How will onlive change the gaming space

Anthem85

Anthem85

CAGiversary!
It is coming this fall... with almost every major publisher on board. If this thing works (and do you think it will) how is it going to effect the console and pc market?

I know alot of people will say it just cant work, lag lag lag, but if it really has been in devolopment for so many years dont you think they could and would have the technology to fix those issues? So that argument cant really be answered yet, untill we test it ourselves.

I believe if they charge a small amount like xbox live $50 a year for the service then I will be all in. It looks like a great idea and I believe it would change everything.

There was a interview with MS and they were asked if they were going to buy onlive and intergrate it into the xbox. The guy laughed and said well they sure like our name dont they? I see MS already moving towards this with there 1080p instant watch rental and purchase service coming this fall.
 
There's been no news on their site since the beginning of June. For something that's supposed to be out this year that's not a good sign at all.
 
This reminds me, did anyone get accepted to the beta? I signed up pretty early and havnt heard anything.
 
Despite the skepticism of my fellow CAGs, I'm very intrigued by OnLive. It presents a form of digital distribution that has never been tried before.

Naturally, there are a lot of "ifs" surrounding the launch of OnLive. How wide will its effective range reach? How many people are going to have access to the level of broadband necessary to use it? What kind of lag are we going to see on it? These are all significant factors that we have yet to see in play.

On the other hand, one "if" has already been answered. All of the largest publishers are lining up to put their games on OnLive. By it's very nature, OnLive is secure and easier to develop for. It makes games available cross-platform, without actually having to code them for cross-platform distribution. It gives you a relatively fixed hardware spec to aim for.

One thing that a lot of people are overlooking is the benefits this could have for multi-player gaming. One of the biggest bottlenecks for on-line games is the lag associated with individual machines and connections. With OnLive, all of the actual game calculations will be done server-side. Data transfer will be purely for input and the video stream. Any lag will probably be pushed to the video stream. Gameplay genres that have traditionally suffered in the on-line space (such as 2D fighters) will benefit from this approach immensely.

OnLive offers something different than XBox Live, so they do not actually need to be competitive in their pricing structure. They could easily charge $50 a month for a service like this, as opposed to $50 a year. (especially if the base game selection is solid)

I am very interested to see more.
 
[quote name='Richard Kain']Despite the skepticism of my fellow CAGs, I'm very intrigued by OnLive. It presents a form of digital distribution that has never been tried before.

Naturally, there are a lot of "ifs" surrounding the launch of OnLive. How wide will its effective range reach? How many people are going to have access to the level of broadband necessary to use it? What kind of lag are we going to see on it? These are all significant factors that we have yet to see in play.

On the other hand, one "if" has already been answered. All of the largest publishers are lining up to put their games on OnLive. By it's very nature, OnLive is secure and easier to develop for. It makes games available cross-platform, without actually having to code them for cross-platform distribution. It gives you a relatively fixed hardware spec to aim for.

One thing that a lot of people are overlooking is the benefits this could have for multi-player gaming. One of the biggest bottlenecks for on-line games is the lag associated with individual machines and connections. With OnLive, all of the actual game calculations will be done server-side. Data transfer will be purely for input and the video stream. Any lag will probably be pushed to the video stream. Gameplay genres that have traditionally suffered in the on-line space (such as 2D fighters) will benefit from this approach immensely.

OnLive offers something different than XBox Live, so they do not actually need to be competitive in their pricing structure. They could easily charge $50 a month for a service like this, as opposed to $50 a year. (especially if the base game selection is solid)

I am very interested to see more.[/QUOTE]

Thank you for this view very good thoughts
[quote name='Puffa469']Its the new Phantom.

Vaporware[/QUOTE]

I like how people are saying this... what doesnt line up for your thought is that the phantom was promoted for years without anything. Then killed then came back then killed again. This service was just announced in June. I think its alittle premature to call it the new phantom
 
[quote name='Anthem85']Thank you for this view very good thoughts


I like how people are saying this... what doesnt line up for your thought is that the phantom was promoted for years without anything. Then killed then came back then killed again. This service was just announced in June. I think its alittle premature to call it the new phantom[/QUOTE]

It's just my scepticism kicking in. Why is this technology available now and was only a dream a year ago? PC's haven't gotten significantly faster in the past year or two, and the average broadband speed hasn't really changed either.

I've been around long enough to not believe fantastic initial claims about a product. The PS2 was a super computer when it first came out. I'm still waiting for real time 'Toy Story' quality graphics. I'm not trying to pick on Sony with those examples, all major tech companies make amazing claims about what their product can do.

You can have a top of the line PC or game console, and a wired broadband connection, and lag free gaming is not guaranteed.

Onlive just seems too good to be true. And you know what they say about something that seems too good to be true.
 
nothing will change since it wont happen as perfectly as they claim.....people dont even stream netflix 100% perfectly..what makes you think you are going to get better than that with almost instantaneous (sp?) controller feedback while playing a graphics heavy action game?
 
