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[bitbydeath]

Why’s this thing even have specs if it’s streaming? Couldn’t it be 1 billion teraflops?

 

[Redneckerz]

Just realized that there is a valid comparison to be made between Stadia and a Project Xcloud Blade. An Xcloud Blade consists of the components of 4 Xbox One S consoles. So lets compare them spec wise:

Google Stadia:

• CPU: Custom 2.7 Ghz manycore server class CPU by AMD, 2.7 Ghz (The only real world equivalent of this is an AMD Epyc 7281, 16 cores, base clock 2.1 Ghz, but boostclock is 2.7 Ghz across all cores. Since Stadia does not use a SoC mentality and is server-based, cooling should be no issue.
• GPU: AMD custom, 56 CU's, similar to Vega 56, 16 GB HBM2. 10.7 TF.
• RAM: 16 GB HBM2 from GPU is shared with CPU.

Microsoft XCloud Blade: (So one instance of this hardware, not multiple to keep it a fair balance with Stadia since that one can also stack its hardware in multiples for servers)
Its 4x Xbox One S, seperated over 4 motherboards. So combined:

• CPU: 4x 8 core AMD Jaguar, 1.75 Ghz (Total: 24 cores)
• GPU: 4x 12 CU's 768 cores AMD Radeon, 1.4 TF (Total: 48 CU's, 5.6 TF)
• RAM: 4x 8 GB DDR3 (Total: 32 GB DDR3), 8 GB is shared across CPU and GPU.

Ofcourse this is just a very superficial comparison, but its good to see where Stadia stands in comparison to that other streaming platform making use of custom hardware, XCloud. It also gives you an idea of what resolutions XCloud may target. Ofcourse, XCloud can use multiple blades to achieve higher resolutions, but its power to performance ratio is significantly beaten out by the Stadia spec.

By comparison, a single Google Stadia instance beats out a single XCloud instance in the spec department, even though an XCloud Blade has more CPU cores and twice the memory, its much more limited by bandwidth.

Bonus: Lets add Sony's PlayStation Now to it as well, One instance has 8 PS3 motherboards in one server. This should serve as a comparison to see how far we have gone in custom streaming platforms since 2014's PS Now:

PlayStation Now Server:
Its 8x PlayStation 3 motherboards housed in one server module. So combined:

• CPU: 8x PPE at 3.2 Ghz, 8x 6x SPU's at 3.2 Ghz (56 cores total)
• GPU: 8x RSX, 8x 24 pixel pipelines, 8x 8 vertex pipelines, 8x 256 MB GDDR3 VRAM, 230 GFLOPS (192 pixel pipelines, 64 pixel pipelines, 2 GB VRAM and 1.84 TF in total)
• RAM: 8x 256 MB XDR RAM (2 GB XDR Ram in total)

So by comparison, an XCloud Blade has 3 times the GPU FLOPS performance of a PS Now Server, whereas a Google Stadia instance has 5.8 times the GPU performance of a PlayStation Now Server blade.

Do note that, again, these are superficial comparisons and there is a host of difference between all solutions. However, it should show the progress we have made since PS Now, 5 years ago.

 

[Skyr]

DAT latency

 

[Jigsaah]

If there is something better and cheaper, and long-term sustainable - nothing necessarily wrong with change. (Game streaming has been around a long-time, the customer isn't wrong)

Cloud is nothing really new, although there are some services that run in the cloud that are newer. Generally, modern computing went from central processing (IBM mainframes) to personal computers, this is what lead to the rise of Apple and Microsoft for example, generally speaking. We are generally going backwards to central processing which is the old IBM mainframe setup. There can be some good with this, but just like in the case of IBM, there can be some very bad things.

I generally consider this the old way of processing.

I'm not familiar with the problems IBM had, but I would imagine Google realizes this and knows they have to eliminate any and all possibility of making similar mistakes. Honestly I would have thought that would have been handled even prior to their cloud being fully realized. Same with Azure. Not to say there can't be a new threat though.

 

[Roitorb]

Lotta close minded folks in here who are afraid of change. As an aspiring creator this sounds fantastic to me. It doesnt have to be the de facto gaming experience of choice, but if cheap, it would make the best compliment to any console owner who would like to play their games on the go.

