RIP Stadia? Nvidia’s newly launched cloud-gaming service is (mostly) a stunner
Imagine it: a video game streaming service that lets you log on to the cloud, access games you already own on multiple storefronts (including free-to-play fare), and play them on any Windows, Mac, or Android device. You'd need nothing more than a broadband connection. You'd get snappy, low-latency performance, including tolerable stats on your router's 5Ghz wireless band. And you could access all of this for free.
All of this was what we had hoped to get out of Google Stadia, which arrived in November with promises of a tantalizing "Netflix for games" model. But that streaming service's launch was immediately hobbled with device restrictions, pricing confusion, and a terribly limited (and closed) games library. Instead, the above description comes courtesy of an utter surprise, launching today in both free and paid tiers: Nvidia's GeForce Now.
After a months-long closed beta, GeForce Now opens to the public sometime today (perhaps the moment this article goes live). Download its app on a supported device, then hook up your preferred control method (gamepad, mouse+keyboard) and connect to one of Nvidia's servers. You'll boot into a virtualized Windows PC on the cloud, which then loads one of "hundreds" of supported games as sold by Steam, Epic Games Store, Battle.net, uPlay, the Bethesda Launcher, and Origin. From there, the server's gameplay feed and your button presses go back and forth so that your low-powered device can stream high-end 3D video games.
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