I signed up for the Beta and have yet to hear anything. Has anyone been accepted yet? How come they haven't released any more news?

Even if this works, I don't like it. Let's see, you have to pay a fee to play and you still have to buy the games you play. Yet you don't really own those games because they aren't installed on your hard drive. Sure, I'll give up every bit of leverage a consumer has just to be "cutting edge". :roll:

No way in hell do I trust the publishers or Onlive itself to do what's best for the consumer. What happens if this fails? Would I be able to download the games I bought then? What happens if I leave the service? Would I be able to download the games I bought? Too many questions with answers I probably don't like.
 
[quote name='mogamer']No way in hell do I trust the publishers or Onlive itself to do what's best for the consumer. What happens if this fails? Would I be able to download the games I bought then? What happens if I leave the service? Would I be able to download the games I bought? Too many questions with answers I probably don't like.[/QUOTE]

Do you get to download all of the Television shows you watch on HBO if you cancel your subscription?

People are so used to physical media with their games, that they are unable to look at it from any other perspective. This is especially confusing for me when you think of how many gamers will rent games, or buy games and sell them to used game stores. Those gamers don't get to keep their games either, but it doesn't seem to bother them.

So why not pay a monthly or annual subscription, and have access to games anywhere, on any computer that is connected to the interent? You don't even have to buy a cable box, just install a browser plug-in. And if they never delete your profile, you could always sign back up again later. (the same way they do it with World of Warcraft)

Everyone focuses on the negatives, but those same negatives apply to EVERY digital distribution service. That hasn't prevented iTunes, PSN, XBox Live, or the Virtual Console from flourishing. It seems like most of the objections to OnLive is that it is TOO secure. Don't bother trying to complain to developers about that one.

This is literally treating games the same way that Television has been handled for a while now. You have the basic broadcasting, then you have cable, and then you have the premium channels. If your cable goes out, it is out, and you can't watch HBO.
 
I am skeptical as well, but this technology and service sounds ground breaking to say the least. When I first heard it, I was pretty excited. I'm hoping for the best from it, honestly.
 
[quote name='Richard Kain']If your cable goes out, it is out, and you can't watch HBO.[/QUOTE]But you can watch shows that you saved on your DVR.
 
how onlive will change gaming space?

it will change the meaning of ownership. the way onlive is created is with a strong desire for drm [you don't own anything and therefore you can't alter anything].

street fighter 4 is a great pc game because people are being creative and are making mods for them. yeah those mods are cheesy and sexual but it has creativity that are created through the ownership of that game. those mods won't exist if a product doesn't exists for users to temper with.

i say if you support onlive, then you support drm.
 
I'm actually seeing a scenario in which OnLive catches on. It wont work, but it can still sell. Modern day consumers are already used to varying amounts of lag from basic online play, from hdtv video processing and in some cases upscaling. They think the dual stick works for first-person shooters and real time strategy games.

Make no mistake, OnLive will be a thoroughly decrepit experience(in the event that it actually exists). But thats exactly what today's next-gen consumers are used to and apparently demand.
 
Its going to be like when Divx was released to go against DVDs. No one is going to pony up money for a system and a game just to rent them. I think the draw to own a game and not have to be logged or get permission to play it will be a huge drawback. Think about how many people bitched when they RROD their xbox and had to log into live every time they wanted to play an arcade game on their new system. thus MS had to create a system to tie switch the games to other systems blah blah, in other words, if people are paying for it, they want to use it as they see fit.
 
[quote name='Richard Kain']Do you get to download all of the Television shows you watch on HBO if you cancel your subscription?

People are so used to physical media with their games, that they are unable to look at it from any other perspective. This is especially confusing for me when you think of how many gamers will rent games, or buy games and sell them to used game stores. Those gamers don't get to keep their games either, but it doesn't seem to bother them.

So why not pay a monthly or annual subscription, and have access to games anywhere, on any computer that is connected to the interent? You don't even have to buy a cable box, just install a browser plug-in. And if they never delete your profile, you could always sign back up again later. (the same way they do it with World of Warcraft)

Everyone focuses on the negatives, but those same negatives apply to EVERY digital distribution service. That hasn't prevented iTunes, PSN, XBox Live, or the Virtual Console from flourishing. It seems like most of the objections to OnLive is that it is TOO secure. Don't bother trying to complain to developers about that one.

This is literally treating games the same way that Television has been handled for a while now. You have the basic broadcasting, then you have cable, and then you have the premium channels. If your cable goes out, it is out, and you can't watch HBO.[/QUOTE]

I already do this with Gametap and I don't buy individual games from Gametap. From what I understand about Onlive, is that I will have to buy the games I want to play on top of a subscription fee. That is totally different from a service like cable tv or Gametap. I'm not complaining that it's too secure, I'm complaining that if I no longer have the service the games that I paid for are no longer available to me.
 
