Last week, a Famitsu reporter teased a "revolutionary scoop" in this week's issue of the magazine. Initial reports stated that this could be related to a "fog gaming" system in Japan, and now the issue is available and has been properly translated, we're seeing more solid information appear.
According to Ars Technica, Sega's big plan is to use its idle arcade machines – which have powerful CPUs and GPUs and are already widely connected across the country via the company's All.Net infrastructure – to power a massive cloud-based home streaming platform to rival that of PlayStation Now and Google Stadia.
It might sound crazy, but when you look deeper into the mechanics of arcade gaming in Japan – and how heavily Sega is entrenched in that particular business – it begins to make sense.
Arcades are still incredibly popular in Japan, despite the fact that the industry has perhaps never been smaller. Sega has plenty of All.Net-ready arcade cabinets out in the field already, but it also allows amusement centres it doesn't own to run these connected devices, for a fee.
According to Adam Pratt, an arcade operator who runs industry website Arcade Heroes, the current coronavirus pandemic has hit Sega's arcade business hard:
One contact I have in Japan was telling me that [All.Net] has been bombing out with the pandemic. Few locations outside of Sega-owned ones were already using it and now they are dropping it... as the fees make it untenable.
Pratt – who has been speaking to Ars Technica on the matter – thinks this "fog gaming" concept could be exactly what Sega needs to bring its arcade business back from the brink:
So, if this allows arcades to serve arcade content when closed, that could be a nice lifesaver for Sega and for the [operators]. If it is designed to help operators and has reasonable costs, then it could be a great solution to generating income while closed, which is still an issue for so many in the biz... If ops don’t get a piece of the payment pie, though, they won’t touch it.
The idea is pretty simple; during large portions of the day, Sega's All.Net-connected arcade machines are sitting idle. That processing power could be harnessed using a low-latency network connection, allowing the company to generate revenue from otherwise unused resources. This revenue is shared with arcade operators, which in turn keeps the arcade industry alive.
It's an interesting idea and we can see why the Famitsu reporter felt it was big news – but that's only true if you happen to live in Japan. Unless Sega opened up a chain of All.Net-ready arcade centres all over the world, we can't see how this concept would travel outside of the company's homeland.
Were you expecting more from Sega's big news? What do you make of this concept? Let us know with a comment.
[source arstechnica.com]
Comments (73)
It is an interesting use of idle resources, but eh, cloud gaming... No thanks, 'nuff said.
Basically Google Stadia for arcades?
Sega has become the most disappointing videogame company over these past few years.
Thanks for another reminder about internet infrastructure in Japan, Sega.
I get that they can be used for cloud gaming when they are idle but would that mean if the majority of the units are in use over a busy period the online service would be effected if it relies solely on those systems to power it? Sort of confusing in that regard as the infrastructure wouldn't be completely dedicated to the cloud gaming aspect. Maybe i am understanding it wrong though.
It probably deserved the buzz in Japan but as soon as the story went worldwide, disappointment was inevitable.
MaiMai for Nintendo Switch, please...
Sega’s big announcements are always a letdown, so this is no surprise.
I've had thoughts about tapping into idle machines like this in the past, but it was thinking about the large numbers of workstations installed at schools, colleges, and universities.
Those machines are on standby all day long just sitting at a login screen. That standby time could be used for projects like [email protected] cloud computing.
What SEGA is doing here makes total sense, take their idle arcade infrastructure and turn it into active computation resources for whatever commercial thing they want to do.
That said, it will mean that it will increase the electrical consumption and heat generation for wherever those arcade machines are installed.
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it a million times. The best cloud gaming I’ve experienced is the “Head into the Clouds” level in SMG2 and Cloud Kingdom in SMO and this won’t change for a long time.
@JuiceMan_V Last time I checked, 1994 was more than a few years ago.
Let's be fair, Sega never said they had a big announcement, just one journalist got a bit excited and the rumours blew up. For Japan this is probably a potentially great service so good luck to them
pitiful pitiful
They’d be better of using them to mine bitcoin!
Short answer: NO.
@beazlen1 Skies of Arcadia surely
Please master system mini with 50 games. Please Saturn mini with 50 games. Please Dreamcast mini with I guess 50 games! . Would love to be in a boardroom at Sega and mention these, and they will be like no no no! A mans gotta dream x x
@Zenszulu that seems about right but bear in mind that the arcades there are only open for a very limited amount of time
What an interesting idea.
It certainly sounds like it has great potential.