I would get this day 1 if cheap, and wait for my Xbox or Playstation next gen. Not sure which I'll go with yet though the controller alone makes me lean Xbox. Sony does have that asymmetrical controller though now....but Xbox has a better community and network...but playstation has better exclusives...but Xbox has more consumer friendly practices...but playstation has better exclusives....

So your saying get a Switch?

 

[DonF]

If I'm playing any online game and my GF connects to the wifi on her phone, the phone starts syncing and fucks my connection big time. Imagine that with all your catalog. It's like back to the dial up internet times!

"Mom! Don't sync the phone! I'm playing...IM PLAYING"

 

[DanielsM]

I'm not familiar with the problems IBM had, but I would imagine Google realizes this and knows they have to eliminate any and all possibility of making similar mistakes. Honestly I would have thought that would have been handled even prior to their cloud being fully realized. Same with Azure. Not to say there can't be a new threat though.

The centralization is the mistake (as a generalization), the world eliminated the problem in part by moving away from central processing although never completely.... mainframes still exist today. (not saying all centralized processing is bad or anything, but really much of this is actually the old way of doing things, which is not always bad per se)

The issue with this for the consumer is its not cheaper for consumers to process in the cloud, generally its going to be much more if you're a normal user. Businesses can save money by eliminating headcount for maintaining the hardware, in consumer products... nobody needs someone to manage it for them... .you just turn on your PC, Xbox, or PS.

All they are doing is moving the hardware to where they rent it to you via subscription - the cost still remain. $400-1,200 in hardware costs, plus property storage, plus electricity, plus management, plus decommission costs. etc. You're really just going to a payment plan as a consumer.

 

[Helios]

Seems neat and I hope it will help people that can't afford a gaming PC but I'm already self-concious about using Steam. I can't imagine playing something that requires every input to be sent over the internet. Also no mods is a big down-side for me.

Could Digital Foundry continue to exist in a world of streaming games?

There'll always be people that want will play on a PC/Console. Just like there are still people that buy physical games.

 

[ResilientBanana]

Goodluck with fighting games.

Fuck that lol

 

[Jigsaah]

Basically PS share play, although you would have to probably have to invite via PSN. (For the record, I've never used PS Share). Not sure if you can Twitch and Share at the same time, but I always thought this wasn't a very used feature anyway. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with your desire of the feature, just trying to understand what you mean by "creators". I think there is a few neat features that expand on PS Now or other service providers.
https://www.playstation.com/en-us/explore/ps4/share-play/

I haven't used Shareplay either, but I don't think it's instant and I don't think it's on the same scale as what Google is proposing here. I mean they had a queue for people to join in the game. I'd imagine people with 100 subscribers could utilize this as a way to reward current subscribers or to help field for new ones. Playstation may have shareplay, but it more meant for people you're friends with, not complete strangers who just happen to follow your content.

By Creators, I mean youtubers, streamers.

 

[CyberPanda]

Just realized that there is a valid comparison to be made between Stadia and a Project Xcloud Blade. An Xcloud Blade consists of the components of 4 Xbox One S consoles. So lets compare them spec wise:

Google Stadia:

• CPU: Custom 2.7 Ghz manycore server class CPU by AMD, 2.7 Ghz (The only real world equivalent of this is an AMD Epyc 7281, 16 cores, base clock 2.1 Ghz, but boostclock is 2.7 Ghz across all cores. Since Stadia does not use a SoC mentality and is server-based, cooling should be no issue.
• GPU: AMD custom, 56 CU's, similar to Vega 56, 16 GB HBM2. 10.7 TF.
• RAM: 16 GB HBM2 from GPU is shared with CPU.

Microsoft XCloud Blade: (So one instance of this hardware, not multiple to keep it a fair balance with Stadia since that one can also stack its hardware in multiples for servers)
Its 4x Xbox One S, seperated over 4 motherboards. So combined:

• CPU: 4x 8 core AMD Jaguar, 1.75 Ghz (Total: 24 cores)
• GPU: 4x 12 CU's 768 cores AMD Radeon, 1.4 TF (Total: 48 CU's, 5.6 TF)
• RAM: 4x 8 GB DDR3 (Total: 32 GB DDR3), 8 GB is shared across CPU and GPU.

