The Google Stadia controller launched alongside Google Stadia 6 months ago and was touted as the controller for all platforms with integrated ultra-low latency features. However, PC users could not take advantage of the ultra-low latency features which connects the Stadia controller directly to your Wi-Fi router. PC users have instead had to connect their controller to their PC with a USB Type-C cable. Some users report that this will increase compatibility on obscure systems by offloading the input handling to Stadia's servers.

"Starting this week, you can now use the Stadia Controller to play wirelessly on your laptop and desktop. You no longer need to connect your Stadia Controller physically to your computer to play your favorite games. You'll be able to link your Stadia Controller and Stadia.com through your Wi-Fi network and play without a USB-C cable connection."

Google Stadia has unveiled several new games and changes coming to the platform in a recent Stadia Connect Event. Google Stadia will be adding 11 new games to the platform, along with updates for Stadia Pro subscribers. The Pioneer Edition of PUBG will be free for Stadia Pro subscribers and $39.99 USD for other users. Stadia also announced that EA would be joining the platform with Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order coming this fall, along with Madden NFL & FIFA coming this winter. Stadia will also be launching some various other new games such as Crayta, Get Packed, Wave Break, Embr, Zombie Army 4: Dead War, The Turing Test, and SteamWorld Heist in the coming weeks.

Google Stadia is set to hold their first Stadia Connect event in over 8 months tomorrow the 28th April at 9 AM PT / 6 PM CET / 5 PM BST. Google has announced that several new games coming to the platform will be revealed at the event, whether these games will be from existing third parties or new Stadia exclusives is yet to be known. Google has not announced any exclusives for the platform this far, making it possible that Google might have some games lined up to announce. The stream can be viewed live on the Google Stadia YouTube channel and will be available to watch on-demand after the event. W̶e̶ ̶w̶i̶l̶l̶ ̶b̶e̶ ̶s̶u̶r̶e̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶u̶p̶d̶a̶t̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶p̶o̶s̶t̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶a̶l̶l̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶d̶e̶t̶a̶i̶l̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶y̶ ̶a̶r̶e̶ ̶a̶n̶n̶o̶u̶n̶c̶e̶d̶ ̶t̶o̶m̶o̶r̶r̶o̶w̶.̶ Google has unveiled 11 new games for the platform, full details can be viewed here.

Today Google announced that it would be opening up registration for Stadia's free tier, and that all new and existing customers will receive two months of Stadia Pro for free in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Google Stadia is available in 14 countries and the pro tier will give users access to 9 free games including GRID and Destiny 2.

We're facing some of the most challenging times in recent memory. Keeping social distance is vital, but staying home for long periods can be difficult and feel isolating. Video games can be a valuable way to socialize with friends and family when you're stuck at home, so we're giving gamers in 14 countries free access to Stadia Pro for two months. This is starting today and rolling out over the next 48 hours.

In a report by the New York Times, plans by Amazon to launch a new cloud gaming product in the already crowded field were detailed. Dubbed "Project Tempo" the project has reportedly been in development for several months and at the cost of several hundred million dollars. Amazon hopes to develop new AAA games to accompany the launch of the service which will integrate with its popular game streaming platform Twitch.

The project is one of Amazon's largest investments in original entertainment since its founding, and places them in a prime position to compete with Google's Stadia, Microsoft's Project xCloud, NVIDIA's GeForce NOW and the countless other game streaming platforms. One advantage Amazon possesses is its vast network of data centers as part of Amazon Web Services which will play a significant role in ensuring the service achieves the minimal latency required for an optimal experience. Amazon's vice president for game services and studios has stated: "The big picture is about trying to take the best of Amazon and bringing it to games" in regards to the game making process. The first of Amazon's major game releases will be New World a fantasy MMO in May which will be followed by more games throughout the year, primarily targeting hardcore gamers.

With its 7 nm RDNA architecture that debuted in July 2019, AMD achieved a nearly 50% gain in performance/Watt over the previous "Vega" architecture. At its 2020 Financial Analyst Day event, AMD made a big disclosure: that its upcoming RDNA2 architecture will offer a similar 50% performance/Watt jump over RDNA. The new RDNA2 graphics architecture is expected to leverage 7 nm+ (7 nm EUV), which offers up to 18% transistor-density increase over 7 nm DUV, among other process-level improvements. AMD could tap into this to increase price-performance by serving up more compute units at existing price-points, running at higher clock speeds.

AMD has two key design goals with RDNA2 that helps it close the feature-set gap with NVIDIA: real-time ray-tracing, and variable-rate shading, both of which have been standardized by Microsoft under DirectX 12 DXR and VRS APIs. AMD announced that RDNA2 will feature dedicated ray-tracing hardware on die. On the software side, the hardware will leverage industry-standard DXR 1.1 API. The company is supplying RDNA2 to next-generation game console manufacturers such as Sony and Microsoft, so it's highly likely that AMD's approach to standardized ray-tracing will have more takers than NVIDIA's RTX ecosystem that tops up DXR feature-sets with its own RTX feature-set.

