I personally don't believe OnLive is gonna be a better option for gaming in the forseeable future. Streaming the game from an outside source? Imagine the lag between inputs and actions, and when they actually occur on your screen. Not to mention the bandwidth requirements for such a venture (assuming you want to play with a high resolution/graphic settings). They may claim to have found new algorithms to reduce the bandwidth needs and improve performance, but really I'll believe it when I see it.
This might work for turn based strategy games and the like, but I can imagine it would get frustrating even with point and click adventure games. Nothing will match having a capable machine in the same room as you.
Edit: I hate to sound really negative, but the concepts and values they've stated for OnLive are currently totally unfeasible (<1ms latency???? You'll never see that with a LAN!). These sound like statements made by marketers and not by engineers. It's a nice theory, but likely still a few decades away.
Also my response doesn't really contribute to the idea of TellTale jumping on the bandwagon.. I suppose I should have posted this in the other thread mentioning OnLive.
I personally don't believe OnLive is gonna be a better option for gaming in the forseeable future. Streaming the game from an outside source? Imagine the lag between inputs and actions, and when they actually occur on your screen. Not to mention the bandwidth requirements for such a venture (assuming you want to play with a high resolution/graphic settings). They may claim to have found new algorithms to reduce the bandwidth needs and improve performance, but really I'll believe it when I see it.
This might work for turn based strategy games and the like, but I can imagine it would get frustrating even with point and click adventure games. Nothing will match having a capable machine in the same room as you.
Edit: I hate to sound really negative, but the concepts and values they've stated for OnLive are currently totally unfeasible (<1ms latency???? You'll never see that with a LAN!). These sound like statements made by marketers and not by engineers. It's a nice theory, but likely still a few decades away.
Also my response doesn't really contribute to the idea of TellTale jumping on the bandwagon.. I suppose I should have posted this in the other thread mentioning OnLive.
Yes, but the guy who made OnLive also invented video compression, which was also unbelievable at the time. Now, he is practically reinventing online streaming, and there won't be noticeable lag.
Yes, but the guy who made OnLive also invented video compression, which was also unbelievable at the time. Now, he is practically reinventing online streaming, and there won't be noticeable lag.
I realize this, in fact the guy who started OnLive is also the guy who started QuickTime. Simply put, video compression/streaming is still far from perfect as it is. I'm just saying based on the technology we currently have, this system is still far from a working phase.
Maybe when the whole world is finally connected through optical fiber, and that technology has improved, and they have a server farm the size of Texas, and ISPs will ignore OnLive access in regards to bandwidth limitations/caps, then this system will have a fighting chance. Currently it just seems a little too far-fetched to me.
Thanks for "borrowing" this from my thread natz. I thought it could use its own thread.
As for your concerns Krodge, they're all addressed in the video I posted in my InstantAction thread. Basically, they're creating three server hubs. One for the west coast, east coast and the midwest. I can't remember specifically but I think it was that you can only play with others in your same hub. Should definitely watch the video though, it addresses all of the questions about ISPs, latency, etc.
Thanks for posting the link tobar. Unfortunately I'm still quite skeptical...
Especially towards the end when they're answering questions, and they mention working on exceeding the speed of light, and the fact that a computer that can stream Crysis with full graphics to hundreds of thousands of people is "relatively inexpensive." I don't even wanna know what his opinion of an "inexpensive" subscription plan would be.
I could always be wrong though, these guys really could be modern voodoo witches who are breaking the laws of physics.
It's a curious thing. Not really worth a lot of hype to me, personally. I saw it, went "...huh.", and didn't think much of it.
I mean, if it works, that's nice. What will their policies be towards content? Is it subscription? Pay by the hour? I'm not exactly sure if these have been answered or not.
Basically, I want a free demo of a high-quality game, just a level or two. If it runs flawlessly, I'd consider using the service to cut strain on my hardware.
Apparently they're going to be asking for a subscription fee to access the service, then you'll be able to play free demos, or rent/buy games. Nothing seems to be finalized, so I guess we'll see by Winter if they really do go live by then.
Once upon a time, who would have thought people could communicate with others throughout the world using a plastic and metal box - much less watch live video of concerts, pandas in zoos, and people bitching about any and everything? I wouldn't write this OnLive idea off just yet.
This isn't an official statement in any way, but I would personally love to see a thing like this actually work. Probably not as the only option to play games, but an option. Being a Mac user, if there was some sort of way (besides Bootcamp or the like) to natively play PC based games on my Macbook would be great.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not opposed to the idea at all. In fact, it would be great for many people if I was wrong here. I'm just skeptical because the claims made by these folks are ultra-unrealistic considering the current state of technology. I don't doubt it will someday be possible, but it just seems too soon.
I'm not even sure it won't work technically so much as I'm not sure it'll work as a business model, or if what they have set up will be for whatever reason incompatible with my hardware/connection for seemingly arbitrary reasons of technological fate.
Comments
This might work for turn based strategy games and the like, but I can imagine it would get frustrating even with point and click adventure games. Nothing will match having a capable machine in the same room as you.
Edit: I hate to sound really negative, but the concepts and values they've stated for OnLive are currently totally unfeasible (<1ms latency???? You'll never see that with a LAN!). These sound like statements made by marketers and not by engineers. It's a nice theory, but likely still a few decades away.
Also my response doesn't really contribute to the idea of TellTale jumping on the bandwagon.. I suppose I should have posted this in the other thread mentioning OnLive.
Yes, but the guy who made OnLive also invented video compression, which was also unbelievable at the time. Now, he is practically reinventing online streaming, and there won't be noticeable lag.
I realize this, in fact the guy who started OnLive is also the guy who started QuickTime. Simply put, video compression/streaming is still far from perfect as it is. I'm just saying based on the technology we currently have, this system is still far from a working phase.
Maybe when the whole world is finally connected through optical fiber, and that technology has improved, and they have a server farm the size of Texas, and ISPs will ignore OnLive access in regards to bandwidth limitations/caps, then this system will have a fighting chance. Currently it just seems a little too far-fetched to me.
As for your concerns Krodge, they're all addressed in the video I posted in my InstantAction thread. Basically, they're creating three server hubs. One for the west coast, east coast and the midwest. I can't remember specifically but I think it was that you can only play with others in your same hub. Should definitely watch the video though, it addresses all of the questions about ISPs, latency, etc.
Especially towards the end when they're answering questions, and they mention working on exceeding the speed of light, and the fact that a computer that can stream Crysis with full graphics to hundreds of thousands of people is "relatively inexpensive." I don't even wanna know what his opinion of an "inexpensive" subscription plan would be.
I could always be wrong though, these guys really could be modern voodoo witches who are breaking the laws of physics.
I wish I could sign up for Beta, but it says "continental US" only. A Canadian that owns a mac will never get ANYWHERE in the gaming world.
I mean, if it works, that's nice. What will their policies be towards content? Is it subscription? Pay by the hour? I'm not exactly sure if these have been answered or not.
Basically, I want a free demo of a high-quality game, just a level or two. If it runs flawlessly, I'd consider using the service to cut strain on my hardware.
This isn't an official statement in any way, but I would personally love to see a thing like this actually work. Probably not as the only option to play games, but an option. Being a Mac user, if there was some sort of way (besides Bootcamp or the like) to natively play PC based games on my Macbook would be great.
Crossover Games is starting to bug me.
For some reason, BootCamp won't work because my hard drive is broken....or something.