Microsoft Adds Windows 10 Offline Play Support For Windows Store Games

Since the time Microsoft began releasing games en masse to its Windows Store, one glaring omission of the marketplace became clear: offline mode. While the problem isn't as pronounced today as it once was, finding yourself offline due to an issue outside of your control can be downright frustrating when it prevents a game from being played - especially a game that will help keep your mind off of the fact that you have no internet. That shouldn't be a problem any longer with games played through the Windows Store.

We learned about the addition of Offline Mode through Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, someone who's been quite vocal about Windows 10 gaming since Microsoft decided to begin porting Xbox One games over to the PC.

We’ve made some backend updates to improve your experience playing @Windows 10 games offline Details https://t.co/80J2rkTKB8

— / Larry Hryb / + 1m (@majornelson) October 28, 2016

Offline Mode might seem like a simple concept, but there are a couple of things to be aware of. Cloud saves, for example, will not work while the client is in offline mode. That means that if you play offline for any amount of time, and you want to carry the gameplay over to your Xbox One, you'll need to first disable Offline Mode so that the Store can resync your saved games.

Achievements work similarly; they can still be earned offline, but they won't be registered as having been earned online until - you guessed it - Offline Mode is disabled.

If you need help enabling Offline Mode, or have run into issues in using it, you should hit up the URL below as Microsoft offers a wealth of information to help you along.