Jason Schreier: Stadia looks to be a "monumental flop", pre-orders are below expectations

[Aurongel]

The underlying tech seems solid enough and the market will eventually move in this direction regardless of Stadia's success. Problems like the pricing, game integration and UI are all things that I think are fixable given enough time. If any company can afford to continue pumping money into a struggling/emerging product its Google.

 

[Fisty]

Theyve got a lot of work to do, but I am definitely interested to try it if it ever gets to the point where i can just use any controller and play on a regular android TV. Would never invest in a streaming-only ecosystem though, no thanks

They made the No Man's Sky mistake. All they had to do was slap early access onto the branding and all this bad publicity turns into oh it's still in development.

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People actually wanted No Man's Sky though

 

[n00bs7ay3r]

Google a big enough to support and tweak this for at least a couple of years even if it costs them money. They're smart enough to see a big market in cloud gaming if they can get it right and they're not just going to let it die at the 1st attempt.

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For sure. It is just confusing that their first attempt so obviously misses the mark.

 

[IIFloodyII]

Can't say I'm surprised. Feel we are at least 5 years away from a streaming only gaming platform actually being popular. Stadia is being weirdly rushed, when they have plenty of time to actually build their platform and 1st party, instead they are just giving a bad first impression.

 

[Papacheeks]

No one knew this would happen..........

wait...

Can't say I'm surprised. Feel we are at least 5 years away from a streaming only gaming platform actually being popular. Stadia is being weirdly rushed, when they have plenty of time to actually build their platform and 1st party, instead they are just giving a bad first impression.

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Maybe in terms of the tech, but getting latency and having it be adopted in mass market is still longer ways off. So much of the united states alone average speed is less than 100mbps.

We just got 100 couple years ago in my area for consumer grade internet.

I mean it will be an option for sure, but to have it be as good or on par image quality wise as local rendered image? It's going to be a while.

 

[Gamer17]

Even if it had an all you can eat subscription model, how many of the currently 22 games on the service would be included in that?

The reality is that Game Pass and PS Now have more games included than the entire Stadia platform will likely have even a year or so from now.

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imo reality is that demand for playing complex games (like assassin creed oddessy) on a 5 inch phone screen while carrying a controller around is extremely small at the moment

 

[formasymphonic]

I'm skeptical on Stadia, but tbf it was never something that struck me as a thing that would be a blow out launch. It always felt like more of a long term play — like "when 5G is a real thing available to a broad spectrum of territories" long term play

 

[Dust]

WHERE ARE WE GOIN' PAPA GOOGLE?

 

[Deleted member 8468]

Shocking.


It's almost like we've all been watching this poor thing limp along half dead all year, only to fall out of the launch gate dead on arrival. Curious how it does and what support/improvements it gets post launch.

 

[SolidChamp]

Am I allowed to say I'm glad?

Fuck Google and their hubris.

 

[Dr. Ludwig]

Google is already loading the shotgun and making some nice space behind the shed...

 

[Deleted member 58846]

imo reality is that demand for playing complex games (like assassin creed oddessy) on a 5 inch phone screen while carrying a controller around is extremely small at the moment

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Playing complex games on a smaller screen is an extremely appealing proposition with a huge market, that's why the Switch is so successful.

Google's take on the concept is just a dud, if not in theory, then in execution.

 

[TheJackdog]

worth pointing out that preorders were below expectations and some people still didnt get a controller that they preordered.

 

[Alienous]

Google Stadia is out today, and it already looks like a monumental flop. (I heard from one person involved that preorders were below expectations.)

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Am I reading the negative spin and the actual news side by side here? Is the "monumental flop" statement based on something more than the preorders being vaguely disappointing?

 

[TheJackdog]

Playing complex games on a smaller screen is an extremely appealing proposition with a huge market, that's why the Switch is so successful.

Google's take on the concept is just a dud, if not in theory, then in execution.

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yeah the appeal is 100% there, its all on how google sold and positioned this.

 

[noyram23]

The expectation could be already low to begin with, it was just product aimed at a niche audience (right now) multiplied by a very bad launch problemsm

 

[nofriendo]

good wake up call for PSnow and Xcloud and those imaginary 2.5 billion gamers that can not wait to play next asssasins creed on 4 inch mobile while carrying a fanny pack and a controller everywhere .Hope they dont make streaming main focus of their platform.

