JAY JOSHI
There was a time when everyone thought they were only meant for kids, but today they have evolved to engage players across all ages and genders. Since the first computer game was made around 1940, video games have come a long way. After the idea of playing games on TV was first conceived by Ralph Baer in 1966, and the first home game console was developed in 1972, there has been a kind of competition between consoles and PCs when it comes to gaming, and now it seems like that competition is about to end.
In recent years, video games have been evolving with eye-dazzling speed, integrating latest technology and delivering the best quality in graphics, but gaming platforms had remained separated over the years with gaming consoles such as PlayStation, XBox etc offering games on TV and PCs offering their own version of gaming experience. Mobile gaming too has opened up a new segment, but the point is, could you pause a game on TV and them resume it on your phone or PC from the point you left it off? One game across many platforms, which thousands of players can play seamlessly in real time- these are the possibilities that have been seemingly unlocked by the new product on the gaming horizon: Google Stadia.
It was for long rumoured that Google is set to foray into video game market with a ‘Google console’, and they finally came true with the birth of Stadia. This service promises to eliminate the disks, and the need to download games from the Internet, offering instead to stream the game directly to your device using cloud computing. Since the game will be stored on cloud, you could play it on any platform-PC, TV, tablet mobile -in HD and 4k graphics quality. Google claims that the game will run on any hardware that you have. What’s more, they have also designed a special WiFi enabled controller that lets you seek help from Google assistant when you get stuck at any level of the game.
There is no doubt that all of this is certainly impressive, but there are doubts whether this venture will actually resonate with the users. Google has in the past tried to bring innovative products, but the technology has failed to attract customers. Remember Google glasses and Google Wave for instance? And despite all its might, Google foray into social networking with Google+ was also a spectacular failure.
Coming back to Stadia, it looks good, but you’re going to need quite a powerful Internet connection to play streamed games in 4k. Secondly, if the service is this good, it’s bound to be a bit costly at least in the beginning. Last but not the least, how long should one wait till this comes to India? Or what if it disappears before going global like Google glass did?
