbox.com/... https://twitter.com/...
According to Microsoft's Sarah Bond, Project Moorcraft sounds like a E3 showfloor demo experience at home Also: developers get financial compensation and access to statistics & data of their demo https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/...
According to Samsung's press release their Smart Monitor series will get access to the Xbox App as well (since it'll be part of their Gaming Hub) https://news.samsung.com/... https://twitter.com/...
what does the new Xbox TV app feel like? “almost like the real thing” says @camfaulkner who got to try out the Xbox TV app early. This is a big milestone for Xbox Cloud Gaming. Check out our hands-on here: https://www.theverge.com/... https://twitter.com/...