The hotly anticipated Google Stadia steaming service is right around the corner. Below, you’ll find the latest available information on everything Google Stadia, including the Google Stadia release date, the Google Stadia price, Google Stadia subscriptions, Google Stadia games, and more. This Google Stadia hub is your one-stop shop for everything Google Stadia. Is this the beginning of videogame future? Read on to find out if Google Stadia will be the game streaming platform for you.
Stadia is all about bringing players instant access to gaming. With Stadia, all you need to do is click on a Youtube link and you can begin playing a game instantly. No more long download times for games, players can now have instant access. Stadia isn’t a console, but a place for gamers to game across all devices, including desktops, laptops, TV, tablets, and phones. This means players can start playing on one device and instantly pick up their progress on another without missing a beat.
Welcome to #Stadia, an all-new way to play from @Google. Coming in 2019. pic.twitter.com/Hlj0fVw3zC
— Stadia (@GoogleStadia) March 19, 2019
Google Stadia Release Date
Thanks to an article and interview from French website La Presse, we now know quite a lot of information about Google Stadia, perhaps a little earlier than we were meant to. The article includes snippets of a French interview from Majd Bakar, Google’s engineering vice president. We’ve handily translated some of it for you here. We know a little more about the previously mysterious Google Stadia release date, for example. According to La Presse, Google Stadia will release in 14 countries in November 2019. Unfortunately, no concrete date is given beyond November 2019.
Of course, you will have to take this supposed release date with a grain of salt. We cannot confirm either way whether or not Google Stadia will launch in 14 countries this November until Google officially confirms it. For now, however, take at as though you will be able to buy and use the Google Stadia streaming platform by the end of November 2019.
Google Stadia Price
Again, if we are listening to what La Presse has to say, we now know more about the Google Stadia price. As you’d expect, it seems as though there will be a few different price points for the streaming service. According to La Presse, Google Stadia will launch with a $169 “Founder Edition.” This will come with the Google Stadia controller (which you can read more about below), a Chromecast Ultra (which you will also need in order to use Google Stadia), a copy of Destiny 2 to stream, and three months of subscription.
It appears as though you will need to pay a monthly subscription to use Google Stadia (ala Netflix) and buy some games to stream on top of that. La Presse states that there will be two subscription tiers. The most expensive is Stadia Pro. This should cost $11.99 a month. Paying for Stadia Pro will let you stream games in 4K, with 60 fps. It appears that a library of older games will be available to play at no extra cost, whereas you will need to fork out more money to stream newer releases, although you will get to keep them forever, even after your subscription ends.
If $11,99 a month sounds too much, however, La Presse reports that Stadia Base is free. With Stadia Base you will still need the Chromecast Ultra and Stadia controller. You won’t have access to the “free” list of games, either. Stadia Base users will have to buy all games to stream on the platform. Again, you will get to keep them in your Stadia account forever. Stadia Base owners will only be able to stream in 1080p, too. Stadia Base won’t be available until 2020, apparently, which is a shame.
For both the Stadia Base and Stadia Pro subscriptions, however, you will need a decent internet connection. You’ll need a minimum download speed of 10 Mbps along with a 1 Mbps upload speed. If you want to play consistently in 4K and with 5.1 surround sound, however, you will need 35 Mbps download speed. Bakar does state, though, that Google’s “streaming technology adapts to your connection.” This means that it should run okay as long as your connection is stable.
Google Stadia Games
According to La Presse, Google “Stadia will have a catalog of 31 games to buy” at launch. This includes the aforementioned Destiny 2, as well as Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, DOOM, The Division 2, Square Enix’s recent Tomb Raider reboot trilogy, and more. It’s unclear, however, what games will be available at no extra cost for Stadia Pro subscribers, and what titles will set you back an extra sum. Remember, however, that any games that you have to buy separately, you can keep forever, but they will still need to be streamed.
Bakar does explain that the Stadia library will be rapidly expanded after its initial launch, however, adding that “all games can go on Stadia, there is no constraint.” At least we know that some triple A games will be available to play on Stadia.
Google Stadia Performance
Essentially, Stadia is a central place for gamers that allow them to have instant access to games. Stadia is not a console, it is a cloud-based gaming platform, accessible through Youtube. With Stadia, gamers are able to watch a trailer for the latest game, and instantly have access to the game through Stadia via Youtube. Stadia will run 4K HDR at 60 FPS at launch, with a roadmap of 8K HDR running at 120+ FPS. Stadia will be partnering with Unity and Unreal engines, among many others to make this possible.
Doom Eternal is the first game announced to be coming to Stadia with true 4K resolution with HDR color at 60 FPS. There will also be a controller coming alongside Stadia, to help bridge the gap between console players and PC players. Stadia will embrace cross-platform play, allowing everyone to play together and allowing for cross saves between devices.
Google Stadia Controller
Alongside the Stadia platform, Google announced the Stadia controller during the GDC 2019 conference. The controller looks like a meld of the PS4 and Xbox One controller and is built to be more than just a standard control interface.
One of the perks of using the Stadia controller is that it connects to your network via Wi-Fi. This allows you to seamlessly switch between platforms when using Stadia without the need to reconnect the controller each time. It also will be able to connect directly with the remote machine in Google’s data center that is playing the game which should reduce latency.
Google Stadia Partners
Current Stadia middleware and API partners include:
- AMD
- AudioKinetic
- Criware
- CryEngine
- Enlighten
- Eyebis
- FaceFX
- Fmod
- Havok
- Ikinema
- Improbable
- IncrediBuild
- Microsoft Visual Studio
- Rad Game Tools
- Silicon Studio
- Simplygon
- Speedtree
- Umbra
- Unity
- Unreal Engine
- Vulkan
Google Stadia Stream Connect
Stream Connect is a feature of Stadia allowing split-screen multiplayer to be possible without any performance penalty, something that has been plaguing developers for a long time. Now players are able to see the screen of their teammates, to make multiplayer games even better. Not only will you be able to see your screen, but you will also be able to see what your teammates are seeing, but without any performance costs.
Google Stadia Game States
Game States are basically playable moments you can send to other players. A developer can choose what parts of a game a player can share, and all it will take to start playing it is a click of a link.
This new tech will allow a ton of player-made challenges to be shared on social media and looks like it will enhance the replayability of games that utilize it exponentionally.
It allows players to share a playable moment from a game, that let players to easily share gameplay with friends or on Youtube. This is just one more way that Stadia is giving more power to developers, allowing them to have even more control over their games.
Google Stadia YouTube Features
Stadia is partnering with Youtube gaming, allowing creators to make even better content. Stadia will allow content creators to highlight, live stream, and capture directly from Stadia. Additionally, Stadia will make it easier for creators to play games with their viewers. With Stadia’s new feature, Crowd Play, content creators can allow viewers to jump into a game with them, with the click of a button. It even allows the creator to feature a viewer that they are playing with live on the screen and in real time. Stadia is helping to make gaming “the most connected gaming experience ever.”
Google Assistant will be part of Stadia, which will allow players to receive instant help if they are stuck in a game. There wasn’t too much information given out on how this will work, but it seems to work like “Ask Google”, where you can ask a question and they will pull up the top results. It just seems to eliminate the need to pull out a phone or laptop to find a guide.
