Joystiq

Sony asking PS4 devs to try PS Vita remote play before submission

David Hinkle — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 20:00:00 EST

A major feature of the PlayStation 4 is native remote play support on the Vita for PS4 games. During last night's presentation, Gaikai CEO David Perry talked about the work being put in to ensure the fastest response times for remote play. It's a big part of the PS4 and speaking to Engadget, Sony worldwide studios president Shuhei Yoshida said Sony is requests developers for its new console test their game on Vita using remote play before submitting for certification.

Yoshida said the addition of remote play with the PS Vita means developers can create custom control layouts on Vita. "Some PS Vita games make use of the edge of the screen to add contextual buttons - that works really well, I think, and it's easy to see. So that kind of thing I'd like to see developers do on PS Vita over remote play." Of course, the onus is entirely on the developer, but custom controls for the handheld would be swell.

Sony asking PS4 devs to try PS Vita remote play before submission originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 21 Feb 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pre-order PlayStation 4 at GAME starting now

David Hinkle — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 16:40:00 EST

We may not know what it looks like or how much it costs or when it's launching, but if Sony's event yesterday convinced you of your need for a PlayStation 4 and you live in the UK, know that retailer GAME has already opened pre-orders - £20 will secure you a PS4 console when it launches Holiday 2013.

If you're anxious to look at some hardware, Sony released some press shots of the new DualShock 4 and PS4 Eye camera. What we do know about the PlayStation 4 so far is that it's heavily reliant on sharing and cloud-based technology, a result of the $380 million Gaikai purchase, and all PS4 games will feature remote play with the Vita.

Continue reading Pre-order PlayStation 4 at GAME starting now

Pre-order PlayStation 4 at GAME starting now originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 21 Feb 2013 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation 4 will stream PS1, PS2, PS3 games

JC Fletcher — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:44:00 EST

The PlayStation 4 will use the "PlayStation Cloud" service to stream PS1, PS2, and PS3 games, solving the backward compatibility problem with technology developed by Gaikai. This functionality was first reported last week by the Wall Street Journal, and confirmed today during the PlayStation unveiling event.

In the presentation, Gaikai founder David Perry expressed PlayStation's desire to use this service to stream "everything ever," but no specific games were revealed. On one hand, that suggests the PS4 isn't natively able to play legacy discs; on the other hand, there's tech built in to play those games on the system via streaming.

This is part of "PlayStation Cloud," the services of which will be rolled out gradually.

PlayStation 4 will stream PS1, PS2, PS3 games originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation 4's dedicated video hardware will allow seamless video uploading, streaming, sharing

Mike Schramm — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:34:00 EST

Lead system designer Mark Cerny took the stage at today's PlayStation 4 announcement event, and he's just revealed some very interesting features of Sony's newest console. Cerny said that the PS4 is equipped with always-on, always available hardware for both video compression and decompression, which means that playing and recording video won't take up the CPU during your gameplay. This makes for a lot of interesting features, like seamless uploading and downloading of video -- you'll be able to just hit the "share" button on the new Dualshock 4 controller, browse through "the last few minutes of gameplay," find what you want to send, and then upload it while you continue on through your game.

Cerny also said that having this much video running around will allow players to share and view video at will: You'll be able to browse through videos of potential opponents before you play against them in a game, or view streaming videos on a PS Vita or "companion apps" on tablet hardware. Players will also be able to interact while watching each other play, or even "take over the controller" remotely via video streaming. The hardware sounds very impressive indeed. Stay tuned to the Joystiq liveblog and to the site all day today for more info on the PlayStation 4 and how it all works.

PlayStation 4's dedicated video hardware will allow seamless video uploading, streaming, sharing originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Try Anything and Instant Broadcast announced for PlayStation 4

Mike Suszek — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:32:00 EST

Dave Perry, co-founder and CEO of Gaikai took the stage during today's PlayStation 2013 event in New York City to announce the integration of Gaikai's tech into Sony's future PSN architecture. Part of the new feature set introduced will include the ability to find anything in the PlayStation Store, press the X button on the controller, and the game demo or media will immediately start playing. "Try it for free, share it if you like it, and pay only for the games which you fall in love with," Perry said.

