According to an exclusive report from The Information, it seems like it.

The tech giant is, according to this report, working on a gaming streaming platform going by the codename of 'Yeti'. So what might this be? Think Sony’s PlayStation Now and Nvidia’s GeForce Now; that is, games will run on a Google-operated server which will then transmit the data to your home console. The latter is likely to be a Chromecast device, given that the current ones can natively play Android games, or it might be some mysterious "Made by Google" console altogether. Or is this another of Google's low-cost approach a la Google Cardboard, and the service will be available to stream games on compatible Android devices with a paid subscription? Was the recent hiring of ex-Xbox and ex-Playstation executive Phil Harrison by Google any indication of the company's new initiatives?

Let's humor this thought for a bit and speculate in the comments section below how, or if, this endeavor will work.

P.S: Let's hope nobody forgot about the fiasco that was the Ouya...

SOURCE

 

[Giodude]

Streaming is literally the worst way to play games and will always be.

Apparently geforce now feels like it's running right on the computer itself. I can also say liquidsky got me through a few months before I could afford a nice new PC, and there was less input delay than expected. It works, it just has a niche market. Also, streaming isn't the worst way to play games, the Sega activator is. Yeah, look that shit up.

 

[SirNapkin1334]

Apparently geforce now feels like it's running right on the computer itself. I can also say liquidsky got me through a few months before I could afford a nice new PC, and there was less input delay than expected. It works, it just has a niche market. Also, streaming isn't the worst way to play games, the Sega activator is. Yeah, look that shit up.

Oh god.
I wish I had known about streaming when I had my old mac. Crappiest PC ever. It had 2 GB of ram, probably like an i3, and I'm pretty sure it also had integrated graphics. also macOS, so, yeah, there's that. luckily now I have this pretty good PC now, I think I'm gonna install solus on the old mac.

 

[osaka35]

Can someone explain to me what exactly Game Streamjng is? Is it like Steam?

I know you've already got your answer, but here's my summary: Rather than your local device crunching numbers and rendering visuals, some server does the actual rendering. What you get is essentially just compressed video and your device just has to be powerful enough to decode video quickly.

Requires quick internet for your button presses to not create noticeable lag. Personally, it seems a bit weird to me.

 

[WhiteMaze]

The problem with OnLive was the prices of games. Most of them were full priced and people were afraid that they'd lose their libraries for good once they would shut down. Turns out they did.

Whatta ya know? Exact same problem Origin has.

No wonder both failed.

 

[Foxi4]

Can't wait to see Google censor gaming as much as they censor every other aspect of their company. I wish them the worst, so I hope that they pour millions of dollars into the thing and that it collapses into a pile of rubble shortly afterwards, much like Google+.

 

[Xzi]

So...they're just gonna buy up a bunch of gaming IPs or what? Because AFAIK Google doesn't own anything worth streaming, let alone games worth buying.

 

[amrod]

I'm guessing something with Chromecast, there is like 55 million of em sold

 

[foob]

Great news.

I've always wanted more private data going to the filthy CIA and NSA.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-08-28/how-cia-made-google

 

[Taleweaver]

Streaming is literally the worst way to play games and will always be.

I've heard these sort of bold statements before. Back when 56k modems were the default, online gaming was also "the worst way to play games and will always be.". That 'always' turned out to be about five years. Slow connections, it blocking the phone line (this was before cell phones, mind you), dropped connections...as those problems got fixed, online gaming grew from a retarded gimmick into a staple feature of gaming.

I do agree, though, that streaming games isn't up to snuff for current connections right now. The downstream is fairly okay (video streaming is already there), but gaming not only requires a fast connection in both directions (you want to send your input to the server) but can't operate on a buffer either. Those are problems. And if we're talking about AAA-titles - and if the service is going to be successful, they'll pretty much HAVE to do that - then the amount of data being transferred isn't small either. But I won't write off the possibility of it being a success. It just depends on how well the average connection is...or will become.

 

[shaunj66]

I really hope this isn't the beginning of the future of gaming. I can see it though as games as a service continues to be pushed and the demand to play anywhere increases.

As someone who can feel the lag in lower quality bluetooth mice and game controllers, I would never get on with a game streaming service.

 

[Giodude]

I really hope this isn't the beginning of the future of gaming. I can see it though as games as a service continues to be pushed and the demand to play anywhere increases.

As someone who can feel the lag in lower quality bluetooth mice and game controllers, I would never get on with a game streaming service.

I can't imagine this being the future of gaming. I don't think these platforms are meant to be used permanently as a PC or console substitute. They also aren't meant for people who are that sensitive to things such as input lag. They're casual. They're meant as a precursor to something such as a PC or console. Now psnow on the other hand.... I don't know who's the target demographic.

 

[Lazyt]

Oh god not another ouya

 

[Giodude]

Oh god not another ouya

But that wasn't....

 

[HEADBOY]

Was reading about this earlier today. Seems unnecessary as most people who game have either a console or a gaming pc. Guess for those with underpowered hardware could benefit but with a weak connection I can imagine it would be difficult to get any real enjoyment out of this.

I bought an Ouya for 20 bucks at a yard sale. It's been in my basement since.

Funnily enough you could have saved that 20 bucks by sideloading the Ouya store on an Android device. Honestly I can't imagine Google making console hardware, seeing that they technically did that over three years ago with the ADT-1 and Nexus Player. The ADT-1 was essentially for developers who wanted to optimize their app/game to work on Android TV, the Nexus Player was a commercial Android TV product with less powerful specs than the latter.

 

[330]

I really hope this isn't the beginning of the future of gaming. I can see it though as games as a service continues to be pushed and the demand to play anywhere increases.

As someone who can feel the lag in lower quality bluetooth mice and game controllers, I would never get on with a game streaming service.

What if it were both?

Wasn't there a PS4/XBox One game that used optional cloud processing power to make building collapses more realistic? Maybe that's what Google could aim for. They could make just one console every decade and it would still be supported.

 

[RedBlueGreen]

Google Play is by far the most toxic game market I had ever see. It full of trash app and f2p game that prey on people with weak money management skill and kid with parent cc. So "playing android games natively" is never a pros for me.

iOS is just as bad for having shitty f2p games with in app purchases.

 

[PrincessLillie]

iOS is just as bad for having shitty f2p games with in app purchases.

Hey, mobile developers have to make a living somehow.