Unfortunately, Google recently announced that Google Stadia will close it doors on January 18, 2023. Stadia is one of the most impressive cloud streaming services available from a technology point of view and has garnered a passionate following. Stadia is also one of the few cloud streaming services that can be described as a platform – i.e. it provides it’s own game store, achievement system, friends list, parties, chats, multiplayer APIs etc.
For Stadia users who have grown fond of the platform, what is the best alternative?
First off, we are assuming you are here because you enjoy the convenience of cloud gaming and the ability to play anywhere on any screen. If not, local consoles, a gaming PC and/or a Steam Deck may be great options for you. But, assuming you are looking for cloud gaming alternatives, here are your best options. Keep in mind, your best option might be a combination of the services below.
For Most People – Xbox Cloud Gaming
Xbox Cloud Gaming is the most complete cloud gaming ecosystem around and has the strongest future outlook. Plust… its major existing limitations are getting addressed soon!
You can already play Xbox Cloud Gaming on a lot of different devices with more coming soon:
- Consoles (Xbox Series & Xbox One)
- Any device with a Chrome or Edge browser (PCs, Macs, Chromebooks, Cashier Stations, etc.)
- Mobile Phones (iOS and Android)
- Tablets (iOS, Android, Windows, ChromeOS)
- Smart TVs (officially just Samsung TVs for now w/ others unofficially supported through browsers or the Android app)
- VR Headsets (Meta Quest)
With Xbox pivoting away from making their own streaming dongle and partnering with Samsung to integrate Xbox Cloud Gaming into their Smart TVs, we think it is a safe bet that official app support for other TV brands and streaming platforms will likely follow.
Xbox has a feature-full ecosystem with friends lists, integrated platform multiplayer, chat, parties (both public and private), achievements (and a thriving achievement hunting community), global game settings and a lot more. Many of Stadia’s platform features were clearly modeled after the Xbox ecosystem.
With Xbox Cloud Gaming you can currently play a rotating library of Xbox Game Pass games ~400 in total. You do need to be subscribed to Xbox Game Pass ultimate for $14.99 a month.
However, Xbox has announced that Game Pass subscribers will soon also be able to stream games they own on Xbox via Xbox Cloud Gaming. This will close one of the big gaps between the service and what Google Stadia offered – plus it will prevent you from completely losing access to a game in the cloud when it leaves Game Pass. When this upgrade takes place, Xbox Cloud Gaming will truly cover most of Stadia’s legacy.
The other current deficiency of Xbox Cloud Gaming is that the fidelity isn’t quite on par with what Stadia offered. When you have a strong internet connection, the quality is great. But, the service does suffer more artifacting than Stadia and some other services under less than ideal conditions. In particular, horizontal line panning type artifacts are common under less than ideal conditions. This is something that is likely to keep getting better over time. But, if achieving the highest-fidelity is important to you, look no further than our next suggested service!
For People Who Want the Highest Fidelity – NVIDIA GeForce Now
Are you the type of gamer who loves to play in 4K with 60+ FPS at max settings with Ray Tracing on? If so, GeForce Now is likely for you! PC gamers will feel right at home with NVIDIA GeForce Now – the service that gives you remote access to (a subset) of your PC game library. The service acts by running games from Steam, Epic Games, Ubisoft Connect and other PC game launchers in a Windows cloud instance. Over 1,450 games can be played this way. It’s important to note that you do have to own the games already on the underlying platforms. GeForce Now is not a game subscription service.
GeForce Now offers a free tier for you to try. However, this tier limits your gameplay to 1 hour sessions and typically involves waiting in a queue for a server to become available. Where GeForce Now really shines is in the paid tiers – Priority for $9.99 a month and the 3080 tier for $19.99 a month. The latter gives you access to an RTX 3080 powered node in the cloud – full with Ray Tracing support for a subset of games. It allows you to play up to 4K 60FPS and 1080P 120FPS. In terms of fidelity, the GeForce Now 3080 tier is currently unrivaled.
Because the service is essentially a remote interface into Windows desktop apps, the experience can be a bit convoluted or clunky at times. You have to enter your password for the underlying platforms a bit too many times, and managing a library of games and a friends lists across a number of different PC gaming platforms can be tedious – especially when playing on a TV. But, PC gamers are likely already used to this. So, if you are primarily looking to play on a PC, GeForce Now is likely your best bet.
For People Missing the Stadia Pro Subscription Plan – Blacknut Gaming
The Stadia Pro subscription offered a great way to discover new (and often under-appreciated) games from a selection of claimable games with additional games being added every month.
Blacknut Cloud Gaming provides just such an all you can eat play service! For $15.99 a month, you get instant access to over 500 games with new games added every month. The game catalog contains a lot of familiar games from Stadia Pro. It includes the likes of Saints Row IV, Asphalt 9, Moto GP 20, Figment, Garfield Kart, the Metro series, family titles from Outright Games, Deliver Us the Moon, Chicken Police, Those Who Remain, Spitlings, Kona and many many more.
