DIGITISER
  • MAIN PAGE
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Game Reviews
  • FAQ

REVIEW: GOOGLE STADIA

22/11/2019

 
Picture
The knives are out for Google Stadia, and I struggle to understand why. Or, at least, I struggle to understand the scale of the incoherent, frothing, red mist rage being directed at it. 

Yesterday I gave my first impressions of the service on Twitter, and dozens of utter dickheads, who don't even follow me, decided to chip in with their own unwanted opinions.

They actually searched for "Stadia" to have a go at random people. Who cares about any product so much that they'd actually do that?

I even got an un-ironic "OK boomer" from one of them.

It seems to be that the issues some people have with it - which, in all honesty, they've had since Stadia was first announced - are as follows:

a) You won't be able to store your games on a shelf, where you can look at them, and get turned on by them, until you die.

b) Google is a big evil corporation and ruins everything. 

c) Google Stadia could never possibly work.

d) Something to do with them stealing your data, or identity, or something. 

e) They just really, like, hate it, for reasons they aren't emotionally articulate enough to understand. 
Picture
NOT THE SAME
Thing is, we're not all the same. I know some minds melt down at the thought there are people outside of their myopic little bubble, but people all want different things. And I'm a person who wants cloud-based gaming to take off. 

I don't want more games and stuff cluttering up my house. I don't want another box under my TV. I don't have any desire to collect games; I just play them and move on. Yeah, alright, my Internet might go down, meaning I can't play my Stadia games, but if it does... then bang goes my TV and Internet access too. Believe it or not, you can go and read a book, or have a poo, or something, for 10 minutes until it comes back on.

"Oh boo-hoo! I was in the middle of a raid when Stadia kicked me out."

Get a grip/life. Seriously.

It's a rare enough occurrence that the risk of it is a price I'm willing to pay for the convenience of cloud gaming. Rather that than installing games and downloading massive updates, and it being hours after getting a new game before I can actually play anything. I'm sick of that. Like, totally sick of it. I literally hate it. Modern  gaming already doesn't work. It has become a slow, unwieldy, user-spiting grind.  

I tried to play Rage 2 on my PS4 yesterday, and before I could do so it needed to install, which took an hour. Then it needed an update, which took another hour. And then something went wrong, and it tried to start the entire process again, at which point my Stadia invite code had turned up, so for a test I decided to buy Rage 2 on Stadia, and I was playing it within a couple of minutes.

That's better, surely? I mean, isn't it? I don't understand what the big deal is.

The big deal is that it's Google, you've got a narrow field of vision, you have inflexible opinions, and/or you're threatened by change. I'm sorry if that's harsh, but I can't see any other reason for it.

​I suspected as much back when it was announced, and now that Stadia has launched, and it really, 
truly, works for most people, the same ones who were criticising it earlier in the year, swearing it could never, ever, work... are now contorting themselves to find other ways to take a great, big, dump on it. 

It irritates me, because even if Google is evil - which major company doesn't get labelled as such, in similar tedious fashion? - at least approach the technology at face value. It does nobody any good to put your fingers in your ears, and go "La la la", and throw a massive tantrum, while the world changes around you. Stop reacting, and start thinking. 

The technology behind Stadia works. Simple as. And cloud-based gaming is - whether you like it or not - going to become the norm before too long.
Picture
MOST IMPRESSIVE
What makes Stadia all the more impressive for me is that I don't even have the fastest internet, and I'm playing over wifi, rather than the recommended ethernet cable. 

My BT Broadband fluctuates quite a bit - yesterday afternoon it was about a 50mbps download speed, last night it was just over 20, and right now, as I type this, it's a little under 30mbps. Upload speed is currently 11.30mbps.

The only time I've had any issue was last night, when the kids were home watching I'm A Celeb on the ITV Hub on The Other Telly - and even then there were just a couple of moments when the game staggered or the resolution dropped noticeably. Yes, I live in London, so I suppose I'm close enough to a Google server. Even so... I mean... damn. It just works.

