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[Bboy AJ]

See updates in second post below.

I've noticed not many on GAF use OnLive, but maybe if I keep this thread up to date, others will be interested. For those that don't know, OnLive is a gaming service that plays video games through the cloud. You buy a license to use the game and the game isn't played on your computer. Rather, the game is being run on computers in San Francisco (I think) and it is streamed to your computer as a video. It's an awesome concept and I fell in love with it right away.

I am a founding member but didn't really get into the service until Homefront came out. OnLive had a deal where you could buy HF, get a MicroConsole ($100) and Metro: 2033 for free. I hate playing games on my computer so I jumped on it and have been happy ever since. OnLive, has been amazing to its community as of late.

Their deals are non-stop. Every Friday, they have $5 games. Yesterday, Batman: AA was on sale for $5. They also had a 75% off coupon that was spread through word of mouth. I bought Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood for $13. You could also get Homefront for $13. Also, on basically every holiday, several games go on sale.

Here are the games I own and how much I paid for them:

Homefront: $60 and another $10 for s/h for a free console ($100 value)
Metro: 2033: $0
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood: $13
Braid: $3
Trine: $1

An achievement system was just released a couple of days ago. To encourage its members, anyone who gets 2500 points gets 50% off any game. Anyone who gets 5000 points gets a free game. Further, games with achievements are on sale right now, too.

Voice chat was released not too long ago. Friends lists exist. Things aren't as tight as XBL just yet.

Every Tuesday is a multiplayer gaming community night. The community is small so OnLive does things like that to get people to play together.

Not everything is peaches. Homefront, in particular, is a bit buggy. There are no dedicated servers just yet. Games are limited to only 16 players. Not every map on other platforms is available (yet?). Your controls don't save and you have to remap them every time you play. This huge issue has been going on since release and I am pissed it hasn't been fixed yet. But patches are released in the background and the company responds well to its customers.

I've been schilling for this company for awhile, to the point of being accused of being a viral marketer. Not true. I just love the idea of OnLive and hope it succeeds. I'm a founding member for OnLive and have kept up with it since it started. But I have noticed OnLive is making a big, big push in the past few weeks. If you're at all interested in the idea, jump on. Things are changing for the better and I believe the company is working hard to improve its service and foster its community.

-------------
Thanks to thehillissilent for the more information OP info below:

OnLive is a cloud computing, gaming-on-demand platform. The games are synchronized, rendered, and stored on remote servers and delivered via the Internet through interactive 720p video.

The service is available using the following devices: (The upcoming Universal controller will be compatible with these devices)
PC (Windows XP, Vista, 7)
Intel-based Macs (OS X 10.5.8 or later)
OnLive Game System (connected to HDTV)

The service is coming soon to the following devices: (The upcoming Universal controller will be compatible with these devices)
IPad/Iphone/Ipod Touch (OnLive viewer app is currently available)
Andriod Tablets and Phones
HDTVs (with Integrated OnLive service)
Bluray Players (with Integrated OnLive service)
Set-Top Boxes (with Integrated OnLive service)



OnLive sells games a la carte or users can sign up for "optional" subscription called the Playpack (explained in detail below). OnLive doesn't have mandatory subscription fees (they dropped the fee in October before anyone paid)

The Playpack is an "optional" subscription where users pay a monthly fee ($9.99) for unlimited access to "recent, classic and indie titles" in the OnLive library. New releases are excluded from the Playpack.The Playpack currently has over 60 titles.

All games including Playpack (over 100 games total) have free 30 minutes demos

Service Availability: OnLive has only officially launced in the US where datacenters are located in in Santa Clara, California and Virginia, and Dallas. Additional Datacenters might be set up in Chicago and the Seattle, Washignton area. OnLive will officially launch in the fall in the UK ans servers will also be located in Luxemborg for access throughout Europe

Network requirements:

The service requires a 3 Mbit/s Internet connection (5 Mbit/s recommended) with low latency. They will be lowering the requirement to 2mbps soon. The requirement will range from .5mbps-2mbps for Tablets/Smartphones. Make sure that you go to pingtest.net or speedtest.net to see true throughput of you ISP plan. Don't go by advertised speeds.