Modern arcades seem like a snooze fest, in the US. I don't see the market changing much because fog gaming can pull from a larger pool of games. As nostalgic as i am for arcades, it's never been more than a brief novelty for me. This won't bring Peggle to an arcade, or anything cool I'd actually like. I welcome being proved wrong.
I just wish this news wasn't hyped up from the initial tease. I know technically this wasn't Sega's fault, but all this talk of a 'revolutionary' announcement will probably have a negative impact on stocks if expectations were kept in check. I guess we can hope for something nice on their 75th anniversary, but it will probably just be a new Sonic figure for £499 & some Alex the Kid wallpaper (like for actual walls).
I had an inkling that it would be Japanese-centric when they gave Famitsu the scoop. If it was a going to set the world on fire, it would have been an event or something.
Seems like the Hype train has crashed
What a waste of Hype
Sega's fog gaming = Sega Channel for arcades in Japan only.
Well, good for sega and everyone in Japan!
I guess we should consider the context as alluded to in the article that it was big news relative to the reporter in Famitsu and their perspective.
Here, I thought it was going to be Sega announcing a revolutionary partnership with Nintendo or Sony given how close they have been with both companies, Sonic and Mario for Nintendo and their Yakuza games (mostly) with Sony. Oh well.
I honestly thought Sega were already doing something like this in Japan. As arcades still exist there this is the logical way they'd stay existing in today's climate.
As a side note, this likely means Sega is doubling down on arcades, so absolutely no chance of home hardware ever coming from them again, which although sad, is again logical if you look back at the history of the company. I hope this works out for them.
It shows what Sega has become - small time, with equivalent aspirations. Sad.
but..... the Saturn mini...
Random people on the internet hyped it up. It was always meant to be big news for Japan, and it IS big news for Japan.
This is very fascinating stuff. Sure, it won't really affect people outside of Japan, but it makes perfect sense to do this (in terms of business, consumer friendliness and the technology already being there).
I don’t think the rest of the world really gets Arcades any more like in Asia, but I do think that this plan is a good way to use Cloud gaming where it’s not dependent on home internet setups, and allows for more inventive multiplayer games to be developed for this situation- this is a way for esports to be accessible to everyone as you could hold tournaments across the world in such a manner.
The biggest problem SEGA have got is we have to get past any fears of pandemics before the tech can be used.
@carlos82 then i would think if there was that much demand for these games to be played in the first place the arcades would be open longer to accommodate it. I am being pedantic on that but it seems like such a niche service even in Japan
https://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m343qz6nOj1qki16eo1_500.gif
Complete....udder...disappointment...
@Deanster101 yes!
Screw Dreamcast mini... A Saturn mini would be deadly!
@Zenszulu I think it's in the business districts where they have limited opening times, others are open all day. From what I understand it's not necessarily to stream the arcade games but to reduce lag for existing cloud services by using the arcade machines as remote servers
I find it amusing people getting annoyed by 'Sega's Big Announcement'. They never touted it as an announcement at all, it was hype stirred up online from a reporter in a Japanese gaming magazine.
I actually think it is pretty big news, but only really if you are currently living in Japan. Who knows, maybe it takes off and they spread it around the world, we'll just have to wait and see.
Ah, the wonderful overly connected world that we live in. A Japanese journalist from a Japanese gaming magazine announces that he has some exciting news about SEGA and then people in other countries are angry that this is not relevant to them.
@carlos82 while it may not be just solely for those arcade games to be played at home the article does sugget that those systems will soley be powering a new service not supplementing one's that already exist.
Well, they did say it would rile the industry.
Hands up, who is riled? lol.
When I said I was ready to be disappointed I really wasn’t. All I want is a Dreamcast mini please.
Honestly I would have been more excited if the announcement was that they've paid for the rights to Sonic 3's music.
Don't mean to be cynical but this seems really uninteresting. To me at least.
I'm happily disappointed. I was worried it'd be some sort of buyout or new console, the LAST thing Sega needs right now.
Disappointed to be honest, but hey that’s life.Wishful thinking believing Sega was bringing new tech. Maybe one day.
Lots of people can't even go to the arcade. Why bother with this?
Well, it sure sounds like an ingenious way to reuse already existing resources! Props to Sega 👍🏻
@SuperWeird To be fair, SEGA never told you to get hyped for this. a Japanese journalist addressing a Japanese audience did.
Yep, that reporter is officially a shill. Yet another letdown by Sega.
Get it together Sega! This after posting a "6" in the Virtua Fighter font a few months ago and get us VF fans all excited, only to launch a website with a timeline of Sega's history. Smh
This may blow up, but it’s a cool idea. However, fees aren’t going to get independent arcades on board with it unless they’re getting something out it for a potential loss in foot traffic.
