Cyberpunk 2077: Stadia or GeForce Now?
Up until about a week ago, I was positive I’d be getting Cyberpunk 2077 (a video game due out in November that has a lot of hype behind it), for Stadia. Then I saw it. An article on the interwebs somewhere, which revealed that the GeForce Now (GFN) version, would support ray tracing. Suddenly, that choice wasn’t so simple.
But let me backtrack for those wondering what the heck I’m even talking about. What is ray tracing?Taken from a wired.com article:
“Simply put, ray tracing is a technique that makes light in videogames behave like it does in real life. It works by simulating actual light rays, using an algorithm to trace the path that a beam of light would take in the physical world.”
Some people think it’s a gimmick, and they may be justified in their opinion, but the thought of being able to play a game with ray tracing on, with the flexibility of playing it on various screens just got me pretty pumped for GFN.
Stadia and GFN, are both different takes on cloud gaming. They both offer free tiers, and paid monthly versions of their services. Stadia is (as of this writing) 10 bucks a month, and GFN is 5.
Stadia is a Google product leveraging linux servers in the “cloud” (I use quotes because the cloud is just a server somewhere you are not) to stream games that you either buy or claim (if you are a pro subscriber) from the Stadia store front.
GFN is an Nvdia product, also for cloud streaming, except the premise here, is that you can stream games you have already purchase in other store fronts like Steam, or Epic games. You essentially bring your current library of games with you, when using GFN, or at least that’s the idea. The actual implementation is not so cut and dry. You may be wondering what the 5 bucks is for. Well, GFN has time limitations in their free tier (1 hour), and you have to queue up to launch a game. Both of these limits disappear with the subscription.
The issue with GFN, is that not all titles are supported. Nvidia needs to work with game publishers in order to get the green light to have their particular game on the service. So while you may have 50 games on Steam, the reality is, you are probably only able to play 15-20 of them on GFN.
So in comes my experiment: I looked up the list of GFN games that are available on the service. I saw the Witcher 3, listed, and I figured, let me try and purchase this and see how well it works. Purchased it on Steam, synced up my library, and launched it on my Chromebook. Worked great. Pretty smooth, and nice to look at in high settings. Now I’m really thinking this might be the way to go for Cyberpunk.
Next I try it on my Pixel. I launch the GFN app, dock my Pixel into the Kishi controller… but I don’t see the Witcher 3 in my library. Weird. I do a search… and… nothing. After scratching my head for a few minutes and attempting to resync my library, I go to my trusty friends Google and Reddit. Well guess what? The Witcher 3, while available on GFN for PCs and Chromebooks, is NOT available for smartphones. What? That is a HUGE fail. I returned my digital purchase. Which is a shame, because, this isn’t really Steam’s fault. Truthfully, I’m not sure who’s to blame, whether Nvidia, or CDPR (the game developer). But I do know that this shakes my confidence in going through GFN in the future.
The biggest appeal of cloud gaming, particularly for working adults with kids, is having the capability to play practically anywhere with a solid internet connection. I can’t spend hours on end on my PC anymore, and I can’t be up all hours of the night after my munchkin goes to bed. Having the ability to play for 15-30 minutes on my PC, on my TV, on my weak Chromebook, or on my phone is crucial. If one of these options is taken away, namely the one device I have on me practically 90% of the time, you have failed in your promise of cloud gaming. Stadia might have a weak lineup of games, but at the very least, I know, if I buy a game on there, I can play anywhere. So I guess I’m getting Cyberpunk for Stadia. Get your act together GFN/CDPR.
Update 10/29: Of course, just a few days after I wrote this GeForce now, allows the Witcher 3 to be played on mobile. 