You can play your Blacknut games collection on many different devices including TVs (Android TV), phones, tablets and any computer with a Chrome or Safari browser. You can check out our full review of the service. We currently rank it the highest out of the all you can play cloud gaming subscription services.
Honorable Mention: Utomik
An honorable mention in this category is Utomik which gives you immediate access to over 1,400 games to play for $9.99 a month (cloud gaming included)!! The catalog contains many of the same games as Blacknut with notable additions like Martha is Dead, Borderlands, Darksiders, Arcade Paradise and a lot more.
The main downside is that this service started as a PC launcher; so, at this point, only a little over 100 of the games are available to stream via the cloud. However, some folks might prefer the hybrid nature of this service, and we expect the number of cloud enabled games to increase over time.
Utomik is one of the cloud gaming services available as part of the Samsung Gaming hub on the company’s smart TVs. If the majority of the available games become cloud streamable, it will be the service to beat in this space.
Other Services to Consider
For Ubisoft+ Subscribers:
We think it is likely that Ubisoft is going to be rolling out their own Ubisoft Connect based cloud service over the next year or so (possibly based on Stadia technology). But, while we wait for that to emerge, there are a couple options to stream your Ubisoft+ games. One is to use NVIDIA’s GeForce Now (see above) and link your Ubisoft Connect account. Another option is to use the Amazon Luna Ubisoft channel.
Amazon Luna is a 2+ year old cloud gaming service from Amazon available in the US. In our review, we find that it has high streaming fidelity, but lacks basic features (multiplayer, achievements, friends lists, etc.) and subscribing to multiple game channels a month can get pricey.
The main Luna+ game channel is similar in spirit to Blacknut and Utomik above. It gives you access to a smaller collection of games than those two services (about 100) but has some notable higher quality games mixed in (for example Chorus, Resident Evil 2,3,7). This games do unfortunately rotate out of the library, however.
The place Amazon Luna currently shines the most is in the Ubisoft+ channel. It gives you access to some really top quality Ubisoft games (including the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Mirage) and includes multiplayer and achievements through Ubisoft’s own Ubisoft Connect platform. If you have an Ubisoft+ subscription, you can add cloud streaming support via Amazon Luna for just a $3.00 a month boost to the $17.99 a month tier.
For Retro Gamers
Anstream Arcade
Many of the other services mentioned on this page have a collection of retro games. But, nobody else does retro gaming like Anstream Arcade does! It has by far the best and biggest retro gaming catalog that can be streamed. Mortal Kombat? Earth Worm Jim? Pac-Man? Yep! And, 1,500 other classic games as well!
The best part about Anstream Arcade, though, is the passion of the people behind the service. They’ve added achievements to the games and run weekly retro game tournaments. Their excitement for retro gaming is contagious. If you are looking for more than just access to retro games, but a real active community around them, Anstream Arcade is the service for you!
Want a Full PC in the Cloud?
Shadow
One of the problems with all the services listed above is that they have limited game catalogs (even though some are quite large). Shadow, on the other hand, doesn’t support any particular games – it supports every Windows game! It gives you a full Windows desktop running in the cloud that can be accessed from your browser or mobile device. And, because it is a full-fledged Windows desktop, you can install any game (yes, that includes Elden Rings!) and launchers you like. The downside is that you have to manage all the installs, updates and storage limitations yourself – just as if it was a PC sitting under your desk.
The price tag is also pretty hefty. The cheapest tier starts at $29.99 a month with upgrades available for better gpus and more storage. Unlike some of the subscriptions above, this cost doesn’t come with any games – just full control of your own virtual gaming PC.
Boosteroid
Boosteroid is something like a hybrid of Shadow and GeForce Now (both described above). It comes with a catalog of supported games – some that are managed for you on the services servers and some that you have to install and manage manually yourself. Like both of the above mentioned services, you don’t get any games as part of your $14.99 a month subscription. And, unlike Shadow PC you are limited in the games you can install.
But, the hybrid approach gives you an (arguably) higher quality catalog than GeForce Now with more convenience than Shadow. This could potentially be the sweet spot for you! You can also check out our full review of the service.
Netboom
Netboom is another pay for remote hardware solution that lets you play games you otherwise couldn’t on your computer and mobile. It appears to have garnered a pretty big user base internationally. It could be that Netboom has servers closer to you than competing services (e.g. east Asia). If the above options aren’t available, Netboom could be a good option.
Conclusion
While it is no doubt a bummer that Google Stadia is going away, there are plenty of other cloud gaming services vying for your attention. It is exciting to watch as all of the contenders continually upgrade their own game. We hope to see these services take up the best characteristics of Stadia. The future of gaming is in the clouds, and it is going to be fun to watch the space evolve.
Great list of options. I think I’ll be sticking with Game Pass for now. The quality isn’t as good as Stadia but the amount of games makes up for it for the most part