The "instant broadcast" side of that equation allows players to broadcast and share gameplay videos using existing, connected social networks, such as Ustream and Facebook. Friends are able to post comments to your screen, which Perry described as "peering over your shoulder."

Gaikai technology will also power PS Vita remote play and the ability to stream past console games to the PS4 hardware.

Try Anything and Instant Broadcast announced for PlayStation 4 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony registers 'PlayStation Cloud' domains

Alexander Sliwinski — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 16:00:00 EST

Trademark and domain sleuth Superannuation has dug up several domains that allude to a PlayStation Cloud product. Sony's Gaikai service has registered domains for sites such as PlayStation-Cloud.com, PlayStation-Cloud.org, and PS-Cloud.net.

In early 2009, Sony registered a trademark for PS Cloud. Shortly after, a "100% fake" mockup made the rounds. Since then, we hadn't heard a whisper about this until the recent domain registrations.

Earlier this year it was reported the next PlayStation would stream PlayStation 3 games, giving some consumer-facing purpose to Sony's $380 million acquisition of Gaikai. Sony is expected to announce the next PlayStation tomorrow.

[Image Credit: faithie via Shutterstock]

Sony registers 'PlayStation Cloud' domains originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 19 Feb 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WSJ: New PlayStation to stream PS3 games

Ludwig Kietzmann — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 20:00:00 EST

The next PlayStation will be able to stream PlayStation 3 games, according to unnamed sources "familiar" with Sony's plans. The claim comes from a new report published by the Wall Street Journal, and suggests that online streaming of current PS3 games will be paired with new games sold on optical media through regular channels.

Sony's cloud service hinges on its $380 million acquisition of streaming company Gaikai, which was announced last year. If the PlayStation 4 houses architecture different enough from the PS3 to preclude effective backwards compatibility, streaming may be pitched as a solution.

Sony's official word on the matter is expected during the PlayStation event next week on February 20.

WSJ: New PlayStation to stream PS3 games originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 15 Feb 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai sued over alleged patent infringement

Jordan Mallory — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 19:45:00 EST

A Delaware company called T5 Labs has filed suit against cloud-gaming service Gaikai for alleged patent infringement, putting the technology that underpins Gaikai's fancy cloud-computing/game-streaming wizardry under the legal microscope.

Specifically, T5 Labs claims that by "providing a system and methods of sharing a graphics processing unit (GPU) between a plurality of programs," Gaikai is "actively, knowingly and intentionally" using the technology covered by T5's patent for "Sharing a graphical processing unit between a plurality of programs."

Multiple programs using the same GPU may sound like something that every single computer does on a regular basis, but T5's patent actually covers a specific scenario involving servers, remote terminals and compression algorithms. No specific dollar amount is listed in the complaint, but T5 is seeking damages, attorney's fees and "a judgement permanently enjoining Gaikai from further infringement."

Gaikai has "no comment at this time" regarding the situation.

Gaikai sued over alleged patent infringement originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 19:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai site updated with images from Uncharted, LittleBigPlanet, other big PS3 games

JC Fletcher — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 10:45:00 EST

Gaikai's website has been updated with hints of big PS3 games on the streaming service. The background of gaikai.com now features stills from Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Uncharted 2, Killzone 3, and more. In the actual text of the website, Gaikai still says it "cannot share any details at this point in time" regarding the service's integration with Sony platforms. Sony acquired Gaikai earlier this year.

In addition, PlayStation LifeStyle discovered a job listing for an "Android/Java programmer," which suggests that the company still plans some sort of mobile integration. Perhaps it could tie into PlayStation Mobile, the Android-based game initiative Sony just launched.

Gaikai site updated with images from Uncharted, LittleBigPlanet, other big PS3 games originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive and Gaikai functionality still on board for Wikipad

David Hinkle — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 18:30:00 EST

During a private demo of the near-final Wikipad this week, Joystiq was able to grill Wikipad president of sales Fraser Townley about next month's launch. Specifically, we wanted to learn whether OnLive and Gaikai functionality - the former with its recent change in ownership and the latter having recently been picked up by Sony - were still planned for the device.