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It's a value add for MS and Sony though. They can sell it as an addition to your existing sub until they get it working as a viable option. Really hard sell from Google that you not only had to buy into it but then you had to buy the games on top of that.

 

[Bonejack]

It feels like they made sure to have a really unappealing service, and they don't have too much time to improve imo. Going by the stuff MS showed in their X0 about xCloud, that service could dance around Stadia once launched.

 

[MajorBritten]

Good, hopefully it sends Google a clear message and they make some serious improvements. But with Phil Harrison in charge I doubt thats going to happen.

 

[Gamer17]

Playing complex games on a smaller screen is an extremely appealing proposition with a huge market, that's why the Switch is so successful.

Google's take on the concept is just a dud, if not in theory, then in execution.

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thats not proven as we dont know how many switch owners use switch exclusively as handheld.beside Nintendo has spent 30 years fostering handheld market so it has its own fans. no other gaming company can say that when it comes to handheld . i m not saying it doesnt exist but "2.5 billlion gamers" doesn't exist

 

[Infinity Times Two]

The tech behind is cool, but you can't bet it all on just that.

You need appealing software that can both attract seasoned gamers from other platforms, as well as pull in a new audience.

This launch lineup seems to do neither.

 

[TheJackdog]

Am I reading the negative spin and the actual news side by side here? Is the "monumental flop" statement based on something more than the preorders being vaguely disappointing?

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reviews are bad, sales are bad, theres not really much good.

 

[Green Yoshi]

Phil Harrison has done it again. Man is a walking console launch cataclysm

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Maybe he secretly works for Nintendo. ;-)

 

[SpokkX]

Nooooo.. reaally? Who could have seen that coming??

really streaming today should be an addon service -NOT a replacement.

With xCloud ms seems to get this

 

[Gamer17]

It's a value add for MS and Sony though. They can sell it as an addition to your existing sub until they get it working as a viable option. Really hard sell from Google that you not only had to buy into it but then you had to buy the games on top of that.

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agree on that.value added is absolutely great thast why i said hopefully it doesnt become "main" next gen focus

 

[Axe]

Muddled messaging, poor pricing and performance, lacklustre library. It takes more than Google's "we know best" hubris to make it in this industry, who knew?

I doubt they will give up anytime soon, but they need those first-party games to come quick if they want a hope at saving this thing. Sure, they could pivot to a Game Pass-style sub...but they haven't got anything to pad it out with. And by the sounds of it, some of their current partners won't be too keen on helping them make that shift with their AAAs.

 

[Couscous]

It had potential, but it is clearly rushed. People who have been following Stadia news lately saw this coming from a mile away.

 

[Callibretto]

Does Stadia have some sort of free trial or is the cheapest way to try is by buying one of the launch game and play it on the free 1080p options?

 

[Lobster Roll]

where are all the stadia warriors at?

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They've responded. However, due to input lag the posts haven't hit this thread yet.

 

[MazeHaze]

Am I reading the negative spin and the actual news side by side here? Is the "monumental flop" statement based on something more than the preorders being vaguely disappointing?

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I would trust Jason Schreier to known what he's talking about, his track record is stellar and he's one of the few actual game journalists these days.

Also if you just use your eyes and ears and critical thinking you can tell that Stadia is a monumental flop.

 

[ILikeFeet]

pricing model hurt it. the buffet model would be preferable, but that would mean it wouldn't get new games

 

[Deleted member 18951]

thats not proven as we dont know how many switch owners use switch exclusively as handheld . i m not saying it doesnt exist but "2.5 billlion gamers" doesn't exist

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What data or metrics are you using to state this?

 

[noyram23]

imo reality is that demand for playing complex games (like assassin creed oddessy) on a 5 inch phone screen while carrying a controller around is extremely small at the moment

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And that's ignoring the huge barrier for Stadia which is internet speed and data cap

 

[Hudsoniscool]

imo reality is that demand for playing complex games (like assassin creed oddessy) on a 5 inch phone screen while carrying a controller around is extremely small at the moment

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The switch says "hello there".