Ofcourse this is just a very superficial comparison, but its good to see where Stadia stands in comparison to that other streaming platform making use of custom hardware, XCloud. It also gives you an idea of what resolutions XCloud may target. Ofcourse, XCloud can use multiple blades to achieve higher resolutions, but its power to performance ratio is significantly beaten out by the Stadia spec.

By comparison, a single Google Stadia instance beats out a single XCloud instance in the spec department, even though an XCloud Blade has more CPU cores and twice the memory, its much more limited by bandwidth.

Bonus: Lets add Sony's PlayStation Now to it as well, One instance has 8 PS3 motherboards in one server. This should serve as a comparison to see how far we have gone in custom streaming platforms since 2014's PS Now:

PlayStation Now Server:
Its 8x PlayStation 3 motherboards housed in one server module. So combined:

• CPU: 8x PPE at 3.2 Ghz, 8x 6x SPU's at 3.2 Ghz (56 cores total)
• GPU: 8x RSX, 8x 24 pixel pipelines, 8x 8 vertex pipelines, 8x 256 MB GDDR3 VRAM, 230 GFLOPS (192 pixel pipelines, 64 pixel pipelines, 2 GB VRAM and 1.84 TF in total)
• RAM: 8x 256 MB XDR RAM (2 GB XDR Ram in total)

So by comparison, an XCloud Blade has 3 times the GPU FLOPS performance of a PS Now Server, whereas a Google Stadia instance has 5.8 times the GPU performance of a PlayStation Now Server blade.

Do note that, again, these are superficial comparisons and there is a host of difference between all solutions. However, it should show the progress we have made since PS Now, 5 years ago.

Can’t MS and Sony change their serve specs later on to more beefy hardware?

 

[DanielsM]

Can’t MS and Sony change their serve specs later on to more beefy hardware?

I think you have to give the developer specs to target, than the developers can target a particular hardware spec, all they did was move the console to their datacenter and now its in a rack. If you don't give the developer a spec at what point do you just give the user full virtual windows desktop so the developer has a chance to fix issues?

This appears to be more of a very limited Linux virtual desktop, meaning users only have the ability to select games... developers are given a particular spec to target. Users will have no ability to get their games out most probably. (guess on this last one)

 

[CyberPanda]

I think you have to give the developer specs to target, than the developers can target a particular hardware spec, all they did was move the console to their datacenter and now its in a rack.

If you don't give the developer a spec at what point do you just give the user full virtual windows desktop so the developer has a chance to fix and issue.

So, Sony and MS will need to add keep adding more stacks to keep up with Stadia?

 

[Chozofication_]

I really don't want to give even more power to Google and I also hate streaming so this is like the gaming antichrist lol.

 

[DanielsM]

So, Sony and MS will need to add keep adding more stacks to keep up with Stadia?

I'm assuming their will be a PS5/X2 so I would imagine those would get added. Technically, Microsoft has already rolled out their Windows VD, those specs can always be increased, but we're talking Uwp/win32 there, generally speaking.
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/updates/windows-virtual-desktop/

 

[CyberPanda]

I really don't want to give even more power to Google and I also hate streaming so this is like the gaming antichrist lol.

No corporation is our friend.

I'm assuming their will be a PS5/X2 so I would imagine those would get added. Technically, Microsoft has already rolled out their Windows VD, those specs can always be increased, but we're talking Uwp/win32 there, generally speaking.
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/updates/windows-virtual-desktop/

Ok thanks!

 

[Chozofication_]

No corporation is our friend.

Big difference between Google and pizza king but thanks for the insight.

Edit : CyberPanda That was probably too confrontational though, my apologies.

 

[Snake29]

Just realized that there is a valid comparison to be made between Stadia and a Project Xcloud Blade. An Xcloud Blade consists of the components of 4 Xbox One S consoles. So lets compare them spec wise:

Google Stadia:

• CPU: Custom 2.7 Ghz manycore server class CPU by AMD, 2.7 Ghz (The only real world equivalent of this is an AMD Epyc 7281, 16 cores, base clock 2.1 Ghz, but boostclock is 2.7 Ghz across all cores. Since Stadia does not use a SoC mentality and is server-based, cooling should be no issue.
• GPU: AMD custom, 56 CU's, similar to Vega 56, 16 GB HBM2. 10.7 TF.
• RAM: 16 GB HBM2 from GPU is shared with CPU.

