*NOTE: Due to the upcoming relaunch of the service I thought it would be best to create a new OT. Onlive staff stated to leave any reservations had about the "old" service at the door; as I see it this is much more than just a "continuation" of the previous service. Right now information about the new service is scarce but I will do my best to update this OT as information comes in. I know this might look rough right now but I plan to continuously refine and update this OT.*
LATEST POST UPDATES (LAST 5 UPDATES):
December 5th - NEWS: Onlive Quietly Updates Dashboard
December 2nd - COMMUNITY EVENTS: LiveOn Episode 1 Up
November 23rd - NEWS: Onlive Launches New Datacenter in Chicago, IL
October 29th - NEWS: Onlive Ambassador Program Officially Renamed to the Onlive Cloud Council; Program Selection Emails Being Sent Out
INDEX:
1A. FAQ
2A. HARDWARE
3A. FEATURES
4A. NOVEMBER RELEASES
5A. NEWS
6A. COMMUNITY EVENTS
7A. PLACES TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ONLIVE
1A. FAQ
1B. What is Onlive?
Onlive is cloud gaming! It's similar to video streaming services like Netflix and YouTube except that, instead of videos, your games are synchronized, rendered, and stored on remote servers and delivered via the internet all in real time!
1C. What are the hardware requirements for Onlive?
If your computer can stream 720p video then you've met the requirements to get the optimal performance. Even if you can't stream 720p Onlive can dynamically reduce the quality of the stream to better suit your connection speed. Contrary to what many people say you don't need a super fast connection to use the service and in fact Onlive claims that the service can run on connections as slow as 2 Mbps. What's far more important is the latency between your connection and Onlive's data centers.
1D. Can I use Onlive in my country?
Currently Onlive is fully supported in only 3 countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, and Belgium. You can use the service outside of these countries but there's no guarantee that the service will work correctly and you will not be able to make purchases in the marketplace.
1E. So I have a decent connection, what else do I need to use the service?
If you're wanting to use the PC client then you need atleast Windows XP or Mac OS X 10.5.8. For the Android client you need to have a device with atleast Android 2.3. There is a viewer app for iOS however you cannot purchase/play games with this app.
*NOTE: As of 24 October 2013 the iOS Viewer App is not listed in the App Store. Hopefully this means a full featured Onlive App is on the way.*
1F. Now that I'm on the service, what devices can I use to interact with the service?
Onlive allows the ability to use a vast array of devices with the service. In addition to the traditional mouse and keyboard, you can use almost any Bluetooth headset to take advantage of voice chat and also almost any Dinput/Xinput controller for the interface and gameplay. Just connect and play, no additional setup is needed!
1G. I'm experiencing a large amount of latency and/or artifacts; what's wrong?
Unfortunately with a cloud service some latency is expected. Due to a user's location, home network setup, ISP, and perception, individual experiences can also vary from person to person. I highly suggest anyone interested in the service to try one of the free trials offered to see how well the service performs for you. If you're sure connection speed and latency between your connection and the data center is not the problem then there are a few suggestions you can try to see if it alleviates the problem.
1H. When is this "relaunch" supposed to happen?OnLive requires certain ports to be open in order to provide a successful connection. On most routers you can open the required ports by finding the "Port Forwarding" or "Port Triggering" option.
OnLive requires UDP ports 16384-16640 and TCP port 443 to be open. If you do not have access to your router, contact your network administrator about opening the required ports.
We do not have a solid date for when the big update is supposed to drop, however, we do know that it will be sometime this Fall.
2A. HARDWARE
2B. Microconsole
The microconsole is a small device that allows you to use the Onlive service on your television through a HDMI or component connection; a HDMI cable is included with purchase. The device requires an Ethernet cable as it does not have WiFi capability. It does have Bluetooth (used primarily to connect headsets) and two USB 2.0 ports in front that can be used to connect USB devices (mouse, keyboard, Xbox 360 wireless controller, etc). The included controller is NOT the same as the universal controller and will only work with the microconsole.
*NOTE: Currently the microconsole is not sold on their website. It was removed early October. Onlive stated that:
Hopefully that means a new microconsole is on the way.*In advance of the upcoming release, we felt the Microconsole will need updating that we will address after the launch.
