In what could be a major blow to games retailers, as well as Microsoft and Sony, Google has started to roll out their partners for their new Stadia gaming platform and they include some of the biggest names in the business.
The $14 a month service will launch in November with a limited-edition starter pack for early adopters along with several older videogames, a Founder’s Edition bundle available for $186 will also be launched.
Google says there will be at least 30 games at launch, from big studios such as Bethesda, EA Games, Rockstar, Sega, Square Enix, Warner Bros and Ubisoft.
Some of the big titles include Doom, Destiny 2, Final Fantasy XV, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, and Tom Clancy’s The Division 2.
However, some big studios such as Activision Blizzard, which makes Overwatch, and Epic Games, which makes Fortnite, are not on board yet.
The service will be available in 14 countries in November, including the U.S, Australia is believed to be one of those Countries.
Google said the service will include a line-up of roughly 30 games.
The key to success will rest on how many new blockbusters Google will ultimately sell through Stadia, analysts said, in addition to the quality of the nascent technology supporting it. Google said it plans to add more games down the line.
Studios such as EA and Bethesda will provide games but big developers, such as Epic Games, are still missing.
The company says that will give gamers over 10 teraflops of graphics processing – more than Xbox One and PS4 combined.
But it remains to be seen how well it will work in the real world. At this stage no reviews of the new service are available however attendees to E3 are tipped to get access.
ChannelNews understands that the Company intends to mount a major pre-Christmas promotion for the $189 Founders Edition pack that includes a dark blue Stadia controller, a Chromecast Ultra TV stick and a three-month subscription to Stadia Pro.
Google says that to stream games in ultra-high definition 4K, players will need an internet connection that can deliver download speeds of 35Mbps and upload speeds of 1Mbps.
The company recommends a speed of at least 10Mbps to stream games in a lower resolution.
For comparison, Sony’s PlayStation Now cloud gaming service requires 5Mbps to stream games in 720p resolution.