Wifi is currently in beta. Wired connected is recommended

 

[Bboy AJ]

Thanks to Enectic for the following updated information. As of June 30, 2013:

Quick update on recent news, releases, and community events. I know the OnLive following here isn't that big but I'm sure there's a few out there and new players are always welcome!

Recent releases:

Title: The Witcher 2 EE
Release date: February 28, 2013
Genre: RPG
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack, Full PlayPass ($19.99, includes digital copy redeemable from GOG)
Control options: KB/Mouse, Gamepad
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Alpha Kimori
Release date: March 18, 2013
Genre: Indie, RPG
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack
Control options: KB/Mouse
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Puddle
Release date: March 18, 2013
Genre: Indie, Action, Puzzle
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack
Control options: KB/Mouse, Gamepad
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Vanguard Princess
Release date: April 10, 2013
Genre: Indie, Fighting
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack, Full PlayPass ($9.99)
Control options: KB/Mouse, Gamepad
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Oddworld: Stranger's Wraith HD
Release date: April 18, 2013
Genre: Action, Adventure
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack, Full PlayPass ($9.99)
Control options: KB/Mouse, Gamepad
Trial Available: No
Game details

Title: Gish
Release date: April 25, 2013
Genre: Indie, Action, Puzzle
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack
Control options: KB/Mouse
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Helicopter Simulator - Search & Rescue
Release date: May 23, 2013
Genre: Simulation
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack, Full PlayPass ($19.99)
Control options: KB/Mouse
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Laxius Force
Release date: June 21, 2013
Genre: Indie, RPG
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack
Control options: KB/Mouse, Gamepad
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: MotoGP 13
Release date: June 21, 2013
Genre: Indie, Racing, Simulation
Play modes: Single Player, Multiplayer (Online/Local)
Available purchase options: PlayPack, Full PlayPass ($39.99)
Control options: KB/Mouse, Gamepad
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Unstoppable Gorg
Release date: June 27, 2013
Genre: Strategy
Play modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack
Control options: KB/Mouse
Trial available: Yes
Game details

Title: Rogue Legacy
Release date: June 27, 2013
Genre: Indie, Action
Play Modes: Single Player
Available purchase options: PlayPack, Full PlayPass ($14.99)
Control options: KB/Mouse, Gamepad
Trial available: Yes
Game details

News:

New Update Puts You in the Driver’s Seat


Full story: http://blog.onlive.com/2013/04/

Eurogamer did an extensive analysis of this update here.



OnLive Nate Teases Big Announcements Coming


Full story: http://onlivefansforum.com/showthread.php?240-To-All-OLFF-Members-Important-Update-from-OnLive-Nate

OnLive Celebrates 3 Years of Service

Taken from their official Facebook page:


OUYA Support Could be Coming Shortly After Launch According to their Twitter



Community Events

OnLive Posts Funny Clips VIA YouTube and Announces Contest

Last month OnLive posted several humourous clips VIA their YouTube channel culminating in the announcemnt of a contest with cash prizes of up to $1,000. It's still ongoing so it's not too late to enter!

Click here to view these clips.
Click here for full contest details.

OnLiveFansForum Hosts MotoGP 13 Brag Clip Challenge

Got an interesting MotoGP 13 clip to share? Post it up on OnLiveFansForum for the chance to win a full PlayPass for MotoGP 13. No purchase necessary! For full contest details click here.

Help Decide the Games Featured for Multiplayer Madness

OnLiveFansForum is asking the community for help in deciding which games to select for multiplayer madness. These events are especially helpful in promoting multiplayer in lesser known games. To get your pick in click here!

