I already have to invest heavily into high end hardware for video editing/work and my current setup is not ideal for games. I have no desire to buy a second computer just to game. I pay $5/mo for geforce now and it’s a fantastic way for me to play PC games without owning a PC. Yeah I don’t “own” the computer, but at $60/yr who gives a shit? I’d have to use it for 15 years to even approach what I’d spend on a computer that plays as well as the remote rig I use. I get 1080p @60fps using medium/high graphics and great response time.
Additionally, I am able to use it on my phone and tablet with a controller. Which means those are games I’m not buying on mobile (plus I can play a ton of games that my phone/tablet can’t play, like Valheim). Plus I share the account with my brother who barely plays games at all but likes to from time to time. Dropping $700-$1000 on a gaming computer does not make sense for him.
Just because you don’t have a valid use case doesn’t mean no one else does. And GFN’s existence isn’t stopping you from owning and playing on your own hardware.
As for eroding consumers’ ability to own anything, there is no world in which cloud gaming replaces owning hardware locally in any meaningful way. It’s a part of the ecosystem. You can’t even download the games like on movie streaming services, you need a strong and reliable connection or it’s unplayable. You can’t use it on commutes, you can’t use it on planes, you can’t even use it reliably walking around your home. The inability to play without internet + latency + lower quality/fps means your computer isn’t going the way of the DVD player anytime soon.
Let me also ask you this: why does everyone need to own a computer to play games?
I already have to invest heavily into high end hardware for video editing/work and my current setup is not ideal for games. I have no desire to buy a second computer just to game. I pay $5/mo for geforce now and it’s a fantastic way for me to play PC games without owning a PC. Yeah I don’t “own” the computer, but at $60/yr who gives a shit? I’d have to use it for 15 years to even approach what I’d spend on a computer that plays as well as the remote rig I use. I get 1080p @60fps using medium/high graphics and great response time.
Additionally, I am able to use it on my phone and tablet with a controller. Which means those are games I’m not buying on mobile (plus I can play a ton of games that my phone/tablet can’t play, like Valheim). Plus I share the account with my brother who barely plays games at all but likes to from time to time. Dropping $700-$1000 on a gaming computer does not make sense for him.
Just because you don’t have a valid use case doesn’t mean no one else does. And GFN’s existence isn’t stopping you from owning and playing on your own hardware.
As for eroding consumers’ ability to own anything, there is no world in which cloud gaming replaces owning hardware locally in any meaningful way. It’s a part of the ecosystem. You can’t even download the games like on movie streaming services, you need a strong and reliable connection or it’s unplayable. You can’t use it on commutes, you can’t use it on planes, you can’t even use it reliably walking around your home. The inability to play without internet + latency + lower quality/fps means your computer isn’t going the way of the DVD player anytime soon.
Let me also ask you this: why does everyone need to own a computer to play games?