 

[Bazry]

Pre orders of what, a controller and an expensive high tier gaming subscription? Surely the point of this service will be when its rolled out for everyone to just use and buy games

 

[THEVOID]

Pretty much screams throw mud at the wall and see if it sticks.

 

[Shambala]

Glad I cancelled that shit

 

[Viale]

Ah yes, from known fake news journalist with no sources and a history of being incorrect, Jason Schrier /s

Fuck outta here lol

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Like really though, has Shreier been wrong? I feel if he says it, you may as well take it like it's been officially announced.

Regardless, its not very surprising about stadia. Its target audience always felt really small.

 

[Alienous]

reviews are bad, sales are bad, theres not really much good.

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But it also isn't the service Google want Stadia to be - a console experience that is fully hardware agnostic. They're still working towards that.

I don't see a weak soft launch as grounds to call Stadia a 'monumental flop'. The amount of people willing to spend $130 on hardware to play Stadia isn't representative of their plans going forward.

 

[MazeHaze]

Does Stadia have some sort of free trial or is the cheapest way to try is by buying one of the launch game and play it on the free 1080p options?

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Right now the only way to play it is to buy their $130 chrome cast and controller bundle, that you wont be receiving for a few weeks at least.

 

[Hermii]

It's a bit premature to call it a flop isn't it?

 

[-PXG-]

I remember people would endlessly hype up Phil Harrison. I never understood why. Looking back, the guy has been around and a part of a lot of flops, blunders and miscalculations. Can't blame him entirely (or maybe at all). Just... interesting.

 

[Deleted member 58846]

thats not proven as we dont know how many switch owners use switch exclusively as handheld.beside Nintendo has spent 30 years fostering handheld market so it has its own fans. no other gaming company can say that when it comes to handheld . i m not saying it doesnt exist but "2.5 billlion gamers" doesn't exist

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We absolutely know that, because Nintendo has shared those numbers. Over 70% of Switch players use their systems in handheld mode some of the time, and over 45% in handheld only mode most of the time. Switch Lite, the handheld only SKU of the console, has also sold 2 million units in 15 days.
The appeal is absolutely there. Portable and on the go gaming is the only form of gaming that makes sense with the modern lifestyle for non enthusiasts. Google just fucked it up.

 

[Gamer17]

What data or metrics are you using to state this?

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middling results of streaming services like staida and PSnow .Soon will be the same for Xcloud imo. however if they stay complimentary services they will be fine .

 

[Bus-TEE]

Surely Google, even with their history of killing apps that don't 'pan out', wouldn't kill Stadia anytime soon given how much they've already invested into it?

Even if it never evolves beyond a niche gaming service/little seen tech oddity I think Google will continue to throw money into it (and it could take tons and tons of money into a bottomless pit) regardless just so they can be seen to be part of the gaming/modern streaming market regardless.

 

[Patapuf]

Not saying they deserve support with this lack luster launch but they never had a chance with everyone trying to kill it on day one . Seems like the pitchforks were ready

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There's a lot of stuff missing from this launch though.

The business model of selling full priced games via the cloud was always going to be an uphill climb. Having this many announced features missing from launch on top of that, even if it's a "soft" launch, was always going to be a problem.

Their communication has also not been great.

It's hard to know if this soft launch is important to them, but if it was, a delay would probably have been smarter than this launch.

 

[enzo_gt]

Correct answer is that a different, compartmentalized part of Google will unveil a new, competing service that Stadia can fight for crumbs with until they both die.

 

[Gero]

Pretends to be shocked

 

[Hudsoniscool]

thats not proven as we dont know how many switch owners use switch exclusively as handheld.beside Nintendo has spent 30 years fostering handheld market so it has its own fans. no other gaming company can say that when it comes to handheld . i m not saying it doesnt exist but "2.5 billlion gamers" doesn't exist

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It doesn't need to be used exclusively as a handheld. The switch's main selling point is the consoles mobility and being able to play it on the go. The switch is selling extremely well, so obviously the appeal to play console games in a mobile environment is there.

 

[Vilifier]

Isn't Stadia's main goal to be integrated into YouTube so viewers can buy and play the games they are watching instantly? It's hard to imagine Google will just kill this off like everyone is guessing.

I'm glad they're reconsidering their plans. I'm hoping this motivates Google to speed up the release the free version and maybe roll Stadia Pro into YouTube Premium.