Google Calls it Quits on Game Streaming, Shutting Down Stadia

[Ferrum Master]

I even remember arguing with some dudes here, that this thing will hit the bucket sooner or later.

 

[cvaldes]

I wonder if there will be any way to repurpose the controller once Stadia shuts down.

The Stadia controller has always worked as a wired device, recognized by Windows as a pretty typical Xinput gamepad.

Here's me pressing LT on the website gamepad-tester.com

As one can see, even this web-based utility recognizes the device. While apparently it has Bluetooth capability, this feature was never enabled. It does have wifi connectivity which allowed it to talk directly with Google Stadia servers to reduce input lag; this functionality will die when Google shuts down their Stadia servers in January 2023.

The gamepad -- created entirely in-house -- is pretty comfortable. It is obvious that people who actually play games designed this device.

Here's TechRadar's musings on the Stadia Controller:

As Google Stadia dies, spare a thought for its fantastic controller

Party pad

www.techradar.com

The Chromecast that mine shipped with presumably functions as a standalone Chromecast (2nd generation) would. It's a decidedly archaic device in this realm, doing 1080p @ 30 Hz or 720p @ 60 Hz. As a standalone product it was discontinued about a year before Stadia launched so Google was probably trying to repurpose existing inventory.

My Chromecast will likely get e-cycled.

I actually bought the Stadia bundle heavily discounted for the controller as a backup device. I never intended to use the Stadia service although I did fire it up a couple of times to see what the performance and user experience was like. It wasn't great but it wasn't unplayable either and I have a pretty pokey DSL connection.

 

[lexluthermiester]

The reality is Google is a profiteering company, if it wasnt it wouldnt need your personal information for profit.

No one can argue with that point, but then show us all a business that isn't seeking profit...

I even remember arguing with some dudes here, that this thing will hit the bucket sooner or later.

Yeah, that was likely me. I've been against Stadia from the start. I'm against game streaming at all or in any form, save one, Nintendo WiiU. And I don't consider it game streaming as much as a wireless Audio/Video connection.

 

[Ferrum Master]

No one can argue with that point, but then show us all a business that isn't seeking profit...


Yeah, that was likely me. I've been against Stadia from the start. I'm against game streaming at all or in any form, save one, Nintendo WiiU. And I don't consider it game streaming as much as a wireless Audio/Video connection.

Microsoft Store

Yeah, that was likely me. I've been against Stadia from the start. I'm against game streaming at all or in any form, save one, Nintendo WiiU. And I don't consider it game streaming as much as a wireless Audio/Video connection.

Then it would be the time we are on the same page. It was someone else... maybe just the fact we often argue, but maybe not this time.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Then it would be the time we are on the same page. It was someone else... maybe just the fact we often argue, but maybe not this time.

Fair enough.

 

[SOAREVERSOR]

What other cloud gaming services "shut down so quickly"?

To their credit, Google is refunding content purchases (including add-on content) as well as hardware purchased through the Stadia and Google Stores. So yes, one would have to repurchase the game but they wouldn't be out any extra cash in the end.

I still believe that cloud game streaming has a niche; some company will eventually figure out the right combination of content, hardware, software and pricing to make this happen. My guess is that it will happen on mobile (handhelds like smartphones or notebook PCs) before it ends up on desktop PCs.

PC is due to go first. Then consoles. Lastly handhelds. PC is the king of licensing and infected the rest. Really "own it" is going the way of retro boxes and odd ball retro stuff. Which meh, I'm fine with really. It's really going to be AAA stuff and not indie stuff though.

 

[cvaldes]

PC won’t be the first to go. All the content is designed and built on PC. You don’t need a 4090 to play games but it’ll be a favored choice as a tool because it makes development easier.

Cloud game streaming basically runs off of PC anyhow (well, virtual ones) like NVIDIA’s GeForce NOW service.

Content will gradually move that direction with fast action, low latency competitive FPS titles being toward the end of the migration. Nintendo is taking a very slow, deliberate and careful approach in releasing cloud titles.

And no one (sane at least) expects a total switchover overnight. I still listen to music from terrestrial radio stations and play audio CDs. Some people have vinyl records.

There will be lots of overlap for years.

But as long as PCs are used for content generation, some people will favor it for content consumption.

 

[RJARRRPCGP]

Another one bites the dust
Another one bites the dust
And another one gone and another one gone
Another one bites the dust

Called it, I knew that this would join the Google Graveyard.

