Akihabara News (Tokyo) — With the launch of the Stadia cloud service this week, Google becomes a heavyweight gaming company taking on the established Sony PlayStation Now and the incipient Microsoft Project xCloud.
Stadia games will be playable using televisions, desktop Google Chrome web browsers, or Google-made Pixel smartphones. In a later stage it is expected to be integrated with YouTube.
At the time of launch, 22 games will be available in the Stadia lineup. These are Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Attack on Titan: Final Battle 2, Destiny 2: The Collection, Farming Simulator 2019, Final Fantasy XV, Football Manager 2020, Grid 2019, Gylt, Just Dance 2020, Kine, Metro Exodus, Mortal Kombat 11, NBA 2K20, Rage 2, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Red Dead Redemption 2, Samurai Shodown, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Thumper, Tomb Raider 2013, Trials Rising, and Wolfenstein: Youngblood.
Initially, Stadia is launching in fourteen countries in North America and Europe, but is not available in Japan or any other Asian country.
Google originally announced the coming of its Stadia game service in March, and by June began accepting preorders for the US$130 Founder’s Edition controllers.
The global video game industry is worth an estimated US$135 billion.