Google Stadia is actually the best thing to happen to gaming and the people who are dismissing it are stuck in the bronze age of "owning hardware"

[DOOM Eternal]

For those of you who don't know Google is releasing an online platform that users can access (presumably through a web browser and under a subscription, although monetization is up in the air still) to play video games without the need for hardware, this means you'll be able to play any game(in their catalog) on any device with a screen.

This is the ultimate solution to cross play since all users can play under a unified server, it eliminates the costs for hardware, you no longer have to buy a gaming PC, xbox, playstation, Wii...etc to play your favorite games.

The only real drawback you will notice is the lag you will experience, but in my experience the lag can be reduced with higher speed internet plans and on the developer side by eliminating input lag. There are games that give the game a set input lag to make the characters play like a real world character, it makes you feel like you're really swinging a huge fucking axe. This can be dialed back or completely removed from the devs side to compensate for the time it takes for packages to be sent back and forth from the client input to the server since you're playing directly from googles servers.

Now, depending on the monetization Google chooses to go with this type of service I can easily see them crashing and burning if handled poorly, but if it was a low monthly subscription cost that gave me access to all their video games it would be amazing.

Google is reportedly working directly with developers on their upcoming games and releases to make sure their titles are compatible and run smoothly on Stadia, the question is as a consumer "how many titles will I have access to?".

I think the people who are crying wolf on this already are a bit dramatic and are concerned about not owning hard copies anymore, they don't see the great things this could introduce in the long run to the gaming world.


#In the end, i'm just happy google is starting the streaming race and I'm excited to see what competition it brings and how we as players will benefit from it.

 

[DOOM Eternal]

Why are you afraid of control, other platforms still exist, its just a matter of how these titles are distributed to us as players.

I don't care which corporation does it, just that it happens. I would have preferred if Valve would have been the first to the plate, but its much like how Netflix was a couple of years ago, they owned online streaming but now we've got a multitude of online streaming platforms to choose from. Its time that the age old technology and way of thought for owning consoles and updating hardware every 4-5 years goes away.

In the end, i'm just happy google is starting the streaming race and I'm excited to see what competition it brings and how we as players will benefit from it.

 

[stadiagames]

Its unlikely this will turn out to be a monopoly, its more of a ribbon cutting to the streaming world that gaming has been avoiding for a couple of years now.

I'm sure in a couple years time steam, origin, microsoft will all be competing in this avenue of online gaming. Login via browser / app then pick a game you choose to play with the friends on that platform.

You pay a subscription to diff platforms and you no longer need to own a console for that platform, all games will be accessible and playable online without the need for hardware.

Its the future, and I think being salty about it does nothing of benefit.

 

[Destiny]

Likely, I'm excited to see how this pans out in a years time. I wonder if Sony will make any moves though, because if this picks up pace and becomes "the in thing" Sony is fucked and tied to their hardware.