The latest Alpha update for the Xbox One and Series consoles updates the Microsoft Edge browser to the latest version based on Google’s Chromium, and players have already found a way to run Stadia.
In 2019, Microsoft relaunched its Edge browser, based on work done by Google and other contributors to the open source project Chromium. Eventually, this change gave Windows 10 users a more compatible, stable and frequently updated browser by default, compared to the previous Edge, which used Microsoft’s own EdgeHTML browser engine.
As reported by The Verge, the latest Alpha Skip-Ahead version – an invite-only preview of an update – for Xbox One and Series consoles are getting the same Chromium-based Edge browser seen on Windows, with some improvements for navigating from a controller . For now, there is no support for full keyboard and mouse, leaving the Xbox controller to serve these purposes.
In addition to the standard benefits of using a Chromium-based browser, such as enhanced compatibility with web applications, game streaming fans have already begun to dream about the possibilities of the new Edge on a game console. In fact, a Stadia fan, @billetviolet, managed to get on the Xbox Alpha Skip-Ahead and was able to play Cyberpunk 2077 on the new Chromium-based Edge.
Between the video itself and a bigger discussion going on in the Stadia subreddit, we found that you will need a Stadia controller to play, since the connected Xbox controller is serving as the keyboard and mouse for the Chromium-based Edge instead of a gamepad . That said, some reports indicate that you really need to disconnect the Xbox controller in order for the Stadia controller to be properly recognized as “player 1”.
Given the current requirement for a Wi-Fi enabled controller, it appears that only Stadia and Luna will be supported by Edge on the Xbox in the short term, although Luna may need to remove some of its stricter device limitations first. Services like Xbox Game Pass xCloud streaming – which is set to get a web app soon – and GeForce Now using your device’s controller will need to wait for Microsoft to adjust the Edge to allow the Xbox controller to be used correctly as a controller.
To sign up for the Alpha Skip-Ahead update, you will need to sign up for the Xbox Insiders Update Preview program and wait for an invitation to be sent to participate in the test. Otherwise, since this is not a preview of the “next” update for Xbox consoles, but rather a “future” update, it will take a few weeks, if not months, before the update for the Chromium-based Edge arrives. How Border notes, Microsoft is leaving support for the older version of Edge on Windows starting tomorrow, so hopefully it won’t be long before the Xbox is updated.
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