Microsoft XCloud Blade: (So one instance of this hardware, not multiple to keep it a fair balance with Stadia since that one can also stack its hardware in multiples for servers)
Its 4x Xbox One S, seperated over 4 motherboards. So combined:

• CPU: 4x 8 core AMD Jaguar, 1.75 Ghz (Total: 24 cores)
• GPU: 4x 12 CU's 768 cores AMD Radeon, 1.4 TF (Total: 48 CU's, 5.6 TF)
• RAM: 4x 8 GB DDR3 (Total: 32 GB DDR3), 8 GB is shared across CPU and GPU.

Ofcourse this is just a very superficial comparison, but its good to see where Stadia stands in comparison to that other streaming platform making use of custom hardware, XCloud. It also gives you an idea of what resolutions XCloud may target. Ofcourse, XCloud can use multiple blades to achieve higher resolutions, but its power to performance ratio is significantly beaten out by the Stadia spec.

By comparison, a single Google Stadia instance beats out a single XCloud instance in the spec department, even though an XCloud Blade has more CPU cores and twice the memory, its much more limited by bandwidth.

Bonus: Lets add Sony's PlayStation Now to it as well, One instance has 8 PS3 motherboards in one server. This should serve as a comparison to see how far we have gone in custom streaming platforms since 2014's PS Now:

PlayStation Now Server:
Its 8x PlayStation 3 motherboards housed in one server module. So combined:

• CPU: 8x PPE at 3.2 Ghz, 8x 6x SPU's at 3.2 Ghz (56 cores total)
• GPU: 8x RSX, 8x 24 pixel pipelines, 8x 8 vertex pipelines, 8x 256 MB GDDR3 VRAM, 230 GFLOPS (192 pixel pipelines, 64 pixel pipelines, 2 GB VRAM and 1.84 TF in total)
• RAM: 8x 256 MB XDR RAM (2 GB XDR Ram in total)

So by comparison, an XCloud Blade has 3 times the GPU FLOPS performance of a PS Now Server, whereas a Google Stadia instance has 5.8 times the GPU performance of a PlayStation Now Server blade.

Do note that, again, these are superficial comparisons and there is a host of difference between all solutions. However, it should show the progress we have made since PS Now, 5 years ago.

PSNow can also stream PS4 games, so that comparison is not the case anymore.

 

[DeepEnigma]

DAT latency

Now we know why they did not show Doom yet, just PR fluff.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Why’s this thing even have specs if it’s streaming? Couldn’t it be 1 billion teraflops?

To make a jab at Sony and MS, prior to their native next gen launches of course. Enthusiasts laugh, normies are "wow'ed".

 

[scalman]

yh so that latency do you have it google ? i mean who cares specs of stream box ?

 

[Meowzers]

Suppose they couldn't run it at 1 billion TF because it would require internet speeds to be so fast that they go back in time.

I'm also waiting for Doom to be shown. If already that's not being shown now, then it really is a disaster.

 

[Spukc]

 

[Barakov]

Oof. Google has its' work cut out for them.

 

[Skyr]

Now this is with a controler I assume. Imagine how bad it would feel with a mouse in a online multiplayer setting. Probably unusable.

 

[Meowzers]

This is not going to shake up the industry by any means.

On the day of the reveal there are already issues.

 

[iamvin22]

Now we know why they did not show Doom yet, just PR fluff.

Haha pretty much. Pretty sure oddesey was a old build too. Literally no actual games shown

 

[Redneckerz]

Can’t MS and Sony change their serve specs later on to more beefy hardware?

I am sure they can, its datacentre based after all. I just went by singular instances where atleast some form of spec was/is available.

PSNow can also stream PS4 games, so that comparison is not the case anymore.

I figured so, but i couldn't find any backdrop hardware. In anyways as it stands it goes to highlight the progression of these cloud platforms in terms of hardware.

