Xodus, an open-source project attempting to run Xbox PC games on Linux and macOS, has now connected everything from store login to game package retrieval, license acquisition, and executable decryption. Microsoft's official supported environment for PC Game Pass is Windows 10/11 version 22H2 or later, and Linux is not included. Xodus is attempting to rebuild this authentication and delivery pipeline on Linux. However, this stage does not yet represent the launch of a service for general users.
From Xbox authentication to decryption, now connected
According to Xodus's official README, device and user login and Xbox authentication are listed as completed items. It also supports retrieval of MSIXVC-format packages and on-demand decryption of executables, and is said to be able to obtain game licenses as well. This means that the main steps—from a PC Game Pass subscriber using their legitimate entitlement to receiving a game from Microsoft's distribution infrastructure—have begun to connect outside of the Xbox app on Windows.
The core Xodus is written in Rust, and the current means of use is a development command-line interface. The commands provided are centered on low-level operations such as downloading and extracting packages, retrieving license information, and logging in. It has not yet reached the stage of installing a finished launcher, selecting a title from a library, and playing it immediately.
Xodus is explicitly stated to be neither endorsed nor supported by Microsoft or Xbox, and is to be used at one's own risk. In the FAQ addressing when Minecraft Bedrock will be playable, the project answers that much work remains to support the necessary Xbox Services on top of Wine, and it does not give a release date.
Four walls outside of Proton
Bringing Xbox PC games to Linux requires several implementations in addition to Proton, which runs Windows-targeted games. There are broadly four walls that Xodus is breaking down. First, Microsoft account and Xbox authentication; second, licenses based on purchases or a Game Pass subscription. It must also handle retrieval and extraction of MSIXVC packages, and reproduce the GDK runtime that games call into.
This structure is also why Xodus is split across multiple repositories. The core project handles authentication and delivery, while a separate project, "xgameruntime," reimplements Windows's xgameruntime.dll. In addition, NTFS-related code for reading MSIXVC, a modified Wine with changes for Xodus, and a Proton that incorporates that Wine are being developed in parallel. The service process is designed to bridge the compatibility runtime and the game via a Unix domain socket, xodus.sock.
Microsoft's own GDK documentation also indicates that obtaining a package does not by itself satisfy all the conditions needed to run it. Testing GDK-built PC games requires the Gaming Services package on Windows. In addition to the game itself, Xodus must reproduce on Wine the processing that depends on Gaming Services.
For this reason, coverage is for now limited to titles built with GDK and distributed in MSIXVC format. While the developers state their goal as covering most of the catalog, they cite "Gears of War 4" as a current representative example of an unsupported title. The set of titles that can be successfully retrieved is not the same as the set of titles that can be launched and played through to completion.
MSIXVC2, moving toward October 2026
With the April 2026 GDK, Microsoft made a preview release of a new PC package format called "MSIXVC2." General availability is planned for the October 2026 GDK, and MSIXVC2 support remains an incomplete item in Xodus's README.
MSIXVC2 handles the parts changed by updates more granularly than before. According to Microsoft, tests using already-shipped titles showed cases where update size was reduced by 64–94% compared to the previous MSIXVC. Because file moves and reordering alone are less likely to trigger large re-downloads, this is effective for operations involving large games that are updated frequently.
However, when a delivery format changes, external implementations are forced to analyze and keep pace with it. Just as Xodus succeeded in getting authentication, retrieval, and decryption working for the legacy MSIXVC format, Microsoft has begun a transition to a next-generation format. After general availability in October 2026, how quickly new titles move to MSIXVC2 will affect the practical scope of Xodus.
What should "almost there" be measured against?
What Xodus has completed is authentication, delivery, license management, and executable decryption. For general users to judge it as "usable," at least three things need to be confirmed: a distributable release, compatibility across multiple real games, and the operation of processing that depends on Xbox Services.
Differences between games are also significant. Xodus explains that it has the capability to retrieve and launch titles from Xbox Backward Compatibility on PC, but it acknowledges that actual operation may require additional patches to Wine, DXVK, and vkd3d-proton. A compatibility chart covering save synchronization, multiplayer, and anti-cheat has also not yet been presented.
The near-term milestones are the release of distributables for general users from the developer-facing CLI, and the accumulation of reproducible compatibility data. Furthermore, from October 2026 onward, whether titles delivered via MSIXVC2 can be handled through the same pipeline will be added to the picture. Until these can be confirmed, it is not yet the stage to conclude that "PC Game Pass works on Linux."