If you’ve forgotten all about the Xbox mobile store app, you’re probably not alone. The once-promised new method of buying games for the Xbox platform by former Xbox head Phil Spencer and former Xbox President Sarah Bond came and went with nary a whisper. The idea of the Xbox store app was to give players a new way to buy Xbox games from their phones, but there was always one large hurdle keeping Microsoft from releasing such an offering: Google and Apple.
Xbox has held off on launching an app of this nature because of the restrictions in place for launching a store app that wouldn’t be beholden to Google and Apple’s in-app purchase fees. Outside of a short-lived web version of the app that was in testing, Microsoft has yet to place an official app on Android or iOS. A recent report stated that the initiative to bring a mobile store to Android and iOS was likely thoroughly dead, but that report has now been updated to say otherwise.
Xbox head Asha Sharma says the idea of an Xbox mobile store app isn’t dead
It’s likely important to focus on the key words here. The “idea” of an Xbox mobile store app isn’t dead. Not “the app” isn’t dead, but the idea of one. So, Sharma and the team are still exploring the idea of this app. This is not the same thing as the app being actively worked on, although it’s not clear if that isn’t actually the case. Still, saying the idea isn’t dead feels a lot like it’s very much not a priority and it’s on the back burner.
According to Windows Central, Asha Sharma has responded in the comments on X to a post of Windows Central’s report, stating that “Three weeks ago, we filed an amicus because mobile competition still matters and we believe the future of play should be more open. While I am still learning, the idea of an Xbox mobile store is not dead.”
This is potentially good news for anyone that really wants an Xbox mobile store app. This doesn’t make it a sure thing, but it’s good to see that Microsoft hasn’t completely abandoned it.
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