2C. Universal Controller
The universal controller is a controller released by Onlive that can connect to devices through Bluetooth or the included USB dongle. The biggest downside of this controller is that it is DInput and not XInput which means that using the controller outside of the Onlive service requires a little bit of extra work.
3A. FEATURES
Play anywhere on almost any device - As long as you have a stable connection to their data centers then you can quickly transition from playing on your TV to playing on your laptop to playing on your tablet. Since all your data is stored on their servers you can pick up exactly where you left off!
Game instantly - Start a trial, purchase a PlayPass, watch a trailer, view someone's stream, browse Brag Clips, switch to a different game; everything about this service is instant! There is no downloading and no buffering!
Instantly record your gameplay - With the press of a button your previous 10 seconds of gameplay are recorded. These clips are referred to as "Brag Clips" and do not disrupt gameplay when recorded. You can also select for these clips to be uploaded onto a connected Facebook account automatically.
Seamlessly stream your gameplay - Your gameplay is automatically streamed to the world! If this is something you'd rather not have then Onlive provides privacy features to limit your streaming to friends only or even to completely block your streaming to everyone. While streaming you can additionally voice chat with anyone spectating your gameplay.
Spectate - Watch and talk to anyone playing; friends and strangers alike!
Fair play - Every single game is hosted on a dedicated server and streamed to the user. This leads to more consistent online play and also renders traditional methods of cheating (i.e. lag switches) impossible to implement.
Free online multiplayer - Online multiplayer is completely free.
Free online social features - Onlive provides many social features that are comparable to what other established services provide. Features such as individualized player accounts, messaging system, friends list of up to 2000, voice chat, and party chat of up to 100 are all provided free of charge.
Trial the full version of almost any game for free - Instantly trial almost any game free for up to 30 minutes as many times as you want; this is not a demo version but the full release!
Multiple ways to play - Onlive provides the user many options when it comes to playing.
4A. NOVEMBER RELEASES
- 3 or 5 day PlayPass - With the purchase of a 3 or 5 day PlayPass you have access to that specific title for that period of time.
- Full PlayPass - With the purchase of a Full PlayPass you have unlimited access to that specific title.
- PlayPack - With the purchase of the PlayPack (starting at $9.99 per month) you have unlimited access to every title available in the PlayPack. There is no commitment, stop your subscription at any time! Even after stopping your saves are safe so rest assured that if you decide to resubscribe you can pick up exactly where you left off. PlayPass subscribers additionally get a 30 percent discount on all purchases made on Onlive.
***WORK IN PROGRESS***
5A. NEWS
Onlive Quietly Updates Dashboard
It seems Onlive quietly updated the dashboard today. It's great to see some movement! Overall it does seem a tad quicker than the (already quick) old dashboard. Anyway, here are some screen captures of the new dashboard. You can tell it's just a piece of a much larger puzzle. I'll point out any differences that the community has been able to pick up on.
Interesting to point out that the new Onlive logo appears when you are viewing a brag clip. Ratings are also gone and are replaced by "Cheers" much like when in spectating mode.
No new sharing options as of yet but you can once again see the prominent use of the new logo in this screen.
Voice chat is not listed as beta anymore. Also they added the ability to have Steam like groups!
For more discussion on this see here.
Onlive Launches New Datacenter in Chicago, IL
Onlive recently launched a new datacenter right outside of Chicago, IL and has been sending emails out to people connecting to the new datacenter asking about their experience. The improvement seems substantial with everyone connecting to the new datacenter reporting a very noticeable improvement. Definitely worth checking out if you're near the area! I connect to the Dallas, TX datacenter (about 350ish miles away) so this won't affect me.
For more discussion on this see here.
Onlive Ambassador Program Officially Renamed to the Onlive Cloud Council; Program Selection Emails Being Sent Out
Congrats to OnliveHQ member ZzGhostzZ; his submission garnered the most votes! Onlive has officially renamed the Ambassador Program to the Onlive Cloud Council and is currently sending emails to those selected to participate in the program. There's no new information in the email but I will post a few interesting snippets:
With that being said there are obviously restrictions on what can be released by those who participate in the program. I will post what I can however it's impossible to tell how much they will allow to be released to the public. For more discussion on this see here.
ONLIVE CLOUD COUNCIL CORE VALUES
You’re a Gamer: Embrace the title and lifestyle. Celebrate the fact that you enjoy different forms of gaming, across all platforms and devices, even beyond Onlive.
