Antstream Arcade, the retro gaming cloud gaming platform has been a subscription-based service since its launch. It’s one of our favorite cloud gaming services and we recently posted an interview with the founder! However, in this editorial, I will be going over why Antstream Arcade should consider offering users the ability to purchase games from its vast catalog. Let me explain!
A New Way To Lure More Publishers To The Platform?
Let’s start with the first big point. Licensing is a very expensive business, especially in gaming. Antstream, unlike Xbox, hasn’t got a vast war chest, so many game publishers are yet to provide any of their classic games to Antstream Arcade. I have also seen publishers Warner Bros. Games, Interplay Entertainment, and Codemasters pull their games from Antstream due to licensing contracts expiring.
By allowing users to purchase games, Antstream could potentially be able to lure bigger publishers to its gaming platform and even its subscription service. Some notable companies who could potentially partner with Antstream with this feature include Konami, SEGA, and Capcom, who all have large retro game catalogs, which could bring in more users who could purchase games or even subscribe to Antstream Arcade’s subscription service.
More Revenue = More Features and Games
The next point is probably an obvious one… The more revenue Antstream makes, the more they can spend on licensing more games, upgrading and adding features – even adding more classic game platforms to the Antstream Arcade platform. Now, the question around how much each game is priced would remain to be seen. But, if Antstream operates like Xbox with its Xbox Game Pass, you pay the monthly fee to access a library of games and can also buy other games which aren’t a part of the subscription (or that are on the subscription). Antstream Arcade could potentially implement a pricing strategy where games from 8-bit systems are cheaper than 16-bit systems, which are also cheaper than 32-bit systems, etc.
Antstream Arcade could also use this increase in revenue to help with its global expansion, add more classic platforms and sign new licensing deals with more publishers. Hopefully, if Antstream Arcade goes down this path they will make sure the games are affordable and the subscription price stays reasonable.
The Potential Issues
Now that I’ve gone over the positives, let’s go over what could lead to this concept not working out. The first flaw is that game publishers may simply not agree to charge a reasonable price. With a lot of classic games, many gamers are likely not going to buy a single game which was out pre-PlayStation for more than $10. This could be a huge issue. For example, Atari might agree to sell Pong for $1 but might want to sell Missile Command for $10. Another issue we have to factor in is the existence of multiple versions of certain games. Some games on Antstream having arcade and handheld ports alongside multiple ports for home consoles and microcomputers!
Alongside these issues we also have to factor in Xbox and other platforms (for example iOS where Antsream is coming soon). Would Microsoft and Apple be okay with Antstream Arcade allowing consumers to buy games from their service on Xbox consoles or would Antstream have to find an alternative way to sell games to these players? This combination of issues to me could potentially be why Antstream Arcade has yet to allow gamers to purchase games. However, these are issues which Antstream could fix.
What do you think? Should Antstream Arcade allow gamers to purchase games? Let us know on social media.
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But we can play a lot of classic games full for free, if they introduce pay model, then the games won’ be free anymore. and I think that would discourage a lot of consumer.