 

[isual]

i give the project 3 years tops after release date.

if it doesnt gain traction they will drop it

 

[thehillissilent]

Just realized that there is a valid comparison to be made between Stadia and a Project Xcloud Blade. An Xcloud Blade consists of the components of 4 Xbox One S consoles. So lets compare them spec wise:

Google Stadia:

• CPU: Custom 2.7 Ghz manycore server class CPU by AMD, 2.7 Ghz (The only real world equivalent of this is an AMD Epyc 7281, 16 cores, base clock 2.1 Ghz, but boostclock is 2.7 Ghz across all cores. Since Stadia does not use a SoC mentality and is server-based, cooling should be no issue.
• GPU: AMD custom, 56 CU's, similar to Vega 56, 16 GB HBM2. 10.7 TF.
• RAM: 16 GB HBM2 from GPU is shared with CPU.

Microsoft XCloud Blade: (So one instance of this hardware, not multiple to keep it a fair balance with Stadia since that one can also stack its hardware in multiples for servers)
Its 4x Xbox One S, seperated over 4 motherboards. So combined:

• CPU: 4x 8 core AMD Jaguar, 1.75 Ghz (Total: 24 cores)
• GPU: 4x 12 CU's 768 cores AMD Radeon, 1.4 TF (Total: 48 CU's, 5.6 TF)
• RAM: 4x 8 GB DDR3 (Total: 32 GB DDR3), 8 GB is shared across CPU and GPU.

Ofcourse this is just a very superficial comparison, but its good to see where Stadia stands in comparison to that other streaming platform making use of custom hardware, XCloud. It also gives you an idea of what resolutions XCloud may target. Ofcourse, XCloud can use multiple blades to achieve higher resolutions, but its power to performance ratio is significantly beaten out by the Stadia spec.

By comparison, a single Google Stadia instance beats out a single XCloud instance in the spec department, even though an XCloud Blade has more CPU cores and twice the memory, its much more limited by bandwidth.

Bonus: Lets add Sony's PlayStation Now to it as well, One instance has 8 PS3 motherboards in one server. This should serve as a comparison to see how far we have gone in custom streaming platforms since 2014's PS Now:

PlayStation Now Server:
Its 8x PlayStation 3 motherboards housed in one server module. So combined:

• CPU: 8x PPE at 3.2 Ghz, 8x 6x SPU's at 3.2 Ghz (56 cores total)
• GPU: 8x RSX, 8x 24 pixel pipelines, 8x 8 vertex pipelines, 8x 256 MB GDDR3 VRAM, 230 GFLOPS (192 pixel pipelines, 64 pixel pipelines, 2 GB VRAM and 1.84 TF in total)
• RAM: 8x 256 MB XDR RAM (2 GB XDR Ram in total)

So by comparison, an XCloud Blade has 3 times the GPU FLOPS performance of a PS Now Server, whereas a Google Stadia instance has 5.8 times the GPU performance of a PlayStation Now Server blade.

Do note that, again, these are superficial comparisons and there is a host of difference between all solutions. However, it should show the progress we have made since PS Now, 5 years ago.

The real comparison will be when next-gen console specs are revealed. Anyway, that is a good estimate on CPU part and Vega 56 was basically spelled out by them. That would be weird for Google to partner with Intel for CPU if they already partnered with AMD for GPU. The CPU power versus the next-gen Ryzen APUs will probably make the biggest difference. However, I think that Sony/MS will offer more TF for the GPU. Also, Google doesn't have to worry about cooling due to not being a SoC which probably has some advantages of it's own since it's custom server hardware.

 

[petran79]

This could actually work for MMO, LOL, DOTA, Blizzard, card games etc
If they make a deal with Google and I guess Stadia will support mouse and keyboard controls it could be a nice alternative as opposed to playing those games on PC. You do not own those games anyway and console version would provide better stability.

 

[ethomaz]

Just realized that there is a valid comparison to be made between Stadia and a Project Xcloud Blade. An Xcloud Blade consists of the components of 4 Xbox One S consoles. So lets compare them spec wise:

Google Stadia:

• CPU: Custom 2.7 Ghz manycore server class CPU by AMD, 2.7 Ghz (The only real world equivalent of this is an AMD Epyc 7281, 16 cores, base clock 2.1 Ghz, but boostclock is 2.7 Ghz across all cores. Since Stadia does not use a SoC mentality and is server-based, cooling should be no issue.
• GPU: AMD custom, 56 CU's, similar to Vega 56, 16 GB HBM2. 10.7 TF.
• RAM: 16 GB HBM2 from GPU is shared with CPU.

