Microsoft to Bring Xbox Live to iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch

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Tech giant Microsoft co-operation has announced its ambition in bringing Xbox live to smartphones and Nintendo switch. The company has made it clear during the announcement of project xCloud in October 2018, stating it Xbox games to be available and to power multiplayer gaming across iOS, Android, Nintendo switch, Xbox and PC devices.

Currently, the Microsoft platform features multiplayer gaming on Xbox, it enables multiplayer in most games, offering leaderboard and social tools. It also offers some companion apps for smartphones and PCs which is primarily meant for Xbox consoles only. Now a Game Developers Conference (GDC) session has outlined a range of expansion that will make the Xbox live the most expansive platform in the world. 



This will come about with emphasis on cross-play from game developers and console makers alike as Microsoft and Nintendo are pushing the idea of people be able to play games together no matter the kind of console they use. However, this feature will not be applicable for Sony PlayStation platform. 

Microsoft has acknowledged that the expansion will make the Xbox live to be much bigger which will see an expansion of 400 million gaming devices to a reach of over 2 billion devices with over 68 million active players. This will make it easier for game developers to create games that will be available in a unified platform across every device without creating different versions for each device platform. 

Much to the exciting news, Microsoft said the new Xbox live will only enable game developers to connect players between iOS, Android, and Switch in addition to Xbox and any game in the Microsoft Store on Windows PCs.

This will restrict the platform to games only purchased from the Microsoft store. However, more information to be announce when Microsoft makes its presentation at the GDC 2019 in San Francisco from March 18 to 22.