After months of beta testing, Nvidia has officially launched its cloud-based gaming service, GeForce Now. GeForce Now allows users to play games that they already own, on any device. Users are required to sign into their respective game stores to play the supported games.
GeForce Now supports macOS 10.10 or above, Windows 7 64-bit or newer, Nvidia Shield, and Android Lollipop 5.0 or newer with 2GB RAM, and OpenGL ES3.2 support or higher. Nvidia recommends at least 15 Mbps internet connection for 720p at 60 fps, and 25 Mbps for 1080p at 60 fps. For optimal performance, 50 Mbps bandwidth is recommended over ethernet or 5 GHz Wi-Fi. Data consumption will be around 2GB to 10GB per hour depending on your streaming quality, and gameplay settings.
GeForce Now comes with free and founders membership options. The free membership offers standard access and an hour of session length. Users may have to wait in the queue to access the next gaming rig, and after an hour of gameplay, they will have to restart the session again.
While Founders membership offers priority access, extended session length (up to six hours), and access to ray-tracing gaming hardware. Founders membership costs $4.99 per month. Nvidia is offering a free 90-Day Introductory Period for those who take the founders membership. Nvidia is also planning to increase the price next year.
Apart from GeForce Now, PlayStation Now, Microsoft’s Project xCloud and Google Stadia also offer cloud-based gaming services. PlayStation Now is supported on PS4 and PC. Only PS4, PS3, and PS2 games available on the PlayStation Now platform. Microsoft’s Project xCloud is currently in preview, and users need to register for an invite to test the service.
GeForce Now has various advantages over Google stadia. One of the key advantages is the cost. Currently, Google Stadia doesn’t offer any free membership, and it costs $9.99 per month. Users are also required to buy the Stadia Founders package, which costs $129. Google Stadia doesn’t let you play the games that you already own in Steam, Origin, Epic, or other game stores.
For now, it seems Nvidia GeForce Now is the best cloud-based gaming service available. The service is currently available in North America, Europe, Russia, Japan, and South Korea. Nvidia is expected to expand the service in other countries soon.
