[Archived] Very Interesting

[Cocker]

Yes, real PC games through your TV. Could this be the end of the games console:-

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More here - Click

[robborover]

Everybody's up and down stream speed needs to improve rapidly first. I know they say that you only need 1.5Mbps for standard definition, but it shows how behind the UK is in the broadband stakes.

I've had a quick Google and found this as an example- The Guardian: Average Broadband speed is 2.95Mbps

[Cocker]

Well we wont get it until next year at least so there is time to improve that.

I do find it exciting

[robborover]

Yeah it does sound good and it would mean I could play my PS3 friends.

I would make programmers lives easier too as they could focus on one console.

[Cocker]

Well really it wouldnt be a console but a PC (cloud if you will) that you are connecting too

[robborover]

Yeah sorry I meant format not console. There would only be one type of hardware to write games for.

You are right though, it's cloud computing spread into gaming.

I hope there is a way to download the games still, as you would be stuffed if you used up your allowance for downloads, were traffic shaped (eg: Virgin Broadband) or your internet simply wasn't working.

Personally, I like the idea, but think there are lots of questions that would need to be answered before I could consider it as a console beater.

[LeChuck]

I'd imagine it's ideal from the software companies side of things as it could all but eliminate piracy, unless people could work out how to hack into the servers without paying.

[M-K]

There's a good article on Eurogamer about why this is completely impossible.

Unless they've somehow come up with a compression technology that's decades in advance of anything the world's finest minds have ever come up with, you simply can't stream HD video with their claimed 1ms latency.

Also, the amount of computing power required to run the software and deliver the video. The bandwidth required.

If these guys have cracked all that, they wouldn't be wasting their time on games - they'd be selling this tech to TV companies, movie studios, the CIA...

It'll never happen. It's this year's Phantom.

[Eddie]

Think it's pretty difficult to dismiss out of hand seeing as it has some very serious industry players involved, both in the company itself and creators who have signed up to the system. It seems a little far-fetched and there are some obvious difficulties to overcome and I would be reluctant to get involved as I could see huge lag issues, but you never know.

[Cocker]

There's a good article on Eurogamer about why this is completely impossible.

It'll never happen. It's this year's Phantom.

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We are not doing video encoding in the conventional sense," explained Mr Perlman, dismissing an article in gaming website Eurogamer that said the service was unworkable.

"It's a very ignorant article," said Mr Perlman, who said Eurogamer had conflated issues of frame rate and latency.

"They are independent factors," he said.