Cloud computing services, where anyone anywhere can access computing services like storage, software, analytic tools, and more over the internet were revolutionary. It birthed SaaS and currently enabling you to use ChatGPT and other AI tools. The gaming industry may be at the nascent stage of that revolution.
Cloud gaming technology allows you to stream games on any device without powerful and expensive hardware. Instead of creating a high-end system with expensive GPUs, you can simply rely on a remote server for graphic rendering and processing and stream it to your humble PC, laptop, handheld device, or console. Revolutionary indeed!
When Palpatine said this line in Star Wars: Episode II, he or the writers couldn’t possibly imagine how it would get memed to oblivion by GenZ. However, when gaming on cloud gaming goes mainstream, that’s exactly what’s going to happen and make everyone go- ‘I love democracy’.
You don’t need to spend thousands of dollars every year to upgrade your gaming rig. Instead, pay a nominal monthly subscription fee to cloud gaming companies who would do it for their servers and let you stream the latest AAA titles. It democratizes high-end gaming and expands the market massively for gaming studios.
You know what’s more infuriating than paying thousands of dollars to upgrade your rig? It’s paying an absurd amount for new game titles. A decade ago, you could get the most graphically advanced game for around $50. Now AAA titles release an unfinished game at $90 and then extract as much money as possible from you with a steady release of DLCs (Downloadable Content).
Cloud computing for gaming can change this exploitative system with a subscription model like Netflix. Instead of paying hundreds of dollars for every title, you pay a nominal subscription fee of around $20 to $30 every month. So, for around $240 a year or the price of three high-end games, you can access a vast library of titles on demand. You get to save money while gaming studios get a steady stream of income instead of unstable sale cycles.
The gaming industry lost around $74 billion to piracy in just 2014. Several estimates suggest that it continues to lose billions every year. With cloud gaming and the affordable subscription model, this loss can be mitigated to a great extent.
For instance, when the now-popular music and podcast streaming platform Spotify introduced its subscription model, it helped reduce piracy in the music industry to a great extent. The same may happen for the gaming industry as cloud gaming becomes much more convenient and affordable than the risks of pirating a game.
As cloud gaming reduces piracy, it also makes gamers less vulnerable to computer malware, and viruses. If you don’t need to scour the dark corners of the internet to download a game file that’s been infected with spyware, you don’t get hacked.
Cloud gaming is a great step towards making gamers more secure. Moreover, as games get stored on servers with top-notch protection measures and get streamed over secure connections, there are fewer vulnerabilities to exploit.
Can’t wait to try cloud gaming for yourself? Well, you can try out some of the best cloud gaming services from:
What AAA games have you been itching to play with cloud gaming? Let us know in the comments.
Mr. Robert Willson is one of the few geeks who never gets tired when it comes to technology. From the latest gadgets to AI and machine learning, Mr. Willson translates them into easy-to-digest insights. Where there is tech, there is him!