"Yes," Townsley assured Joystiq, to both applications appearing on the device. Speaking on the situation at OnLive, Townsley said he didn't have much knowledge what was happening at the company, but promised that "if [the service is] still running when we launch Wikipad, it'll be there."

While Wikipad will have physical units for purchase in-store through official partner GameStop, all other major retailers will be taking orders online. When asked what would be a successful launch for the $499 tablet - which comes with the controller dock and 16GB of memory - Townley couldn't provide exact numbers, but said that "a point or two" of total tablet market share would be desirable.

Gallery: Wikipad

OnLive and Gaikai functionality still on board for Wikipad originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 26 Sep 2012 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: OnLive averaged 1800 concurrent users, CEO promised to protect patents against Gaikai [update]

Xav de Matos — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 23:59:00 EST

A source confirmed to have been affected by today's OnLive company shift has stepped forward, telling Joystiq that staff were shocked when company CEO Steve Perlman announced OnLive would be restructured. Employees had joked, before the 10am meeting, that perhaps the company had finally been purchased. They thought the news would be good.

It wasn't.

Our source, who wished to remain anonymous, said that Perlman "showed no remorse" when detailing the decision to staff and explained to laid-off employees that any vetted stocks were worthless - as OnLive is "nowhere near going public" - no severance would be offered, and all flexible spending accounts were gone. [See update below]

At 2pm today, a second meeting was called for employees that received an offer letter to remain with the restructured company, under an undisclosed investor. Only those with offer letters know the company behind the move, our source said. Prior to the news, OnLive employed 180 to 200 individuals. Less than fifty percent of staff - and our source speculates closer to twenty percent - received an invitation to the new company. Employees that remained included management and select members of the operations and engineering teams required to keep the service moving forward.

Despite its claim of two million users, our source says that the average peak amount of concurrent users was around 1,800. The two million number accounts for anyone who has signed up for the service; actual usage was remarkably lower.

Following the meeting, management told laid-off staff to pack their belongings, return any key cards, and exit the building by 4pm today. When reporters were spotted photographing the building, management requested laid-off employees to exit through the garage and not the front door.

Multiple offers were made to purchase the company over the last few months, including one from Hewlett-Packard. Company management said it was investigating offers; however, it was widely known to employees that Perlman was looking for an offer in the range of $1 billion.

"Steve got all excited when Gaikai got acquired, because it kind of validated everything we did," our source told us when asked if Sony's acquisition of the streaming service company changed an attitude in the office. At around the same time Sony made the acquisition, OnLive's patent for gameplay streaming went through. "So all of a sudden, Steve was like 'When the time is right, we're going to hit them with our patent because we're not going to let some two-bit company ride our coattails,'" the source claimed, explaining the threat was made to the entire company soon after Gaikai was acquired.

"I guarantee that some time in the future, Steve is going to go to court and sue the shit out of them for stealing our ideas," the source said.

Joystiq has contacted OnLive regarding the allegation of a potential patent scuffle.

Update: Joystiq has learned that laid-off employees will keep their benefits package until the end of August, with the option of opting into COBRA on September 1. Additionally, laid-off employees that aid in the transition to the new investor, may be rewarded in company stock; however, it should be noted that OnLive is still not a publicly traded company. In separate meetings, laid-off OnLive employees received a termination package, which included a check for their last week of work and approved, unpaid PTO.

Update 2: Though the new owner of OnLive has yet to be revealed, the new investor appears to be an individual "impressed" with what OnLive has been able to accomplish and not a major company - this according to Perlman during today's internal announcement meeting.

Update 3: Another source has come forward to dispute the claim that OnLive CEO Steve Perlman showed "no remorse" when announcing the company's restructuring. "Steve said he was very, very sorry and shouldered all the blame at the company meeting this morning," the new source - also requesting to remain anonymous, but confirmed as an employee - told Joystiq. "Steve has always worked harder than anyone at OnLive and therefore has my respect as well as many others within the company," the sourced, who was also let go this morning, added. We have changed our headline address this conflict.

