Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

No Xbox? No problem. Game Pass is coming to Samsung smart TVs this summer

Giovanni Colantonio
By
Summer Gaming Marathon Feature Image
This story is part of the Digital Trends Summer Gaming Marathon series

Xbox Game Pass is coming to Samsung smart TVs. The service will get its own app on all upcoming Samsung TVs, allowing owners to stream Game Pass’ cloud library without a console. Digital Trends went hands-on with the app at a press event this week.

Back at CES 2022, Samsung announced that it would break into video games with its Samsung Gaming Hub. The feature, which is set to launch with Samsung TVs this summer, includes cloud services like Google Stadia and GeForce Now. In partnering with Microsoft, Xbox Game Pass will join the hub at launch as well. Players will just need a Game Pass Ultimate subscription to access it.

A tv shows the new Xbox Game Pass that comes to Samsung Gaming Hub soon.
Samsung / Microsoft

Game Pass won’t only be available through the hub, however. All Samsung TVs will have a dedicated Xbox Game Pass app moving forward. Any game that’s available as part of the service’s cloud offering will be playable on Samsung TVs as a result. That includes Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5, and even Fortnite, which Xbox offers for free even without a Game Pass membership.

Recommended Videos

The Xbox TV app has many of the same functions as an Xbox Series X. Players can create voice chats with Xbox Live or view achievements through the usual Xbox interface. All Xbox controllers can be hooked up to Samsung TVs to play games and control the app. Microsoft notes that even PlayStation controllers are compatible with the app, meaning that players could use a DualSense to play Halo Infinite if they wanted.

Related

The app supports cloud saves as well, which means that Xbox owners can carry save data from console or PC over to their TV seamlessly.

I tested the Xbox app at a press event and was impressed by what I saw. I got a clear, consistent image quality while playing Gears 5, Forza Horizon 5, and Ori and the Will of the Wisps with no latency issues. I did catch one or two split-second hiccups (the screen paused for a fraction of a second in Forza, for instance), but otherwise experienced no input lag. Note that while the event was in Manhattan, where the internet is faster than most parts of the country, the app was running on hotel Wi-Fi — not exactly the most high-powered or reliable setup.

The partnership is a monumental shift for Microsoft, cloud gaming, and the video game industry as a whole. While Game Pass subscribers can currently stream games to their mobile devices, it’ll be the first time Game Pass will be native to a TV via an app like Netflix. Anyone with a new Samsung TV will be able to play console games like Starfield via the cloud without needing to buy a high-powered PC or a $500 console. That easy accessibility could open the doors for far more people to start gaming — so long as they have a reliable internet connection, which is the current asterisk on cloud tech.

The Xbox app will launch on all new Samsung smart TVs worldwide later this summer.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Giovanni Colantonio
Giovanni Colantonio
Section Editor, Gaming
Giovanni is a writer and video producer focusing on happenings in the video game industry. He has contributed stories to…
Is Starfield on Xbox One?
Key art for Starfield

Starfield is one of the biggest games of the year and space exploration has never looked so good (especially on a new PC with the correct settings tweaked). Released natively for PC and Xbox Series X, a lot of gamers are going to be left out of Bethesda's latest RPG — it'll never be released on PlayStation 5 or Nintendo Switch. But there's good news if you're still playing on a last-gen Xbox One. While Starfield isn't being released on the older console directly, there's still a way to play on Xbox One.

There are also a few other ways to play Startfield without an Xbox at all.
How to play Satrfield on Xbox One

Read more
You don’t need an Xbox Series X to play Starfield. Here’s how
Key art for Starfield

Starfield is the highest-profile Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S game since Halo Infinite, but the game isn't locked to those two consoles. Thanks to cloud gaming and Microsoft's more open-ended mentality of making its games available on a wide variety of platforms, you don't have to own one of Microsoft's current-gen systems or have the Xbox app installed on your PC.
No, it's not on PS5 or Nintendo Switch, but if you want to play Starfield while it's at the center of the video game industry zeitgeist, here are some places where it's playable other than the Xbox Series X, Xbox Series X, and Xbox PC app.
Steam

The most obvious choice if you want to play Starfield elsewhere is to pick it up on Steam. While Microsoft does have a proprietary PC launcher of its own, Microsoft now consistently releases its own games through Valve's launcher. Bethesda joined Xbox Game Studios in 2021 and has a long history of making its games available on Steam as well, so it's not too surprising that Starfield is available on the platform.
Starfield already proving quite popular on the platform too, having peaked at 266,000 concurrent players, according to SteamDB at the time I'm writing this. If you're looking for a way to play Starfield natively on the hardware you own without using a Microsoft platform or service, this is your best option. It'll run on Steam Deck too, although that's not the only way to experience Starfield on the go.
Xbox Game Pass app on Android

Read more
Every summer 2023 gaming showcase: full schedule of live streams
Detective Pikachu and a Slowpoke wearing a cowboy hat.

Summer is one of the most exciting times to be a gamer, as it's when most video game developers and publishers tease what's coming next. For years, this was all centered around E3, but since that show went away during the COVID-19 pandemic, publishers have switched things up and held a variety of reveal-focused live-stream events throughout the entire season. This year has been no different, especially with E3 2023 is canceled.

On May 24, Sony kicked things off with a PlayStation Showcase that revealed games like a Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater remake and that Bungie is reviving the Marathon series. In June, though, the number of showcases ramped up. Now, things are winding down with new Tokyo Game Show-related events, as well as a second Nintendo Direct. It can be a lot to keep track of, but we're here to help. This is every important, announcement-filled video game live stream that has taken place throughout summer 2023.
PlayStation Showcase: May 24

Read more