Until recently, Windows 10 store games could but be played when connected to the internet. Microsoft has thankfully changed this, but as usual, they had to brand things complicated: You tin can only take one "designated offline device" at a time.

How to Set Your Designated Offline Device

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If you have multiple Windows 10 devices, y'all'll need to marking a single one every bit your "designated offline device" while online before you can play games.

Warning: You can only change your designated offline device three times a yr. For comparing, Steam doesn't restrict you to a unmarried offline device at all, and there's certainly no yearly limit to your gaming PCs. This is yet some other good reason to avoid buying games on the Windows Shop if possible.

To change your designated offline device, open the Store app, click your profile picture icon, and select "Settings".

Curl downwardly to the "Offline Permissions" section and ensure the "Make this PC the 1 I apply to run some games or apps that have express licenses, even when I'grand offline" slider is set to "On".

Change the setting in one case and you lot'll be informed that you can just modify the setting 2 more times in the adjacent 365 days.

Ready Upwardly Your Games

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You lot'll now want to ready your games so they'll perform offline. Not every game supports offline play, simply near games in the Store practise. Whatsoever network multiplayer features won't exist functional and score leaderboards won't exist bachelor, but any in-game achievements you lot earn volition be granted to you lot the next time you connect to Xbox Alive on that device. The achievement popups won't actually appear until yous connect to the Internet once once more.

To ensure a game will run offline, install that game and then launch information technology while connected to the Internet. The game will fix itself up, acquire any necessary license data, and download any information it needs to function.

To confirm a game will actually office when you're offline, y'all tin temporarily disable your Internet connexion. Close the game and head to Settings >  Network & Net > Plane Fashion. Either enable "Airplane Mode" or disable the "Wi-Fi" slider to disable your wireless Internet connection.

Effort to launch the game while you're offline and see if information technology functions. If it does, yous're skillful to go. You can accept your computer somewhere without an Internet connection and continue playing games normally.