Have any additional information about today's OnLive restructuring? Please contact xav [at] joystiq [dot] com.

Source: OnLive averaged 1800 concurrent users, CEO promised to protect patents against Gaikai [update] originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 17 Aug 2012 23:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai hits Samsung 7000 series TVs in beta, despite Sony acquisition

Jessica Conditt — Thu, 05 Jul 2012 17:15:00 EST

Streaming games service Gaikai and Samsung are still in business, regardless of Sony's recent purchase of Gaikai to establish a "new cloud service." Gaikai's cloud gaming beta is live today with a firmware update on 2012 Samsung LED 7000 series and higher SmartTV systems.

Early investors in these high-end internet TVs can download the Gaikai early access program now, cracking the cloud-gaming floodgate on a few Gaikai games. Some "selected participants" will be eligible to receive a free Logitech gamepad as well.

Sony purchased Gaikai for $380 million on July 2 to "establish a new cloud service" for as-yet-unannounced platforms and purposes. It was previously unclear how this acquisition would affect Gaikai's hardware-integration efforts, but it appears all systems are go, at least for Samsung.

Gaikai hits Samsung 7000 series TVs in beta, despite Sony acquisition originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 05 Jul 2012 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnLive support dropped from Sony media player post-Gaikai purchase [Update: support not dropped, says OnLive]

Richard Mitchell — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 21:00:00 EST

Remember the Sony streaming media player that reportedly packed OnLive support? After yesterday's announcement of the acquisition of Gaikai - that other video game streaming service - OnLive support for the player is unsurprisingly kaput, Sony confirmed to VentureBeat.

Presumably, Gaikai support could be added to the device in the future, but for now it's clear that Sony's game streaming intentions (understandably) no longer include OnLive.

Update: An OnLive spokesperson has told Joystiq that VentureBeat's information is inaccurate. Specifically, OnLive was never going to be preloaded into Sony's device in the first place. Users will, however, still be able to download OnLive to the device. Furthermore, the OnLive spokesperson stated that the OnLive controller is still compatible with the device as well.

We've contacted Sony directly to see if we can clear all this up.

OnLive support dropped from Sony media player post-Gaikai purchase [Update: support not dropped, says OnLive] originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony's House: Gaikai expansion to other Sony platforms 'absolutely' possible

Jordan Mallory — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 18:00:00 EST

Assuming it successfully clears all of the regulatory hurdles that govern these types of deals, Sony's $380 million acquisition of Gaikai (and the mysterious cloud gaming service borne from said purchase) may eventually benefit the electronics megalith's non-dedicated-yet-gaming-capable devices like cell phones, internet-connected televisions and Blu-Ray players, waffle irons, etc.

Migrating Gaikai's capabilities to those devices is "absolutely within the frame," according to Sony Computer Entertainment president/CEO Andrew House, speaking with the Wall Street Journal. "It's recognition on Sony's part that the cloud and cloud streaming technologies are going to have profound and possibly a very positive impact on not only our game business, but also in the way our consumers interact with and obtain content in general."

Of course, the world still has no idea what this partnership actually means in practical terms, but its nice to know that we may soon have a Blu-Ray player capable of playing modern video games. Oh wait.

Sony's House: Gaikai expansion to other Sony platforms 'absolutely' possible originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony buying streaming game service Gaikai for $380 million, to establish 'new cloud service'

Ben Gilbert — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 07:11:00 EST

Sony announced this morning that it will purchase game streaming service Gaikai for $380 million in a "definitive agreement" that will see cloud gaming head to Sony Computer Entertainment's various properties. The announcement shies away from saying anything too specific, but notes that "SCE will establish a new cloud service" based on today's acquisition. The implication of course is that Gaikai will offer cloud-streaming gaming via the PlayStation 3 and Vita, not to mention any unannounced future systems and other Sony properties (Bravia televisions, for instance).

