Xbox adds support for touch controls for Remote Play in the Xbox app for mobile devices

Microsoft has introduced touch controls to its Xbox mobile apps for iOS and Android. The feature, currently in beta, allows users to control their Xbox consoles and stream games directly to their mobile devices using the Remote Play feature without a Bluetooth controller. The touch controls mimic those on Microsoft's Xbox Cloud Gaming service, providing an on-screen overlay for easy navigation through the Xbox UI.

Just keep in mind that Xbox Remote Play is different from Xbox Cloud Gaming. While Cloud Gaming accesses the Xbox Game Pass catalog, Remote Play is a free service (no subscription required) accessible through the Xbox app on Android, iOS, and Windows, that streams your console UI to your device (phones and tablets), giving access to your catalog of owned games, whether or not they're in Game Pass. PlayStation also has a similar Remote Play feature. As a note, to use these services, users need a physical Xbox or PlayStation console, respectively.

This news comes after Apple's recent decision to allow third-party game streaming services on iOS, which could expedite or reinforce the launch of the previously discussed external Xbox Store app.