Have Integrity and Respect: Always be honest with facts and careful with opinions. Always be respectful and honest towards others who may not share the same opinion.
Be Passionate: Like us, don’t ever be satisfied. If something is just okay, it’s not awesome enough.
Be Vocal: Get online, show the world why Onlive is a great service made up of a great community. Tweet comments, Like Posts, Blog your thoughts and create video tributes on YouTube. You have the opportunity to build your community. Seize the day!
Have Fun: After all, that’s why we game.
...
Maintain confidentiality on any new features or products we tell you about or ask you to test, until we say it is OK to talk about them.
Onlive Gearing Up For Relaunch
A recent email sent to those who applied for the ambassador program hint towards a major update on the horizon. Additionally this email gives a peek at Onlive's new logo and branding while also giving a few hints of what to expect with the new service. The relaunch is expected to hit sometime this Fall.
Some very interesting things about this email.
Dear XXXXXXX,
Thank you for applying to be a part of Onlive’s new ambassador program. We haven't made final selections yet, so stay tuned. We got a lot of great applicants, and we’re really excited to see how fired up you all are!
Meanwhile, we wanted to thank you for being awesome and sticking with us. We’ve been hard at work on a major update to the game service for you. Because you’ve been so loyal and given us such great feedback, you are invited to be among the first to see the new game service before it’s released to the general public. We’re not announcing the date yet, but you’ll get an email invitation as soon as it’s ready.
For now, here are a few fun things you can download to give you a sneak peek into what’s coming:
Desktop Wallpapers
Screensaver (Windows)
Screensaver (OSX)
“Particle Blaster” Flash game
We’ve also included a coupon code you can use for $10 off your first game on the new Onlive. It’s only good on the service after the big update, so don’t try to use it yet—wait till we say “go”.
XXXXXXXX
Watch your email for more news about the ambassador program and the new service update.
Keep on gaming!
Your friends at Onlive
1. It seems the logo has been changed and the name has underwent slight revisions as well (from "OnLive" to "onlive").
2. The tablet in the picture is that of an iPad Mini. The Mini came out less than a year ago. Could Onlive be hinting that an iOS release is finally coming?
3. The wallpapers and screen saver seem to indicate a more customizable UI. Not sure exactly how customizable but the shifting colors seem to show that at least everything won't have to be all orange and black anymore. Here's a quick picture showcasing all the colors:
4. Particles seem to be a big theme. The game, picture, wallpaper, and screensaver heavily feature this aspect.
5. Big changes and new content on the way!
For more discussion on this see here.
Viewer App No Longer On iOS App Store
It has come to our attention that the iOS Viewer App is no longer available on the App Store. This coupled with the photo in the recent email (see below) showing an iPad Mini could be hinting that a full iOS release is on the way. This just as well could be nothing but it's fun to speculate!
For more discussion on this see here.
6A. COMMUNITY EVENTS
LiveOn Episode 1 Up
Episode one is up. To listen to it and for more discussion on this please go here.
Get Ready for the LiveOn Podcast
Our very own Niko went to onlive corp last week and got to conduct some pretty nifty interviews. Yes, we have covered quite a bit of news for the podcast, everything from the transition between OL1 and OL2 to some pretty cool info on what is to come. We have some familiar faces bringing us some awesome news and we cannot wait to share everything with you all!
We are pleased to announce that the first episode of the series is to be released next week. We will be releasing each interview in five weekly episodes, and we hope to quench your thirst for onlive greatness! Keep checking up at the LiveOn subforum, our Facebook and Twitter feeds for the most up to date info.
Here’s a lineup of things to come:
Episode One: Rick S. , Dir. of Web & Ecommerce
Episode Two: Nate B. , Sr. Manager of Customer Relations (part 1)
Episode Three: Nate B. , Sr. Manager of Customer Relations (part 2)
Episode Four: Nick P. , Art Director
Episode Five: Steffan K. , Head of Network Operations (NOC)
7A. PLACES TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ONLIVE
Onlive's Official Site
OnliveHQ: Unofficial Onlive Fansite and Forums
Google+ Community (Unofficial)
Onlive reddit
The Onlive Subsection of Ouyaforum (Unofficial)
Onlive's Official Facebook
Onlive's Official Twitter
Onlive's Official blog
Onlive's Official YouTube Channel