Reminds me of Google+.

 

[Dr. Dro]

I still believe that cloud game streaming has a niche; some company will eventually figure out the right combination of content, hardware, software and pricing to make this happen. My guess is that it will happen on mobile (handhelds like smartphones or notebook PCs) before it ends up on desktop PCs.

It's best provided as a value add to a service package. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate got it right, you subscribe to it and play all games offered on it on your platform of choice - Xbox, PC, mobile or even your smart TV - at no additional cost. Sony just didn't allow MS to publish a XGP client for the PlayStation, or they would have, or so the story has it. Stadia's model of having to buy your games to play on their servers was literally insane, the only shame is that with Stadia, will die the only version of Final Fantasy XV that ran on Vulkan. I'd like to think Square Enix would release this build for us on Windows... but fat chance.

It is my belief that mobile gaming will continue to outpace PC gaming and Console gaming but I am indifferent to Mobile gaming. I don't even own a tablet and I never game on my cell phone.

I mean, mobile gaming is something born of convenience, the install base is in the billions and mobile phones have grown into powerful pocket-sized computers, and we are almost at the point where the very latest generation phones finally have acceptable battery life under 3D graphics workloads.

The only mobile game I play is NieR Re[in]carnation, and it runs like utter trash on my Galaxy S10+ (Exynos 9820 version), requiring me to drop to the lowest settings and draining its aged battery from 100 to 0 in mere minutes... it's insane. This is a 3 year old device and in the Android world, it's an elderly, ancient museum piece, it's so out of style not even the phone shops carry cases for it anymore, even if it'd be a rather newish and serviceable iPhone.

 

[RJARRRPCGP]

it runs like utter trash on my Galaxy S10+ (Exynos 9820 version), requiring me to drop to the lowest settings and draining its aged battery from 100 to 0 in mere minutes... it's insane.

That sounds more like something I expect from a 2017 Moto e4! In fact, the 2017 Moto e4 boots as slow AF!

I hope you disabled "game mode" on Android for the Galaxy S10+!

 

[Dr. Dro]

That sounds more like something I expect from a 2017 Moto e4! In fact, the 2017 Moto e4 boots as slow AF!

I hope you disabled "game mode" on Android for the Galaxy S10+!

Most generic tasks are still adequate (not as snappy as it used to be but, usable), but high-end 3D games are no go on the Exynos version of this phone. I hear the Snapdragon version aged significantly better, though it's also abandoned and will no longer receive updates from Samsung as an EOL device.

The battery issue is aggravating since this phone isn't really user-repairable, requiring tools which I do not have - Samsung wants more than it's worth to replace it and as it's about 3 years old (and thus has over 1000 cycles in it already), it has already begun to seriously decay through normal use. Most of the time I just leave it looping that game to farm stuff for me, I do my normal play on an Android emulator on my PC.

Hugh (YouTuber that fixes a lot of phones and shows the internals on newer iPhones and all) did a do-over on an S10+ back in 2020, but as you can see... it's got so much adhesive everywhere and that glass back is just gonna snap on me, I know it will. I'm just going to purchase a new phone once I get myself more active again.

 

[RJARRRPCGP]

I Bing'ed my model, the SM-G975U and it looks like it's a Snapdragon.

 

[Dr. Dro]

I Bing'ed my model, the SM-G975U and it looks like it's a Snapdragon.

Yeah, that is a Snapdragon model. Mine is SM-G975F/DS.

 

[openbox1980]

Some phone are closed to or already at TB storage, so 50GB may be insignificant to those phones.

Did someone call me

Yeah. "Thanks for coming to work today. Your efforts have been greatly appreciated. Oh and by the way, you're fired. So is the rest of your team. So is your manager. And his manager. Thanks again, bye."

you're fired, no you're fired, you're fired, everyone get a you're fired

 

[lexluthermiester]

Really "own it" is going the way of retro boxes and odd ball retro stuff.

If you really think that, I would like to know what drugs you're on and are you will share??

PC won’t be the first to go. All the content is designed and built on PC.

I think they were talking just about streaming, but then again, they did make the statement about "own it", so who knows..

 

[Vayra86]

PC is due to go first. Then consoles. Lastly handhelds. PC is the king of licensing and infected the rest. Really "own it" is going the way of retro boxes and odd ball retro stuff. Which meh, I'm fine with really. It's really going to be AAA stuff and not indie stuff though.