Places To Learn More About OnLive

OnLive's Official Site
OnLive Fans Forum (Unofficial)
Google+ Community (Unofficial)
The OnLive Subsection of Ouyaforum (Unofficial)
OnLive's Official Facebook
OnLive's Official Twitter
OnLive's Official blog
OnLive's Official YouTube Channel

I'll try keep this topic updated whenever I find news that hasn't been posted yet.

----------
I'll use this post to keep track of GAFer OnLive user names. Please use the following format and PM me.

Bboy AJ : Esquire
Ready Up Already : THE FUTURE
JesseZao : JesseZao
distrbnce : distrbnce
Jetjevons : Jetjevons
kevinski : kevinski
radioheadrule83 : FrakEarth
Aptos : MrAptos
Enectic : Enectic

I'm keeping order by time of post. While not as elegant as alphabetically sorting the names, it will be easier for those of us adding GAFers to constantly update our friend list.

 

[K701]

I like to buy humblebundle games for $0.01, register them on onlive, then have them running all day to waste their bandwidth. :3

Spoiler

I also play their 30 minute demos, only to buy the game on Steam if I like it.

 

[Diablohead]

onlive achievements? the fact that you can use those earned points to save money is a good move.

 

[Vaporak]

I was in the beta for Onlive and my experience during that and during release was that the mouse lag was unacceptably high for me and the business model was not something I wanted to support. However, I will say that the lag on keyboard commands was good enough for me so I imagine people playing Dual Analog games won't have as much of a problem, if any at all.

 

[Bboy AJ]

onlive achievements? the fact that you can use those earned points to save money is a good move.

It's just a promotion, I suspect. I don't think it's a permanent thing. Very cool promotion, though, and it definitely got me to start and finish Homefront's single player. Of course, it only took like two hours in one sitting but that's for the HF thread...

 

[godhandiscen]

I can feel the input lag and my setup outputs much better image quality under any circunstance. I am not getting OnLive soon unless it releases an appealing exclusive, and even then I would most likely pass on it.

 

[WillyFive]

My internet connection does not meet the minimum requirements, but everything I have heard about it has been great.

 

[TheSeks]

Spoiler

I also play their 30 minute demos, only to buy the game on Steam if I like it.

Wow, you can demo things via OnLive? Maybe I should give them a half-chance instead of "HA HA. NO."-ing it.

 

[Bboy AJ]

I can feel the input lag and my setup outputs much better image quality under any circunstance. I am not getting OnLive soon unless it releases an appealing exclusive, and even then I would most likely pass on it.

Part of OnLive's marketing is the ability to play games with great graphics on computers that shouldn't be able to. Smart. But what I also like is not having any physical media. I like the idea that all my games are in the cloud and I can play them and pick up my gamesaves where ever I am from whatever computer I'm on or from whatever Microconsole I'm at. Of course, that comes with not actually owning the game and I understand why people would have a problem with that.

Your post also reminded me of the PlayPack. It's an all you eat eat, Netflix kind of thing. You pay $10 (I think) a month for it and you get access to a bunch of games. Very cool, IMO. The games are older, though, but what do you expect.

Wow, you can demo things via OnLive? Maybe I should give them a half-chance instead of "HA HA. NO."-ing it.

Yeah, 30 minutes for every game. Except for Homefront.

 

[Terrordactyl]

I know they offer rentals, but I feel like it would benefit them so much more to charge for bi-weekly or monthly play passes, and obviously still give the option for an unlimited play pass, because consumers aren't going to feel like they own these things. I think they are doing a good job encouraging people to try their services, and from what I've tried it's a pretty competent alternative (and less expensive one) vs a PC. I personally would be much more inclined to use their services more if the rentals weren't 3-5 days. Let me buy a months worth of play time for 20 bucks or something so I don't feel rushed. And just to encourage buying the game they could offer to let you pay the 30 dollar difference or whatever when your month is up. Anyways just my two cents.

