Google has done some amazing shit over the years, they are the only viable search engine....it's not like you ever hear someone say let me Bing that, Gmail, G+ (RIP), but what I just watched makes me wonder "Do they understand the Video Game Industry at all?"
I understand that the end of the age of Video Game Consoles is approaching and I'm not sure anyone knows how to move forward.
I'm gonna sound like an old fart but when I was a kid watching TV required you to get up and physically turn it on, there was seven channels 2,4,5,7,9, 11 and 13. We didn't need a TV provider, the electricity used by the TV went into the electric bill....SIMPLE. Then Cable came around and the Home Box Office was born...Cable was considered a luxury at first but soon became common (like all things like traveling on trains and aircraft) and for the most part it was an improvement.
Fast forward to 2019...the 21st Century, the FUTCHA! I now pay Verizon over 100 bucks a month for access to the Internet, and the ability to watch TV (over 100 channels! but so bloated with utter shit), I pay AT&T every month so my Iphone doesn't turn into an Ipod at the stroke of midnight, I also pay Netflix $15.00 /mo to gain access to there vast library of movies and shows via their streaming service. But there's other Streaming services out there that offer original content and movies and shows that Netflix doesn't have.....they cost a monthly fee also. And this fall Disney will be opening shop with D+ streaming service so we can watch all their proprietary content starting at a comfy $6.99 a month! Then there's the 60 bucks a year I pay to Sony so I can play multiplayer online games on my PS4 with PS+ (but they sweeten the deal by giving me free games to download each month (some crap some AAA).
Ok so you get the point, everyone's got their hand in my wallet and my wallet only holds so much money. So I gotta be sure I'm spending it on what I truly want as far as entertainment is concerned. And I believe that goes for most gamers around the world. I've been a gamer since the beginning of the second generation, back when complete games came on cartridges that were stuck in big ass consoles as time went on consoles began to evolve, they began to look like they belonged in a home theater set up and less like a childs toy. Games evolved also from cartridges to CD's, to DVD's to UMD's to BD's, we're now in a transitional period where games are available to buy digitally. At the beginning of the current (8th) generation I was very skeptical of purchasing games digitally because of the whole DRM drama Microsoft created when introducing the XBone @ E3. I still wanted to be able to share my games with friends and vice versa which could only be done via physical copies of the game. So here I am days before E3 2019 and the majority of my library this generation is digital.
In my mind I've payed for something and I own something, I can't touch it or trade it but it's on my 7 TB external HDD....so I "own" it. My only concern is will I be able to play it years from now?? I know if I hooked up my NES and threw Golgo 13 in it would work (after some vigorous blowing).
So that leads me to what I just watched on You tube....Google showcasing the Stadia video game
console streaming service....I'm gonna recap the points I feels will be Stadia's downfall.
Stadia is a streaming game service, meaning you don't own anything but a controller and a Chromecast dongle, what does the controller connect to? can't charge a wireless controller without a console to connect to....guess you need AA or AAA batteries? So the initial $130 investment for Stadia Pro is for a controller and a Chromecast dongle???
If you're streaming Games you never actually "own" the game, it's coming from Googles servers via the Chromecast dongle to your device, How are you "buying" anything? That's like Netflix charging the $15.00 /mo for the service then charging the MSRP of the movie to view it......GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE!!!
Sony has PS Now....their first foray into streaming games service, so for a monthly subscription you'll have access to HUNDREDS of games from the Playstation's vast library, you can also download the game to the console similar to how Netflix allows users to DL certain movies and games, but once that subscription ends so does your access to the game....you don't ever "own" the game.
So if you want to "own" the game you can go to the Playstation Store and buy it and DL it to either the console's HDD or an external HDD.
Google Stadia appears to be strictly a streaming service so what exactly are you buying?
Anyway this Post is getting a bit too lengthy what do you think? Will Google's Stadia be succesful or will it exit stage left and be greeted by the Jaguar, Lynx, Neo Geo and Ouya and 3Do with open arms?