"SCE Will deliver a world-class cloud-streaming service that allows users to instantly enjoy a broad array of content ranging from immersive core games with rich graphics to casual content anytime, anywhere on a variety of internet-connected devices," SCE prez and CEO Andrew House said of the news, hinting at where we'll see Gaikai's tech implemented.

It's unclear whether the streaming tech is intended for Sony's PlayStation 3 or for future consoles unknown (or both). It's also unclear if Gaikai CEO David Perry will remain with his company in any capacity, or if he'll move to Sony, or if he's out altogether. And how does this affect Gaikai's existing partnerships with various television manufacturers (especially considering Sony's also in the television market)? We're not sure just yet.

Gaikai was recently rumored to be seeking a buyer, to the lofty tune of $500 million. Today's news sees them coming up $120 million short of that number.

Continue reading Sony buying streaming game service Gaikai for $380 million, to establish 'new cloud service'

Sony buying streaming game service Gaikai for $380 million, to establish 'new cloud service' originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 02 Jul 2012 07:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumor: Gaikai seeking to sell itself for $500 million

Jordan Mallory — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 20:15:00 EST

David Perry's cloud-based gaming middleware company Gaikai could soon be courting buyers, according to a report at Fortune. The company has supposedly hired bankers in order to prepare for the transaction and purportedly anticipates that its market value will ring up somewhere around $500 million or higher, according to Fortune's sources.

Unlike OnLive, Gaikai provides no consumer-facing gaming service itself, but instead provides the technology required for other companies like Samsung, LG and Facebook. Gaikai's official stance on the situation is that it does not comment on rumors; a statement likely prepared by a super-cluster of servers before it was streamed to our inboxes.

Rumor: Gaikai seeking to sell itself for $500 million originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 21 Jun 2012 20:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai bringing cloud gaming to Samsung this summer

Ben Gilbert — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 11:37:00 EST

Game streaming service Gaikai is partnering with Samsung to add its cloud gaming service to Samsung televisions, the company announced today. The partnership is dubbed "Samsung Cloud Gaming," and will bring Gaikai's game lineup to Samsung televisions starting some time this summer (the Samsung 7000 series is the first to get the streaming treatment).

Gaikai says that a "diverse selection of AAA content appealing to both families and gamers alike" will come with the service when it arrives later this year. From the handful of screens we've seen, games like The Witcher 2 and Limbo apparently represent the all-encompassing scope of Gaikai's game offerings.

Gallery: Gaikai on Samsung Smart TV

Continue reading Gaikai bringing cloud gaming to Samsung this summer

Gaikai bringing cloud gaming to Samsung this summer originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 05 Jun 2012 11:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hawken to be playable via Gaikai prior to official release

Mike Schramm — Sun, 20 May 2012 19:30:00 EST

Hawken keeps surprising us. First, we were surprised that the really great-looking mech shooter is being made by an indie studio, then it surprised us to learn that it would be free-to-play. And here's another surprise: Dave Perry's cloud gaming system Gaikai has signed a deal to let players see Hawken running through the service in advance of the planned December 12 release date.

Gaikai allows nearly any game to be streamed directly from its servers to any browser, which means that the first impression of the graphics-intensive Hawken will be playable anywhere Gaikai will run (including on some tablets, and computers of all shapes and sizes). This deal makes a lot of sense from both sides: Hawken needs a large audience to get its free-to-play engine running, and Gaikai could use a big title to connect users to its servers. The Gaikai demo will be on playhawken.com and a few other sites, so eyes open until then.

Continue reading Hawken to be playable via Gaikai prior to official release

Hawken to be playable via Gaikai prior to official release originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 20 May 2012 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai and Wikipad team for game streaming to tablet

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 02 May 2012 10:00:00 EST

Game streaming service Gaikai has teamed up with Wikipad to integrate its service into the "first tablet to offer an attachable, console-quality gamepad controller." Competitor OnLive offers a tablet option for game streaming, albeit via touch controls or a compatible gamepad.

Never heard of Wikipad? Join the club! The device was revealed at CES, but has already gone through some changes since the original concept: replacing the 8.1" version with a 10.1" screen, and adding a quad core processor, lighter body and optional 3G for mobile. The launch date for the device is still a mystery.

