The only thing I can think of is that its splitting the userbase between those that are connected to the internet and those that aren't. Unless games are made with the cloud in mind as an extra benefit then I can see it working. Having a game developed requiring the Cloud would be a problem though.
A MMORPG would have the same issue. Requiring the cloud is the same as requiring online and while I can't imagine every game requiring that, enough people are online these days that it would not limit such a game to niche status. Effectively every single eShop game in the same boat as those without internet cannot even buy them.
I don't like the cloud concept because it will limit the life of a game. Once the company disables the cloud the game is gone. Your old copy won't work anymore. Meanwhile I can go buy an old Atari, put a game in it and it works the same as it did over 35 years ago. But this is an old hardcore gamer's concern. Even people my own age largely see videogames as disposable entertainment and figure that by the time the cloud is gone it would just be some OLD game and old games suck and aren't worth playing. This doesn't matter to most people.
What does matter to most however is the availability of the current videogame they are playing. If your game conks out because your internet had a hiccup, that sucks. It is largely the same issue as always-online DRM. To me, having a single player game die because the internet went down is like your DVD not working when the cable is out. The two should be independent (and to prove my point my internet connection just went out for like a minute while I was typing this).
And I think the real use of cloud gaming is to just have a streaming game service outright. Why they hell do I need to have a copy of the game and some expensive machine that does SOME of the actions for me? I don't buy a DVD and then have parts of the movie get streamed while parts are off the disc. I think the real value in cloud based videogames is if the whole thing moved to a subscription service where you can stream whatever games you want. If you're going to require an interent connection you might as well go all the way. Now the technology might not be there yet but that's probably what people really want instead of some half-assed solution. Hell a cloud based subscription service would eliminate any need for console generations as the game can determine it's own hardware - it would be like playing an arcade machine.
I won't buy cloud games.. and the industry will not give a **** because I'm just one guy.
Topic: Xbox One has the "infinite power of the cloud" Why not Wii U? (Read 7473 times)
