Steam games in the Xbox library: Xbox app for Windows handhelds gets support for third-party stores

At the beginning of June, Microsoft announced two Xbox gaming handhelds developed in collaboration with Asus. Despite similar names, these handhelds differ from the Asus ROG Ally and ROG Ally X, although Microsoft also uses Windows 11. In order to better position itself against the Steam Deck, Microsoft plans to redesign the Xbox app and optimize it specifically for gaming handhelds.

To eliminate the need for users to constantly switch between the Xbox app and launchers like Steam, the Epic Games Store or even Battle.net, Microsoft has released an update for the Xbox app that allows these games to be added to the Xbox library and launched directly from the Xbox app. This feature is currently only available to Xbox Insiders, i.e., members of Microsoft's beta program, but all Microsoft ROG Xbox Ally (X) users should have access by Christmas at the latest.

In addition to Xbox, Game Pass and Battle.net, Microsoft only mentions "leading PC stores", which likely refers primarily to Steam, but possibly also to the Epic Games Store and GOG. In any case, the list of supported stores will be expanded over time. If a game is installed from one of these stores, it will automatically appear in the library and in the "Recently Played" section of the Xbox app. In the app settings, users can select which stores should be included in the library at any time. Another new feature is the option of searching the library by publisher, which should make it easier to navigate through the Game Pass library.