Ed
04-08-2009, 07:42 PM
Article From: http://www.excal.on.ca/cms2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7080
Online gaming: plug right into your TV
Written by By Jose Semidey, Contributor
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Soon you won’t have to leave your home to play games
http://www.excal.on.ca/cms2/images/stories/2009-04-08/p24.jpg
Screenshot By Jose Semidey
‘Space Invaders’: videogaming at its finest.
I remember going to my cousin’s house not long ago to play with his brand new 8-bit Atari video game console and his Pong and Pac-man games. It was the best gadget on the block. In order to play, you needed to hook it up to the back of your television and insert one of a variety of game cartridges you had scattered on the floor – it was sometimes difficult to find the one you wanted to play. All of this is now in the past. An American company called OnLive has devised a way for consumers to play online video games on their TV set or PC without DVDs, discs, cartridges and so on. All you need is the Internet, if you have a PC, or a console the size of a pack of cards, if you use your TV. Since not everyone has a high-speed connection, the company uses an algorithm to compress the data so that it can be sent to your home quickly and without any lag, which is the main concern with online games.
The system has a number of advantages. For example, while most high-end computers tend to struggle with the newest games, they won’t have to struggle any more. All the processing will be done on a main server so that even low-end laptops can play demanding games like Crysis. Another advantage includes the frequency of computer upgrades: gamers will need to upgrade their PCs less often since, as mentioned before, all the game processing will be done on the server side of the system, eliminating the need for gamers to buy a new computer or video card every year to keep up with the evolving market. Right now, even major publishers, such as Atari Interactive, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Warner Bros. and others, have signed up for this system; you can therefore expect the best and most popular games to be available at OnLive.
The only disadvantage is that you need a fast Internet connection – 1.5 megabytes per second (Mb/s) for standard definition games and five Mb/s for high-definition – so if you can’t afford one, you won’t be able to. Also, it might lock up your Internet connection. The price of this console is expected to be a bit lower than that of a Nintendo Wii, making this the cheapest console available on the market today.
Online gaming: plug right into your TV
Written by By Jose Semidey, Contributor
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Soon you won’t have to leave your home to play games
http://www.excal.on.ca/cms2/images/stories/2009-04-08/p24.jpg
Screenshot By Jose Semidey
‘Space Invaders’: videogaming at its finest.
I remember going to my cousin’s house not long ago to play with his brand new 8-bit Atari video game console and his Pong and Pac-man games. It was the best gadget on the block. In order to play, you needed to hook it up to the back of your television and insert one of a variety of game cartridges you had scattered on the floor – it was sometimes difficult to find the one you wanted to play. All of this is now in the past. An American company called OnLive has devised a way for consumers to play online video games on their TV set or PC without DVDs, discs, cartridges and so on. All you need is the Internet, if you have a PC, or a console the size of a pack of cards, if you use your TV. Since not everyone has a high-speed connection, the company uses an algorithm to compress the data so that it can be sent to your home quickly and without any lag, which is the main concern with online games.
The system has a number of advantages. For example, while most high-end computers tend to struggle with the newest games, they won’t have to struggle any more. All the processing will be done on a main server so that even low-end laptops can play demanding games like Crysis. Another advantage includes the frequency of computer upgrades: gamers will need to upgrade their PCs less often since, as mentioned before, all the game processing will be done on the server side of the system, eliminating the need for gamers to buy a new computer or video card every year to keep up with the evolving market. Right now, even major publishers, such as Atari Interactive, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Warner Bros. and others, have signed up for this system; you can therefore expect the best and most popular games to be available at OnLive.
The only disadvantage is that you need a fast Internet connection – 1.5 megabytes per second (Mb/s) for standard definition games and five Mb/s for high-definition – so if you can’t afford one, you won’t be able to. Also, it might lock up your Internet connection. The price of this console is expected to be a bit lower than that of a Nintendo Wii, making this the cheapest console available on the market today.