Google Stadia may be about to change the gaming industry on paper but as it stands, most people would still prefer to stick with their trusty consoles.
At last week’s GDC, Google made the groundbreaking leap into gaming that everyone expected it to. Well, not quite what everyone expected. The consensus was that Google would be revealing plans for its very own console. That is not the case, and instead, it unveiled Stadia to the world. Not a console, but a video game streaming service akin to Netflix.
Google is hoping to unleash Stadia on the world later this year and revealed a lot about what it will entail during its announcement. Titles will be streamed rather than downloaded, thus minimizing lag and connectivity issues. That’s the hope anyway. It has already paired up with a number of developers. Plus, it will have its very own controller which includes a button that allows gamers to start sharing their progress on YouTube almost instantly.
When it comes to the gaming world, there really is no way of knowing how well something is going to be received until it is officially released. However, according to a survey undertaken by Harris Interactive, initial reactions to the Stadia announcement have been mixed. The good news? 39% of the more than 2000 people interviewed had heard of the product. Pretty impressive considering it was only revealed a week ago.
The bad news is that of the gamers interviewed, the majority do not seem sold on the idea of replacing their beloved console with a streaming service. When it comes to the next generation of consoles, 41% of the interviewees revealed that they will likely opt for the PlayStation 5. Next up was the next generation of Xbox with 24% of the vote, and then Stadia in third with 19%. On the bright side, it did narrowly beat out whatever Nintendo offers up next.
The other big hang up for gamers revealed by the survey is the lack of something tangible to own and hold. When asked what would put them off subscribing to Stadia, the number one reason was having to effectively rent games rather than owning something physical. Being happy with their current way of gaming came in a close second.
