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However, it’s not all peachy in the world of Pals, at least for Xbox.
Let’s re-examine where we are today, and what Microsoft still need to fix moving forward.
Irritating pop ups and security emails are “normal” on games installed from the PC Game Pass app. It seriously is a “no shit” type of pointless pop here, that doesn’t exist on Xbox consoles or Steam.Wait, you mean the Xbox game on PC will access my Xbox info on the account I’m using? I am SHOCKED!
PC gaming with caveats.
A lot of caveats.
It would be a lie to say the app hasn’t improved.
Irritating pop ups and security emails are “normal” on games installed from the PC Game Pass app. It seriously is a “no shit” type of pointless pop here, that doesn’t exist on Xbox consoles or Steam.Wait, you mean the Xbox game on PC will access my Xbox info on the account I’m using? I am SHOCKED!
At the absolute basic level, the app works fine.
you might install games, generally launch them, without issues.
Beyond these mild irritants, there are far worse issues with the Xbox experience on PC too.
The reviews say the same thing.
Either the layers of extra Windows policy bullshit on top causes issues.
There are tons of other games that are missing features on PC Game Pass.
Death Stranding doesn’t have its latest DLC on the Microsoft Store, vs. the Steam version.
Various games are missing Xbox achievements.
And what’s worse, this often even extends to first-party titles.
There are various other issues too, of course.
Installing mods has been a common complaint, with compatibility being iffy and inconsistent.
It’s not all Microsoft’s fault, but it is their responsibility to solve.
That’s where the users were.
It’s a chicken and egg scenario.
Therein lies the vicious cycle.
Things have improved without a doubt.
The app is more performant generally than it was previously.
File access did eventually arrive to at least approach mod support.
Some extraneous features like the community tab were removed, correctly so, to improve performance.
Increasingly, though, I wonder if a rethink might be in order.
Microsoft acquired Activision-Blizzard a while ago, and with it, the Battle.net app.
Irritating pop ups and security emails are “normal” on games installed from the PC Game Pass app. It seriously is a “no shit” type of pointless pop here, that doesn’t exist on Xbox consoles or Steam.Wait, you mean the Xbox game on PC will access my Xbox info on the account I’m using? I am SHOCKED!
Battle.net is, in my view, the best video game launch this side of Steam.
And while it is a bit showy, it’s at least consistently functional and performant.
There are of course other considerations to be made.
Microsoft now owns Battle.net with its big Activision-Blizzard acquisition … perhaps they should rethink where they put their focus for PC Game Pass?
