Linux and macOS users may soon be able to play games from Xbox PC and PC Game Pass subscriptions without Windows. A team of developers and modders behind the Heroic Game Launcher is working on the open-source project Xodus.
Heroic Game Launcher has already allowed Linux and macOS users to play games from the Epic Games Store, GOG, and Amazon Prime Games. Now, the developers have taken on a much more complex task – supporting the Xbox ecosystem on alternative operating systems.
Currently, the Xbox app and PC Game Pass are officially available on PC only for Windows. Xbox PC acts as both a game store and a client for accessing the PC Game Pass catalog. Xodus aims to provide Linux and macOS users with an alternative way to work with this library.
The developers have already made significant progress. The team reported creating a working Xbox authorization system that allows users to log in to their Microsoft account, verify their licenses, and identify games available through Game Pass. After that, Xodus can offer to install them.
However, authorization and installation are only the first stage. The main task is to launch the games directly. To do this, the developers are reverse-engineering the necessary components and focusing on modern Microsoft technologies, including GDK and the MSIXVC format.
However, support will have certain limitations. Older UWP-based games released during Windows 8 and early versions of Windows 10 are unlikely to work. As an example, the developers cite Forza Horizon 3.
In addition, even after implementing Xbox PC support, the games themselves will still have to be launched through compatible Linux technologies – in particular, Wine, DXVK, or VKD3D-Proton. Therefore, full compatibility with the Game Pass catalog will be a separate and very complex development stage for the team.