Google is entering the growing world of video game streaming with a new program called Project Stream.
The idea behind Project Stream is ambitious, yet oddly simple. Google wants you to be able to stream some of the latest video games directly from your Google Chrome browser. Essentially, they want browser games to go from those tiny Adobe Flash projects to full-length, Triple-A gaming experiences, and they want to start that transition by allowing a small number of testers to play Assassin’s Creed Odyssey directly from their browser.
It sounds crazy, but if the footage that Google released of Odyssey running on Project Stream is to be believed…well, it just might be crazy enough to work. Granted, this whole thing is dependent on a large number of factors. For instance, Google knows that not everyone has access to true high-speed internet. Even if they do have access to quality internet, Google has to find a way to deliver the kind of gaming streaming experience that is relatively lag-free and suffers no downgrade in graphical quality.
However, Google feels that the evolution of entertainment delivery necessitates that they find a way to make video game streaming work.
“Streaming media has transformed the way we consume music and video, making it easy to instantly access your favorite content,” says Google via a blog post. “It’s a technically complex process that has come a long way in a few short years, but the next technical frontier for streaming will be much more demanding than video.”
You can read more about Project Stream test here, but you won’t be able to sign-up for the first test unless you live in the United States unfortunately.
Where Project Stream goes from here remains to be seen.
Matthew Byrd is a staff writer for Den of Geek. He spends most of his days trying to pitch deep-dive analytical pieces about Killer Klowns From Outer Space to an increasingly perturbed series of editors. You can read more of his work here or find him on Twitter at @SilverTuna014.