Google Stadia has proven to be one of the most cutting-edge video game streaming technologies, being one of the best platforms to enjoy titles like Cyberpunk 2077 (even on your mobile). However, it is a platform that is still young and that of course was susceptible to all kinds of changes.
Today we know one that perhaps many players will be shocked, and that is that Google has decided to cut back on what would be one of the key pillars for many of the gamers, but if we think about it coldly, it does not have too much significance.
Google will stop investing in its own developments
Google launched Stadia in 2019, a year before the arrival of next-gen consoles. The platformstreaming videogames arrived loaded with ambitions, with great promises in its integration with YouTube, the possibility of sharing games with a simple link and development tools that would allow to create excellent games.
One of the highlights was the creation of a self-developed studio through which they would create exclusive titles for Stadia. As the months have passed, Google has realizedthat creating video games is very expensive economically, and the cost of these developments grows exponentially. As a result, they have decided to stop investing in their own studio, which will finalize the active projects and which will be transferred to other teams within the company as they finish.
Stadia won’t have games first party developed by the company itself. For the traditional player this is a terrible situation, since historically these types of games are the ones that have the greatest responsibility when it comes to a player opting for one console or another. What at first seems something very negative, on the other hand is a wiser decision than it seems.
The magic of exclusives and their zero impact on the cloud
When Google entered the video game business it wanted to start from a consolidated base, which is why they pursued their own studios. Nintendo consoles are sold for Nintendo games, and the same goes for PlayStation and Xbox. In order to sell many consoles (and to make a cut of the game sales of each one of them) it is necessary to have games that you cannot play on other platforms.
This model works very well on consoles because, having to invest hundreds of euros in one, it ends up committing and playing everything on that console for several years. A rule that seemed unalterable in the gaming world but that in thestreamingvideo games doesn’t make that much sense.
One of the advantages of cloud gaming is that the barrier to entry is ridiculous. You can take your mobile, television or old computer and the most you will have to buy to play is a controller (or not even that, if you play with a keyboard, mouse or controllers that you already have at home). Similarly, the absence of a barrier to entry prevents the strategy from exclusive functions.
The best possible case for Google with an exclusive title is that it sells relatively well, and see you later. A clear example is Gylt, that you can get to Stadia, buy it, play it and when you spend it, never open Stadia again in your life. Yes, it is true that Google has made a profit by selling the game, but such an exclusive does not provide the benefit that it would bring to a console.
Why focus on what you don’t know how to do when you can allocate your resources to empowering what you are already good at?
In 2021, we are expanding our efforts to help video game developers and distributors to take advantage of the technology on our platform to deliver better games. We see this as a great opportunity to work with our partners to find a gaming solution built on Stadia’s advanced infrastructure and development tools. We believe it is the best way to turn Stadia into a long-term sustainable business that helps the industry grow.
This message from Google makes it clear to us that since its launch they have tried to build a complete ecosystem of games to realize that they do not have to follow the conventions of the video game industry.Google is an internet service company, not a video game company. Its strength and sense in the industry is to offer the most cutting-edge platform and tools possible that allow those who already know how to make great video games can dedicate themselves to that, to create great video games. They could go the way of Microsoft, but it would take decades and they can no longer get hold of the dozens of studios that Microsoft has bought over the years.
At the end of the day, games like Cyberpunk 2077 have done a lot more for Stadia expansion than Gylt or Orc Must Die 3, games that are fun but don’t play in the same league.
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