Streaming games across the internet has had a lot of rough starts. There are two important trends to take note of here. One trend is the idea of gaming as a subscription based service where you get unlimited access to any number of games. The other trend here is that games will no longer require you to buy special hardware in order to play them.
The benefits of a subscription-based gaming service with off-site rendering are:
FOR USERS
- No physical disks to organize and keep clean
- No expensive hardware needed
- Unlimited access to the latest games
- Don't have to worry about updates
FOR DEVELOPERS
- Don't have to worry about compatibility issues
- Don't have to worry about games being ripped off
- Access to a much wider audience
G-cluster
Subsciption: N/A
Off-site rendering: YES
B2B: YES
One of the first companies to offer this type of gaming service. Unfortunately years later this company still seems to be struggling.
Stream My Games
Subsciption: NO
Off-site rendering: YES (you still have to own the hardware doing the processing)
B2B: N/A
Here is yet one of the most promising solutions. However, unlike the rest of the services you still have to own a physical copy of the games you are playing.
GameTap
Subsciption: YES
Off-site rendering: NO
B2B: NO
Turner was smart to create this service and even though it doesn't off-load the processing power needed to render games it does offer them.
OTOY
Subscription: N/A (depends on who's using their technology)
Off-site rendering: YES
B2B: YES
Don't know anything about this service yet.
GameStreamer / GameStreamer Store
Subscription: N/A
Off-site rendering: N/A
B2B: YES
Don't know anything about this service yet.
GameTree TV
Subscription: YES
Off-site rendering: YES
B2B: YES
OnLive
Subscription: N/A
Off-site rendering: YES
B2B: N/A
Service handles all rendering of games on off-site servers and seems to be making far more progress than the others in this industry.
Gaikai
Subscription: N/A
Off-site rendering: YES
B2B: N/A
Service handles all rendering of games on off-site servers and runs through the web-browser using Flash.
Playcast
Subscription: YES
Off-site rendering: YES
B2B: YES
Spawn Labs
Subscription: N/A
Off-site rendering: YES
B2B: N/A
Out-of Business
InstantAction
Subsciption: NO
Off-site rendering: NO
B2B: NO
Pelican Crossing - inDuality
Subscription: N/A (only if the MMORPG requires it)
Off-site rendering: NO
B2B: N/A
This
seems pretty cool but some people have been dismissing this based on
privacy concerns. For those who don't spend money on MMORPGs, you should
be fine. For those who do spend lots of money, be a bit cautious with
this one.
RELATED LINKS:
- Cloud Gaming USA