[quote name='tankass']It's going to be like when Divx was released to go against DVDs. No one is going to pony up money for a system and a game just to rent them.[/QUOTE]

Ah, but that's part of the beauty of what they're doing with OnLive. You DON'T need to purchase a system to use it. It will run on any PC, you just have to download and install the browser plug-in. Think about that for a second. What's one of the biggest drawbacks to using any operating system other than Windows? Of course, that would be games. The Mac and Linux platforms are sadly lacking in the games department. But with OnLive, the majority of games will be accessible on those platforms, with no performance hit, and no additional development cost.

And the hardware for using OnLive with your TV is incredibly simple. I have no doubt that they will be handing those cheap little boxes out for free if you sign up for an annual subscription.

It's not a system, so much as it is a service. With OnLive, the hardware isn't important.

[quote name='tankass']In other words, if people are paying for it, they want to use it as they see fit.[/QUOTE]

And what has that lead to? Rampant piracy. Too %*#(! bad if people are upset that they don't get to "own" their games, and do whatever they want with them. The majority of gamers aren't that concerned about "owning" games, otherwise the used gaming industry would tank. Most gamers only care about playing the game. If OnLive delivers that, than frankly, who cares?
 
Lol, yeah, that's how I feel. As long as I'll be able to play Crysis on my lowly Laptop, I'll be good. I can careless about the "owning" games qualm.
 
[quote name='mogamer']I already do this with Gametap and I don't buy individual games from Gametap. From what I understand about Onlive, is that I will have to buy the games I want to play on top of a subscription fee. That is totally different from a service like cable tv or Gametap. I'm not complaining that it's too secure, I'm complaining that if I no longer have the service the games that I paid for are no longer available to me.[/QUOTE]

there hasnt been a pricing structure released yet for it. If they do do a cost for it I hope its like I said a upfront a year charge like Live is.
 
Hmm no new updates since last year? guess I will throw my two cents in now.

Recently like 5 mins ago went back and took a look at the website for this service and it seems like a good idea you get to play any game they have available on your computers and now they have this micro hook up device for televisions which is cool and it supports 4 controllers. My only problem with this is from reading the FAQs on the website is that you have to buy a "playpass" which allows you to play a specific game, to me this sounds like the days of going to the video store to rent a game for a week or two, why would I want to pay a subscription to rent a game....yeah I wouldn't have to buy a system...or anything...but the games that I do buy I plan on keeping for a long time. Will this kill the gaming industry for console systems? probably not a lot of people can not afford good internet or any at all. It is a good idea and I hope it works out for the company..but for myself...I refuse to rent a game if I am already paying the monthly fee just to be a member.

The At&t offer is somewhat odd also you get a years free subscription if they choose you from the waiting list but that just included demos and such no games, those are separate. Meh we will see what happens.
 
Working pretty good so far with Red Faction: Guerrilla on my P4, 5 year old Dell desktop that can't play Crayon Physics Deluxe without stuttering. Played about 15 minutes and its already eaten about 1 GB of bandwith (50 gb/month limit, so I'm watching it closely, may be an overstatement since I haven't reset the bandwith counter in a few weeks though). Getting 30-35 fps during blowing stuff up and a few more fps while running around. Can't tell much graphic wise as I have an old CRT monitor, but it looks nice so far, but doesn't seem to have as much eye candy as I thought the game did on the 360 which might be a limitation of my internet(most likely SD stream). Tonight I'll enter my free game code and get the full RFG and maybe try HD output to my TV if my ethernet cable from my 360 is long enough to reach my laptop. Will probably be able to record with fraps as well since my desktop's cpu maxes out with onlive,fraps, and firefox running. Hopefully 15 down is enough to stream HD. Kinda freaky that people can jump in and watch you, but at least its nothing more than streaming your feed to them, no voice support that I could figure out. Cool service for free, but once you add the subscription fee and realize that you lose your games you pay for, it's not so great of a deal anymore. Would probably be a better investment in the long run to build a gaming capable pc imo.

EDIT: for anybody that is wondering, 30 minutes of RFG ran my bandwidth 1.25gb, which means roughly 2.5gb/hour for a SD game, thus killing any chance I had at actually making this service useful w/my cap. Hope they allow wifi in the future since my college requires everything to be over wifi and I'd rather not waste my free membership. FPS also seems to stay at 30 fps, I think their server throttles based on whats going on as I took down a building in 30 fps and when it stopped crashing and I started walking around it jumped to 40-50fps before going down to 30 again.
 
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Haven't read many of the posts here, but being a beta user of Onlive for a couple months my opinion is:

If it works well (still rough in beta), then it will be a great sub area for games to release for a small niche. Yet, they may not make enough to warrant running those crazy servers.
 
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