For the most part it has been crisp and smooth, with no noticeable controller lag. Even Destiny 2 is perfect, as far as I can tell.

It's really, really impressive. 

Set-up was a breeze (though my invite code was a few hours late), but I'm not massively won over with the need to use a smartphone app to set it all up and buy games. Why can't you do it direct from Stadia? That seems like a weird oversight, and adds an extra layer of hardware into the equation, when the whole point is that Stadia is meant to do away with hardware. Apart from the Xbox-esque controller, and, if you're playing on your TV, a Google Chromecast, natch.

Again: Stadia functions, for me at least, better than I'd anticipated. I buy a game, and I can be playing it within seconds, in 4k, at 60fps. No updates, no installation, no faff whatsoever. It's kind of magical, and the last time I was this taken aback by technology was the first time I saw an iPod touch.

Unfortunately - and here's where all you haterz get to enjoy yourselves and go "I told you so" - the technology working is only part of the Google Stadia story.

As new platform launches go... it's kind of rubbish.
Picture
OLD GAMES: HERE
Right now, all but one of the games available on Stadia have been out some considerable time already, some released on other formats as long as a year ago (longer in the case of the first two games in the Tomb Raider reboot series), and the one brand new game, Gylt, is a nice enough survival horror-for-kids thing, but not exactly the sort of launch day exclusive which shifts platforms. 

Also, there's the question of pricing - first, for the games, which seem to be needlessly full price. And then for the service itself, which costs £8.99 a month (though you'll be able to get it free from next year, but it'll cap the image quality at 1080p if you go that route).

For that £8.99 a month it's hard to really see what you're getting, barring a better picture quality (if your internet is up to it), though with that you can also play games online. It's more than PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live, but those have been around longer, and offer a lot more for your money

It's the same as I pay for Netflix a month, but everything on Netflix, after that, is free. And I can watch Netflix on my phone, which I currently can't do with Stadia, because it doesn't support playing games on iPhone, yet.

On one hand, I don't really understand what Stadia is offering right now that would make most people choose it over a console or PC. The Founder's Edition cost £120 or so up front, and included the controller, a Chromecast, Destiny 2 (plus everything released for it over the past two years), and three months of Pro membership.

Over time Google is planning to offer a whole catalogue of free-to-play games for subscribers, but they really should've been here at launch. Or, at least, some original exclusives. If this was a new console we'd all be up in arms. 

At the same time... I love the convenience, I love the quality of the visuals I'm getting, I love being able to access my new games immediately. It makes a massive difiference to me. And, at the risk of being burnt at the stake for being a heretic, I love that I may no longer need loads of physical discs and cases laying around my house. I don't want that, even if you do. 

Am I in the minority with all that? Maybe. But if you're coming at this from the perspective that Google Stadia doesn't have a market, and doesn't work, then I'm afraid to tell you - so long as they can start offering some more bang for your buck, and keep abreast of new releases - that you're quite, quite wrong.
Dan Whitehead
22/11/2019 02:44:35 pm

I love the idea of it, and the technology "just working" is great to hear. But, yeah, pricing is where it falls down for me. £120 to get the kit. Then £8.99 a month to use it. And then you still have to play full-price for the games? That's when the "you don't actually own the games" bit starts to be a problem. I don't really care when a show or film disappears from Netflix because I'm paying for the service as a whole. If I'd bought that show or film - as you can on Amazon Prime - I'd be a lot less happy to have forked out for something that isn't really mine.

Geebs
22/11/2019 02:50:39 pm

Err, Biffo I don’t know if you were aware, but The Algorithm is designed to send anything you post to a selection of complete randoms in the hope of starting a stupid fight - or “engagement”, as Twitter likes to call it.

They were probably just as surprised as you when somebody they don’t know suddenly turned up in their feed apparently spoiling for a fight.

It amazes me how often people who use Twitter complain about this phenomenon when it’s deliberately set up this way.

