Ubisoft cloud streaming might not be far off, according to the CEO of Massive Entertainment. In a Q&A with Official PlayStation Magazine (H/T WCCFTech), Massive CEO David Polfeldt remarked that Ubisoft is “well positioned with the IP portfolio” for shifting towards cloud streaming. This suggests we could see Ubisoft’s popular games series, including Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and The Division, playable on mobile devices via cloud streaming in the next decade.
As consoles move towards cloud streaming, with Xbox’s next generation cloud-based console reportedly in the works, it makes sense that major publishers would be planning for a cloud streaming future. In fact, last September the Take-Two Interactive CEO, Strauss Zelnick, commented that with cloud streaming coming in the near future, it will likely “accelerate” gaming becoming universally cross-platform.
Likewise, a report from June 2018 predicted that video games would be completely digital by 2022, with physical games all but disappearing by this point. By this point, the report predicts, “major publishers will increasingly test and commercially develop streaming game offerings”, which aligns with the comments made by Polfeldt on Ubisoft’s foresight in cloud streaming.
Google is already in the development of Google Project Stream, which aims to enable cloud streaming games in their Chrome browser. A beta test using Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Oddyssey was hosted last October, once again demonstrating Ubisoft’s interest in facilitating research into this technology. Similarly, Verizon is also reportedly developing its own cloud-based streaming service, Verizon Gaming, with titles such as Fortnite, Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War, Destiny 2, and Battlefield 5 suggested to be in their lineup.
With this in mind, the comments made by Polfeldt aren’t surprising, but the news is still welcome – the prospect of playing major game releases on mobile is highly anticipated, making gaming more accessible for players worldwide. The Nintendo Switch launched with plenty of hype for the ability to play The Elder Scrolls 4: Skyrim on the move – soon, every major game release could be playable on your phone.
