Xbox CEO Asha Sharma told employees Microsoft is preparing to do something Grand Theft Auto VI what “no other platform holder is doing” during an employee mobilization this morning. According to sources close to Microsoft’s plans, Xbox managed to secure a deal for exclusive game streaming rights for Grand Theft Auto VI.
The deal will mean only Xbox Cloud Gaming will be able to stream Grand Theft Auto VI to players at launch, but it’s unclear how long the deal will be in effect. Rockstar Games has still not announced a PC version of Grand Theft Auto VIThis deal will therefore allow Xbox to market its Xbox Cloud Gaming service to PC gamers who would otherwise need an Xbox Series X/S or PS5 console.
The streaming rights news comes about a month after Microsoft announced major changes regarding Xbox Cloud Gaming. From November, the same month Grand Theft Auto VI versions, Microsoft limits streaming hours to just 15 hours for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, 10 hours for Premium subscribers, and just five hours for Game Pass Essential.
Microsoft is also opening up access to Xbox Cloud Gaming with a pay-as-you-go option next month, rather than just Game Pass subscriptions. The pay-as-you-go option is perfectly timed to Grand Theft Auto VIallowing those who don’t own an Xbox, or who play primarily from a phone, to stream the game by paying for a bundle of hours.
At the Xbox conference, Sharma also told employees that Project Helix, the next generation of Xbox hardware, would be a “family of devices” and that Microsoft would partner with others on some of those devices. Sharma first referred to Helix as a family of devices last month in an interview, after Microsoft and AMD last year announced a “multi-year strategic partnership” to work together on “a portfolio of devices,” including Microsoft’s next-generation Xbox console.
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