Cloud Gaming is really the new thing in the gaming industry and seeing how we can actually play games simply via the internet without any essential hardware is simply amazing.
To give you a brief idea about Cloud Gaming, let’s just say we have a high-end computer somewhere and you are controlling it and seeing the output on your screen, now the screen can be a Television screen, a monitor or even a Smartphone.
A stable and high-speed (preferably unlimited) Internet Connection
Whatever we are doing does not have hardware involved, not even cables. All this is only possible via fast internet. For a smooth and high quality gaming experience, you’d need (in my opinion) at least a 25 Mbps (Download) speedWhatever we are doing does not have hardware involved, not even cables. All this is only possible via fast internet. For a smooth and high quality gaming experience, you’d need (in my opinion) at least a 25 Mbps (Download) speed
Google Stadia recommends 10 Mbps download speed for 720p streaming.
This can be your phone, a laptop or a computer (irrespective of the specifications) or even a TV. In case of Google Stadia, you should be able to play games via Chromecast on your Android TV. Stadia Pro, Google’s paid version of Stadia, ships with the latest version of Chromecast Ultra. This can be your phone, a laptop or a computer (irrespective of the specifications) or even a TV. In case of Google Stadia, you should be able to play games via Chromecast on your Android TV. Stadia Pro, Google’s paid version of Stadia, ships with the latest version of Chromecast Ultra.
There are many platforms to provide cloud gaming services in today’s date, sadly most of them aren’t available in India as of yet. Google Stadia, nVidia Geforce Now, Microsoft Project XCloud are the famous ones. There are many platforms to provide cloud gaming services in today’s date, sadly most of them aren’t available in India as of yet. Google Stadia, nVidia Geforce Now, Microsoft Project XCloud are the famous ones.
Having a cloud gaming setup just means an input device (a controller or a mouse-keyboard pair) and a display device in the best case, a TV for example. If you have a weak system (PC or laptop) which cannot handle the latest AAA titles then cloud gaming is definitely for you. In case you don’t have a PC or a laptop, you can still play on your phone, that’s the best part!Having a cloud gaming setup just means an input device (a controller or a mouse-keyboard pair) and a display device in the best case, a TV for example. If you have a weak system (PC or laptop) which cannot handle the latest AAA titles then cloud gaming is definitely for you. In case you don’t have a PC or a laptop, you can still play on your phone, that’s the best part!
Having less hardware also means a lot of space saved, almost no cables and a clean look to your setup.
More or less an extension of the previous point, if you have less hardware, it automatically points to less maintenance cost, no hassle of upgrades and basically a lot of money saved. There is no extra cost in case you go with a free version of a cloud gaming service, even in case you go with a paid subscription, the amount you pay is way lesser than what you would pay for a laptop, PC or a console.More or less an extension of the previous point, if you have less hardware, it automatically points to less maintenance cost, no hassle of upgrades and basically a lot of money saved. There is no extra cost in case you go with a free version of a cloud gaming service, even in case you go with a paid subscription, the amount you pay is way lesser than what you would pay for a laptop, PC or a console.
As of now, most of the premium cloud gaming services aren’t available in India. We will have to wait and find out how they are priced once they launch in India.
Latency
Since the computer which is actually handling the load of the game you are playing is quite far from your place, there will be latency or input-lag. This might be a deal-breaker in fast-paced and online games. Generally having a wired internet connection solves the issue to some extent, but eliminating latency doesn’t seem to be possibly as of now.Since the computer which is actually handling the load of the game you are playing is quite far from your place, there will be latency or input-lag. This might be a deal-breaker in fast-paced and online games. Generally having a wired internet connection solves the issue to some extent, but eliminating latency doesn’t seem to be possibly as of now.
Most cloud gaming services as of today are actually struggling to put up their show in the market, due to a variety of issues the users are facing, like publishers backing off from their titles, people having to buy the games separately for the service (in case of Stadia), server issues and a lot more. This also includes all those issues which generally come with cloud computing.
As I mentioned, most cloud gaming services are not available in India. Hence we also don’t really have a clear idea of how these subscriptions would be priced here when they launch.(Image credits - ubuntupit, businessinsider, 123rf, medium, macworld, nvidia)As I mentioned, most cloud gaming services are not available in India. Hence we also don’t really have a clear idea of how these subscriptions would be priced here when they launch.(Image credits - ubuntupit, businessinsider, 123rf, medium, macworld, nvidia)
I hope you liked my straight-forward look on the cloud gaming scene in India. What do you guys think? Would you like to invest in Cloud Gaming? Do you believe it is the future? Let me know in the comments below!
Cloud gaming topic is very interesting