What it’s good to know
- Xbox is including help for buying video games by way of the Android cell app.
- Customers should purchase an Xbox recreation from their Android telephone in two faucets and set it to routinely set up on their console remotely.
- The platform can also be eradicating Distant Play help from the app, however it’ll stay accessible on the cell internet consumer.
Whereas different on-line gaming storefronts allowed Android customers to purchase video games from their smartphones, like Steam, this characteristic was notably absent from the Xbox app. Now, that is lastly altering. Within the Xbox April Replace, the platform added help for purchasing video games, buying add-ons, subscribing to Recreation Cross, and redeem Perks straight from an iOS Android machine.
The expanded performance is ready to turn out to be accessible for beta testers on each Android and iOS first, with all Google Play Retailer customers and App Retailer customers getting the characteristic at a later date. For customers which have cost data saved with Xbox, it’s going to solely take two clicks on their Android telephone to purchase a brand new recreation. This streamlines the looking and buying course of, which might be troublesome on an Xbox as a consequence of controller limitations.
If this sounds acquainted, it ought to: Xbox introduced plans to help this characteristic means again in October 2024. It resulted from a U.S. court docket choice that barred Google from mandating builders use Google Play Billing to course of in-app purchases. However as a consequence of court docket delays, Microsoft needed to put its plans on pause till issues might be sorted out.
Shopping for Xbox video games from the Android cell app is now attainable because of the requirement for builders to make use of Google Play Billing being dropped. With Google Play Billing, Xbox would’ve needed to give up a reduce to Google for processing funds by the Play Retailer.
On the time, Xbox President Sarah Bond acknowledged that these adjustments would make it attainable for the corporate to supply Xbox purchases throughout the Android app. “The court docket’s ruling to open up Google’s cell retailer within the US will permit extra selection and suppleness,” mentioned Bond in an October 2024 publish.
Except for buying video games and add-ons within the Xbox app, customers may remotely set up these video games on their Xbox console. So, customers should purchase an app on their Android telephone and have it put in and able to go by the point they return dwelling.
Individually, Xbox is eradicating Distant Play help from the Android app, however it’s going to nonetheless stay accessible on cell by the xbox.com/remoteplay web site.