 

[Nemo]

OnLive is great. I dunno if my console has arrived yet at the other house but I want to try it out on the TV. PC experience has been thrilling so far so I will follow along closely as it matures and becomes something truly recognizable in a year or two

 

[Chinese Electric Batman]

Input lag makes it a complete no go.

 

[Diablohead]

Reason I don't use onlive more is because I live in the uk, without dedicated local europe servers the quality is basic and the lag can break many games such as racing games and shooters, the best one to play with delay was the maw.

Yeah, 30 minutes for every game. Except for Homefront.

25% of the single player is a bit too much

 

[bathala]

I been invited for the beta for long time and even the founding member thing, but just never got the chance to try it.
Unless... Witcher 2 becomes part of it

 

[Ready Up Already]

Ready Up Already : THE FUTURE

I'm always up for a round of Unreal Tournament 3 (old game, I know) on OnLive. In fact, I won a few of the official tournaments OnLive held for it. There's minimal lag for me, if any. I have no problem hitting moving shock combos and no-scope sniper headshots. Best part for me is, I never played true UT3 on PC before OnLive. My PC at the time of the game's release wasn't strong enough to handle Unreal Engine 3 so I had to wait until it came out for 360, but it just wasn't the same with a controller (I know that the PS3 version of UT3 is compatible with kb/m, but I didn't have a PS3 at the time). But seriously, if you're really good at UT3, send me a friend request and we can set up a 1v1 match.

Slight correction for the OP: they have three server farms in the US - Palo Alto, Dallas, and DC. I know they were thinking about additional clusters in Chicago and Atlanta but I'm not sure if they ever went live with those.

I'm expecting an official European launch any week now. Their CEO said at GDC that they were "about to go live" in Europe and that was early March. (He also mentioned servers in Asia in the same sentence, but I can't tell if he was grouping those together with the European ones when he said that those were about to go live, or if they'll be going live separately.) I think they'll either be live before E3, or similar to how their US launch coincided with E3 last year, they may be timing their European launch with E3.

 

[Einbroch]

30 minute demos, free?

OnLine redeemed. But only for that.

 

[theBishop]

I check in with OnLive periodically. It's a nice service. If they use some of that HTC feta to score some exclusives, it could take off. I think the biggest problem now more than input latency or video quality is game selection.

The compressed video quality is the 2nd big problem, but that should improve with consumer bandwidth. In a few years, it will be hard to justify these expensive boxes when OnLive can theoretically beat the best home PC with no extra cost. Hopefully the company can stay solvent until that day.

 

[ZombieSupaStar]

do they have like a monthly unlimited subscription?

 

[Neuromancer]

onlive achievements? the fact that you can use those earned points to save money is a good move.

Yeah that's really cool actually.

 

[Bboy AJ]

do they have like a monthly unlimited subscription?

Yup, but for certain games only. Check it out: http://www.onlive.com/games/playpack#&sortby=userRating&filter=playpack

 

[Lime]

I don't know why and I apologise if I offend anyone, but whenever I see an Onlive thread, I always think of astroturfing.

 

[Durante]

After reading the title I was looking forward to some information that would make me want to "play in the cloud". So far I haven't seen any.

But seriously, if you're really good at UT3, send me a friend request and we can set up a 1v1 match.

I have a friend who's really good at UT3. If I suggested playing it on OnLive to him he would either assume I'm joking or rip my head off. He plays without triple buffering because apparently even the potential half-frame lag is too much.

 

[Hazaro]

I've been sort of keeping track of OnLive.

Right now it still feels to me like they are just out there to prove it works and want someone to buy it. Hence all the sales to get subs.

+ It is really easy to use
+ The 30 minute play anything is an amazing feature. It really hits home that you can do anything instantly.
+ Browsing through games and instantly watching a person playing that game, or watching highlights is actually really cool.

