This article is from the public number:Internet and Entertainment Strange Group (ID:TMTphantom), author: monster head group Pei culture, the subject map from: Oriental IC
Google launched the cloud game platform Stadia yesterday, and Europe and the United States mainly rely on negative evaluation: product model is not clear, payThe fee model is not attractive, the delay is high, and the game types are not complete. All in all, Stadia’s appearance failed. Forbes’s evaluation is the most unrequited: “A technical and conceptual disaster, the game performance is shockingly poor.”
Is the problem in the cloud game, or is it on Google? Many people think that cloud games can be successful, but in the past few years, Nvidia, Sony and other home cloud games have not achieved great commercial benefits. Now that Google is unfavorable, is this accidental or inevitable? What is the correct way to open a cloud game?
First of all, seriously criticize Google Stadia’s initial question and hope that it will try to solve it in the future:
1. The experience of playing 3A games on the Stadia platform is not good.
1.1 The average 50-millisecond delay is still too high, especially for e-sports FPS like Destiny 2, which is already on the verge of being intolerable.
1.2 The main application scenario is still on the big screen, and you need to bring a heavy equipment to go out. In theory, it can be broadcast on mobile phones, but still need to bring equipment…
1.3 It is impossible to achieve the smooth running of the self-proclaimed “4K+60fps”. The quality of the masterpieces such as “Wild Dart 2” is generally only 1440p or even 1080p.
This thief often plays “Fate 2” on PS4
2. There is almost no advantage in price and payment models.
2.1 The number of free games is too small. After spending $120 on equipment and $10, the only games that can be played for free are “Destiny 2” (originally on Steam) Is free) , playing “Wild Dart 2” or other games requires an extra fee, why do players have to do more?
2.2 Google Cloud Games charges compared to competitors: Sony PSN members are $6.99 per month and come with three free games each month (permanently owned)< /span>, there are discounts for other games. Of course, to become a PSN member, you need to buy a $400 PS4 console. The problem is that Stadia also needs to buy a $120 device…
3. The content library is seriously incomplete and the expansion speed is very slow.
3.1 You can really play 3A masterpieces such as “Destiny 2”, “Wild Dart 2” in Stadia, and there may be 50 ~ 100 games online in the future. The problem is that PS4, Xbox, and Steam all have thousands of games, and even Switch has thousands of games.
3.2 Since Google doesn’t play games on its own, you can’t expect it to launch first-party content unless it buys several big game companies.
3.3 It is currently not possible to connect across platforms, and it is possible to never be able to connect across platforms. Of course, considering the delay of cloud games, even cross-platform will be abused.
Can the above problems be improved? Yes, but it doesn’t make sense. The key is that Google’s product ideas have problems: cloud games should not be targeted at hardcore players, especially for 3A players. They are the most discerning people, have a very high user experience, and do not lack the money to buy equipment. The true target audience for cloud games should be casual and light players, or “the once hardcore players, the current middle-aged and older”. They can tolerate delays, are price sensitive, and use games as a way of entertainment. You should not try to sell “Wild Dart 2” to them.
I didn’t buy “Wild Dart 2” because I can’t play
Even if Google can convince hardcore gamers to play 3A games in Stadia, it can’t afford the high cost. If you really want to let players play “Wild Dart 2” in the cloud with 4K + 60fps quality, after rough calculations, the cost per hour may be as high as $1; while Stadia’s monthly fee is only $10. So the question is: How long can Google burn? However, if Google’s ambition is smaller, and only want to run smaller independent games and super casual games in the cloud, the cost will be greatly reduced.
Let’s talk about the correct way to open a cloud game. In China, cloud games currently have three mature models:
1. Cloud host mode, that is, running a cloud game on a computer, for example, the so-called “eat a chicken with a low-cost netbook to play special effects.” The secondary development of the cloud host is difficult, and it is essentially a remote desktop. It is stable and mature in some games, and it is a supplement to the traditional endgame. Of course, the problem is that the people who play games with PCs in China have been falling, even if the chicken boom in the past did not save. Cloud games are unlikely to completely change this trend.
2. Mobile cloud tour mode is to use the “cloud computer app” in the mobile phone to remotely run the PC tour. For example, people who don’t have a computer ( or the computer is not around) want to log in to “The Legend of Blood” and “Fantasy Westward Journey” to brush daily tasks. Or just talk to friends in the game, this model can meet the needs. On ChinaJoy, Netease demonstrated playing “Anti-Water Cold” with a mobile phone. The problem is: using the touch screen to play traditional end-games, after all, the operation is inconvenient, not suitable for the operation of complex, emphasis on action games.
3. Cloud mobile game mode, that is, using mobile phones to play mobile games in the cloud(sounds good mouth), skipping the download and installation process, completely unaffected by local storage and configuration. This general direction can be established. At present, the largest platform in China is the mobile game of China Mobile. Telecom operators do not need to consider the bandwidth cost, and do not even need to consider the additional IDC cost. In the business model, cloud mobile games are also relatively mature: the platform is equivalent to an intermodal channel, and can be settled in-house according to CPS.
Fantasy Westward Journey PC version is now available on the mobile side
The biggest advantage of cloud mobile games is three:
First, the problem of business model is solved. China’s mobile game is an internal purchase system, and the cloud platform is a distribution channel. In contrast, Google’s cloud hosting model, but also with the buy-off 3A game makers settlement, it is not good.
Second, the background of cloud mobile games is not based on X86, but based on ARM solution, ARM cost structure is lower. The one-hour consumption of the ARM solution is less than one-fifth of the consumption of the X86 solution. ARM does not need to use the latest hardware, X86 needs the latest graphics card, X86 graphics card life is unstable, stability is not ARM high. For the customer, there is no need to purchase additional equipment. A smartphone (regardless of the configuration level) is enough.
Thirdly, the quality of China’s outdoor mobile network is relatively good. Users have already developed the habit of playing mobile games. Instead, there is no Western “living room culture”. All in all, users are definitely more interested in cloud mobile games than cloud hosting.
So, once the cloud mobile game mode becomes mainstream, the player skips the download and installation process, can run a large-scale heavy mobile game in a similar page tour/H5 mode, what changes will it bring to the mobile game market?
1. Cloud Games will change game ads and get customers. The majority of mobile game ads are now graphic or short video introduction mode, which are not direct enough. Cloud mobile games are popular, users can try them directly on the ad page. For example, this year’s car racer tried this mode. Click on the ad to experience a half-minute game. You can drive without downloading, and the user conversion rate is very high.