Today, Ubisoft announced Gods & MonstersTM, an all-new action-adventure game developed by Ubisoft Quebec, the team behind Assassin's Creed Odyssey, will launch worldwide on February 25th, 2020. This open world fantasy adventure features a beautiful art style, and engages players in a fantastical world as they use godlike abilities to defeat famed mythological beasts and save the Greek gods in a heroic journey for the ages.

In Gods & Monsters players embody Fenyx, a forgotten hero on a quest to restore power to the Greek gods after it was stolen by Typhon, the deadliest creature in Greek mythology. Players will explore the Isle of the Blessed and prove their heroism as they face dangerous mythological creatures, including fearsome Gorgons, Harpies and mighty Cyclopes. Gifted with special powers from the gods of Olympus, players must overcome treacherous dungeons, challenging trials and perform heroic feats on their journey to save the gods.

The next chapter in the smash-hit reboot of the genre-defining FPS, "DOOM Eternal," is releasing on November 22nd, 2019. Everybody's favorite run-and-gun monster-slaughter simulator will be released on PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch. It will also come to Google Stadia as a streamed game, just a week following the platform's launch. The premise of this game is simple, Hell has come to the Earth, and brought the Doom Slayer with it. "Eternal" also includes new multiplayer game modes, including "battlemode," where two player-controlled demons face a fully-loaded Doom Slayer. The game is up for pre-order on Steam, if you're already sold on the game by watching its E3 2019 trailer."DOOM Eternal" story trailer follows.

Google's Stadia platform will be the first serious effort to bring cloud gaming to the masses - a first, real step in a game that Microsoft and Sony are pursuing as well which will change the outlook for entertainment hardware development as we know it. The company has just announced that its Stadia Pro service will be launching come November of this year, with a $130 upfront cost for a Founder's Edition, which includes a limited edition Night Blue Stadia Controller, Chromecast Ultra, a free copy of Destiny 2, and 3 months of Stadia Pro for users and a special friend of theirs.

Besides this Founder's Edition pack, Stadia will be available in two packages. The Pro, which goes for $9.99 a month and allows you to play games up to 4K at 60 FPS with HDR and 5.1 surround, and the base version, which will be free of charge but limited to 1080p 60 FPS. You will always require a Chromecast Ultra and a Stadia controller, which will run you $70 each, though - so if this is up your alley, the Founder's Edition seems like a good setup, including three moths of games and the free-to-play-going Destiny 2. So they're not actually offering a game here - they're offering access to it through their cloud. Remember that unlike other subscription services, excluding free to play games, you'll always have to purchase each game you're going to play on the platform - it will be a digital storefront like any other.

Jon Peddie Research has released a new report on the state of gaming and its future, with the research firm estimating a total of 20 million PC gamers will make the shift to console gaming by 2022. It does make sense, as the no-frills architecture of consoles and highly specialized hardware and development - alongside the lower cost of entry) have been calling gamers from all ages and budgets. Add to this the fact that IQ considerations are becoming smaller and smaller between a high-end gaming PC and their console counterparts - at least when it comes to global, base IQ of settings - and it does make sense that makers make the shift.

Adding to this is the expectation of increased doubling-down on exclusives from games consoles, with the exception of Microsoft, which will be bringing all of its exclusives to the PC market as well. The increased attention to game streaming, with Google's Stadia and Microsoft's own xCloud will prompt change in the way gamers consume content - no dedicated hardware may mean no consoles, but it will also mean no need to purchase expensive, high-end PC gaming hardware to run the latest games with the latest graphics technologies - that will all be run in the cloud. Smart TVs, for instance, may be all the investment required for a premium, lag-free gaming experience with maximum details, should worldwide internet access improve as it has been. Of course, the ratio of high-end PC gamers making their way to consoles is lower than that of gamers with basic or entry-level PCs that are capable of gaming - those will make up the vast majority of the quoted 20 million shift.

We knew this was coming, especially after Google's teaser from earlier this month. Project Stream was a proof-of-concept in collaboration with Ubisoft, to see whether AAA gaming was possible over the internet. Things were smooth most of the time in our own experience, but there remained questions over how the concept would translate over to a finished product, especially with infrastructure challenges on the client side of things. Google's keynote at GDC just wrapped up, and the main focus was Stadia- the now named cloud gaming service borne out of Project Stream.

Stadia is built with instant access in mind. An example demo came in the form of Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed Odyssey, which was used in the public test before. It is integrated with partner YouTube channels such that a trailer for a supported game would have an option to play said game, which would then launch immediately. Stadia is built with support from a wide partner network including AMD, Unity, id Software, and more, with details seen past the break.