= The image quality is surprisingly ok for my expectations.
= The input delay is noticeable, but forgivable in games that don't require instant reaction.
I was really originally put off by the delay, but you quickly learn to ease into a predictive style without thinking much about it. I think Shatter is what made me change my mind about it. Borderlands and Just Cause 2 were felt iffy to me. I'm used to headshotting every enemy quickly.

- Interruptions in internet service cause huge macroblocking and can cause lag spikes
- Mouse acceleration and sensitivity on some games is horribly out of whack

 

[theBishop]

I don't know why and I apologise if I offend anyone, but whenever I see an Onlive thread, I always think of astroturfing.

As an employee of the Russo, Marsh & Rogers PR/lobbying firm, I can confirm that none of the other posters in this thread are astroturfing.

 

[Metalmurphy]

Input delay + Terrible IQ makes this a no no for me.

Perhaps in a couple of years cloud gaming will be ready, but for now, it's still not worth it.

 

[theBishop]

Input delay + Terrible IQ makes this a no no for me.

Perhaps in a couple of years cloud gaming will be ready, but for now, it's still not worth it.

So, if the input delay was significantly improved, and the video quality was equivalent to Comcast HD or Netflix HD, would that be "good enough"? You know, still noticeably compressed, but without that ugly macroblocking and grainy overall image.

To me, if they ever get there, "Cloud Gaming" will be hard to dismiss. Developers like Crytek wouldn't have to worry about limiting their audience. I think there would be much faster technology advancements.

 

[Metalmurphy]

So, if the input delay was significantly improved, and the video quality was equivalent to Comcast HD or Netflix HD, would that be "good enough"? You know, still noticeably compressed, but without that ugly macroblocking and grainy overall image.

To me, if they ever get there, "Cloud Gaming" will be hard to dismiss. Developers like Crytek wouldn't have to worry about limiting their audience. I think there would be much faster technology advancements.

Even though it would be pretty much impossible to get it looking as good as a game running natively, I think it's possible for games to look close enough. But Onlive is no where near that at this time.

One of the biggest problems imo, for PC gamers anyway, is that there's no way they'll ever get a 1080p feed, let alone the insane resolutions people use nowadays. And that lack of resolution is a pretty big deal.

 

[brain_stew]

Yup, but for certain games only. Check it out: http://www.onlive.com/games/playpack#&sortby=userRating&filter=playpack

You should really add details of the unlimited play pack to the op. It mitigates one of the most oft-heard complaints of the service.

 

[Aru]

I tried OnLive again today thanks to the OP.
The lag is a lot less noticeable than last time I used the service, and I live in France so I'm not exactly close to the servers
However the video quality is still terrible, it's like I'm playing a 640*480 movie badly upscaled. I have enough bandwidth to have 720p but maybe the distance is the key factor for these results ?

I'm highly interested in OnLive and as soon as I get acceptable video quality and the lag is as I saw it today, I'm in.
I will surely have to wait for a european server, though.

 

[stevenapex]

Just tried this out from the UK, and to be honest, I was surprised. I could play a decent bot match on UT3 without many issues. Bearing in mind this is playing on servers from across the atlantic on an ADSL2 connection, it played pretty much perfectly. I don't think I could play competitively online from here though, but the quality of the service was really quite good. I cant wait to hear what their future plans are for the UK.

 

[Truant]

Tried it now. It's like watching a Gametrailers review, only playable. Really washed out and blurry picture.

 

[Despera]

In 10 years time, this could be the definitive console. It shall mark the end of piracy.

 

[dark10x]

It's a very neat idea, but it's just not good enough yet. The image quality is quite awful and the input lag is high. It can render 60 fps, which is nice, but it does not hold it.

I hope this never becomes the future, though, as I prefer to actually own my games rather than rely on a streaming service.

 

[Bboy AJ]

In 10 years time, this could be the definitive console. It shall mark the end of piracy.

