It's unlikely you'll get bored or tired of the Xbox game catalog these days. Likewise, there's little excuse for not having other options due to financial reasons, because with Xbox Game Pass you can access hundreds of titles for a very affordable monthly fee. Even so, if you happen to want to expand your entertainment options, we'll tell you how to play Steam PC games on your Xbox.
The Xbox games catalog
For a while, some users decided to bet on PlayStation instead of Xbox for two reasons. The first was because all his friends had said console and if they wanted to play together, there was no other option. The second argued that the catalog of titles available for the Microsoft platform was inferior.
Well, it is true that at first it was not so attractive and the fact of the exclusives played a lot in favor of Sony. With the passage of time all this has changed and both consoles are very even today. What's more, there are still exclusives, but Microsoft's latest moves buying studios as important as Bethesda, Activision or Blizzard means that if at any time there will be a company with important exclusives, it will be Redmond's.
However, the most important thing is that the entire Xbox game catalog has grown considerably, and there are many excellent games to choose from. From The Witcher series to Assassin's Creed , FIFA , Fallout , Halo , Gears of War , and more. But that's not all.
One of Microsoft's biggest moves in recent months has been to further enhance its Xbox Game Pass subscription service . Thanks to it, Xbox users can access a catalog of over one hundred titles, and that catalog continues to grow.
With Xbox Game Pass you pay a fixed monthly fee and you can download the games you want, as long as your console has disk space, and enjoy them as much as you want. And this is important and very advantageous, because although you will never own the games, with their respective physical copy, you will be able to play them without fear of not liking them. Because if that happens, you uninstall already for another. So it doesn't hurt as much as spending 60 euros on a title that ends up disappointing.
For all these reasons, the Xbox catalog has become so powerful . And let's not forget the option to enjoy these games remotely thanks to the cloud-based service, formerly known as xCloud. Through this service, and with an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, you can access a console-quality, AAA gaming experience from your mobile phone, tablet, or other less powerful devices with a compatible browser.
Xbox and the power of gaming in the cloud
With Xbox Cloud Gaming, many casual gamers are able to enjoy a console gaming experience from less powerful mobile devices or computers that, due to their technical specifications, are not capable of running such titles.
Well, all that power and options that Microsoft's streaming game service opens up are also being exploited by other companies such as Google with Stadia or Nvidia with GeForce Now. And it is precisely the latter that have caused Microsoft consoles, the Xbox, to become an even more valuable and attractive piece of hardware.
NVIDIA has unlocked the use of Microsoft Edge as a gateway to GeForce Now, and as you can imagine, this brings the entire catalog of titles available on that service to Xbox. In other words, you'll be able to play countless games available on Steam from your console.
So before you start hyperventilating because you get dizzy from having so many gaming options, let's see how it's done and what you'll need to enjoy PC games that don't have a console version.
GeForce Now, what is that?
To enjoy PC games available on Steam, the first thing to know is that you'll be doing so through GeForce Now, a game streaming service developed by Nvidia. This service connects you remotely to supercomputers with top-of-the-line gaming hardware and cutting-edge RTX graphics cards, some of which aren't even available in stores. These PCs will stream the game to you after you log in with your Steam username and password.
However, before subscribing to this service, you should check how many of your purchased games are available on GeForce Now, because you won't be able to access those you haven't previously bought from the store. So be careful not to think you can remotely play Red Dead Redemption 2 if it's not in your library.
The second thing you should remember is that to access GeForce Now you will have to use the browser available on your Xbox, that is, Microsoft Edge.
How to Play Steam PC Games on Your Xbox
Access to GeForce Now can be done through three different subscription options, one free and two paid. Keep in mind that what you do when you connect to the service is to play from an Nvidia PC but that it takes all your data from the Steam account, such as achievements, saved games in the cloud, etc. So depending on how long your game sessions are, you should choose the type of subscription you are going to pay for.
- Free subscription: makes use of the basic platform, access priority is standard and the maximum duration of each game session is 1 hour.
- Priority Subscription: It costs 9,99 euros per month, or 49,99 euros every six months, and makes use of an advanced platform with support for RTX (Ray Tracing), priority access, a 6-hour session, and resolution of up to 1080p at 60fps.
- RTX3080 Subscription: it is the most advanced of all, it costs 99,99 euros every six months (or 19,99 monthly) and the games run on computers with a GeForce RTX 3080 with Ray Tracing graphics, it can be played for 8 hours, the quality of streaming Video on PC and Mac is up to 1440p at 120fps and if you have an Nvidia Shield TV you can play at 4K HDR resolutions.
