Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot: 'Game streaming will replace all gaming platforms'

[Matrix]

By the end of the next generation of gaming consoles, we might not need them anymore

Forward-looking: Just as people have changed the ways in which they access their data, so are gamers changing the ways in which they access their games. More and more companies are exploring cloud gaming technology. Existing services are improving and new ones are opening. Could this spell the end for dedicated gaming PCs and consoles?

Gaming is a multi-billion dollar per year industry with over 2 billion players worldwide. The business has evolved and expanded with great diversity in platforms. This variety, in turn, has led to even more growth with multiple variations of the same game for the numerous devices available — smartphone, console, PC. Some believe that the industry is set to evolve again as a direct result of this diversity.

Ubisoft co-founder and CEO Yves Guillemot believes that game consoles (and PC-gaming rigs for that matter) are about to go the way of the dinosaur. He thinks that streaming technologies will eliminate the demand for distinct gaming hardware, and that gaming will become "platform agnostic." He sees this next evolution happening within 10 years.

“I think we will see another generation, but there is a good chance that step-by-step we will see less and less hardware,” Guillemot told Variety in a recent interview. “With time, I think streaming will become more accessible to many players and make it not necessary to have big hardware at home. There will be one more console generation, and then after that, we will be streaming, all of us.”

The way he sees it, shifting to a streaming model is the best way to ensure that the triple-A gaming industry continues to grow.

So much of our digital life has already shifted to the cloud. Our photos, documents, video, and various other files are already mostly available anywhere and from any device. Some would say, as Guillemot does, that cloud gaming is inevitable.

Indeed, most companies are working on or already have game-streaming services. Sony has PlayStation Now, which launched in 2014. Even though it is four-years-old, the service is still in its infancy as it struggles with lag and sub-par game selection, but it has improved immensely since it began.

GameFly started streaming games in 2015. It is ranked as one of the best video game streaming services by Digital Trends. Its technology is so promising that Electronic Arts recently paid an undisclosed amount to acquire the company's streaming assets and talent.

Even GPU maker Nvidia has introduced GeForce Now. The service is currently in beta testing, but the game selection is reasonably robust. Some of the titles on offer include Assassin’s Creed Origins, Wolfenstein II, PUBG, and much more.

 

While Microsoft does not currently have a streaming service, it is in the process of developing in a platform-agnostic direction. Company President Satya Nadella reportedly wants to change the way Microsoft looks at gaming.

“[Nadella] challenged us to make Microsoft the global leader in gaming by empowering everyone on the planet to play, watch, communicate, and create together,” Microsoft’s Executive Vice President of Gaming Phil Spencer told Variety. “[Gaming is] less about having specific devices to play a certain game on, but having your favorite games accessible on any device you have.”

The opportunities for cloud gaming are just beginning. Owning one copy of a game that you can play on anything from your phone to your 7-year-old laptop is an appealing thought. If technical hurdles can be overcome, streaming may become the standard.

source

[DKT27]

Not many are going to or are willing to pay for that.

[lordnsane]

22 hours ago, DKT27 said:

Not many are going to or are willing to pay for that.

Not now, but maybe in future, this might become cheap enough to actually make more sense than to afford a gaming PC/console.

Imagine just a small hiccup in supply of GPUs due to mining raised their prices to ridiculous amounts, RAM prices going up, a decent gaming PC these days costs $1500-$2000.

Cloud could have humongous resources per server, and cost could be distributed on hourly basis as they do these days with DigitalOcean/Linode, pay as you use. Also, streaming won't require anything apart from good internet connection and a cheap laptop/TV/console/Chromcast able to stream.

[DKT27]

5 hours ago, lordnsane said:

Not now, but maybe in future, this might become cheap enough to actually make more sense than to afford a gaming PC/console.

Imagine just a small hiccup in supply of GPUs due to mining raised their prices to ridiculous amounts, RAM prices going up, a decent gaming PC these days costs $1500-$2000.

Cloud could have humongous resources per server, and cost could be distributed on hourly basis as they do these days with DigitalOcean/Linode, pay as you use. Also, streaming won't require anything apart from good internet connection and a cheap laptop/TV/console/Chromcast able to stream.

 

Good point.

 

Still, I do not agree everything will be replaced by it. He is basically suggesting that subscription model will take over than the purchase model, which matters for some, but not for everyone I think.

 

Also, not everyone owns super fast internet, we are reaching there, but not there yet. To add to that, somewhere I read that such things require atleast 200Mbps connection to stream games at 1080p and such.

[lordnsane]

On 12/06/2018 at 3:14 AM, DKT27 said:

 

Good point.

 

Still, I do not agree everything will be replaced by it. He is basically suggesting that subscription model will take over than the purchase model, which matters for some, but not for everyone I think.

 

Also, not everyone owns super fast internet, we are reaching there, but not there yet. To add to that, somewhere I read that such things require atleast 200Mbps connection to stream games at 1080p and such.

yes, that's why I said in near future. Already people have gigabits of bandwidth at their homes. Even developing nations have ~>100mb of bandwidth already available, and with fibrenet comes low latency as well.

True that it won't replace for all, but I think that those with enough bandwidth and good internet connection could prefer this model. Especially the parents, who can just pull the subscription plugs on their kid's gaming world let's say during exam days, or as a punishment.

[debebee]

What I understand about game streaming atm

You need a powerful machine with an able GPU to render or launch the games.. The mobile devices are just like peripherals to the main machine..

Not sure if these games will be playable over the net if you have a limited BW plan