Google's Stadia can bring some respite to price-conscious Indian gamers

The technology giant is set to disrupt the video gaming space with a cloud-based video gaming platform

The gaming industry is set for a huge disruption, and Google has taken the lead in this. The technology giant last week announced its plan to launch later this year a cloud-based video games platform called ‘Stadia’. The most far-reaching among the disruptions Stadia promises to bring is allowing internet streaming of top video game titles through the cloud, a move that will render gaming consoles like XBox and PlayStation obsolete.

In the mesmerising march of technology, often, a new one emerges to eliminate an older one — and that is the fodder for tech innovators around the world. History has seen several such disruptions. For instance, feature-rich smartphones eliminated the need for separate cameras and mp3 players; internet streaming replaced CDs and clunky video files.

Internet streaming is made possible by the cloud — a term given to an infrastructure of data centres and software layers that power just about everything on the internet. All sites and videos are hosted on the cloud, and so are a majority of internet-based applications. Gone are the days when one would buy CDs and licences to install and use original software on computers. Most of these softwares are now used over the browser through login and password.

In video gaming, though India was a slow adapter at the beginning, it has steadily amassed a loyal audience over the past two decades, with computers and smartphones becoming more affordable. India’s video gaming market is currently pegged at around $600 million, according to Google and KPMG. With the popularity of games like CandyCrush, PokemonGo, and now PUBG, several Indian firms like Nazara Technologies and JetSynthesis have grown along with it. Both Nazara and JetSynthesis offer an array of mobile games.

But Indians have faced entry barriers when it comes to high-end games — expensive consoles and gaming titles have thus far prevented mass adoption. In India, Xbox One costs around Rs 21,000 and PlayStation 4 about Rs 30,000; the prices in India are higher than those in the US because of import taxes. Top games like Halo and Assassin Creed also retail upwards of Rs 4,000. 

Google, building on its near-monopoly status in the world of internet and internet-enabled services, is now eying the gaming segment. The plans were announced by CEO Sundar Pichai at Games Development Conference (GDC) in San Francisco on March 19.

The Mountain View (California)-headquartered company is trying to bring high-end gaming experience with the ease of internet streaming. The idea is that users should be able to log into the Crome browser and play. While such games already exist, bigger titles require very high computing power, including graphics processors, to support gameplay. 

Google has put much of its effort on the technology side — putting in place the infrastructure to support high-end graphics with no lag. According to Google Vice President Majd Bakar, Stadia will support a resolution of up to 4K at 60K frames per second; the tech giant is working to enhance the capabilities to eventually support 8K resolution and 120 frames a second, all lag-free. 

It would require high internet speeds to enjoy the platform. Google has timed the launch with advancement in technologies like 5G, which will take the internet experience to the next level. In India, too, with lower data prices and higher speeds since the entry of Reliance Jio, Google’s Stadia platform could be an instant hit, analysts say. It is already evident from the immediate adoption of games like PokemonGo and PUBG that Indians are getting hooked to online gaming.

Device is just a springboard for content and services. Large tech companies today are orienting themselves into content and services. With Stadia, Google is doing just that. Taking cues from Android, where it democratised the OS for all types of phones, Google is now trying to innovate the gaming space, says Sanchit Gogia, founder of Greyhound Research. 

According to Google, Stadia is more than just a cloud-based games platform. The product will integrate with YouTube such that multi-player gameplay can be live-streamed on YouTube. This is important for two reasons. One, live-streamed gameplay is now enjoyed by audience around the world, akin to watching regular cricket and football matches. And two, this will attract users to join online game tournaments where they could just join the queue to play the next multi-player battle. 

Google is also setting up Stadia Games and Entertainment, which will create its own titles, besides partnering with other developers to enhance the catalogue.