My Reservations About Cloud Gaming

A lot has been made of cloud computing recently, and in case you are unfamiliar with the term, it basically means getting computing content via the internet or some other outside location instead of from your own computer (my definition). If this sounds kind of like what the internet already is, let me draw a comparison.

If you have a car, all that is necessary for it to run (assuming it's not a clunker) is already built into it. You just turn the key. The standard car will represent a computer running stuff without the use of the internet. A car that is "online" will be one that will be able to run on its own, but will have access to special features like better shocks, brakes, etc. A car that is a "cloud" car will not even have to be able to run on its own. It can just have a steering wheel, four wheels, and a body. The cloud can run the engine and supply all the necessary features.

In terms of games, cloud computing will allow users without high-level PC gaming rigs to play high-level games. It does this by doing all the necessary high-speed computing and graphics processing at a remote location (the cloud) and just streaming the game to the user. Even users with netbooks have the potential to play the latest games available (1).

Will this be the end of discs, cartridges, and other physical media for games? Possibly. There are a number of issues that need to be resolved first. To begin with, I fear that cloud gaming has the potential to become the cable TV of gaming.

When cable first came out, it was like the heaven for TV owners. No longer were there just a handful of channels, but 57 of them (at least initially). But the price of cable and satellite has risen a ridiculous amount over the years and only increased the number of channels by offering a bunch of crap that nobody wants (e.g., 14 PBS stations).

Cloud gaming has the potential to become such a debacle. I would consider cloud gaming if they allow me to do a few simple things. One, I want to be able to purchase games individually. I don't want to pay $15 a month for a thousand games that I never play. Two, I want to be able to keep and/or resell any game I purchase. I don't want to buy games that will only last for a specified period of time before they are no longer supported. Finally, I want games that come in full without having to pay extra for additional content. I saw the other day a $199 "deal" for Frontierville (2) that lets you buy horseshoes. For the price of some horseshoes on a crappy flash game, I could by an Xbox 360 or a Wii!

I'm willing to give cloud gaming a try. I'm even excited about not having to dole out big bucks to get a gaming rig but still getting to play top games. I just hope that greed doesn't ruin the whole thing.

Sources:

1) http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20009033-1.html?tag=mncol
2) http://headsetandundies.com/