March 9, 2023, 4:15 pm | Read time: 3 minutes
If you enjoy playing technically demanding video games but don’t have the most powerful PC, cloud gaming can be a solution. But what exactly does the term mean, and how does gaming in the cloud work?
In so-called cloud gaming, the name says it all. The video games are accessed via a cloud or a server, an online storage system. So, you hardly need any hardware for it. This has both advantages and disadvantages.
You can also get all the important information about cloud gaming in the video:
What is Cloud Gaming?
An alternative term for cloud gaming is game streaming or gaming-on-demand, similar to video-on-demand. Like with Netflix and others, you stream the content from the internet, in this case, a video game. The key difference from the now widespread video streaming is that the information must flow in both directions: both your control input and the subsequent playback in moving images. Therefore, a good internet connection is crucial for cloud gaming.
Accordingly, it can become quite expensive if you play on the go at the expense of your mobile data. However, if you play from home and have at least a 15 Mbps connection, you shouldn’t encounter any problems. Your own PC, console, or even smartphone serves as the end device, although this can vary from provider to provider.
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The Advantages and Disadvantages
More and more providers are focusing on cloud gaming in addition to playing a locally installed title. One advantage is that the gaming hardware doesn’t necessarily have to be as powerful because the game’s content is accessed from the internet via remote servers. Additionally, players are–at least in theory–no longer tied to a single system. In practice, however, you rely on a service that allows gaming across multiple platforms, or you have a cloud gaming subscription with one of the larger providers. Cloud gaming also saves storage space.
A disadvantage is that a stable and especially fast internet connection is necessary. As mentioned earlier, mobile cloud gaming can be quite costly. Moreover, you are, of course, more dependent on the respective provider. Speaking of providers: A cloud gaming subscription can cost almost 30 euros per month, depending on the performance. Especially with particularly fast or multiplayer games, the higher input lag becomes noticeable–the time it takes for the player’s input to be reflected on the screen.
Providers for Cloud Gaming
There are now several major providers that have integrated cloud gaming into their subscriptions. For example, you can access online storage and cloud games as part of an Ultimate Pass for the Xbox or a premium subscription for the PlayStation. The costs are 13 and 17 euros per month, respectively. However, you are also dependent on the provider’s console and their PC platform to access games from the cloud. Many titles are available within the subscription.
For particularly demanding players, there is also Nvidia’s slightly different cloud gaming model: Geforce Now. Players must purchase the games again through platforms like Steam. However, they receive good streaming quality with low latency and Nvidia’s excellent graphics performance. The largest and most popular provider on the market was Google Stadia–the service was discontinued in January 2023. Otherwise, it is increasingly possible to purchase individual titles in the cloud version.