I’ve had a bit of a revelation lately – a bit of a late-to-the-party one – but gaming on your phone is really fun. I used to always think of it the same way my mum does: playing a bit of Candy Crush or Words with Friends to pass the time while watching a burning crème brûlée on Masterchef.

In my head, if you wanted to game, actually game, it was getting your set up right in front of the big TV with your beefed-up Xbox and hoping no one would come and disturb you while you are in the final-five of an epic Warzone battle. While this is still great, I’ve discovered (after being locked down for months), that being able to play anywhere you want can be even better.

To really get the most out of this though, you are going to want a few things: Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, a compatible phone, a mobile gaming controller (required for some games) and a great pair of earphones or headphones.

“But what are the right ones for me?” I can hear you asking. Fear not, we have your back.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate

There are loads of great games on both the Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store, but if you want to really be playing console-quality games on your phone, you’re going to want to nab yourself Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to access its new Xbox Cloud Gaming service. While most of this guide is about playing on your phone, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate also works on your PC and tablet to get you into the action no matter what device you’re on.

Xbox Cloud Gaming brings an Xbox to your phone, wherever you have an internet connection with 10Mbps or higher. Just like Netflix does with movies and TV shows, Xbox Cloud Gaming lets you play over 100 console games that you can play directly on most devices you already own – including your phone. We’re not talking some weird games you’ve never heard of either, there are proper AAA titles at your fingertips. Forza Horizon 4, a bunch of Halo titles and Destiny 2 are all there.

If you already have Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, cloud gaming is included in your subscription at no extra cost. If you haven’t signed up yet, it’s normally $15.95/month, but we offering the first month’s subscription on us, free to eligible Telstra customers.

We did a big write up about Xbox Cloud Gaming and how it works with Telstra if you want to dive more into that, too.

The best phones for gaming

I know that not everyone is willing or able to spend the same amount on their new smartphone, so I thought I’d break these down by price range to help find something for most people.

Google Pixel 6 Pro – RRP: $1299

Google’s latest have really taken things up a notch this year, which makes them perfect for gaming, particularly its powerhouse Pixel 6 Pro model. It’s got a gorgeous 6.7-inch screen with Google’s Smooth Display technology, which features a buttery smooth 120hz refresh rate, all wrapped in ultra-strong Gorilla …….

Source: https://exchange.telstra.com.au/best-smartphones-and-gaming-accessories-for-xbox-cloud-gaming/