[IndustryGamers would like to thank EA Sports for sponsoring our trip to GDC this year]
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It's been an eventful GDC week so far, and one of the more interesting tidbits we've learned from meeting with both Lou Castle, CEO of InstantAction, and Dave Perry of Gaikai is that the two have decided to partner up. Gaikai will still exist on its own as a streaming service, but now InstantAction's browser-based functionality has been enhanced to not only offer quick game downloads but also total streaming gameplay.
Fundamentally, Castle believes the traditional games business is "broken" because games are too expensive and it just takes too long for people to get to the content from game makers. For example, even after you drive to a retailer and bring a game back home or download a title via regular digital portals, you still have to install the game, download updates, configure settings, etc. This whole process has become pretty "onerous," Castle said.
Castle believes InstantAction in its renewed form is the perfect solution to this problem. Why? Because now all InstantAction games are totally embeddable in Facebook, a blog, a website, etc. Similar to how you might post a YouTube video with a simple embed link, InstantAction titles can now be posted and played online anywhere. "We've created a game server, much in the same way that YouTube created a video server," Castle explained. "Now if people are reading a review of a game, they don't have to go find it. They can play it right then and there in the browser."
That's the standard InstantAction technology, which still relies on a quick download and the actual power of your computer to process the graphics. The downloads, based on the demo Castle showed us, are incredibly quick. Within just 4-5 minutes, you can start playing a full game of Assassin's Creed, for example. But if you don't want to wait at all, or if you feel that your PC/Mac just isn't robust enough to power the visuals, that's where the optional Gaikai partnership fits in beautifully with its instant streaming tech. "We partnered with Gaikai... we originally partnered with somebody else, but Gaikai has a better solution," Castle told us. David Perry's Gaikai enables instantaneous play, and bridges the gap with InstantAction technology so that once you get enough of the game downloaded, the progressive tech can take you off of Gaikai's streaming. "The progressive download is masked by the Gaikai service," Castle noted. "It's the perfect implementation of a thin client solution because when it's available it's brilliant and when it's not available it's ok. You only have to wait a couple minutes." And with Gaikai, you can actually log on to another computer or Mac at a friend's house or wherever and pick up right from where you last saved.
Castle is building up support from numerous publishers and developers and LucasArts has already confirmed that the InstantAction platform will be utilized for online distribution of The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition, which is "launching soon." Castle sees InstantAction as a true publishing platform for traditional publishers and independent developers too. Publishers can have dedicated channels for their products, they can bypass retail and InstantAction will just take a 30% cut of sales. And InstantAction supports subscriptions, micro-transactions, full purchases, rent to own or any combination, Castle pointed out. It can support in-game advertising too, so the business models can be very flexible.
21 Comments
May 5, 2010
If it really takes off, why would people feel compelled to buy a new console? And thus why would the console manufacturers expend the massive resources needed to develop a new console when their capacity to get return on that investment has been drastically curtailed? driver update scanner
May 9, 2010
I'm not saying streaming will single handedly kill consoles. But it's another factor in the question, what's the point of building a more powerful console for release in the foreseeable future? (other than for Nintendo maybe, for whom raising the horsepower bar still has a point given the installed base of current display technology).
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May 13, 2010
The "console cycle" is already out the window thanks to the high development costs both for software and hardware of the current generation, relative to the ROI on each - and the easier wins that motion control innovation has delivered.online fax
May 16, 2010
I hate to admit it, especially since I like Nintendo's franchises more, but Sony arguably has the best first party development studios. Though no slouch in this department, MS puts less emphasis on first party besides Halo and it shows. They are clearly third in this respect, but that doesn't mean they're not still impressive. digital fax service
May 17, 2010
I hate to admit it, especially since I like Nintendo's franchises more, but Sony arguably has the best first party development studios. Though no slouch in this department, MS puts less emphasis on first party besides Halo and it shows. They are clearly third in this respect, but that doesn't mean they're not still impressive.online fax trial
May 20, 2010
Especially if they use NATAL with RACHER and CLANK, are you kidding me! online fax
May 23, 2010
They are clearly third in this respect, but that doesn't mean they're not still impressive. internet security software
May 25, 2010
m not saying streaming will single handedly kill consoles. But it's another factor in the question, what's the point of building a more powerful console for release in the foreseeable future? (other than for Nintendo maybe, for whom raising the horsepower bar still has a point given the installed base of current display technology). best ecommerce solutions
May 26, 2010
The most ironic part of this whole situation is that third parties will likely take much greater care to use the PS Move in a way that adheres to core gamer sensibilities than the wagglefests they've produced for the Wii. I say this for two reasons:EasyCGI Hosting Review
May 30, 2010
im going to guess that your a xbox fanboy because of your vague and disingenuous hope for natal but i didnt really understand your argument for natal and exactly what you were talking about. please elaborate.best identity theft solutions
May 31, 2010
The video modes supported in Windows 7 are 16-bit sRGB, 24-bit sRGB, 30-bit sRGB, 30-bit with extended color gamut sRGB, and 48-bit scRGB
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June 2, 2010
Actually InstantAction is the one doing this with Gaikai tech, and it's gonna launch pretty soon from what I read.
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June 3, 2010
“One with a kind-of long-range, ‘Here’s what we’re gonna do years down the road,' and then another one that’s, ‘Here’s what we’re gonna do as the very next project.'”standing coat racks
June 8, 2010
The reason for it is not because of its practical implications; they're quite modest. But the sheer ambition, the sheer judicial arrogance that you see here.lamps
June 20, 2010
Back in March, Sony had announced that it has hit five million users on Home, with many of them spending up to 40 minutes at a time there. Since then the number of users has topped 6.5 million a feat which Buser described as, “absolutely staggering”.best email marketing software
June 21, 2010
This just in: Sonic the Hedgehog 4 to require Move and Natal for PS3 and 360 versions. Wii version to require motion controls as well. online fax
June 23, 2010
When you do finally succeed after many, many deaths, she expresses annoyance.luxury gifts
June 27, 2010
These gamers are usually in an online league such as the Cyberathlete Amateur League (C.A.L.) and their parent company the Cyberathlete Professional League (C.P.L.) where all grouped players were labeled as teams and not clans.shopping cart program
June 28, 2010
Yeah, I wouldn't worry about these too much if you're an action type gamer. RTS - sure, TBS - absolutely, puzzles - perfect, even MMOGs are likely going to do somewhat well in many of the MMOG type situations. But hard-core games that require rapid updates and serious graphical work by the GPU are just not going to work well in the cloud model.
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June 29, 2010
My biggest beef so far with the just-launched Champions Online is that it throws too many mechanics at a new player all at once (competing with the beef that they discarded too much of the fine detail of creating your own powers that was the heart of the Hero system).online fax
July 20, 2010
The most ironic part of this whole situation is that third parties will likely take much greater care to use the PS Move in a way that adheres to core gamer sensibilities than the wagglefests they've produced for the Wii.
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