New tech could make consoles obsolete :what:
#1
contrarian in fashion
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New tech could make consoles obsolete :what:
OnLive promises on-demand, streaming games
By Mike Smith
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What if you could stream top-end games to your TV, just like a Youtube video that you can control? You'd never need to buy a console again.
That's the future envisaged by Palo Alto startup OnLive, which plans to launch a groundbreaking gaming service this winter. OnLive will supply players with a small set-top box, not much bigger than a Nintendo DS, which will plug into your TV and your home broadband connection. From there, you can start playing games just like those on the Xbox 360, PS3 or PC -- but with no install time, no waiting for downloads, and no need for big, noisy, expensive consoles cluttering up your living room. OnLive's service can be continually upgraded, too, so you'll never be stuck with obsolete hardware again.
Skeptical? So were we, until we actually sat down and played with an OnLive box last week. Even a blisteringly fast racer like Burnout Paradise was totally playable over the service, and top-spec shooter Crysis: Warhead -- which normally requires an expensive gaming PC -- ran excellently too. It's all rolled together with a slick interface that requires just a few button-presses to get playing.
OnLive
OnLive also includes some features you might associate more with your DVR than with a gaming console, including a Replay feature that lets you save the last ten seconds of your gameplay, and send it to your friends.
PC gamers aren't left out, either: OnLive's service can be accessed with a browser plugin from either Mac or PC platforms, works identically to the TV version, and has hardware requirements so low you'll be able, the company boasts, to play the most advanced of games on a $300 netbook.
OnLive has already signed deals with an impressive range of partners -- including EA, Take-Two, and Ubisoft -- and promises to have an up-to-the-minute selection of games when the service launches. Along with Burnout and Crysis, we spotted Grand Theft Auto IV, LEGO Batman, and Mirror's Edge among the games on offer, although the lineup will likely change before the service launches.
There's a catch, though. Being an online, streaming service, OnLive is only going to be as good as your Internet connection. High-definition resolutions will require a higher-end broadband connection, and if your service is prone to drop out unexpectedly, you're probably going to wind up frustrated. Even if it works, all that streaming video's going to add up over the months, and heavy users might find themselves the receipient of some unwelcome attention from their ISPs. Modem users, needless to say, need not apply.
OnLive won't talk price, other than to say that they'll be competitive with subscription services like Xbox Live. The box itself is simple and cheap to make, they told us, and it's easy to imagine it being thrown in with subscriptions -- rather like a cable or satellite TV set-top box. Games will most likely be available to rent or buy, and with free demos that don't need to be downloaded.
By Mike Smith
ADVERTISEMENT
What if you could stream top-end games to your TV, just like a Youtube video that you can control? You'd never need to buy a console again.
That's the future envisaged by Palo Alto startup OnLive, which plans to launch a groundbreaking gaming service this winter. OnLive will supply players with a small set-top box, not much bigger than a Nintendo DS, which will plug into your TV and your home broadband connection. From there, you can start playing games just like those on the Xbox 360, PS3 or PC -- but with no install time, no waiting for downloads, and no need for big, noisy, expensive consoles cluttering up your living room. OnLive's service can be continually upgraded, too, so you'll never be stuck with obsolete hardware again.
Skeptical? So were we, until we actually sat down and played with an OnLive box last week. Even a blisteringly fast racer like Burnout Paradise was totally playable over the service, and top-spec shooter Crysis: Warhead -- which normally requires an expensive gaming PC -- ran excellently too. It's all rolled together with a slick interface that requires just a few button-presses to get playing.
OnLive
OnLive also includes some features you might associate more with your DVR than with a gaming console, including a Replay feature that lets you save the last ten seconds of your gameplay, and send it to your friends.
PC gamers aren't left out, either: OnLive's service can be accessed with a browser plugin from either Mac or PC platforms, works identically to the TV version, and has hardware requirements so low you'll be able, the company boasts, to play the most advanced of games on a $300 netbook.
OnLive has already signed deals with an impressive range of partners -- including EA, Take-Two, and Ubisoft -- and promises to have an up-to-the-minute selection of games when the service launches. Along with Burnout and Crysis, we spotted Grand Theft Auto IV, LEGO Batman, and Mirror's Edge among the games on offer, although the lineup will likely change before the service launches.
There's a catch, though. Being an online, streaming service, OnLive is only going to be as good as your Internet connection. High-definition resolutions will require a higher-end broadband connection, and if your service is prone to drop out unexpectedly, you're probably going to wind up frustrated. Even if it works, all that streaming video's going to add up over the months, and heavy users might find themselves the receipient of some unwelcome attention from their ISPs. Modem users, needless to say, need not apply.
OnLive won't talk price, other than to say that they'll be competitive with subscription services like Xbox Live. The box itself is simple and cheap to make, they told us, and it's easy to imagine it being thrown in with subscriptions -- rather like a cable or satellite TV set-top box. Games will most likely be available to rent or buy, and with free demos that don't need to be downloaded.
Interesting Concept.
#4
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Thats going to require some hardcore broadband thats reliable and VERY low latency..
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#9
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Stuff like this will eventually replace physical media. If they know how to only download the potion of the game that you actually need at that moment they can avoid having to give you an entire DVD at once.
#11
Nom Nom Nom Nom
Anyways. Back OT. I was reading about this the other day. If they could get it to work and get it to work right. It would be the wave of the future.
Sadly, I don't think it will get off the ground. Just like sega channel.
#12
Neat idea, but I don't ever see it coming to fruition....at least ANYTIME in the near future.
Even if this tech did become available too, I don't see it overpowering/replacing console systems. Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo make too much off of them and IMO I don't think people would want to abandon them.
Even if this tech did become available too, I don't see it overpowering/replacing console systems. Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo make too much off of them and IMO I don't think people would want to abandon them.
#13
contrarian in fashion
Thread Starter
Neat idea, but I don't ever see it coming to fruition....at least ANYTIME in the near future.
Even if this tech did become available too, I don't see it overpowering/replacing console systems. Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo make too much off of them and IMO I don't think people would want to abandon them.
Even if this tech did become available too, I don't see it overpowering/replacing console systems. Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo make too much off of them and IMO I don't think people would want to abandon them.
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