Stadia Founder's Edition • Hacker News Board

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#21

Post by bt3 » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:15 PM UTC

LUmBULtERA wrote: post #16

bt3 wrote: post #14

Can someone explain the tech here? Obviously the brains of this is a Google data center beaming the game through a Chromecast to your TV (or in-app on your Pixel/ whatever). Is there any tech in the controller? What "costs" $129 if there's a subscription model attached to this? If the controller is indeed "dumb" (just sending inputs), why wouldn't there be compatibility with Xbox or PS4 controllers? If the history of…

My understanding is that the controller supposedly connects directly to Google through WiFi rather than going through the device you're playing on.

Hmm. Does this mean that the controller is the "brains", and after sending and receiving the game play data, then needs to beam it to your device? Or do the two devices (controller + screen) work together to handle some of this?

I fear for the latency in general.

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#22

Post by AnssiH » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:16 PM UTC

bt3 wrote: post #14

Can someone explain the tech here? Obviously the brains of this is a Google data center beaming the game through a Chromecast to your TV (or in-app on your Pixel/ whatever). Is there any tech in the controller? What "costs" $129 if there's a subscription model attached to this? If the controller is indeed "dumb" (just sending inputs), why wouldn't there be compatibility with Xbox or PS4 controllers? If the history of…

> If the controller is indeed "dumb" (just sending inputs), why wouldn't there be compatibility with Xbox or PS4 controllers?

The controller is not dumb, it connects to Google.

Also, as I understood it other "supported" controllers can be used (per https://youtu.be/k-BbW6zAjL0?t=683) but then you need to use another device/platform that does the connect-to-Google part, e.g. Chrome on PC.

edit: http://stadia.com/faq says USB HID controllers are supported on Chrome and mobile.

edit 2: and https://support.google.com/stadia/answer/9338852 explicitly says PS4 and Xbox One controllers are supported.

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#23

Post by bt3 » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:16 PM UTC

VikingCoder wrote: post #15

bt3 wrote: post #14

Can someone explain the tech here? Obviously the brains of this is a Google data center beaming the game through a Chromecast to your TV (or in-app on your Pixel/ whatever). Is there any tech in the controller? What "costs" $129 if there's a subscription model attached to this? If the controller is indeed "dumb" (just sending inputs), why wouldn't there be compatibility with Xbox or PS4 controllers? If the history of…

That's $9.99 x 3 (3 months of Stadia Pro) + $69 (Controller) + $69 (Chromecast Ultra) = $167.97. Just with that, it's a 30% discount, roughly. I'm not counting the cost of Destiny 2. And it appears as though it will be compatible with other controllers. (Probably not the Chromecast version, though.)

"And it appears as though it will be compatible with other controllers. (Probably not the Chromecast version, though.)"

May I ask how you arrived at this conclusion?

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#24

Post by VikingCoder » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:17 PM UTC

alwaysdoit wrote: post #17

VikingCoder wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's $9.99 x 3 (3 months of Stadia Pro) + $69 (Controller) + $69 (Chromecast Ultra) = $167.97. Just with that, it's a 30% discount, roughly. I'm not counting the cost of Destiny 2. And it appears as though it will be compatible with other controllers. (Probably not the Chromecast version, though.)

Destiny 2 is going F2P, so it's $0

If Destiny 2 is F2P, will they have stuff you need to buy? And will Stadia Founders get that for free? I don't know, do you?

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#25

Post by LUmBULtERA » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:17 PM UTC

eckmLJE wrote: post #18

How are they overcoming the jarring effects of input latency? Even 20-30ms in input lag would turn a lot of people off, or is this primarily for casual games where this won't matter too much?

I played the AC Odyssey Stadia/Stream beta -- at least for that kind of single-player experience it felt comparable to console input lag with no jarring effects. I'd be interested in how it would be in twitch shooters though.

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#26

Post by jitl » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:18 PM UTC

bt3 wrote: post #21

LUmBULtERA wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My understanding is that the controller supposedly connects directly to Google through WiFi rather than going through the device you're playing on.

Hmm. Does this mean that the controller is the "brains", and after sending and receiving the game play data, then needs to beam it to your device? Or do the two devices (controller + screen) work together to handle some of this? I fear for the latency in general.

Neither device is the brains. The controller uploads inputs. The Chromecast downloads outputs.

The brains is Google’s cloud.

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#27

Post by LUmBULtERA » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:18 PM UTC

bt3 wrote: post #21

LUmBULtERA wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My understanding is that the controller supposedly connects directly to Google through WiFi rather than going through the device you're playing on.

Hmm. Does this mean that the controller is the "brains", and after sending and receiving the game play data, then needs to beam it to your device? Or do the two devices (controller + screen) work together to handle some of this? I fear for the latency in general.

I would think it's just sending data on your inputs to the data center directly to reduce latency, but otherwise has no other brains.

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#28

Post by endorphone » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:18 PM UTC

partingshots wrote: post #11

minimaxir wrote: post #3

$10/mo was pretty much the only way they could price the service; however I didn't expect 4k to be the base resolution for the paid service. (thought it would be $10/1080p, $15/4k; having 1080p for free is interesting). Google needs to be more transparent about device support though. The stream highlighted Chromecast Ultra/Android, but not much else (e.g. if there is an iOS client, or compatibility with a base $35 10…

I doubt iOS is going to get access to Stadia. One of the primary perks for going with Android is that you’ll be have access to mobile gaming through Stadia that you can’t get with an Apple device.

Google isn't a company that restricts their services in such a coupled manner. I fully expect it to be supported on most devices where it's possible to support it.

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#29

Post by atq2119 » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:20 PM UTC

LUmBULtERA wrote: post #16

bt3 wrote: post #14

Can someone explain the tech here? Obviously the brains of this is a Google data center beaming the game through a Chromecast to your TV (or in-app on your Pixel/ whatever). Is there any tech in the controller? What "costs" $129 if there's a subscription model attached to this? If the controller is indeed "dumb" (just sending inputs), why wouldn't there be compatibility with Xbox or PS4 controllers? If the history of…

My understanding is that the controller supposedly connects directly to Google through WiFi rather than going through the device you're playing on.

Right. The idea seems to be that the controller directly talks to Google via WiFi to minimize the input latency, while the display device also directly talks to Google to minimize the output latency.

Re: Stadia Founder's Edition

#30

Post by KukicAdnan » Thu, Jun 06, 2019, 5:21 PM UTC

This is right up my alley being a pretty casual gamer. I have a 1GB Fiber connection at home so streaming shouldn't be an issue, the cost is fairly minimal, and not having the worry about downloading or updating games and just being able to pick up the controller and have a quick gaming session will be perfect. And the cost to entry is very low, so even if the service is a bust and I leave after the 3 free months, I'll still have a Chromecast Ultra that I've been looking to pick up anyway.