The volume of the games market is estimated at $140 billion. Every year the market is expanding, new companies are finding their niche, and old players are also developing. One of the most actively developing gaming trends is cloud gaming, when neither a powerful PC nor the latest generation console is needed to launch a new product.
According to the analytical agency IHS Markit, last year gaming services offering games "in the cloud" . By 2023, analysts predict growth to $2,5 billion. Every year, the number of companies that develop cloud gaming is growing. Now the market is best known for 5-6 players, which have recently joined the corporation Google. What do they offer?
Google Stadia
Since we mentioned the corporation, let's start with it, despite the fact that it is completely new to the field of cloud gaming. On March 19, the company revealed its new digital gaming platform dubbed Stadia. In addition, the company introduced a new controller. The developers have added a button to the usual functionality that allows you to start broadcasting the gameplay on YouTube with one click.
In order to attract gamers, the company offered them Doom Eternal, developed by iD Software. You can play in 4K resolution. Also available is Assassin's Creed: Odyssey.
The corporation promised that each gamer will receive a "machine" in the cloud with a performance of at least 10 Tflops - one and a half times more powerful than the Xbox One X. As for the connection (and this is the first issue that worries a user who wants to try cloud gaming), during the demonstration game in Assassin's Creed Odyssey the connection went through WiFI, while the response time was 166 ms. The indicator is poorly compatible with comfortable gaming, and completely unacceptable for multiplayer, but we are still talking about an early technical demonstration. The maximum resolution is 4K at 60 fps.
Stadia uses Linux and the Vulkan API to power Stadia. The service is fully compatible with the popular Unreal Engine 4, Unity and Havok game engines, as well as many game development software tools.
How much does it cost? It is not yet clear, but it is unlikely that Google will make its service much more expensive than similar products offered by competitors. It can be assumed that the cost of a subscription will be about 20-30 US dollars per month.
Distinctive features. The company stated that its service is cross-platform (works under any popular OS on such hardware platforms as tablet, PC, phone, etc.). Plus, the company offered its own controller.
PlayStation Now (ex-Gaikai)
Unlike Google, this service can be called a veteran of the gaming world. The company was founded in 2008, in 2012 it was bought by the Japanese company Sony for $380 million. In 2014, the corporation changed the name of the service to "proprietary" and slightly changed its capabilities. The service was launched in the winter of 2014, initially it was available to players from the United States, and then it was opened to players from other countries.
The service makes it possible to play a large number of games directly in the "cloud" using the game consoles PS3, PS4, PS Vita and others. A little later, the service became available to users of personal computers. PC requirements are as follows:
- OS: Windows 8.1 or Windows 10;
- Processor: Intel Core i3 @ 3,5 GHz or AMD A10 @ 3,8 GHz or better
- Free space on hard disk: at least 300 MB;
- RAM: 2 GB or more.
The library of the service currently contains more than 600 games. As for the bandwidth that is optimal for the game, the bandwidth below 20 Mbps is not recommended. In this case, lags and periodic crashes from the game can be observed.
The controller is best used with the Dualshock 4, as some games (most console exclusives) can be difficult to play without it.
How much does it cost? Sony offers a three-month subscription priced at $44,99 for all three months. You can also use a monthly subscription, but then the service will be 25% more expensive, that is, for three months you will have to pay not $44,99, but $56.
Distinctive features. The entire service is tied to console games from Sony. As mentioned above, it is better to use a PS4 controller for the game.
V
Not the most famous service, which differs from all others in the ability to play directly in the browser (although Google Stadia seems to promise similar functionality, but at the time of this writing it was impossible to verify this). If desired, the player can use not only a PC, but also a smart TV, laptop or even a phone. The service catalog contains more than 100 games. The requirements for the Internet channel are approximately the same as for other services - the speed should not be less than 20 Mbps, or better, more.
How much does it cost? For $9.99 a month, the player gets 100 hours of game time. It turns out that one hour of the game costs gamers 9 cents.
Distinctive features. You can play in the Chrome browser, in the application for Windows 10 and on Android devices. The gaming service is universal.
Playkey
A very well-known domestic project, which has been written about more than once on Habré. The basis of the service is Nvidia Grid, although in 2018 information appeared about the use of desktop video cards in Playkey, such as the GeForce 1060Ti. The company has been operating since 2012, but the service was opened for players at the end of 2014. Currently, more than 250 games are connected, and Steam, Origin and Epic Store platforms are also supported. This means that you can play any game that you have on your account on any of these platforms. Even if the game itself is not represented in the Playkey catalog.
According to the service, now players from 15 countries use the cloud gaming platform every day. More than 100 servers operate to maintain the gaming environment. The servers are located in Frankfurt and Moscow.
The company has partnered with 15 leading game publishers, including Ubisoft, Bandai and Wargaming. Previously, the project managed to raise $2,8 million from a European venture fund.
The service is developing quite actively, now, in addition to purely gaming services, it began to offer servers of its own design, sharpened for "clouds". They can be used by other companies - for example, to create their own gaming service. Such servers will be able to be used by game developers and publishers, digital stores, the media, who get the opportunity to demonstrate to the reader a new game that they are writing about - anyone who is interested or may be interested in launching games in the cloud.
