Xbox has started putting an updated PC app in front of testers, and the pitch is simple: less waiting. In an Xbox Wire post on November 5, Jason Beaumont, Xbox's VP of Experiences, said Xbox Insiders can now try a version of the app that launches up to 60% faster. It's the headline item in a wider tidy-up that also touches cloud gaming on the web, TVs and VR headsets.
The app is the part most PC players will care about, because it's where the Microsoft Store, your library and Game Pass all live. For now, though, it's for Insiders only. Pure Xbox reports it was told the app should reach everyone soon, assuming the Insider test goes well. No date has been given.
What changes in the PC app
Xbox Wire lists these changes:
- Speed: the app launches up to 60% faster, Home, Store and Game Pass pages load up to 50% faster, and in-app windows open up to 65% faster.
- Library: simpler navigation, updated filters and new ways to organise your games.
- Friends: friends and social features move into the main navigation, so you can see what people are playing, start a chat or join a party from there.
- Search: one search box now covers games, including installed titles and add-ons, as well as people.
- Look: refreshed game cards, Home, Settings and animations.
Those speed figures come with a footnote. Xbox says the results are based on its own testing and may vary by device, internet connection, system configuration and usage, so treat them as a best case until players have run the build on their own machines.
Pure Xbox, which says it saw the app in a preview earlier in the week, adds that the app is coming to Windows handhelds with better controller support. It also reports that Xbox told it the new version makes future features easier to add. Windows Central's Jez Corden, who has been using earlier builds, describes the app as a web app that is still far faster than previous versions. In his view, rubber banding on devices like the Xbox Ally X has been virtually eliminated, though that's a hands-on impression rather than a measurement.
How to join the test
Windows Central says you'll need to enrol your PC through the Xbox Insider Hub app from the Microsoft Store. Open Previews from the left panel, find PC gaming, and select Join. The status shows Pending at first, and Windows Central suggests checking back 10 to 15 minutes later to see if it reads Manage. Once it does, reboot and check the Xbox app and Microsoft Store for an update.
Cloud gaming gets the same treatment
The web side is further along. Xbox says Insiders previewed a refreshed cloud gaming site earlier this year, and it will reach more players automatically over the next few weeks. Anyone who wants it sooner can go to play.xbox.com.
According to Xbox Wire, the refreshed site adds a Library tab that gathers the cloud games you can play, whether you own them or get them through Game Pass, with sorting and filters for recently played, genre and input options. A desktop mode uses more of the screen on PCs and larger displays. You also get dark and light modes, plus five new high-contrast options.
Xbox says it's also beginning to bring the refreshed look and navigation to cloud gaming apps on supported TVs and VR headsets. It hasn't listed specific devices or dates in the post.
"There's more to do, and your feedback will continue to shape what comes next," Beaumont wrote.
Mason's take: Speed fixes rarely make headlines, but the Xbox PC app has been competing with Steam, and first impressions there happen in seconds. Windows Central's list of gaps with Steam is the useful reality check: community tools, in-app mod delivery and catalogue size. I don't think a faster app closes any of those. Making it quicker gets Xbox a fairer hearing. The bigger test comes after it loads.
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