Stadia pre-order is live

[cimerians]

35 minutes ago, Agamon said:

Hmmm, another nail in the coffin. This is what Stadia should have been.  Maybe they'll pivot. Or stubbornly die.  It's Google, so the latter is certainly possible, if not likely. 

 

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/02/nvidia-has-shaken-up-the-netflix-for-games-model-with-its-challenge-to-stadia/

That's what it should have been but getting bumped off every hour and waiting in line is just not worth it, so you almost HAVE to pay for it.

Very ambitious, I expect a lot of problems and just like Stadia this is not my way of playing games on a daily basis but again it's pretty amazing the way they're doing it.

[TheRevWells]

I was given a buddy code by a random stranger on Reddit and so far, have been pleased with using Stadia via my PC on Chrome with my wired PS4 controller.  I must be near a data center, if that is how Google is doing it or if its just coming from one centralized location, etc, but other than that, the only issues I have experienced was recently when playing Gylt and seeing some artifacts in the video feed due to going from darkness to light pretty quickly.  other than that, ive not experienced any lag or latency issues at all.  my button presses, if they do lag, I do not notice it on the screen.  Have played Destiny 2 on there, ROTR, Gylt, Metro Exodus, etc - i have all the free Pro games and have not bought anything as of yet, but if i were to buy something, it would be RDR2.  So far, i do like the service.  is it compelling enough for me to spend the 129 on a kit, probably not, but will I keep the 9.99 pro sub after my trial is over, yes.  i was paying 9.99 a month for PS Now, but have played all the games i have wanted to at the moment on there

[IntelliMission]

The good news: 5 new exclusive games!

 

The bad news: They're not very interesting except for a new Panzer Dragoon...

 

Here's the discussion in their Reddit page.

 

2 of the games look like FTP mobile titles, another one is a compilation and other called Lost Words, which I'm sure many people will find interesting as it's one of these new extremely easy 2D platform games totally based on the story and the artistic qualities of it, could have used a better cover:

 

I personally find it a bit shocking that they couldn't come up with something better... It's not like they're a small company or anything.

Edited February 14, 2020 by IntelliMission

[jcalder8]

I don't own a stadia but the Panzor Dragoon game could be interesting but they don't even give a timeline for when it could be out so that's disappointing. Also it seems as though it won't be an exclusive so again that's a disappointment to be and doesn't have the draw to buy the system.

[Flojomojo]

I've been awaiting Panzer Dragoon for the Switch. I think it's just a remake of the 1995 game. 
 

These are all PC games, not exclusives, correct?

[spacecadet]

On 2/4/2020 at 1:35 PM, Agamon said:

Hmmm, another nail in the coffin. This is what Stadia should have been.  Maybe they'll pivot. Or stubbornly die.  It's Google, so the latter is certainly possible, if not likely. 

 

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/02/nvidia-has-shaken-up-the-netflix-for-games-model-with-its-challenge-to-stadia/

Well, not to rain on that parade, but: https://www.techspot.com/news/84031-activision-blizzard-games-pulled-geforce-now-due-misunderstanding.html

 

Reading between the lines, I have a feeling every major publisher wants their own streaming service, and doesn't want to be tied to something like GeForce Now or Stadia. Just like is happening with streaming TV services. It's going to be a nightmare dystopian future.

[IntelliMission]

Strange way to support a platform from one of the companies with more money on earth: Developers say Google didn't offer enough money to make Stadia games

[zzip]

On 2/15/2020 at 8:59 PM, spacecadet said:

Reading between the lines, I have a feeling every major publisher wants their own streaming service, and doesn't want to be tied to something like GeForce Now or Stadia. Just like is happening with streaming TV services. It's going to be a nightmare dystopian future.

Just like anything else, they are all going to jockey for position in the new market, before eventually all consolidating on two or three platforms when it becomes clear who the winners are

 

43 minutes ago, IntelliMission said:

Strange way to support a platform from one of the companies with more money on earth: Developers say Google didn't offer enough money to make Stadia games

Yeah, I agree.   Google has more money than they know what to do with, so they spend it on often pointless endeavors.   But the fact that they won't commit enough money to make this work tells me they aren't serious enough about Stadia.    It's more likely that it's one of their infamous side-projects that gets half-hearted support before eventually getting killed.

[Laner]

They're now offering a two month free trial for Stadia Pro - https://www.blog.google/products/stadia/try-stadia-free-today/

 

About 8 games are available to try for free as part of the trial - mostly of the indie variety. 

[cimerians]

A word of warning to anyone who tries stadia with a trial or a buddy pass: they don't do a very good job of telling you that you will be charged at an auto renewal rate every month, so make sure you go in there and cancel the subscription.

[IntelliMission]

While not the end of Stadia, the recent news is definitely a change in direction and not for the better:

 

Ars Technica: Google closes Stadia’s dedicated game studios after less than 2 years: Service isn't changing, but path to streaming-exclusive games will clearly narrow.
 

Quote

 

The combined studios appear to have only lasted 1.5 years, if even that, with their existence being announced in an October 2019 announcement frenzy. At the time, Raymond offered optimistic thoughts about what exactly Stadia's unique, cloud-based architecture would allow in future video games, including robust physics simulations, distributed AI management, and larger-scale multiplayer communities. Raymond conceded that such efforts would take time, however, saying, "It won't be four years before gamers get to see the new exclusive, exciting content. There will be some coming out every year, and more and more each year."

 

Apparently, four years of development was too long for someone at Google.

Stadia's exclusive studio currently has zero games to its name. Totilo hints at the possibility that some of its in-progress games may launch by year's end, but that's not entirely clear. Either way, with these studios' closures, the service will soon pivot exclusively to hosting other publishers' games instead of trying to develop their own.

 

 

I guess this is what happens when the only market study you make for a product is "hey, this is cool, we should do this, it's the future!".