Microsoft believes that Xbox can be the future of gaming. As such, it has started focusing more on its gaming console, Xbox One, particularly via Xbox Play Anywhere. Supported by Microsoft Studios, Xbox Play Anywhere is a service that allows users to purchase games digitally and play them on either Windows 11/10 or Xbox One at no additional cost. What makes the service so special? Players can pick up where they last stopped on their Xbox One or PC and still have their game saves, add-ons, and achievements all in one place.
What changes make this development possible? Windows has enabled this game-sharing feature. So, naturally, one can conclude that Xbox Play Anywhere is only supported on Windows PCs and Xbox One consoles running the Anniversary Update.
As the appearance of Xbox Play Anywhere titles suggests, the games just work like any other game. Once installed, an Xbox Play Anywhere title can be played on your Windows PC or Xbox One. Please note that at any given time, you may only sign into the game on one Xbox One console or one Windows PC. You cannot sign into the same game on both platforms simultaneously.
You can even play the game on one platform and continue later sessions on the other. All your game progress and achievements will be automatically saved on Xbox Live.
How Xbox Play Anywhere works
As mentioned, you can digitally purchase a game by visiting the Windows Store, Xbox Store, Microsoft.com, or even pre-ordering the desired game.
When done, just log into your Xbox Live/Microsoft account, and your Xbox Play Anywhere games should be available for download.
If you buy Xbox Play Anywhere on Windows 10 and want to download the game on Xbox One, simply sign into Xbox One and navigate to the ‘My Games and Apps’ section.
Next, select ‘Ready to Install’ option.
How can one confirm if a game is ‘Xbox Play Anywhere’ game
Participating games will be marked on www.xbox.com, in the Xbox Store, and in the Windows Store with the Xbox Play Anywhere icon. Here are some of the games that are participating in Xbox Play Anywhere.
- ReCore
- Gears of War 4
- Forza Horizon 3
- Sea of Thieves
- Halo Wars 2
- Scalebound
- Killer Instinct Season 3
- State of Decay 2
- Ark: Survival Evolved*
- Cuphead*
- We Happy Few*
- Crackdown 3
It is particularly important to mention here that irrespective of the device on which you play Xbox Game Anywhere, only single shared set of Gamerscore and Achievements will be earned and awarded.
Can you play Xbox Play Anywhere games on PC?
To play Xbox Play Anywhere games on PC, you do not need to do anything special. You can log in to your account on your computer, and compatible games will be available automatically. You can find games in the Ready to install section. Following that, you can download and install any of the available games without any problem and start playing on your computer.
Can I play Xbox games on my PC with Windows 11/10?
Yes, you can play Xbox games on your PC, running Windows 11 or Windows 10. However, you must have the Xbox Console Companion app installed and enabled on your computer. Following that, you can play almost any compatible Xbox game on your Windows 11/10 computer without any problem.
