Google Stadia, originally launched in November of 2019, is the powerful tech conglomerate's attempt to enter the video games industry with its own platform for players. Unlike Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft, however, Google's focus is on cloud-based streaming, meaning that instead of buying hardware like a physical PlayStation 5 or an Xbox Series X, consumers simply need a compatible device, like a phone or a tablet, and they can play anywhere they'd like through the power of the internet.
Unfortunately for Google, when the service launched almost a year and a half ago, it was met with rather middling reviews. The general consensus was that the company could have used more time perfecting Stadia's flaws. From there, things only seemed to go downhill, ultimately leading to the recent studio closures and revelations making news headlines on social media. Add in reports of strange money management and an apparent misunderstanding of how the games industry works regarding AAA ports, and the streaming service has really had a tough time lately.
So, what exactly is happening with Google Stadia right now?
How Google Stadia Is Doing Currently
Although Stadia has gotten a mostly bad reputation on social media, there have been good things about the service that shouldn't be overlooked. For example, for those with fast internet speeds, the cloud-based gameplay actually runs pretty well, and Cyberpunk 2077 reportedly ran better on Stadia than either the base Xbox One or PlayStation 4 consoles. Plus, there are no worries about crossplay between devices - if someone buys a game once through their Stadia account, it can be played on whatever Stadia compatible device they have, a nice change from trying to switch back and forth between Xbox and PlayStation.
However, Stadia has still had its fair share of struggles, especially in recent history. Last month, on February 26, Jason Schreier of Bloomberg published a piece detailing Google's approach to Stadia. The article contained a lot of interesting information, detailing the platform's journey from inception to launch in November 2019, but what really started to circulate on social media was Schreier's assertion that the company was spending tens of millions of dollars on each Stadia port. Essentially, instead of paying those funds toward the independent developers or Stadia's own studios to create original content for the service, Google was paying incredible amounts of money to Ubisoft and other AAA video game developers to bring their latest titles to Stadia.
Paying millions of dollars for already-released games was an even more painful revelation considering that only a few weeks prior, Google announced the closure of its in-house studios. Now, any original content exclusively for Stadia will need to come from deals made with other studios instead of being developed by Google itself. Combined with the layoff of industry legends like Jade Raymond, known for her work on the Assassin's Creed and Watch Dog franchises at Ubisoft, and the idea that the company is paying an exorbitant amount of money for AAA titles, and Google Stadia seems to be headed down a strange and potentially unprofitable path.
Overall, Google Stadia has come nowhere close to being an industry innovator like its creators suggested before its launch. Considering its rocky history in just the last two months, it doesn't seem to be getting much better, either, but it'll be interesting to see how the company adapts to its major changes in 2021, assuming it continues the project into the foreseeable future.
Sources: Bloomberg, Schreier/Twitter