Nah. Own it is a token of the 'haves' in society, and 'rent it' is that of the 'have nots'.

This is almost an economical law, just large groups fail to realize this. You either manage to save money to own things or you havent done that and never will, relegating you to the bottom of the ladder slowly but certainly.

It goes for everything. Buy house = make money by living. Rent house = throw money in a pit to live. Buy and (if you want) sell anything versus renting it is the same thing. Its about return on investment versus just blatant consuming things without any return.

Its no coincidence that the prevalence of 'services' grows along with an increasing gap between poor and rich

And its the core reason I do everything to keep returning expenses low. And that means cloud gaming never happens over here, and I own content or dont consume it, most of the time.

 

[Imouto]

Nah. Own it is a token of the 'haves' in society, and 'rent it' is that of the 'have nots'.

This is almost an economical law, just large groups fail to realize this. You either manage to save money to own things or you havent done that and never will, relegating you to the bottom of the ladder slowly but certainly.

It goes for everything. Buy house = make money by living. Rent house = throw money in a pit to live. Buy and (if you want) sell anything versus renting it is the same thing. Its about return on investment versus just blatant consuming things without any return.

Its no coincidence that the prevalence of 'services' grows along with an increasing gap between poor and rich

And its the core reason I do everything to keep returning expenses low. And that means cloud gaming never happens over here, and I own content or dont consume it, most of the time.

What a screwed take on the matter.

Society has developed an addiction for media name it TV shows, movies, music, video games... and due to the impossibility of buying everything we want to go through such services appeared to take on that problem. This is old as renting media was a thing before the Internet. Why would you buy a movie you'd watch once when you can rent it for 2€. Like it a lot and plan to watch it several times? Buy it.

Comparing this consumerism to owning a house in which you can invest because you NEED it for shelter is inane.

 

[AusWolf]

What a screwed take on the matter.

Society has developed an addiction for media name it TV shows, movies, music, video games... and due to the impossibility of buying everything we want to go through such services appeared to take on that problem. This is old as renting media was a thing before the Internet. Why would you buy a movie you'd watch once when you can rent it for 2€. Like it a lot and plan to watch it several times? Buy it.

Comparing this consumerism to owning a house in which you can invest because you NEED it for shelter is inane.

And that is the problem! I mean, why are we addicted to consumer stuff in the first place? Why do we have to watch every single shitty movie once? Why do we have to play every copy of a copy of a game once? Do we really need Batman 9874649? Do we really need Call of Duty 349567? I personally don't. If I find one or two good movie or game among the hundreds released every year, I'm happy. If I don't, no problem. I still have lots of old favourites, and also a huge backlog of all the stuff I want to go through. I also have a full-time job. And a girlfriend. And friends. I don't have time to watch and play literally everything. But I'd rather own the handful of movies and games that I do enjoy, so I can play / watch them again if I want to, when I want to without any need to pay for them again. Consumerism is a shitty take on life.

 

[AsRock]

What a screwed take on the matter.

Society has developed an addiction for media name it TV shows, movies, music, video games... and due to the impossibility of buying everything we want to go through such services appeared to take on that problem. This is old as renting media was a thing before the Internet. Why would you buy a movie you'd watch once when you can rent it for 2€. Like it a lot and plan to watch it several times? Buy it.

Comparing this consumerism to owning a house in which you can invest because you NEED it for shelter is inane.

Having the media self is more dependable. And some one who value's a movie\TV Show should own a physical copy because it's worth owning.

Good movies\TV Shows are worth watching more than once, why should i keep buying to watch over and over. And if you have a local thrift store you can pick most up for $1-$2.

 

[efikkan]

Stadia was doomed from the beginning for the same reason as all other game streaming services; latency.
Most games, even most casual games, will never work well enough.

Their big play is for GaaS, which in practice translates to ongoing subscriptions, in-game purchases, microtransactions, etc. Fortnite is free to play, they make their money from cosmetics, etc.

Many big game publishers are going this route, but I think we as consumers should fight back with out wallets. I call it the dark side of the gaming markets, not just because they are cynical, greedy and prioritize quantity over quality, but primarily because they are exploiting people who become addicted to gaming. Among young gamers, this pressure may not just come from the gaming companies themselves, as they often are faced with grinding for hours vs. paying an extra fee to be able to play with their friends.