Microsoft XCloud Blade: (So one instance of this hardware, not multiple to keep it a fair balance with Stadia since that one can also stack its hardware in multiples for servers)
Its 4x Xbox One S, seperated over 4 motherboards. So combined:

• CPU: 4x 8 core AMD Jaguar, 1.75 Ghz (Total: 24 cores)
• GPU: 4x 12 CU's 768 cores AMD Radeon, 1.4 TF (Total: 48 CU's, 5.6 TF)
• RAM: 4x 8 GB DDR3 (Total: 32 GB DDR3), 8 GB is shared across CPU and GPU.

Ofcourse this is just a very superficial comparison, but its good to see where Stadia stands in comparison to that other streaming platform making use of custom hardware, XCloud. It also gives you an idea of what resolutions XCloud may target. Ofcourse, XCloud can use multiple blades to achieve higher resolutions, but its power to performance ratio is significantly beaten out by the Stadia spec.

By comparison, a single Google Stadia instance beats out a single XCloud instance in the spec department, even though an XCloud Blade has more CPU cores and twice the memory, its much more limited by bandwidth.

Bonus: Lets add Sony's PlayStation Now to it as well, One instance has 8 PS3 motherboards in one server. This should serve as a comparison to see how far we have gone in custom streaming platforms since 2014's PS Now:

PlayStation Now Server:
Its 8x PlayStation 3 motherboards housed in one server module. So combined:

• CPU: 8x PPE at 3.2 Ghz, 8x 6x SPU's at 3.2 Ghz (56 cores total)
• GPU: 8x RSX, 8x 24 pixel pipelines, 8x 8 vertex pipelines, 8x 256 MB GDDR3 VRAM, 230 GFLOPS (192 pixel pipelines, 64 pixel pipelines, 2 GB VRAM and 1.84 TF in total)
• RAM: 8x 256 MB XDR RAM (2 GB XDR Ram in total)

So by comparison, an XCloud Blade has 3 times the GPU FLOPS performance of a PS Now Server, whereas a Google Stadia instance has 5.8 times the GPU performance of a PlayStation Now Server blade.

Do note that, again, these are superficial comparisons and there is a host of difference between all solutions. However, it should show the progress we have made since PS Now, 5 years ago.

I'm sure you can stream PS4 game on PSNow that just show how dated these specs are.

Most of the instances are probably x86 CPU with GPUs.

 

[Stuart360]

This is why its good to be a PC gamer. Streaming will never work witrh PC gamers, not streaming 'only', There are just too many PC gamers that are just as interested in the hardware as they are with the games, more so in some cases.
There will always be a sizeable amount of PC gamers that will always buy hardware.

 

[Horsemama1956]

Just realized that there is a valid comparison to be made between Stadia and a Project Xcloud Blade. An Xcloud Blade consists of the components of 4 Xbox One S consoles. So lets compare them spec wise:

Google Stadia:

• CPU: Custom 2.7 Ghz manycore server class CPU by AMD, 2.7 Ghz (The only real world equivalent of this is an AMD Epyc 7281, 16 cores, base clock 2.1 Ghz, but boostclock is 2.7 Ghz across all cores. Since Stadia does not use a SoC mentality and is server-based, cooling should be no issue.
• GPU: AMD custom, 56 CU's, similar to Vega 56, 16 GB HBM2. 10.7 TF.
• RAM: 16 GB HBM2 from GPU is shared with CPU.

Microsoft XCloud Blade: (So one instance of this hardware, not multiple to keep it a fair balance with Stadia since that one can also stack its hardware in multiples for servers)
Its 4x Xbox One S, seperated over 4 motherboards. So combined:

• CPU: 4x 8 core AMD Jaguar, 1.75 Ghz (Total: 24 cores)
• GPU: 4x 12 CU's 768 cores AMD Radeon, 1.4 TF (Total: 48 CU's, 5.6 TF)
• RAM: 4x 8 GB DDR3 (Total: 32 GB DDR3), 8 GB is shared across CPU and GPU.