How much does it cost? The price tag starts from 1290 rubles for 70 hours of play. The most advanced plan is unlimited, 2290 rubles (~$35) per month without limits. At the time of writing, there were rumors about a change in the business model and the cancellation of subscriptions. Experimentally, the service previously launched the sale of game time packages at the rate of 60-80 r (~$1) for 1 hour of play. Perhaps this model will become the main one.
Distinctive features. The company works both on b2c (business-client) and b2b (business-to-business) models. Users can not only play on the cloud, but also create their own cloud infrastructure. In addition to the catalog of games, the service supports entire platforms, including Steam, Origin, and the Epic Store. You can run any game available on them.
Parsec Cloud Gaming
A relatively new service that has entered into a partnership agreement with Equinix. Partners optimize gaming hardware and software in such a way that the service environment works as efficiently as possible. It's worth noting that Parsec supports Amazon Web Services, and the company also works with Paperspace, a developer of GPU-optimized virtual machines.
Parsec has its own Cloud Marketplace, which not only allows you to rent a virtual server, but also dynamically turn it on and off. You will have to configure everything yourself, but the plus is that it can be not only games, but also software that is needed for work - for example, video rendering.
The advantage of the service is that it is not tied to hosting. In order to start playing, it is enough to find a server with a GPU that is suitable for the price. There are such servers in Russia, . Thus, the ping will be minimal.
How much does it cost? Parsec has a rather complicated pricing that periodically causes heated discussions on reddit and other resources. The price tag is better to know on the website.
Distinctive features. To get started, you need to order the assembly of the gaming machine "from the other side." Then already set up the game and play. In addition, the server can be used for a variety of purposes, including mining (it used to be profitable), and not just games. The service offers its services not only to ordinary gamers, but also to other companies.
Drova
A relatively young company whose developers have realized the opportunity not only to play in the cloud, but also to rent out their car for other players. Of course, this lease is virtual. This, in fact, is about p2p gaming.
For the service itself, the choice of a work scheme in which gaming computers are rented is beneficial. First of all, the fact that everything is scalable. The main task of the service is not to buy gaming machines, but to gradually increase the community by attracting new users through social networks, gaming tournaments and other events.
The cost of the game is about 50 rubles per hour. Thus, if a gamer does not play around the clock, but, say, only from time to time, then for 1000 rubles you can get a lot of fun for little (relatively) money.
How much does it cost? 50 rubles per hour.
Distinctive features. The company, in fact, rents gaming power from its customers who want to make money on their PCs. Another feature is getting at your disposal the entire physical machine, and not a fraction of "cloud time".
Shadow
A service that is similar to most of those that have already been described above. Nevertheless, it is no worse and does its job quite well - it allows you to play modern games on old PCs and laptops. Its cost is $35 per month, the subscription is unlimited, so a gamer can play at least around the clock, no one will limit him. At its core, Shadow is similar to Parsec - by paying for a subscription, the gamer gets at his disposal a dedicated server where you can run any application. But of course, most subscribers run games.
You can play on a desktop computer, laptop, tablet or smartphone.
How much does it cost? $35 per month unlimited.
Distinctive features. The service is universal, you can play on almost any platform, as long as the Internet channel is fast enough.
Loud play
Russian game server that rents a server with new video cards. The rental price starts from 30 rubles per hour. The developers claim that with a network connection speed of 10 Mbps or more, games with a resolution of 1080 go at 60 fps. Players can access any game from Steam, Battlenet, Epic Games, Uplay, Origin and other sources.
How much does it cost? From 30 rubles per hour of play.
Distinctive features. Now the company is collaborating with Huawei Cloud, gradually transferring its services to the platform of this company. As far as you can understand, this is done to improve performance and increase the quality of the broadcast of the game.
Geforce Now
The service started in 2016. All calculations are performed on NVIDIA servers, with NVIDIA Tesla P40 accelerators. As in other services, for a comfortable game using Geforce Now, you need a wide Internet channel with a bandwidth of at least 10 Mbps, although the more the better. Previously, the service was available only to users of Nvidia Shield devices, but now it is also available to owners of Windows or Mac-based systems. The service is in beta mode, to connect and wait for approval.
You can only play games that the user has in their Steam, Uplay or Battle.net library, or games that are provided for free on these services. While Geforce Now is in beta, it is free for users. Broadcasting is carried out in Full HD resolution (1920×1080) at a frequency of 60 frames per second.
How much does it cost? At the moment (test period) the service is free.
Distinctive features. Geforce Now is in beta, you can wait for the approval of the application for about a few weeks. Game processing on powerful servers with NVIDIA Tesla P40.
Currently, the services listed above are relevant. Yes, there are others, but most are in demo mode, allowing players or developers to complete a limited number of tasks. There are, for example, even solutions on the blockchain, but most of them are not even in the alpha version - they exist only as a concept.
Source: habr.com