Topic: Cloud Gaming Acceptance?

@Pirate1 what about all the skins, outfits and emotes I bought in fortnite is that cloud ?

No, cloud gaming means you're playing the game over the internet, like Netflix is for movies. The game will be running on a PC server somewhere in a warehouse with the image being streamed to your Switch over the internet (this allows you to play games that the Switch natively can't run on it's own, or in some cases games of which the publisher didn't want to bother to properly optimize for it).

Sometimes DLC, save data & other things like that can be backed up "to the cloud", but that's not cloud gaming per se. Such things are stored natively on your Switch, but Nintendo (or other publishers) hold copies of such things in their own servers that way you can redownload them if you delete or otherwise lose them somehow. Your Fortnite skins probably fall under this category.

@Fizza Uh...Pokemon, Animal Crossing, and Splatoon 2 aren't cloud based games. Epic facepalm. 🤦

@TowaHerschel7 That's exactly the point I was trying to get across: they aren't supported by cloud when, in a lot of instances, there really isn't a reason why they shouldn't be. I'm sorry if I didn't word that properly.

Cloud saves are different from games that are fully replaced by the cloud.

I'm mostly tolerant of how the industry has been changing in recent years (I could deal if consoles went digital-only, for example, and DLC doesn't usually disturb me too much), but I draw the line at cloud gaming. At the point where I'm unable to run games natively on hardware I own, I'm going full retro gamer.

Which, honestly, wouldn't be some terrible fate. There's already more than enough great games out there to last me for the rest of my days, and it'll be a good long while before the industry devolves to that point (assuming it ever does).

I'm stunned after Stadia how easy it is to find recent articles talking about cloud gaming as "TEH FUTURE". If you say its the future of gaming all the time, it apparently never has to actually become a thing in the present.

This! I know everyone likes to complain about digital only games, and all that, but damn at least I own the game. With cloud your paying for nothing! Once the server shuts down, thats it. I mean look at the 3ds and wii U, everyone is going to go and last minute download there stuff, and guess what! will be able to play them for years on end, but not with cloud, once its over, its over.

And thats all assuming you even have good internet! and how cloud gaming ruins what the switch was made for LOL.

@Matt_Barber @Snatcher GeForce Now is actually how I would like to see cloud gaming implemented, as an option for games you already own.

For example, I buy a PC game, but my PC does not meet its minimum requirements. Then I could choose to stream the game to play it. Yeah, it requires Internet to stream it, but I wouldn't need to wait to upgrade something on my PC to simply play it. Like an option to install the actual game with the data on a hard drive, but also stream it if desired.

I honestly wouldn't want to buy a game that's cloud only, one day that server could shut down for good, I rather go with physical or digital. If it's an option that complements buying a digital game like GeForce Now does, I'd be ok with it.

Keep in mind, not entirely replace digital and physical games, if I like a game a lot, I'd like to be able to have it and not rely on the cloud.

Cloud gaming is a solution to a problem that is increasingly not a problem. It's a way to get high end games to be playable on low end hardware. Problem is, low end hardware isn't as low end as it used to be.

Does anyone with a Steam Deck intend to use in-home-streaming? Probably not. Because it can do a good enough job at a portable resolution and without the lag or compression. The same will probably be true of the next portable hardware from Nintendo

Thinking cloud gaming is the future is kinda like thinking the Wii U gamepad is the future. By the time it makes sense we'll have already moved on

Cloud is worse then Digital downloaded games. You basically own nothing but pay full price for the game. Also let's remember in NA there are Internet Deserts and sometimes you only have ahemmm.. Dial-UP. So don't think just because they talk cloud that all is so equal. And sometimes you only get what the ISP gives you not the other way around. Also you need to pay a ISP subscription in order to even access Cloud. This is the Delusional world those advocating Cloud is better don't disclosure to Sell a bill of Goods to unsuspecting people.
To have Cloud:
1. Pay a ISP to get internet access
2. Pay Cloud Prices
3. Pay ISP subscription rate for internet
4. How's the sky feel now..

@skywake Absolutely agree.

I just don't understand who cloud gaming is for.

The core gamers are already buying consoles that provide better experiences than cloud versions.

There's an argument that, for more casual gamers, it removes the entry cost of buying a console - and they're probably less likely to notice the difference in quality with streaming vs. native play. But how many casuals will have internet capable of streaming, and are still willing to pay full prices for games / pay monthly for a subscription?

The best use cases I can see are:
(i) giving console gamers access to games not natively on their device, e.g. Xbox gamepass on PS5.
(ii) streaming on other devices as an option when you own the native console game (something Xbox has been experimenting with).

I absolutely cannot see a future where streaming is the norm, or anything but a niche alternative for playing games.

Good luck trying to play something like Elden Ring on Stadia. If it lags, you’ll just die.