Insider rumors claim Google is looking to compete in the gaming industry
Gaming news outlet Kotaku has made a bold claim regarding the console gaming market. They state that they've heard from reputable sources that Google plans to get into the gaming industry. Though details are a bit fuzzy, Kotaku maintains that Google will be using a streaming platform as its focus, and there will be a specific hardware that'll be sold. They also plan to acquire some game developers in order to create games for the platform.
Buying out game developers isn't an uncommon occurrence--another large company, Microsoft, took 5 companies under its wings shortly before E3 without much of a deal, and Google itself is no stranger to buy-outs. It's definitely feasible. According to journalists in the industry, Google also had a large presence at this year's Game Developer's Conference, meeting with companies in order to discuss the potential for a streaming-based video game service, codenamed Yeti at the time.
In terms of streaming for video games, there's two major services out there that gamers might know of: GeForce Now and PlayStation Now. Both of these let players utilize any sort of supported hardware to play games. It also lets players experience titles that might not run normally on their computers, or running them without storing the download on a hard drive, and removing the need to buy discs or carts.
That, of course, brings in the long-fought debate of digital over physical, and the industry's recent push towards a potential all-digital future. Plus, Google is known for starting projects and then leaving them to rot on a whim. If any company could manage to pull off such a feat, it would be Google who could possibly make it work.
What are your thoughts? Would you want a digital-only streaming alternative to play your games on, or do you prefer having your own hardware and physical games? Do you think the infrastructure is there to support it? Will Google follow through?
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