Charis Chrisna
TechInAfrica – Google Stadia, or sometimes simply Stadia, is a cloud gaming service operated by Google. It is said to be capable of streaming video games up to 4K resolution at 60 frames per second with support for high-dynamic-range, to players via the company’s numerous data centers across the globe, provided they are using a sufficiently high-speed Internet connection. Most commonly referred to as the Netflix for video gaming, Stadia was launched only recently on November 19th, finally after months of hype.
Despite this, Google fumbled the launch of Stadia by receiving numerous negative reviews of underperformance and worse-than-expected responsiveness to player inputs and visuals, as well as a variety of missing features. In addition, some games aren’t available in 4K resolution—much to the contrary of the search engine giant’s early claim. This eventually led to the public’s premature judgment of Google not being able to commit to their words.
But does it really matter?
Stadia, however, isn’t even one month old and arguably is still in its testing phase; with various betas and trials and errors. This innovative, cloud gaming-slash-streaming service is a long-term initiative for the company—public’s premature opinions can be changed and recovered if Google stays on its path and stay committed to this project.
It’s also worth noting that Stadia isn’t like any other console, which means that further developments and performance fixes would involve little to no hardware manufacturing. In other words, consumers would be able to enjoy the latest advancements by simply updating their platforms.
Another thing to consider is with $9.99 subscription fee, along with the initial $129 base price (for Stadia Founder’s Edition) may not stand out and compete with existing, more popular platforms like PCs, Xbox, Nintendo, or PlayStation. For dedicated gamers, consistent performance may serve as a significance—if Stadia fails to deliver such a notion, then potential consumers might turn away and game on other platforms instead.
But will that change in the future?
As we all know, physically manufactured consoles offer fixed performance and fixed framerates with fixed hardware. Stadia, however, will undoubtedly experience constant upgrades regarding capabilities and performance optimizations—which means it’ll keep getting better day by day without the consumers having to pay a hefty amount of money for their updates. In return, Stadia may surpass the capacity of high-end PCs and next-gen consoles.
With this in mind, it’s safe to say that this phase of Stadia—where its performance still fumbles—is nothing more than just a test phase.
While the Founder’s Edition of Stadia is already available, Google will launch the free version of their cloud gaming service by 2020, though it is yet to be revealed when the exact launch is. An expansion towards mobile platforms is also said to be ready soon.
Amongst the skeptic criticisms, it’s clear that Google has ample room to establish a strong position in this new area that the search engine giant has taken interest in. Stadia is very young, yet it holds so much potential, ready to be nurtured further to tackle the gaming ecosystem in the future.
So, what can save Stadia and keep those interested at bay?
For one, Stadia can offer a wide selection of popular, highly demanded games whilst they work their own performance upgrades and fixes. Attractive selection of games can keep existing and new users interested, and advertising as well as hype-buildup via YouTube—also owned by Google, mind you—can go a long way.
All in all, we think that Stadia’s launch is a setback, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re losing the war in video gaming industry. What about you? What do you think?
Source: fool.com
