Microsoft Says Internet Games Will No Longer Be Supported, Focusing On New Xbox Streaming Service
by Tyler Pence
Phil Spencer, Head of Xbox, announces original Xbox Backward Compatibility at the Xbox E3 2017 Briefing on Sunday, June 11, 2017 in Los Angeles. (Image courtesy of Xbox)
Microsoft announced that they will be ceasing support for its Internet Games, which were released all the way back in 2000. Microsoft’s Internet Games was a staple in the beginning of PC gaming and brought many iconic titles that introduced online multiplayer. Windows XP, ME and 7 currently support the system but it will be knocked out entirely by the start of the new year. Internet Games featured the iconic titles such as Backgammon, Spades, Checkers, Hearts and Reversi. Microsoft went on to thank the “great community” that existed for 19 years.
“It is with heavy hearts that we have made the difficult decision,” a statement from Windows gaming team read, according to CNET. “However, the time has come for us, along with our hardware and software partners, to invest our resources towards more recent technologies.”
Multiple reports confirm that Microsoft will now be focusing on their launch of its xCloud Xbox Streaming service. XCloud will be a service that you can be a playable console on a smartphone or a tablet. It is set to be avaliable this October, and will work over 3,500 games in the full Xbox One library. Google is doing something like this called Google Stadia, which doesn’t seem to have the same sort of projected success of the xCloud because Google’s initially limiting its service to Google Pixel phones, and on top of that, stacking a subscription on top of the retail price of every game consumers want to play.
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