Chromebooks can now run Minecraft natively, and this is great news
Chromebooks have been capable of gaming for years now, thanks to streaming services like Nvidia GeForce Now. But an announcement today (June 7, 2023) from Google brings even more exciting news about Chromebook gaming.
According to an official Google blog post, Minecraft: Bedrock Edition is now available to download through the Google Play Store on Chromebook, meaning that Chromebook can natively play the game. Also included is the Minecraft Marketplace, as well as the ability to play in Realms. It’s available to all Chromebooks released in the past three years, which is even better news for those with older models.
And if you want to play with others, crossplay functionality is available between Android, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, and Windows PCs. Several online modes like Creative mode and Survival mode are accessible through crossplay, as well as the new Trails & Tales update and all its content.
We reached out to Google for a statement concerning whether other titles will be made available natively for Chrome OS and will update this story when we receive official word.
Though gaming on Chromebooks has been possible for several years, Chromebooks devoted to gaming like the Acer Chromebook 516 GE are a bit more divisive. Some believe that the mere concept of them is a ‘scam’ while others think they might be part of a bright future in gaming. The original point of contention was that since gaming Chromebooks rely on streaming services instead of native play, any Chromebook could be dubbed a ‘gaming Chromebook.’
But now there’s the news of Minecraft being natively available to any recent Chromebook, as well as the report of Google having an internal prototype codenamed ‘Hades’ that will come with the more affordable
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