 

[Vayra86]

What a screwed take on the matter.

Society has developed an addiction for media name it TV shows, movies, music, video games... and due to the impossibility of buying everything we want to go through such services appeared to take on that problem. This is old as renting media was a thing before the Internet. Why would you buy a movie you'd watch once when you can rent it for 2€. Like it a lot and plan to watch it several times? Buy it.

Comparing this consumerism to owning a house in which you can invest because you NEED it for shelter is inane.

Its called an uncomfortable truth. You are right it was always possible to hire stuff, rent movies etc. But this escalates for some and short term 'must have now' wins from long term considerations.

 

[Imouto]

And that is the problem! I mean, why are we addicted to consumer stuff in the first place? Why do we have to watch every single shitty movie once? Why do we have to play every copy of a copy of a game once? Do we really need Batman 9874649? Do we really need Call of Duty 349567? I personally don't. If I find one or two good movie or game among the hundreds released every year, I'm happy. If I don't, no problem. I still have lots of old favourites, and also a huge backlog of all the stuff I want to go through. I also have a full-time job. And a girlfriend. And friends. I don't have time to watch and play literally everything. But I'd rather own the handful of movies and games that I do enjoy, so I can play / watch them again if I want to, when I want to without any need to pay for them again. Consumerism is a shitty take on life.

Because it's comfortable to disconnect and let whatever media you are drawn to do the driving. People that sat their life away in front of a TV now is doing the same with these services with the difference that now you have more choice in the matter.

I wasn't trying to justify them, just giving the reasons and calling out such a stretch of a comparison.

 

[cvaldes]

It's not that much different than centuries ago: reading a book, watching a play at the Globe Theater or Mozart conduct his latest symphony, playing cards with your cronies at the pub, chess at a coffeeshop.

No one is being forced to subscribe to Disney+, to go to the library to check out audio CDs, watch some kid in Argentina play Apex Legends on Twitch.

And no one is expected to like all of the choice. No one can please everyone all the time. If you don't like cloud game streaming services, don't use them. But the fact of the matter is that they will likely appeal to a certain segment of the population. That's fine.

 

[AusWolf]

Because it's comfortable to disconnect and let whatever media you are drawn to do the driving. People that sat their life away in front of a TV now is doing the same with these services with the difference that now you have more choice in the matter.

I wasn't trying to justify them, just giving the reasons and calling out such a stretch of a comparison.

That's fair enough. I still say that just because millions of people do something, it doesn't mean that thing is the good, or right thing to do.

 

[DeathtoGnomes]

Stadia would have had a bit more longevity if there was a more powerful Chromecast device could at least also act like a full Android device; install some games onto it and just play it on the screen. Basically a much better version of the Ouya (which used a proprietary library instead of a common Android library). I wonder if there will be any way to repurpose the controller once Stadia shuts down.

the controller needs a bluetooth update to make it work like any other.

Stadia controllers could become e-waste unless Google issues Bluetooth update

One firmware push could let Stadia fans keep their favorite wireless controller.

arstechnica.com

The Stadia controller has always worked as a wired device, recognized by Windows as a pretty typical Xinput gamepad.

Here's me pressing LT on the website gamepad-tester.com

View attachment 263765

As one can see, even this web-based utility recognizes the device. While apparently it has Bluetooth capability, this feature was never enabled. It does have wifi connectivity which allowed it to talk directly with Google Stadia servers to reduce input lag; this functionality will die when Google shuts down their Stadia servers in January 2023.

The gamepad -- created entirely in-house -- is pretty comfortable. It is obvious that people who actually play games designed this device.

Here's TechRadar's musings on the Stadia Controller:

As Google Stadia dies, spare a thought for its fantastic controller

Party pad

www.techradar.com

The Chromecast that mine shipped with presumably functions as a standalone Chromecast (2nd generation) would. It's a decidedly archaic device in this realm, doing 1080p @ 30 Hz or 720p @ 60 Hz. As a standalone product it was discontinued about a year before Stadia launched so Google was probably trying to repurpose existing inventory.

My Chromecast will likely get e-cycled.

I actually bought the Stadia bundle heavily discounted for the controller as a backup device. I never intended to use the Stadia service although I did fire it up a couple of times to see what the performance and user experience was like. It wasn't great but it wasn't unplayable either and I have a pretty pokey DSL connection.

I see your TechRadar and raise you one ArsTechncia