Onlive Gaming App for iPad

[Winnow]

This is a pretty impressive demonstration of Online Gaming Service on the iPad:

http://youtu.be/VJknRvB--AM?hd=1

If you get that controller, it seems like the iPad might be a decent travel gaming device when in hotels, etc.

[Winnow]

Still waiting on the iPad Onlive app but I tried out Onlive on the PC and am impressed.

http://www.onlive.com/

Give it a shot. Most games have 30 minutes free demos.

It's amazingly fast to start a game.

1. Create an account (just email and user name, no credit info required for trial games) takes seconds with no email verification required

2. Download small client. Again done in a minute.

3. Launch Onlive

4. Pick Batman Arkham City and select free trial. I suggest Batman since most are familiar with it so good game to compare and test.

The game loads instantly. In fact, the loading times between zones is less than on the Xbox.

I'd say the graphics quality would be equal to low settings. Looks good but not near as good as a true local game. Still, fucking impressive.

It automatically recognizes Xbox PC Controllers (for games that support it). A simple Alt+Enter command toggles between Full screen and window mode. The Xbox button takes you to Onlive settings (I'm sure there's an easy keyboard option for that as well).

I can't believe how fast I was playing Batman Arkham city from the point that I signed up to loading the game. Responsiveness is the same as if you were playing it locally. I've got very good bandwidth so you'll have to try it for yourself to see how you fare.

You can view all the games going on by other players as well in a huge TV grid that you can zoom into to spectate.

Combined with the Onlive Gaming controller this really does make an iPad something you can play full fledged games on anywhere you have wireless.

If you haven't tried Onlive yet, go do it. Hassle free signup and you'll be playing trials in minutes. If nothing else, you can try games out you think you might buy elsewhere for 30 minutes. They aren't demos. It's the real game with 30 min timer.

I remember back when Voronwe was pimping an online gaming service. He was ahead of his time as this looks like the real deal. It's neato.

[miir]

And in other news, onlive.com is done.

[Winnow]

And in other news, onlive.com is done.

Sold for 4.8 Million.

Hopefully the tech or patents, if there are any to be had, eventually end up with Microsoft.

[miir]

And in other news, onlive.com is done.

Sold for 4.8 Million.

Hopefully the tech or patents, if there are any to be had, eventually end up with Microsoft.

MS gaming division seems to be too focused on junk like Kinect.

Sony has already acquired a superior cloud gaming service and is partnering with Samsung to deliver the service to tablets and smart tvs next year.


I heard that onlive was doing do poorly that their max concurrent users was around 1600, and their subscriber base was less than 1m.

[Winnow]

I heard that onlive was doing do poorly that their max concurrent users was around 1600, and their subscriber base was less than 1m.

It doesn't really matter how well they were doing. Did you use the service? It worked great. Eventually they had to be picked up by a major player to be successful. Hopefully that happens. I have zero confidence lately in anything Sony does.

[Zaelath]

Yeah, the success of a business model is entirely down to how good the experience is for a small number of users, costs and scalability is for losers.

[Winnow]

Yeah, the success of a business model is entirely down to how good the experience is for a small number of users, costs and scalability is for losers.

Did you see somewhere that the technology wasn't scalable or that it was too expensive for a major company with resources to be able to utilize?

thx info

from 2010:

OnLive may not be offering a wide range of games at the moment, but the technology behind the service has proven impressive. The company now has another powerful weapon in its arsenal, as a patent on cloud-based gaming and the streaming of content has been granted to Steve Perlman, OnLive's CEO.

"The present invention provides a system in which video games may be widely distributed and played without the need for multiple platform-specific hardware units or purchase of an optical disk to play a particular video game," the patent explains. "According to the present invention, a wireless network is created for distribution of video games and interactive game playing. Individuals receive games and participate in playing video games utilizing a device (e.g., television, PC, set-top box, etc.) equipped to be compatible with a universal game platform architecture."

While the patent gives extensive details about how the service works, the language is designed to cast the net as wide as possible. "It should also be understood that the basic architecture and concepts disclosed can be extended to a variety of different implementations and applications," it states. "Therefore, the following description should not be considered as limiting the scope of the invention."

Could just be a patent troll that bought Onlive so they can sue Sony if their purchase of Gaikai doesn't cover everything it needs to.

[Zaelath]

I was referring to scalability of the business model, the ability to build bigger server farms and lose money at a faster rate doesn't impress me.

If you can't make money with a 500:1 user to capacity ratio then your answer isn't to scale up a losing position.

[Winnow]

I was referring to scalability of the business model, the ability to build bigger server farms and lose money at a faster rate doesn't impress me.

If you can't make money with a 500:1 user to capacity ratio then your answer isn't to scale up a losing position.

So you don't think Microsoft could use this technology and be successful? I'll ask that specifically since you seem fixated on a small company's business model for some reason.

[Zaelath]

No.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/36 ... ive-users/

Over the weekend OnLive CEO Steve Perlman blamed huge server running costs for pushing the company into the red, saying: "If you've got 8,000 servers and 1,600 [concurrent] users, how could we ever get to cash flow positive, right?"

Or to restate, the "tech" doesn't run enough concurrent connections to pay for the service. Buying more servers makes the problem *worse* not better.

[Winnow]

The problem was not enough users. I think Microsoft can manage more than 1600 users on 800 servers. Of course it's going to bomb with those numbers.

People would be all over trying out demos on XBOX live if they didn't need to download them. It's a huge plus to be able to instant access a game to try out...or actually play. People don't like to wait.

[miir]

The problem was not enough users

No, the problem is high infrastructure requirements per user.

[Winnow]

The problem was not enough users

No, the problem is high infrastructure requirements per user.

yeah, my bad on that one. The problem was lack of users along with a poorly run company.

[Winnow]

http://www.engadget.com/2012/11/15/lg-s ... available/

LG Smart TV owners may have noticed a new application pop up today on their G2 series sets, as OnLive's cloud game streaming app is being delivered via an over-the-air update today (first announced at E3 back in June). Beyond just viewing games, the app allows for actually playing them employing OnLive's wireless controller (sold separately). Per normal OnLive service, you can demo various games before buying them, and purchases on one OnLive account transfer across its many platforms (PC, Mac, Android tablets, the Microconsole, and LG TVs). The OnLive app can be found in the "Premium Apps" area, and it'll be pre-installed on future LG sets.

Of course, it's a question of how long any of this will last, as OnLive's had a rough 2012 -- the company lost the vast majority of its staff and its former CEO back in August. It was subsequently spun off into a separate company to keep from defaulting on its many, many overdue loans.

Nice to see Onlive still kicking. It's a great service. It would be nice to see Microsoft buys them unless they have some other streaming tech in mind for future gaming.