xCloud, Microsoft’s game streaming service, appears to be of lower quality on Linux rather than Windows. It was a user from the famous Reddit forum who noticed and mentioned it. And the tests carried out by the media Ars Technica actually show that the quality is lower on Linux.
Microsoft’s gaming platform is doing great. xCloud gaming even crushes the competition and already had more than 10 million users last. let’s remember that Microsoft’s cloud gaming service allows you to play recent games, with very good quality and on small configurations. This service is accessible via the Xbox Game Pass offer.
But the quality of service could fluctuate depending on the operating system you are using. This is what a regular xCloud user has just noticed, who shared his discovery on the now famous Reddit forum. According to him, Microsoft’s xCloud game streaming seems to suffer from a lower level of visual quality when launched on Linux. And the tests carried out by Ars Technica actually go in this direction.
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Microsoft’s xCloud appears to be of lower quality on Linux than on Windows
The tests carried out thus effectively show distinct graphical degradation when a Linux browser is detected. The user who mentioned his discovery on Reddit was therefore correct. To compare how Microsoft’s cloud gaming service handles a Linux versus Windows machine, the tests were run over a wired internet connection, with a peak download speed of 120 Mb/s and a latency of about 9 ms.
To see the difference in broadcast quality, just take a look at the GIF below, for example. Under Linux, the edges are less sharp, the colors appear washed out and the whole is generally less clear. Other examples, perhaps even more revealing, are available on the Ars Technica website.
In the meantime, speculation is rife to try to explain this drop in visual quality of xCloud on Linux. For some, this would be due to the fact that Microsoft is trying to reserve its best xCloud performance for Windows machines, with the aim of attracting more users to its own operating system. For others, it might just be a bug. Anyway, the drop in quality seems to disappear if the “Clarity Boost” feature (exclusive to Edge) is activated. The latter provides the optimal look and feel when playing Xbox games from the cloud.
Source: Ars Technica