Ofcourse this is just a very superficial comparison, but its good to see where Stadia stands in comparison to that other streaming platform making use of custom hardware, XCloud. It also gives you an idea of what resolutions XCloud may target. Ofcourse, XCloud can use multiple blades to achieve higher resolutions, but its power to performance ratio is significantly beaten out by the Stadia spec.

By comparison, a single Google Stadia instance beats out a single XCloud instance in the spec department, even though an XCloud Blade has more CPU cores and twice the memory, its much more limited by bandwidth.

Bonus: Lets add Sony's PlayStation Now to it as well, One instance has 8 PS3 motherboards in one server. This should serve as a comparison to see how far we have gone in custom streaming platforms since 2014's PS Now:

PlayStation Now Server:
Its 8x PlayStation 3 motherboards housed in one server module. So combined:

• CPU: 8x PPE at 3.2 Ghz, 8x 6x SPU's at 3.2 Ghz (56 cores total)
• GPU: 8x RSX, 8x 24 pixel pipelines, 8x 8 vertex pipelines, 8x 256 MB GDDR3 VRAM, 230 GFLOPS (192 pixel pipelines, 64 pixel pipelines, 2 GB VRAM and 1.84 TF in total)
• RAM: 8x 256 MB XDR RAM (2 GB XDR Ram in total)

So by comparison, an XCloud Blade has 3 times the GPU FLOPS performance of a PS Now Server, whereas a Google Stadia instance has 5.8 times the GPU performance of a PlayStation Now Server blade.

Do note that, again, these are superficial comparisons and there is a host of difference between all solutions. However, it should show the progress we have made since PS Now, 5 years ago.

xcloud will change with next gen consoles though(I would hope..). Clearly google is looking at next gen as competition with their specs.

 

[mejin]

Imagine in Brasil

oh, I did. They did. That's why we're out. lmao

 

[ResilientBanana]

Is it one blade per person? I mean, that's a heavy spec, but that single blade could possibly render many instances of one game at a specific resolutions and settings.

 

[llien]

It is all, but confirmed that CPUs are Intel's:



note how she specifically mentions "GPU".

 

[Freeman454]

If they make a deal with Google and I guess Stadia will support mouse and keyboard controls it could be a nice alternative as opposed to playing those games on PC.

Its more of an alternative to console gaming, where most dont care about graphics or hardware, and a closed box environment fits right in too, so does subscribtions.

 

[Negotiator]

I want to know what will happen if the servers are overloaded and it becomes really hard to find a free slot/instance during peak hours... does anyone here remember the dial-up days?

Custom CPU? Now release that as a console, Google.

Call it Google Stadia Home or something.

It's a Zen CPU. Kinda annoying that they call it "custom" (it reminds me of the Scorpio custom "non-Jaguar" CPU).

I'm wondering if next-gen consoles will outclass this setup... HBM2 is expensive as fuck tho.

Does anyone know if it's an APU (due to having shared DRAM)? Are there any motherboard/silicon photos?

This is why its good to be a PC gamer. Streaming will never work witrh PC gamers, not streaming 'only', There are just too many PC gamers that are just as interested in the hardware as they are with the games, more so in some cases.
There will always be a sizeable amount of PC gamers that will always buy hardware.

Judging by the music industry, traditional PC & console gaming will become extremely niche.

You can still buy vinyl records today, but the majority doesn't care. It's too expensive for them.

 

[Kdad]

DAT latency

The latency is only bad because everyone is hitting it hard right now. It'll be much better after launch when noone is playing

 

[Closer]

Well, i want to know the price of playing games with Stadia if >100 usd and you don't need a megafast internet connection i would bite, i'm already paying $60 a year for PSplus for games iím not interest in. Time will tell i guess.

But what if it is < 100?

 

[Fbh]

This will be the biggest issue.
You'd imagine that for a demo aimed at the press they'd try to get it to run as good as possible and get as close as possible to an ideal setup, and it's still having issues.

I wonder how it's going to work for John Doe who lives somewhere in a small town when he tries to play something, specially if he lives with other people who might be on Netflix, Youtube, just browsing the internet or even playing something of their won.

