Play the game while it downloads with Xbox One
Another new feature of Microsoft’s forthcoming Xbox One console has been revealed: the ability to begin playing a game before it has even finished downloading.
A feature that is now shared with the rival Sony PlayStation 4, titles bought from the Xbox Marketplace will only need a small initial portion of their data to be downloaded before the action can begin. With this generation of consoles expected to be the one where the transition from physical media to mostly download purchases occurs, it’s an important addition, allowing gamers to play almost as quickly as if they had bought a physical disc.
“Consumers will be able to sign on to any Xbox One console and have access to all their digital games,” Microsoft stated.
“Once the required data – a fraction of the entire game – is on their hard drive, they can jump into the action while the rest of the game finishes downloading in the background. And of course, on Xbox 360, consumers today can download their digital games on any console after signing in to their Xbox Live account.”
Similarly, when users install a disc-based game to their Xbox One consoles, only a small percentage of data will be needed to be installed before gaming can kick off.
What’s not yet clear however is if the Xbox One, like the PS4, will give gamers the option of downloading single player or multiplayer content first.
