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Play Anywhere (formerly Live Anywhere) is an ongoing initiative by Microsoft Gaming to bring the cross-platform Xbox network (formerly Xbox Live) service to a wide variety of Microsoft platforms and devices, notably the Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows 10/11.
Platforms
| Platform | Launch | Discontinued | Service Name |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xbox | November 15, 2001 | April 15, 2010 | Xbox Live |
| Xbox 360 | November 22, 2005 | July 29, 2024 | Xbox Live |
| Windows XP, Vista, 7 | May 22, 2007 | Before May 8, 2023 | Games for Windows - Live |
| Zune | September 16, 2008 | September 4, 2011 | Zune Social |
| Windows Phone and Windows 10 Mobile | October 21, 2010 | Before October 8, 2017 | Xbox on Windows Phone |
| Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 | October 26, 2012 | Before May 8, 2023 | Xbox on Windows |
| Xbox One | November 22, 2013 | Xbox Live | |
| Windows 10 | July 29, 2015 | Xbox network | |
| Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S | November 10, 2020 | Xbox network | |
| Windows 11 | October 5, 2021 | Xbox network |
Features
- Single identity (Gamertag) across all platforms (tied to a Microsoft account)
- Cross-platform chat, with both text and voice
- Unified friends list and message system
- Cross-platform multiplayer online gaming, including game invites
- Buy Once, Play Anywhere: Purchase a compatible digital game once and own it on both Xbox and Windows
- Cross-Progression: Game saves and progress sync automatically across devices
- Shared DLC: Downloadable content (DLC) and add-ons are shared between platforms
Availability
Live is currently available in 37 countries, with more being brought online over time.[citation needed]
- Austria
- Australia
- Belgium
- Canada
- China
- Chile
- Czech Republic
- Colombia
- Denmark
- El Salvador
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Hong Kong
- Ireland
- India
- Italy
- Japan
- South Korea
- Mexico
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Philippines
- Poland
- Portugal
- Puerto Rico
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Sri Lanka
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Taiwan
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Venezuela
- Zimbabwe
See also
External links
- List of Play Anywhere compatible Xbox digital games (archived 2025-08-07)
- ExtremeTech article describing Live Anywhere concept (archived 2009-02-28)
- Original Xbox Live to Shut Down (IGN) (archived 2010-02-11)
- Video of a Live client running on a mobile device (archived 2007-09-30)