Google’s ambitions with their streaming service Stadia are admirable, but there are many who’ve been quite skeptical of whether it has the tools to achieve what Google aspires for. Some think that it might be better off appealing to the mass market than if it were to try and encroach on the console market’s territory, while others, like Microsoft – who will be its direct competitors with their own xCloud – feel Stadia will lack the content to drive the kind of engagement Google will want to see.
Frederik Schreiber, vice president of 3D Realms – who’re currently working on retro old school first person shooter Wrath: Aeon of Ruin – falls in the camp of skeptics as well. We recently interviewed the developer about their upcoming shooter, and eventually got to talking about Stadia. As per Schreiber, 3D Realms have no plans to launch their title on Stadia at the moment- when asked about whether he feels Stadia will prove to be a success, or if things such as infrastructural issues will hold it back, Schreiber said that we’re a long, long ways off from being at a stage where the industry can successfully offer streaming-only options as viable and widespread gaming options.
“It’s hard to say,” Schreiber told GamingBolt when asked about whether Stadia will be able to overcome any infrastructural issues. “At this moment, no. In order for any platform to exist and become successful, the basic requirements for it to operate flawlessly has to be available at every household.”
“With current consoles, electric power and a TV is the only requirement for you to get the flawless experience,” he continued. “Until every household has a gigabit fiber connection by default (expect that to take at least 20+ years from now), a network/internet based gaming solution won’t be a success. The alternative (a regular console), is simply a better and faster solution for the average consumer.”
In the same interview, Schreiber also said that he sees the PS5 and the next Xbox being far more powerful in terms of specs than Stadia. Read more on that through here.
3D Realms’ Wrath: Aeon of Ruin launches on PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch later this year. Our full interview with Schreiber will be going live soon, so stay tuned.