GOOGLE STADIA
Google has the web-based tech knowhow, but does it have the games?
While the games it offers are top notch, they number too few right now
Is there a more web-savvy company in the world than Google? Doubtful. Its connectedtech know-how, and long-established experience in cloud-based software, should make it expertly placed to lead the pack in cloud gaming. But its initial offering with Stadia has some way to go to meet the company’s early promises on the service.
First, what does Stadia get right? For starters, it works well across platforms, streaming to a TV over a Chromecast Ultra dongle, working on a Mac or PC browser, and running AAA games from the cloud to select Pixel Android mobile devices. It’s also the only service on test running at 4K resolution (using a Chromecast Ultra on TV) with high dynamic range (HDR) options enabled, and uses a potentially innovative controller that aims to reduce lag and latency by connecting directly to cloud servers over Wi-Fi. Providing you meet the minimum broadband requirements, it’s a smooth and stable experience, and one that transitions well from device to device. Visually, it’s comparable to a native, local gaming experience (if not quite of the fidelity of the high-end, newer home consoles), and though control can feel a tad sluggish, it’s perfectly playable.
But there’s a lot missing too from Stadia’s lengthy, initially pitched feature list, from in-game Google
Assistant guides to wider phone support. At present, these features are missing in action, and while some have always seemed optimistic at best, many were the key defining features that looked set to separate Google from the competition. In their absence, it feels like a beta test
– a solid base technically, with a well-presented UI, but all together merely a foundation awaiting the flourishes to make it stand out.
What’s more, while the games it offers are top notch and the streams stable, they number too few for the time being, and the pricing structure is steep. The unique potential of the lag-reducing controller, with its dedicated Google Assistant button, hasn’t been met – lag is still present, and the Assistant button is currently all but useless. And while 4K resolutions are hit, some titles don’t seem to be achieving the detailed visual heights of their console and PC counterparts.
Revisit Google Stadia in a year or two and it may be a different story. But for now, Google Stadia feels more like a vision of the future, rather than a present reality.