As for Gaikai, it's still doing its thing on PC and working on Facebook.

Gaikai and Wikipad team for game streaming to tablet originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 02 May 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stream a Mass Effect 3 demo through Gaikai

JC Fletcher — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 22:00:00 EST

Want to see what this Mass Effect 3 stuff is all about? Do you have a web browser? Gaikai has negotiated exclusive streaming rights to BioWare's latest, and is using those rights to provide a web-based demo.

Stream a Mass Effect 3 demo through Gaikai originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 05 Apr 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CCP considering the cloud, wants to put EVE gameplay on mobile devices

Mike Schramm — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 15:00:00 EST

EVE Online developer CCP is looking for a way to bring its Internet spaceships into the cloud. CCP's chief marketing officer David Reid said at last week's Fanfest in Iceland that the company is in talks with OnLive, Gaikai, and other services to try to bring the popular space simulation MMO to one of their platforms.

Reid said there "isn't some giant announcement" for release on any other platforms but PC and Mac at this time. But he also said CCP is thinking about ways to bring elements of EVE, including the upcoming Planetary Interaction system (in which players can set up to harvest resources from virtual planets) "finding their ways to tablets and mobile devices." CCP is considering a number of ways to do that, and "to add new sorts of experiences" to the game.

CCP considering the cloud, wants to put EVE gameplay on mobile devices originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 25 Mar 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Darkness 2 wraps its tentacles around Gaikai

David Hinkle — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:15:00 EST

The thing about video games as a hobby and fascination is that they can be quite expensive. Some may employ unscrupulous means to whet their appetite, but you won't have to do the same for a free taste of The Darkness 2.

Gaikai has added the demo to its list of streaming titles, joining the ranks of Dead Rising 2, Orcs Must Die!, The Witcher 2, Spore and others. It's all part of Gaikai CEO and industry veteran Dave Perry's goal to offer pre-release demos of major titles to all (with good internet connections).

The Darkness 2 wraps its tentacles around Gaikai originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai full-game streaming to start 3 months after launching on Facebook

Jessica Conditt — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:00:00 EST

Gaikai is set to launch full-game streaming services on its network of gaming and entertainment websites, ramping up its current demo-only model, GamesIndustry reports. After launching its cloud service on Facebook, Gaikai will roll out full-game streaming on retailer sites such as YouTube, Best Buy and Walmart, and on publisher sites such as EA and Ubisoft.

Full-game streaming will go live about 90 days after the Facebook service begins, which should be soon, Gaikai head Dave Perry says. Gaikai's main competition is OnLive, but Perry says there is a huge difference between the two companies. "They have to modify the game; they have to get the source code to the game," Perry said. "Gaikai doesn't require modification of the game."

There are no direct plans to put Gaikai on console, but Perry can see the need for cloud services on all platforms: "You do not want to be the console that can't do this," he said. "You do not want to be the retail website that doesn't have playable games on it. You don't want to be the gaming website that you can't buy a game from.

"I don't want to take your console from your cold dead hands, that's not the case at all. You're going to continue to play the way you play, but just imagine that you could have an opinion on all games because you've been able to try all of them."

Gaikai full-game streaming to start 3 months after launching on Facebook originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai will introduce your mom to hardcore gaming through Facebook

Jessica Conditt — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:00:00 EST

Streaming service Gaikai has finalized a deal to bring hardcore PC game demos to Facebook, following previous deals made with YouTube, Wal Mart and others. Gaikai said it has been working with Facebook for some time, and it sees this as a golden opportunity for both parties.

"Facebook already owns the category of casual gaming; we're going to help them own core games," founder David Perry said at Cloud Gaming Europe, GamesIndustry reports. "A click and boom, you're playing World of Warcraft."

Perry demoed World of Warcraft on Facebook, but later clarified to GameSpot that Gaikai "is NOT bringing WoW to Facebook (at least not in the foreseeable future)." Gaikai's approach to streaming games sees it in more of a marketing role than a game-provider, but introducing the Facebook audience to more hardcore opportunities shouldn't be a bad thing. Unless your mom starts sending you invites to join her guild page, "Massive Mamacitas."