Jabberwoc
22/11/2019 02:57:33 pm

I completely agree with you, Biffter, as I am also an ancient, gumpy git.

S Hawke
22/11/2019 03:04:22 pm

I guess I'm a bit of a socialist but I do hate the idea of cloud gaming. It's literally taking power away from normal people and putting it in the hands of big corporations, and I don't get why you would want to give up control over a hobby you enjoy. Especially if you're a public figure. You might write a bad review of a new game or criticise China or something, and find your service cancelled.

Mr Biffo
22/11/2019 03:11:29 pm

The thing I find fascinating is why Google Stadia is being singled out for this, when it's far from the only big corporation we give away our power to day after day. I'm more interested in why people have that attitude towards it than I am anything else.

Jonathan Downes link
22/11/2019 03:10:14 pm

Er

Paul Twist
22/11/2019 03:13:56 pm

When Stadia was first announced, I was genuinely excited but I think that’s because I was expecting the monthly cost to include a library of games to play. If this feature does appear eventually, I’ll take a look. Until then, I’m not paying £50 a pop for games I can get elsewhere. As someone with a full PS4 and a small flat, cloud gaming has immense appeal.

Kara Vab Park
22/11/2019 03:27:26 pm

Err.. ...I've never seen random tweets from users I don't follow that aren't sponsored appearing in my timeline on Twitter.

Mr.S
22/11/2019 05:21:47 pm

I’m not fussy over digital vs physical these days. Only advantage for physical (aside from aesthetic) is I can trade them in when I need more £, but I do like not having to find/put in a disc - there’s something about having a menu where I can just pick what I want and get stuck in rather than faff with physicality.
But I like my digital games downloaded and ready to play, I don’t think my living situation and intermittent internet would work with cloud based gaming, at least video can buffer, so this isn’t something I can see myself buying in the near future.

Also can’t wait to be called a boomer by a child, I’m one of the first 1980 vintage millennials so I would laugh at their ignorance and taunt them to get back in their pram.

Zerogeek
22/11/2019 07:54:53 pm

Being born very late 70s/very early 80s ('79 for me) puts you in this weird generational crossover period - bit too young for Gen X, bit too old for Millennial. We clearly need a new title to cover us. I propose 'Generation Git'

favus
22/11/2019 05:24:16 pm

I was going to do an unboxing review for my website but nobody reads it (and nobody else can be bothered to write for it) so I am going to leave my review right here! I agree with biffo it does work - However as a commited PC gamer I have found playing Destiny with a pad impossible - I just can do it - I have never been a console guy other than for easy platformers seeing people i know playing COD or Fallout on a pad an playing as well as I do with a mouse seems like black magic to me, and for me its a barrier to entry.

But thats a ME problem, the hardware is a faff to set up with so many hoops to get through to get it going - send a code to my google account - link it and pick a name and away we go! should have been easy (it wasn't) however I was lucky my code arrived before the hardware did - one set up however its a joy as Biffo says - it just works, I was playing Destiny 2 within seconds, it looks amazing - I just can't play it because of my stupid joypad thumbs.

I tried it on my PC and the quality is nowhere near as good as my monster rig, but if i had a cheapo laptop 1080p at 30FPS is just something my cheap laptop couldn't do - when 4k launches on PC and my phone - then its going to be a game changer

The games are too expensive, I am a steam guy - I am used to playing steam prices - as I said never been a console guy paying £40-£50 for a game seems like stupidity to me however I buy tonnes of games for under a tenner and never play them - again a fault with me!

Bottom line is - it all works, its a fantastic console replacement for less money - a controller costs £50 - Sadia double that, however you basically get a "4k" (yes its upscaled but so is your PS4 pro and that only runs at a measily 30FPS) and it just works - no slow downloads - Why does the PS4 download go so slow on a 1GB internet connection (like I have) then take an age to update?

