Google is just a month away from joining the cloud-gaming market.
The tech giant on Tuesday announced at its Made by Google event in New York City on Tuesday that its Stadia video gaming service will debut on November 19.
Google unveiled Stadia earlier this year, pitching it as a “new generation” of gaming. The service is entirely cloud-based, thereby allowing gamers to play dozens of games online using a computer, smartphone, and television.
While Stadia has been compared to Apple Arcade, the iPhone maker’s own cloud-gaming service, Stadia is notably different. For one thing, Stadia’s games, including Red Dead Redemption 2 and NBA 2K20, are existing console-focused titles that Google is bringing to the cloud. Apple Arcade, in contrast, features games that are exclusive to the service and includes a larger library of them.
Google is marketing Stadia as a cloud-based alternative to consoles like Microsoft’s Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4. It comes with 4K resolution streaming, high dynamic range, and 5.1-channel surround sound—features found in today’s top consoles.
Stadia’s release date had been one of the big question marks surrounding the service as companies race to compete in the emerging video game streaming market. Apple introduced Arcade last month and Microsoft is starting to test its own alternative, Project xCloud.
For now, Google Stadia is a paid service, costing $9.99 per month. Next year, however, Google plans a free version that will let users play the service’s game library with lower, 1080p video resolution and stereo sound. Google didn’t say on Tuesday when the free Stadia version will be available.
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