Rumours of a ‘Chromcast for Xbox Game Pass’ device have been floating around for a good few years, a small piece of technology that will plug in to a television and allow you to play games via Xbox Cloud Streaming. It was confirmed by Microsoft in 2021 but since then we have heard very little.
Windows Central have now discovered that the device, codenamed Keystone, has hit a few problems and is now undergoing a rethink.
“Our vision for Xbox Cloud Gaming is unwavering, our goal is to enable people to play the games they want, on the devices they want, anywhere they want. As announced last year, we’ve been working on a game-streaming device, codename Keystone, that could be connected to any TV or monitor without the need for a console,” a Microsoft spokesperson told Windows Central.
“As part of any technical journey, we are constantly evaluating our efforts, reviewing our learnings, and ensuring we are bringing value to our customers. We have made the decision to pivot away from the current iteration of the Keystone device. We will take our learnings and refocus our efforts on a new approach that will allow us to deliver Xbox Cloud Gaming to more players around the world in the future.”
Microsoft revealed they were working on the device around the same time they announced they were talking to TV manufacturers with a view to embed the Xbox Cloud Streaming tech in to televisions.
“Xbox is working with global TV manufacturers to embed the Xbox experience directly into internet-connected televisions with no extra hardware required except a controller,” stated a new post on Xbox.com.
That idea also seems to have stalled as no televisions currently ship with the technology installed. If Microsoft could get either of these ideas out it would massively increase their user base but they do seem to be having problems.
Source: Windows Central
