Google Stadia Founder’s Edition Starts Shipping on November 19
- Admin
- Nov 11, 2019
- 4 min read
Updated: Nov 18, 2019
11/9
Those who pre-ordered Stadia Founder’s Edition or Premiere Edition will get a taste of Google’s cloud gaming first starting from November 19 on your TV, laptop, desktop, and select tablets and phones.
Google announces that the launch date of Stadia will be on November 19 with Founder’s Edition and Premiere Edition available first and free version coming in 2020. Both editions will come bundled with a Chromecast Ultra, a Stadia controller, three months of Stadia Pro, and Destiny 2: The Collection.
LAUNCH DATE
Waiting game is no more as Google officially revealed its cloud gaming service Stadia’s launch date. According to Google’s official blog, Stadia Founder’s Edition and Premiere Edition will start shipping on November 19. Google says once your order is shipped, you will be notified by email, and shortly after, you will receive a code to activate your Stadia account and Stadia Pro.
On launch day, only Founder’s Edition and Premiere Edition will be available in 14 territories. Google also plans to launch free edition in 2020 with limited stream quality up to 1080P at 60FPS. Whether you ordered Stadia Founder’s Edition or Premiere Edition, you’ll have three months of Stadia Pro, with access to Destiny 2: The Collection.
Chromecast Ultra and a controller will be included in both editions, and you will be able to game in up to 4K 60FPS with HDR and 5.1 surround sound on TV. However, it should be noted that users will need at least 35Mbps of Internet download speed for a smooth gameplay.
Google’s Pixel phone line-up will also be able to use Stadia, and more phones will be granted access in the future including iOS devices. In addition, Google’s Chrome web browser will get the treat in the near future as well.
WHAT ARE THE 14 TERRITORIES GETTING STADIA FIRST?
WHAT EXACTLY IS GOOGLE STADIA REALLY?
For those of you who are still scratching your head when the name “Stadia” or the word “cloud gaming” come up, the concept is like Netflix of games but also not quite.
When Stadia was first announced at GDC 2019 in March, many people referred to it as Netflix. It is true that both services deliver content via streaming, but that is where the similarity ends. Netflix is subscription-based, meaning you get access to the whole library of content with monthly payment. Stadia’s subscription only comes with the streaming service itself and a copy of Destiny 2 at launch.
Google tells us that we should expect to buy games like what you would on any game retail platform. In an interview with The Verge, Google’s director of games Jack Buser says “We will sell these games like any other digital storefront.” This means you need to purchase the games for the same retail prices you’d find on other platforms like PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, and Steam.
So far these are the games available on Stadia, with more coming every month, including Stadia exclusive games still in development.
Stadia confirmed games list (updated October 2019)
Bandai Namco - Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2
Bethesda: Doom Eternal (delayed till March), Doom 2016, Rage 2, The Elder Scrolls Online, Wolfenstein: Youngblood
Bungie: Destiny 2
Capcom: TBD
CD Projekt Red: Cyberpunk 2077
Coatsink: Get Packed (Stadia exclusive)
Codemasters: GRID
Deep Silver: Metro Exodus
DotEmu: Windjammers 2
Drool: Thumper
Electronic Arts: TBD
Giants Software: Farming Simulator 19
Gwen Frey: Kine
Larian Studios: Baldur’s Gate 3
nWay Games: Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
Robot Entertainment: Orcs Must Die 3!
Rockstar Games: Red Dead Redemption 2
Sega: Football Manager 2020
SNK: Samurai Shodown
Square Enix: Final Fantasy XV, Marvel’s Avengers, Tomb Raider Definitive Edition, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Shadow of the Tomb Raider
Superhot Team: Superhot Mind Control Delete
2K Games: NBA 2K20, Borderlands 3
Tequila Works: Gylt (Stadia exclusive)
Warner Bros.: Mortal Kombat 11
THQ: Darksiders Genesis, Destroy All Humans
Ubisoft: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Gods and Monsters, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Tom Clancy’s The Division 2, Trials Rising, The Crew 2, Watch Dogs Legion
FEATURES OF STADIA
Aside from play-anywhere or play-on-any-device capability, Stadia has some other nifty features that you cannot get on other platforms.
At Game Developer Conference(GDC) 2019 in March, Google revealed a feature called Stream Connect. It allows you to send a copy of those streams from one player to another, where it gets incorporated directly into the game. In Google’s keynote, they showed three example uses of the feature:
● Couch-based split-screen — Showing multiple players’ game content on a single screen.
● Co-op squad view — incorporating all teammates’ views into each player’s perspective, without the processing cost of multiple scene renders.
● Asymmetric multiplayer roles, i.e., “the coordinator view” — Showing how one player can not only view, but also impact others using Stream Connect.
In a demo by Google, all of the players footage was sent to a coordinator. The coordinator was able to put a beacon directly through his teammates’ footage to notify approaching enemies. This perfectly showcased what Stream Connect is capable of.
Another feature is Crowd Choice, which allows gamers to interact with their viewers more closely. Gamers can directly stream their gameplay on YouTube, and if Crowd Choice is turned on, viewers can participate in polls or choices that can directly impact the gameplay. For example, using a multiple choice poll to let viewers vote on the streamer’s gear. However, this will only be available if developers implement this feature in their games.
Google is betting on cloud gaming for the future and is the first major company to actually launch its service to the public. However, we still have to wait until it’s released to see how Stadia handles real world use and see how Google will continue to improve the system. With Microsoft, Sony and Nvidia also dipping their toes in the cloud gaming service, it’d be interesting to see what happens in the future of gaming.
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