The idea seems cool though. Support an arcade from your device: game console, computer or smart.
However, there are so many companies re-releasing their arcade games. I wonder how this will go over when Hamster, Capcom and others can sell you something you can play directly from your device.
I think this is cool and the lense people should see this in is that if it's good for Japanese arcades than it's also good for the overall health of Sega as a company. The only way Sega reclaims any of their old glory is by innovating.
It could have been worse: Sega could have announced a new 3D Sonic game
Nope it is not..
This was the big announcement?, ok good for them I guess I dont get why this was such a big secret.
It's like [email protected] for cloud gaming. I find aliens more realistic than cloud gaming, tbh.
@Entrr_username Well, that's exactly the point of this service: so people can play their arcade games at home, so they don't NEED to go to the arcades. And that in return, is also the benefit for the arcades themselves: they'll still be making money, even though people can't physically visit them.
It's basically a win-win situation. Well, at least for the people in Japan, because this isn't going to come to Western regions any time soon...
@Bobb I don't know, at least then I'd have one of two possible outcomes. It is terrible and I can take the **** out of it or it is actually good which means Sonic may be able to break out of the funk. Both are better for me personally.
@JuiceMan_V Really? Even if you have choices like Bethesda and EA?
@MS7000 Well said 😂
I was mostly kidding
blast processing is a conspiracy
Seems like Sega is only thinking about their home turf regarding their 60th anniversary and that's sad as I wanted a global release for the Game Gear Micro.
About the whole "fog gaming" idea, I think it's ok and I hope it succeeds, but that's nowhere near " PS5 level news" in the grand scheme of things. Only a brand new global Sega home console could hit that point.
@JuiceMan_V Bite your tongue. It's like Konami doesn't exist on your world.
I mean, this is interesting and I do think it's a good use of resources. It was just wayyyyyyyyyy overhyped. Good for sega though.
Ummmm... No.... This is like Nintendo or Microsoft saying they are updating the backend of the online service to a new Linux kernel. It's inside baseball, not an announcement for gamers. Weird weird weird. I was hoping for a new Sonic 2d game or a whole new take on Sonic.
@Anti-Matter And chunithm. And ongeki.
I guess good for Sega’s bottom line but I doubt there’s any benefit for gamers e.g. Sega taking more risks with new franchises.
Well this is boring and was always gonna be disappointing if it was anything short of Dreamcast2!!!!!
In 2019 would have dismissed it. But after testing both Nvidia's GeForce NOW and Shadow for the last 5 months I can say it actually works really well.
At least in NYC, Boston, LA. Where I have used it
I have made 2. A 6.2 inch with mobile network for when I am away for work and a 7 inch wifi only for when I am home.
Nintendo should definitely look into this for the Switch. Maybe even partner with Nvidia again to stream next gen games that have RayTracing to the Switch 🤔
Hey SEGA, I'll buy a VF5R and a VF5FS cab before you start taking stuff apart! Thanks!
Joking aside I wonder if they are considering bringing this west? Likely not consider it is their .NET system.
Just dropped by to say everyone here is an idiot for setting their standards too high.
Why does everyone think Sega is coming back to consoles? They aren't, they likely never will, and the mini Saturn and Dreamcast are never happening because they sold poorly. Sega is what they are, a third party developer and publisher, who made a great 16 bit console about 30 years ago, quit making consoles close to 20 years ago., and today still is involved with arcades and making games for the Switch, Xbox and PlayStation consoles.
@kingbk
Sadly, I can only agree with this. I can only hope that we get some decent Sonic games along with Skies of Arcadia 2, and proper modern home ports of Outrun 2 (with console modes added in), Daytona 2, HotD 1-4/etc out of them before I turn 50 in 10 more years.
I sometimes wish I could go relive late 1993-1999 to watch the limitless potential of what the new 32-bit consoles were about to unleash upon gaming and to replay the first year and half of the Dreamcast again.
@kingbk there will never be a mini Dreamcast or Saturn. The Saturn did okay in Japan and flopped elsewhere. The Dreamcast got killed off just by the announcement of the PS2. Sega got their fingers burnt on the way out of the console market. Shame as I loved their consoles...
"to rival that of PlayStation Now and Google Stadia."
To rival what? A total bust?
Only Sega would want to do something like that...
Even the rumor that they give their name to the new Xbox in Japan, sounded way better (and that was a complete nonsense, too)..
@beazlen1 agreed
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