I’ve owned the Xbox Series S, which I affectionately call the baby Xbox, since the day it was released. And yet, compared to my other devices, I almost never play games on it. Why? Because until recently I didn’t have the option to stream Xbox games to my Steam Deck. Thanks to a little app called XBPlaywhich costs $7 but is worth every penny, I will finally fire up my Xbox as often as I do my PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and my PC.
Let me explain: I just love playing video games in handheld mode. Sure, I have two computer monitors and a very impressive TV, but handheld gaming has huge advantages – namely, I can play games and watch TV in the background at the same time. (Like a less unhinged version of the three-TV lifestyle.) Especially if, for example, it’s a huge RPG with lots of little side quests Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth For the PlayStation 5, I find it much easier to complete and enjoy the experience if I can play through part of it on Steam Deck.
Getting PS5 Remote Play to work on the deck was a big challenge; It requires the use of a tool called ChiakiI only understood how to use it after reading several Reddit threads and watching several instructional videos on YouTube. The end result? It’s still worth it. I use PS5 Remote Play all the time on my Steam Deck – again, especially for large RPGs.
I recently got it Metaphor: ReFantazio for the Xbox, which started out quite well for me when I played it on a big screen. However, I soon realized that this massive (but delightful) RPG would be much better if I could also participate in some gaming sessions in handheld mode. I remembered how annoying it was to get PS5 Remote Play to work on my Steam Deck, and I figured I’d have to go through a similar effort this time.
No. Not even close! There’s currently a $7 app on the Steam store called XBPlay, and guys, it just works. I can’t believe how well it works and how great it is Metaphor: ReFantazio looks on my Steam Deck. Setting up XBPlay took five minutes or less. The hardest part was that Steam didn’t list XBPlay in my games library. So after purchasing it, I had to manually search for it on my Steam deck and create a shortcut for it so I could easily find it in the future.
Ever since I installed XBPlay, I’ve been preaching it to everyone I know who owns an Xbox. At this point I’ve used it so much that I have to shout it from the rooftops (that is, post about it on Polygon dot com). If you have an Xbox and a Steam Deck, this app is a must. Don’t hesitate.
