Google will have several games on Stadia when the platform launches later this year, and we've compiled a list of all of those launch titles, assuming that there aren't any changes prior to Stadia's release.
Google Stadia is entering the video game streaming market, with the idea that all of the hard work of the hardware will be done on the server end, which means that games can run on high-performance settings on any device. The caveat is that the player needs to have access to a fast Internet connection in order for it to work.
The Google Stadia platform will launch in November 2019 and Google has already listed a number of games that will be available on the service at launch. Here's all of them so far:
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey
- Baldur's Gate III
- Borderlands 3
- The Crew 2
- Darksiders Genesis
- Destiny 2
- Doom
- Doom Eternal
- Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2
- The Elder Scrolls Online
- Farming Simulator 19
- Final Fantasy XV
- Football Manager 2020
- GRID
- Gylt
- Just Dance 2020
- Metro Exodus
- Mortal Kombat 11
- NBA 2k
- Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid
- Rage 2
- Samurai Shodown
- Thumper
- Tomb Raider Definitive Edition
- Rise Of The Tomb Raider
- Shadow Of The Tomb Raider
- Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint
- Tom Clancy’s The Division 2
- Trials Rising
- Wolfenstein: Youngblood
It's possible that at least two of the games on the list won't be ready for the November launch date. Baldur's Gate III was revealed at the Google Stadia Connect event, but it currently has no set release date. The developers danced around the question when it was brought up at E3, which suggests that it won't be ready in time for November. There are also doubts concerning Metro Exodus, as the game has a one-year exclusivity deal with the Epic Store that might prevent it from coming to the service at launch.
Gylt is the only Google Stadia exclusive game that will release at launch, with another exclusive title, called Get Packed, due to be released in 2020. All of the other games on the list are available to purchase on other systems and the player will still be expected to pay full price for them at launch.
The most interesting names on the list in terms of determining how well the Google Stadia platform will work are Mortal Kombat 11, Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid, Samura Shodown, and The Elder Scrolls Online. The genre of video game that suffers the most from lag issues in online matches is fighting games, due to how they rely on precise timing at the competitive level. Fighting games will be a major test for the Google Stadia platform, as any consistent issues regarding input delay or lag would make it unsuitable for that genre. The Elder Scrolls Online is the only MMO available for the Google Stadia platform at launch and it will be interesting to see how well it works, especially as the promised speed of the Stadia platform could be greatly beneficial to that genre. It was mentioned during the Google Stadia GDC 2019 event that the service could handle a battle royale game with a thousand players, which makes us wonder what it could do for an MMO?
The only way to play games on Google Stadia in 2019 is by purchasing the $130 Founders Edition, which comes with a controller, a Chromecast Ultra, three months of Pro service, and a free copy of Destiny 2: The Collection, which means that this is the one game that all Stadia subscribers will have at launch. It has been revealed that there won't be a beta test for Google Stadia, which means that Destiny 2 is going to act as the benchmark for a lot of stress tests when the service becomes available in November.