Antstream Arcade is soon to launch as the first third-party cloud gaming service on Xbox.
Already available across PC and Android devices, Antstream Arcade offers 1400 classic games from Atari, Commodore, Sega, Nintendo and original PlayStation consoles available to stream – many on Xbox for the first time.
The service is now available to pre-order on the Microsoft Store ahead of full launch on 21st July.
Antstream Arcade will be available on Xbox Series X/S consoles and Xbox One, with games optimised through a “rigorous quality control process to ensure the gameplay is as the developer intended”.
Those games include the likes of Pac-Man, Bubble Bobble, Metal Slug and more. The library is expanded weekly and includes new games for classic consoles by indie developers.
In total, the addition of the service marks Xbox’s biggest content drop in history.
Further, Antstream Arcade’s technology mods the original games to add new mini-games and challenges, like tournaments and high-score duels. Users can acquire achievements for their online profile, plus the platform supports cloud saves, online high scores and resume play.
“Despite living in an age of incredible technology, I found it wasn’t easy enough to access the games I loved growing up and I wanted to be able to easily share scores and compete against friends,” said Antstream CEO Steve Cottam.
“We believe in the preservation and accessibility of all games, the great, the impossible and the forgotten or lesser known too. I’m very proud to bring the Antstream Arcade platform to the Xbox community”.
Game preservation is particularly prevalent following the news this week that the Video Game History Foundation estimates 87 percent of classic games are now unavailable.
“Many of us grew up playing these games, so the ability to stream them on Xbox consoles and share these experiences with our friends and family is incredible,” said Sarah Bond, CVP of game creator experience and ecosystem at Microsoft. “We’re pleased that with Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub’s technology benefits and Azure cloud services we can help enable Antstream to reach more players.”
Antstream Arcade is available already on PC, Mac, Linux, Android, Android TV, Firestick, Samsung TV, and browsers (beta).
On Xbox, the service will cost £/$/€29.99 annually or £/$/€79.99 for lifetime access.
