The gaming industry is evolving at a very fast pace in todays world. we see new consoles and games come out every year and they get better and more realistic. Instead of having to upgrade their gaming platform, many gamers are now trying out cloud gaming. Many people think that it could be the future of gaming, but are we ready for it yet?
What is cloud gaming?
Cloud gaming is basically a type of gaming that runs the game on a high end server somewhere around the world rather than your console. this game will run on the highest settings on the server and then it will be streamed on the users screen and he'll be able to play the game. It's almost like streaming a movie, where the game is stored on the server rather than the hard drive of the users console. Currently the top cloud gaming services are-
Pros of cloud gaming
- Users wont have to keep upgrading their consoles as cloud gaming can work on old consoles as well.
- PC gamers will be able to play console exclusive games on their computers or any other smart device like mobile or smart televisions.
- There wont be a need to keep downloading big updates for games every month or so.
- There will be a lower chance of hacking and piracy due to the high level security at the servers.
- The cost of cloud gaming is comparatively less than regular gaming which ranges from 2500-3500 rupees per month.
Cons of cloud gaming
- Users will require high speed internet connection if they want to play a game smoothly.
- Even with fast internet, the graphics and frame rate will not be as good as playing the game locally on downloaded on your device.
- There will be a lag in movement speed because the game has to be sent to the server from your device, and then be sent back through stream to your device.
- It requires a lot of bandwidth to send and receive all that data in seconds, if you are using 4g, it may take up whole days worth of data in only minutes!
- Due to the recent growth in popularity, many people are trying out cloud gaming, which is causing the servers to be full which will effect the gaming experience.
History of cloud gaming
The first company to introduce cloud gaming with their handheld micro consoles were OnLive. They were founded in 2009 and introduced their cloud gaming in 2010. Their games were available on many devices like windows PCs, smartphones, tablets etc.
Their company was funded by British Telecom and Belgacom. At the time of their launch, their monthly service fee was $14.95.
Their service would work with only a wired connection with a speed of 2 Mbit/s or higher only.
Later in 2012, Sony paid $380 million to buy the OnLive assets, which they used to develop PlayStation Now. In 2015 OnLive officially sold the rest of their assets and shut down completely.
Are we ready for cloud gaming?
Currently, Cloud gaming is still under improvement because everyone wants to play their game at max settings with no lag. Single player story mode games like grand theft auto 5 or assassins creed odyssey could be played well on high graphics with 60fps if you have a good internet , but the problem begins with online competitive gaming like PUBG, Rainbow Six Siege where users have faced some lag and low frame rates. Cloud gaming on smartphones could be a little rough because it would suck up a lot of data and battery. They do provide on screen controls for the games but it wouldn't really feel like the real thing.
So are we ready for cloud gaming to totally replace console gaming? well not exactly. Cloud gaming could be like a secondary option for now. Companies like Sony or Microsoft would face a loss if everyone just switched to cloud gaming instead of buying their new consoles every year. This might be one of the reasons why these big companies are not looking forward to further develop cloud gaming.