With the rise in popularity of online gaming, Google — who basically owns the Internet — is looking for innovative ways to get into the industry. While Microsoft and Sony are generally looked at as the leaders in the clubhouse thanks to the uber successful consoles and such, Google’s new Project Stream is expected to disrupt and influence gaming in a way no one has yet seen before.
One thing that we’ve all been introduced to over the years is mobile gaming, where we’ve been able to play our favorite games on smartphones and/or tablets via apps and downloads. However, Google’s Project Stream is giving gamers the chance to stream video games to these types of devices through its Chrome web browser, an innovation that should put smiles on the faces of gamers everywhere.
Using large amounts of data through the Chrome browser, games with a connection of at least 25 megabits per second are testing Google’s idea playing the popular game Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. From this test, the Internet giant will be able to determine what tweaks it may need to make in order for this idea to become a reality.
According to the Google blog, per Metro UK, here’s how they describe its new project.
“The idea of streaming such graphically-rich content that requires near-instant interaction between the game controller and the graphics on the screen poses a number of challenges’, reads a Google blog on the subject. “When streaming TV or movies, consumers are comfortable with a few seconds of buffering at the start, but streaming high-quality games requires latency measured in milliseconds, with no graphic degradation.”
Although the aforementioned companies like Sony and Microsoft, among others, may be looked at as the leading gaming developers in the world, Google’s total gaming revenue rose 32 percent in 2017, topping $5.3 billion, per Newzoo, which makes it the world’s seventh largest publicly traded game publisher. With Google’s Android phone already the most widely used mobile OS in the world, its Project Stream is the latest indication that the company is serious about the cloud-based mobile gaming market.
Added Google’s Project Manager Catherine Hsiao, “we’re inspired by the game creators who spend years crafting these amazing worlds, adventures and experiences, and we’re building technology that we hope will support and empower that creativity.”
Although Google has yet to announce any payment options for Project Stream, as it clearly won’t be free all the time, one would imagine the company partners with other industry leaders to figure out how to provide some of the world’s largest titles through an Internet browser. This should be exciting for gamers everywhere, so stay tuned on any future updates.