 

[DanielsM]

The latency is only bad because everyone is hitting it hard right now. It'll be much better after launch when noone is playing

Brutal.

 

[mckmas8808]

This is why its good to be a PC gamer. Streaming will never work witrh PC gamers, not streaming 'only', There are just too many PC gamers that are just as interested in the hardware as they are with the games, more so in some cases.
There will always be a sizeable amount of PC gamers that will always buy hardware.

Streaming only will never work with console gamers either. Because at the end of the day the "jump in price" for many people on consoles is $200. And then they'll buy lots of used games. If this were to cost $20 a month, you'd pass that $200 threshold in under a year.

And many console gamers are just that, BECAUSE they don't "have" to have the internet at all times in order to use the box.

 

[Spukc]

The latency is only bad because everyone is hitting it hard right now. It'll be much better after launch when noone is playing

 

[Redneckerz]

Anyway, that is a good estimate on CPU part and Vega 56 was basically spelled out by them. That would be weird for Google to partner with Intel for CPU if they already partnered with AMD for GPU. The CPU power versus the next-gen Ryzen APUs will probably make the biggest difference. However, I think that Sony/MS will offer more TF for the GPU. Also, Google doesn't have to worry about cooling due to not being a SoC which probably has some advantages of it's own since it's custom server hardware.

I do want to stress that one Stadia Client is literally its own thing, versus an XCloud Blade (Which is composed of 4 seperate components) or an PS Now Server (Composed of 8 seperate components).

So basically its a PC in a server case, but some close up shots would be nice.

I'm sure you can stream PS4 game on PSNow that just show how dated these specs are.

Most of the instances are probably x86 CPU with GPUs.

I wouldn't know and i am not going to speculate on it.

xcloud will change with next gen consoles though(I would hope..). Clearly google is looking at next gen as competition with their specs.

Which is reason for me to believe that the client with its console like customization could also very well work as a console by itself.

It is all, but confirmed that CPUs are Intel's:



note how she specifically mentions "GPU".

That literally does not say anything, and DF already told that its an AMD CPU (If i remember correctly)

It's a Zen CPU. Kinda annoying that they call it "custom" (it reminds me of the Scorpio custom "non-Jaguar" CPU).

I'm wondering if next-gen consoles will outclass this setup... HBM2 is expensive as fuck tho.

Does anyone know if it's an APU (due to having shared DRAM)? Are there any motherboard/silicon photos?

It could be custom in the sense that its Subor Zplus levels of custom - But i have not read anything about another semi-custom approach by AMD.
Its not an APU. DF made it clear that its a seperate CPU + GPU.

 

[mckmas8808]

Judging by the music industry, traditional PC & console gaming will become extremely niche.

You can still buy vinyl records today, but the majority doesn't care. It's too expensive for them.

You can't make this comparison though. The music industry has almost EVERY new album release for $10-$15 a month. NOW, if you tell me Google Stadia will have 95% of ALL MS, Sony, Nintendo, and all 3rd party games for $20 a month then maybe you'll be right and console and PC gaming will become niche.

 

[llien]

That literally does not say anything, and DF already told that its an AMD CPU (If i remember correctly)

I don't know why you'd trust DF so much, but I think they stated the opposite.

 

[DanielsM]

Here are some samples of input lag testing at GDC... looks like mid-50s and lower 90s ms in a semi-controlled environment. (I'm a little confused on how they tested this and if that is above what it normal would take a local machine to display, you have things like screen refresh, etc.) Depends what those numbers are measured.

Something like PS Remote Play is easy to compare as you can watch it on the PS4 and compare it with the remote device.

 

[Revolutionary]

DAT latency

Sigh. It pains me to do this (I think Stadia is a terrible idea for most games), but this tweet is disingeous as all hell.
1. there is no jump button so Twitter is showing its ass as usual (you climb by holding R2) and 2. that's a common bug in that game where your character simply won't climb for some stupid reason unless you slightly adjust left or right (which you can see him doing). Thought they would have fixed it by now.

If you look at the right stick movement, the camera stops the moment he lets go so.. yeah.

Just Twitter being Twitter, I guess.