There have been many great inventions in history, but the cloud is certainly one of the most important. In essence, it is a way of storing data and offering services online to increase security, efficiency and also convenience. Many industries have already started to incorporate cloud tech – you only have to look at any modern online sweepstakes casino to see this in action. One sector that is now starting to take on cloud technology in a big way is gaming, with big hitters such as Google making use of it to offer game streaming services, for example. Of course, famous gaming brands such as Microsoft have already been using the cloud to offer players online gaming choices in recent times.
Just what impact could the cloud have for video gaming as we move forwards?
Could it be the end for physical consoles, PCs and games?
One major impact that cloud-based gaming could bring to the sector is the whole idea of how we play games. Although video gaming has evolved over the years, how we play has remained pretty much the same for most people, who buy physical machines to play games on and then physical CDs to put into them. If more people move to play in the cloud, then we could soon see the need for physical game CDs disappear as any game content you play is hosted remotely and streamed to your device. One other thing to note for cloud-based subscription services is that they can be used on any internet-enabled device that is set up for it – such as a smart TV or smartwatch. This means that we may no longer require a games console or PC in the future.
Gaming could be cheaper and more convenient
In the modern age, gaming can still be an expensive hobby. By the time you have bought your machine and purchased games, your bank account can soon look a bit sorry for itself. The cloud could help to solve this issue though by bringing down the cost of gaming. Cloud streaming services for gamers charge a set monthly subscription fee to access a huge choice of games on the device of your choice.
The cost of this is much less than gaming in the traditional way. With cloud gaming, there is also no need to update hardware your end or download new content to play games. This is all done at the hosting end and means that any game you choose is updated and ready to go instantly.
Set to make mobile gaming even more popular
This is a sector that is doing well on its own – each year, mobile gaming generates almost $10bn in the US alone! The cloud is sure to impact mobile play in a positive way as we move forward.
In simple terms, it will allow people to access a wider range of games on the move so that they can play them wherever they are. As these titles will be hosted online, there will also be no need to download individual games onto mobile devices. This is sure to be popular with people due to the storage it saves on their mobile phone or tablet. Of course, this is set to be something of a two-way street as 5G networks, and more powerful mobile devices marry with the low latency that game streaming services offer to great effect.
Will make gaming more social and widespread
Playing games online via the cloud is certainly more social than playing games in the more traditional way. Even if you do not have anyone sat in the same room to game with, playing in the cloud means that this is not a problem. Internet connectivity means that you can simply log on and game with friends wherever they are in the world.
It also makes it possible to make new friends by gaming with other people online. As a result, the cloud will impact on gaming to make it more social and less isolated as an activity. One other impact that we may see is that playing games through the cloud could make video games even more mainstream. As it will make games more accessible from any connected device, it could see more people try out video games and help the sector grow.
Cloud set to disrupt video game sector
It should not really be a surprise to expect this to happen in a positive way in the near future. Cloud-based tech has already been used to great success in many sectors previously, from online casino play to online suites of business management tech. The time is now right for gaming to use these developments to its advantage and push forwards into a new decade.