I'm surprised more publishers haven't put their games on it. What's the harm? And there is zero chance of typical piracy.

 

[OldJadedGamer]

Wow, you can demo things via OnLive? Maybe I should give them a half-chance instead of "HA HA. NO."-ing it.

I skipped Shatter on PSN due to them not making a demo, then when it appeared OnLive I gave it a shot with the free 30 minute demo and purchase it 10 minutes later.

I'm a huge no demo = no sale kind of guy so the across the board 30 minute timed demos is a huge plus for me. So far, I've been happy with OnLive but I tend to stay away from the twitch games.

 

[RyuHayate]

I tried out OnLive today based on this thread and I'm astonished with how well it works. I can't wait to see more publishers and developers get behind this service.

Thanks for turning me onto it, OP!

 

[Uncle Dukey]

Seeing the service work is pretty cool. It's impressive being able to swap between games so quickly and the ability to watch other people play is also neat.

Unfortunately, I don't think I would ever buy anything with the image quality and input delay the way it is.

 

[jump_button]

I like owning a game im not someone who swaps games

and if they have game you can only play on it maybe ill think about it

 

[PumpkinPie]

There was a report two weeks ago that said that the average internet speed in the UK is 4.3MBPS so I'm pretty sure this will not take off over here unless the company is willing to spend billions on improving our internets.

 

[Bboy AJ]

I tried out OnLive today based on this thread and I'm astonished with how well it works. I can't wait to see more publishers and developers get behind this service.

Thanks for turning me onto it, OP!

Awesome. Did you pick anything up?

 

[RyuHayate]

Awesome. Did you pick anything up?

I've been dabbling with the trial versions of SC: Conviction, AC: Brotherhood, and Just Cause 2.

There's no way in hell that my PC hardware can run these games without a plethora of technical hiccups, which is why this technology is so incredible to me.

 

[Symphonic]

I bought Just Cause 2 on it a while back and it was a worthwhile purchase. The game is fun and the system works well enough, although I've had some trouble when using it in Wi-Fi mode.

The updates they've been adding have surprised me, it's actually turning into a decent service. Neat idea to offer discounts for having enough achievements.

 

[iNvid02]

There was a report two weeks ago that said that the average internet speed in the UK is 4.3MBPS so I'm pretty sure this will not take off over here unless the company is willing to spend billions on improving our internets.

not gonna happen anytime soon i feel. a few places like virgin will continue to invest in their own networks and be able to provide good stuff (im on vm 50mb and they have 100mb too with 300mb trials in a few towns).

 

[outsida]

I've used it for demo purposes and to check out games that have unlocked on their service before steam.

 

[Cataferal]

Yeah, it simply refused to work on my connection.

It's not that I don't like the principle of the service; it's that I don't have the option.

 

[Bboy AJ]

Well, the Achievement promo is over. I only hit 1775 points rather than the 2000 for half off a game or 5000 for a free game. No big deal. Nothing I really want right now.

 

[thehillissilent]

I currenlty own two indie games when they had a 75% off sale (The Maw and Shatter). I like the service especially since I have Verizon FIOS. However, they need to vastly improve their game selection.

 

[Bboy AJ]

IHomefront, in particular, is a bit buggy. There are no dedicated servers just yet. Games are limited to only 16 players. Not every map on other platforms is available (yet?). Your controls don't save and you have to remap them every time you play. This huge issue has been going on since release and I am pissed it hasn't been fixed yet. But patches are released in the background and the company responds well to its customers

The controls in HF not saving is now fixed, I think. There is no release notes or anything so I don't know other than what I can say from my experience.

It took this thread on GAF to get them to get their ass in gear. Thanks, GAF!

 

[KiKaL]

I think it's an awesome concept. I would probably use it but since I have All 3 consoles and a Gaming PC it really brings nothing for me. I still hope it succeeds though. It will be very cool if the demo of it running on an iPad ever comes out. Last I heard it was purely a tech demo.