Google Stadia: The Future of Gaming And Death of Home Consoles...Maybe

Everybody was looking forward to Google’s moment at the 2019 Game Developers Conference, as the search engine giant was rumoured to launch something big, able to completely transform the gaming industry.

And they did it.

Google Stadia was introduced, promising to end the era of console boxes and allow people to play anywhere. But there’s something telling us that it could fail.

Still...how’s this Stadia thing working?

In a nutshell, the project wants to change the way games are played, bought, shared, or even developed, as well as solve problems like playing on a split-screen or playing the same game on multiple platforms. Besides this, it also wants to improve the reach of those who live stream on YouTube and - this is the part we really liked - turn the entire internet into a big video game store.

Now, if you have an idea about the latest releases in the gaming industry, you already know that the concept is not 100% new and innovative. Microsoft already gives you the possibility to play the same game on different platforms, while Nvidia also has a service which you can use to play any game you want, no matter your configuration.

But let’s see how Google wants to make things different and bring an end to home consoles.

In practice, Stadia allows you to click on any link and start playing any video game, within a few seconds, no matter how performance-demanding it is. You can do it on an old laptop, your smartphone, your tablet or even a smart TV. Even more, you can jump between multiple devices and your progress will be saved constantly. And you know what’s the best part? Everything you need is an optional controller, which connects directly to Google’s servers.

Otherwise, no additional hardware at all!

Phil Harrison

Google Stadia is expected to make its official debut around E3, even though there’s nothing confirmed about this date. We do know that this year it’s going to be available in the United States and Canada, as well as the United Kingdom and “most” of Europe. VP Phil Harrison revealed that more details will be given somewhere in June, so...we’re looking forward to it!

How much are we going to pay for this?

To everybody’s disappointment, Google gave no details about a possible pricing plan. There are some talks with publishers and other partners, but that’s pretty much it.

One can say that the search engine giant is planning to go on a very conservative route and adopt a pricing plan similar to Steam or any traditional online retailer like it. Which won’t be bad at all. On the other side, it could also opt for a very ambitious approach and start with a monthly subscription fee, just like Netflix, for example, is doing, but with the risk of tallying with its already existing YouTube TV service.

The latter could prove to be incredibly costly for end users, not to mention that it might not be welcomed by gaming companies they will eventually partner with. Even more, it’s unclear how such a model can work in terms of revenue splits.

Most likely, Google Stadia - and all the content available on it - will be accessible using a combination of both subscriptions and direct payments, depending on the games you want to play. Which can sound weird at first, but hey, if it works…

No matter the final variant, it will be mandatory for Google to invest in infrastructure and gaming in order to have things flowing smoothly.

“It is a public record that in 2019, Google will be spending $13 billion in infrastructure and capital expenditure,” said the same Phil Harrison. “So this is a very significant investment for the company.”

Facing strong competition

During the launch event, one thing was made clear: Google is launching the new generation of gaming. Still, they made a comparison between Stadia and most of its direct competitors, pointing that it offers a ridiculous 10 teraflops in terms of GPU power, while the likes of PS4 Pro and Xbox One X offer 4.2 and 6. Quite impressive, right?

As a side note, Amazon could soon turn into a serious competitor, as it’s reportedly developing its own game streaming service, rumoured for 2020. Also, let’s not forget about Apple Arcade, introduced just a few days ago!

One controller to rule them all

In a nutshell, Google Stadia is just a controller, in terms of hardware. It doesn’t have a specific name, not to mention that it looks like your average console controller. Still, what it can do is to connect to the club through Wi-Fi, allowing players to stream gameplay directly, using a specific button, but also ask for developer-directed help, using another one.

“If you have an existing USD controller that uses the HID standard, it will work,” Phil Harrison said during the event. Basically, you can play on Stadia without Google’s dedicated controller as well.

...and a few more bonuses

Google Stadia was clearly designed with a big focus on game streamers, as players will queue up to play some of their favourite titles with YouTubers live, in an online lobby. And this is pretty cool if you ask us!

Obviously, Google Assistant was also integrated into Stadia, helping the user with various issues, like when he or she gets stuck in a game and showing the most relevant YouTube video with a solution.

Finally, virtual reality seems to be the next big step for the gaming platform, but no particular details were given during the launch. Still, something’s telling us that they have a few aces in their sleeve and will get them out very soon.

To wrap it up, Google Stadia seems to have everything it takes to revolutionize the gaming industry, even though some of its features are not actually revolutionary. But we strongly believe that we haven’t seen anything from the big G’s plans regarding this….