InstantAction's browser-based technology in some ways almost seems like a pre-cursor to streaming, cloud-based services like OnLive or Gaikai, we noted to Castle. We asked him if perhaps this is the future direction for InstantAction too. In reality, though, InstantAction's technology is very different, and Castle is somewhat skeptical about the cloud-based approach.
“Both OnLive and Gaikai have a similar technology in that there is a box out there somewhere playing the game, and the computer that a person is playing on is just a terminal into that box. Our technology is pretty different than that; in fact, it's nothing like that. Our technology actually puts the application onto the computer you're playing on and plays it with the full power and speed of the processor and graphics card that you have, not relying upon bandwidth to deliver the experience. Clearly you need to be online because we're streaming the code down to you before you run it, but it's not running on a computer someplace else. So that allows for full performance and reaction time on the platform,” he explained. “Some games will work very well through Gaikai, and obviously OnLive had really good demos in San Francisco with a server a couple blocks away, but I'm not so sure that either of those technologies is good for all types of games in every situation, and certainly not everywhere in the world.”
He continued, “So I think those are exciting and good opportunities for somebody that doesn't have the kit necessary to run the game they're looking to play; they're great fallback strategies but I don't imagine that core gamers are going to suddenly throw their laptops out the window and go run out and get netbooks and start playing on them because they can. So those are exciting technologies but certainly not part of InstantAction's strategy. We really have a three-pronged strategy: One is to be THE place where people publish great products on the web of all types and power; Another is to be a place where a community of gamers can get directly to the community of game makers; And finally, to be a place where we can create products for social networks and web-based gaming that are built around those platforms, instead of products that are built around single-player or multiplayer experiences and that are trying to get bolted into a networking or social system, which always feels a little clunky.”
We'll be bringing you more from our Castle interview soon. Stay tuned.
