Google Stadia is finally upon us!
Well, not just yet, but Google has finally revealed the answers to all the questions we had following the initial March announcement when the company introduced its cloud gaming platform.
To begin with, the platform will launch in November and it will be available in 14 different territories, U.S, U.K and Canada included.
One of the first things Google was also sure to make clear to everyone is that Stadia is not, at its core, a subscription service and that the users will be buying their own games, not rent them. While Google Stadia will have a backlog catalog of free games that will be included in the $10 monthly fee, that only includes one game for now: Destiny 2.
But we do know the names of the games and the game studios that will make an appearance on the platform:
- Bandai Namco – Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2
- Bethesda – DOOM Eternal, DOOM 2016, Rage 2, The Elder Scrolls Online, Wolfenstein: Youngblood
- Bungie – Destiny 2
- Capcom – TBD
- Coatsink – Get Packed ( as a Stadia exclusive)
- Codemasters – GRID
- Deep Silver – Metro Exodus
- Drool – Thumper
- Electronic Arts – TBD
- Giants Software – Farming Simulator 19
- Larian Studios – Baldur’s Gate 3
- nWay Games – Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
- Rockstar Games – TBD
- Sega – Football Manager
- SNK – Samurai Shodown
- Square Enix – Final Fantasy XV, Tomb Raider Definitive Edition, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Shadow of the Tomb Raider
- 2K Games – NBA 2K, Borderlands 3
- Tequila Works – Gylt (Stadia exclusive)
- Warner Bros. – Mortal Kombat 11
- THQ – Darksiders Genesis
- Ubisoft – Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Tom Clancy’s The Division 2, Trials Rising, The Crew 2
More games will be launched during E3, next week and in the months leading up to the official launch in November so hopefully we’ll get to hear about the Stadia-exclusive titles soon enough.
The Stadia controller will cost an extra $70, it can connect wirelessly to the internet and will come in black, white and wasabi green.
You’ll have three options to choose from when taking up your very own Stadia account: the first one is the Stadia Base, which is free of charge for any game you purchase via the platform at up to 1080/60p in stereo (at 10Mb/s). Individual game prices are still up in the air for this one though.
The Stadia Pro tier costs $9,99 per month and gives you 4K/60p HDR quality (at 35Mb/sec) with 5.1 surround sound, with free games added to your library as well as some discounts.
Then there’s the Stadia Founder’s Edition – this one’s a limited pre-order offer for $129,99 that includes first access, a limited edition controller, Chromecast Ultra streaming devices, three months of Stadia Pro, Destiny 2, a buddy pass that you can give to a friend for 3 months of Stadia Pro and, the coolest part: a first shot at any username you want (come on, you know that’s important).
Stadia will work on laptops, desktops and Chromecast Ultra TV streaming sticks, on tablets and on the Google Pixel 3 phones. Google will expand the service to iPhones and other tablets at a later date.
Follow TechTheLead on Google News to get the news first.