Once you've chosen the option that interests you most, you can start the free trial period to try the experience. Keep in mind that the GeForce Now game catalog is based exclusively on those available in Valve's store. It's possible that your library contains many games that aren't supported by this Nvidia service, so you'll have to wait until they're added. New compatible titles are announced regularly, but remember that Gabe Newell's store has been operating for almost 20 years, so the catalog of games is endless, and we don't always share the same tastes as the millions of users who, collectively, define the most popular releases... or the best-selling ones.
These games are purchased individually, it's not like Xbox Game Pass, but between Steam sales and other promotions it is likely that more than one already has a rather curious library of games in the Valve store.
So, once you access the GeForce Now website using Microsoft Edge on your Xbox, the next step is to connect your Steam library . From that moment on, you can enjoy PC games on your Microsoft console, although it's important to remember that you'll likely miss some releases . This is because Nvidia gradually adds new titles that it supports on its platform. So keep this in mind before signing up (and paying) for the service, lest you log in and find that amazing game you're so interested in isn't available yet.
Yes, you can play all those PC strategy games and some exclusive ones that appear for Windows and not Xbox. In addition, with the support that the browser offers for keyboard and mouse, you can also forget about using the gamepad and resort to more traditional control methods for many.
How to Connect a Keyboard and Mouse to the Xbox
Using a keyboard and mouse with your Xbox is more a matter of personal preference than necessity, but now that you can access many PC games on your Xbox with GeForce Now, you might be interested. To connect a keyboard and mouse, follow these steps.
How to connect a mouse to the xbox
To use a mouse with your Xbox, simply connect a wired or wireless mouse with a USB adapter. From the settings you will be able to change some settings just by doing this:
- Turn on your Xbox console and pick up the controller.
- Press the button on the controller to open the guide.
- Now go to Profile and system option and there scroll to Settings > Devices and connections.
- Once inside that section, select Mouse and you'll be able to configure the experience a bit more to your liking by varying the scroll speed or primary and secondary click settings.
How to connect a keyboard to the Xbox
To connect a keyboard to the Xbox the process is as follows:
- Turn on your Xbox console.
- Plug in the keyboard.
- On the remote, press the button to open the guide.
- Go to Profile and System > Settings > Devices and connections.
- Review the options and adjust what you think is necessary.
All set! You're now ready to take advantage of accessing Steam PC games on your Xbox with GeForce Now, and to play more comfortably thanks to keyboard and mouse support . Plus, there's virtually no latency, so you can control what's happening on screen as if it were running natively on the device you're connected from.
Recommendations for playing Steam titles on Xbox
As you may have seen, playing games from your Steam library on your Xbox console is possible. However, the experience can vary based on many factors.
The first recommendation you should follow is to connect your Xbox Series X/S to your router using an Ethernet cable . Cloud gaming is quite sensitive. Any interference will affect your gameplay. Furthermore, a wired connection is much more reliable than Wi-Fi and significantly reduces input lag , which is the Achilles' heel of all cloud gaming. Remember that, despite the advancements in this technology, cloud computing is still in its early stages.
The same applies to peripherals. Using a wired mouse and keyboard isn't ergonomically ideal, but it will minimize input lag. If you want to use wireless peripherals, make sure you use high-quality equipment with low latency if you want a smooth experience or if you're serious about gaming.
Xbox running like a PC
Although the method to play Steam games on the Xbox is based on the use of the cloud and the NVIDIA GeForce Now service, you cannot deny that this is the closest thing to turning your console into a PC. And it is that all the library that you have on Steam will be accessible from the service, being able to continue games in the event that you want to do it from the sofa with your Xbox Series. It may not be the most perfect method, but for users who have a powerful desktop computer, and want some mobility, they can always lie on the couch and continue the game from their Xbox.
It's important to keep in mind that these cloud-based services can't replace the experience of playing locally, but they are currently the most versatile solution for taking advantage of your console and continuing to enjoy the Steam catalog. We must also consider that the PC and Xbox catalogs are becoming increasingly similar, especially with the launch of Xbox Game Pass and the arrival of games like Microsoft Flight Simulator and Age of Empires . Therefore, the gap between PC and console is becoming increasingly blurred in terms of user experience. And of course, this also leads to the interesting situation of being able to play PlayStation exclusives on Xbox. With the arrival of titles like God of War and Uncharted on Steam, this method would allow you to play them on your Xbox Series X. Isn't that fantastic?