Google today revealed pricing for its Linux-Powered game streaming service Stadia — and well, it’s all a bit confusing.
Stadia is Google’s console-free way to game on your TV, your laptop, or anywhere else with a decent internet connection and the Google Chrome browser to hand.
And, instead of downloading games locally to play on hardware in your room, games run in the cloud, on Google servers.
The company says Stadia is able to deliver over 10 teraflops of graphics processing power, far beyond anything a home games console currently offers.
But then again, you probably know all that; those details were revealed back in March.
What you want to know is how much it’s going to cost.
Google Stadia Price & Launch
Ahead of the big E3 gaming event, Google has announced the cost of a Stadia subscription.
It’s also revealed some of the games that will available to play at launch, and told us the all-important launch date. Y’know, when you can actually play games.
To play Stadia when it goes live in November gamer’s will need to buy a $129 (£119) Stadia Founders Edition pack. This pack includes:
- A limited edition blue Stadia controller
- Chromecast Ultra dongle
- 3 month subscription to Stadio Pro
- 4K HDR streaming
- A Buddy Pass (3 month sub for a friend)
Google says around 30 games will be available at launch, including titles like Doom, Final Fantasy XV, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and Mortal Kombat 11.
Some of these games will be free to play as part of a Stadia Pro subscription, while others will be paid titles.
No, you didn’t misread that; some games have to be bought separately to play on Stadia even if you’re already subscribed. What is this, Amazon Prime?!
Google hasn’t revealed which games will be free to play as part of a Stadia Pro subscription and which will be paid, but it has said that it will keep add new free games regularly.
Stadia Subscriptions
Google Stadia goes live later this year, but it’s next year that Stadia launches more widely.
In 2020, a Stadia Pro subscription will cost $9.99 (£8.99) a month giving you access to the (free) games library, 4K HDR and surround sound streaming that you can play on your TV.
A (non-limited edition colour) Stadia controller will cost $69 (£59).
Don’t want to subscribe? Google has you covered too.
A Stadia Base subscription costs nothing, but comes with caveats. Firstly, base subscribers have to buy games individually to play on Stadia (they don’t get access to free ones) And they can only stream in 1080p with stereo sound.
But the biggest drawback is that Stadia Base players are limited to playing through a Chrome browser on a laptop or PC or a Google Pixel phone. They cannot stream games to a TV.
- (via: Wired)