As a console replacement it is EXCELLENT - a PC gamer replacement? not so much, but as Biffo said - it is the future... and its good, like stupidly good - or you could listen to people who've never tried it, who hate google.. (for some bizarre reason) and in that case its shit and doomed to fail

Adam H
22/11/2019 05:24:32 pm

Personally I’m not for or against Stadia (or cloud gaming in general) . It doesn’t massively appeal to me in its current form but I can see how it has the potential to work in the long run. I’ve got more than enough gaming tech to keep me going for the moment while they get it all up & running so I can come back to it in a couple of years to check it out & decide then.

Nikki
22/11/2019 05:31:35 pm

As fun as it was taking the piss out of the laggy experiences people were having, I'm glad it's working and fun for folk. I still struggle to see who it's marketed at. People who find consoles too much hassle?

Also, the subscription is a bit... hmmm. Pro subscription lets you buy games at a discount, but you lose access to the discounted games if you don't carry on subscribing? Maybe that's something they'll rethink.

I'm really interested in how it acts if you stream the games though. Lots of streamers I've seen have had problems with lag. Maybe a biffo-stream from stadia? I'd watch!

favus
22/11/2019 05:36:37 pm

I read you won't lose access to any games you buy on Stadia - when your pro sub lapses - they have said this...

"If your Stadia Pro subscription ends, you will keep access to any purchases made while you were a subscriber. You will only lose access to the games you claimed for free during your subscription period."

I assume you get access back once you resub - also at £8 a month with a free game every month - the value doesn't seem too bad to me.

Seam
22/11/2019 05:55:46 pm

I was initially annoyed at the lack of activation code after delivery of hardware, and more annoyed at the silence from Stadia staff. Now my code has arrived and it looks like Stadia staff have learnt about communication and keeping people updated, things seem better.
I tried out 2013 Tomb Raider this morning and it ran flawlessly- silky smooth 60fps and although I’m not sure of the resolution, it certainly looked very crisp and loaded almost instantly. Arguably, a 6 year old game should run flawlessly on modern hardware.
I’m impressed with the technology I just hope they consider re-evaluating pricing of games.
Although, the chrome cast gizmo appears to not like being plugged in via an hdmi switcher (even a 4K hdr supporting one) it has to go direct into tv/monitor.

NIALL MAGUIRE
22/11/2019 06:33:51 pm

I think this will be the future. I don't know how soon it will come about but having competing services will help usher it in. If I have the choice between say Google, Microsoft and PlayStation services then they will offer more things to get me to sign up and I will benefit from better pricing. At the moment it's not for me because I rarely buy full price games and with Stadia I won't be able to shop around to get a good price for a newly released game. So I look forward to this future but for now I'm just looking forward to the PS5.

HALF LIFE 1 1/2 CONFIRMED
22/11/2019 07:32:44 pm

I do like the idea of the convenience yes, but having to buy the games for full price? Nope. Also I have zero prospect of getting fibre in my area so it's a non-starter.

I will instead be buying a Vive. Possibly a costly mistake but there's a new VR only Half-Life coming in March (supposedly) so Valve has forced my arm. Surprised nobody's mentioned it. Perhaps everyone else who may have cared about the franchise has since died and I'm the only one left... it has been a long 12 years.


Comments are closed.

    This section will not be visible in live published website. Below are your current settings:


    Current Number Of Columns are = 2

    Expand Posts Area =

    Gap/Space Between Posts = 12px

    Blog Post Style = card

    Use of custom card colors instead of default colors = 1

    Blog Post Card Background Color = current color

    Blog Post Card Shadow Color = current color

    Blog Post Card Border Color = current color

    Publish the website and visit your blog page to see the results

    Picture
    Support Me on Ko-fi
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    RSS Feed Widget
    Picture

    Picture
    Tweets by @mrbiffo
    Picture
    Follow us on The Facebook

    Picture

    Archives

    December 2022
    May 2022
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    November 2020
    September 2020
    July 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014


    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • MAIN PAGE
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Game Reviews
  • FAQ