Game streaming thanks to the cloud has become a big selling point on all the new subscription services that have cropped up in recent years. Both Microsoft and Sony offer it on their respective subscription services, offering apps on various devices to let you play games on anything with a screen. Some are even saying that someday soon we won’t even need game consoles at all.
Speaking at an event showcasing Samsung’s 2022 line of smart TVs, Microsoft’s senior global product manager at Xbox Game Pass Pav Bhardwaj said that the cloud is definitely here.
"Compared to eight years ago, things have moved on so much in terms of bandwidth, technology," Bhardwaj told GamesIndustry.biz. "But at the same time, people's expectations have also increased in parallel with that. I think we've got to the inflection point where we can deliver cloud gaming services through Smart TVs in the same way that Disney+ or Netflix is delivered, at that level [of quality]--and you don't need a console."
Samsung’s new TVs now come with a tab called "The Hub" which comes preloaded with game streaming services like Game Pass, GeForce Now, and Google Stadia. Bhardwaj also touted the convenience of cloud gaming, with no downloads and the ability to play on mobile devices too.
However, Bhardwaj also acknowledged that cloud gaming isn’t yet ready to completely replace consoles. "Some people are always going to love playing on consoles, having a console in their living room to download and have that experience," he said. "I love consoles--this is just another route, another option to open up gaming to other people. It's not that one is a detriment to the other, this is more of a rising tide, and it's a really good place to be in to offer all these different opportunities. There's still PC, and there'll be new form factors that come out in future."
Bhardwaj added, "Consoles are beloved, and cloud gaming is just a great alternative."
It's not just gamers that can benefit from the cloud, though. Sony recently purchased Haven Entertainment in part because of its innovative game development that's entirely cloud based.