Gaikai will introduce your mom to hardcore gaming through Facebook originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai coming to LG TVs, playable OnLive coming to GoogleTVs

Jordan Mallory — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 17:30:00 EST

If you're someone whose hatred of physical media and cluttered entertainment systems is rivaled only by your passion for contemporary gaming and universal controllers, your next television purchase may have just become as conflicted as your eccentric little heart of hearts.

Gaikai and LG have announced plans to place Gaikai's cloud-based game-streaming services inside of LG's upcoming 2012 line of Cinema 3D TVs. The service will use Gaikai's middleware to power an LG-branded gaming portal within the company's existing Smart TV app ecosystem. No information has yet been given regarding how these games will actually be played, but we're hopeful it will involve a controller of some kind, rather than creative use of the TV's remote.

OnLive has also announced further integration of its cloud-based game-streaming service into Google's GoogleTV platform, by way of Vizio's "next generation" of "Internet Apps Plus" devices. Vizio TVs equipped with Internet Apps Plus and GoogleTV 2.0 will allow users to connect their Universal Controller and stream games normally. This is a big leap from OnLive's current GoogleTV presence, which is currently limited to a "Player" app that allows GoogleTV users to spectate OnLive games happening on other devices. No word on whether full OnLive functionality will come to other devices running GoogleTV 2.0.

Continue reading Gaikai coming to LG TVs, playable OnLive coming to GoogleTVs

Gaikai coming to LG TVs, playable OnLive coming to GoogleTVs originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai powers streaming Dead Rising 2 demo

JC Fletcher — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 02:00:00 EST

We're never going to to be comfortable with the kind of alchemy Gaikai is capable of. Capcom has partnered with the company to offer a demo of Dead Rising 2, right in your browser. You'll be so impressed you won't even mind it's a year late!

It's the actual game, inside a browser window. Being a demo, there are some restrictions: you can't save, and you can only play for 30 minutes. But it's still enough to give you a taste of the game, and to be really impressed with Gaikai.

Gaikai powers streaming Dead Rising 2 demo originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 10 Nov 2011 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai delivering FIFA 12 demo through YouTube (Or: The future cometh!)

Christopher Grant — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 00:00:00 EST

Remember when OnLive first debuted, and we were violently pulled from our provincial timescape and thrust into a future which, while notably devoid of flying cars and jetpacks, did have streaming video games? Well, hold onto your butts because the internet done did it again.

Streaming service Gaikai has always had a different business model than OnLive; instead of a direct-to-consumer platform, Gaikai wants to get you into a demo as effortlessly as possible. If you like what you play, the "Order Now" button is happy to connect you to a retailer. As a part of that mandate, Gaikai founder Dave Perry was "excited!" to announce that "Gaikai is the first ever to power 3D Games (FIFA 12) on YouTube." That would be the same YouTube that streams a bajillion videos of whatever to people every day.

If you follow this link and click on the "PLAY THE DEMO" banner above the video, you can see what all the fuss is about for yourself. When you're done, take a few minutes to remind yourself it's still 2011, and you weren't controlling the game with a bioport installed on your spine. The future is still a long ways out.

Gaikai delivering FIFA 12 demo through YouTube (Or: The future cometh!) originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What's in a Name: Gaikai

Jordan Mallory — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 16:30:00 EST

David Perry, Co-Founder and CEO of Gaikai, sat down with us during last week's Game Developers Conference: Online in Austin, TX. Over the howl of the expo floor's contemporary rock soundtrack, David let us in on Gaikai's mysterious branding:

"Basically one of our founders, his name is Rui Pereira, he came up with this name 'Gaikai,' and I said, 'Oh my God, no one will ever be able to pronounce that, no one will ever be able to spell that, this is a bad idea.' And of course, there's all the following conversations, what about all the other strange words that are out there: The Googles, and the Kodaks, and the, you know, the Xeroxes?

"There's all these strange things that are out there, so what's wrong with having a strange name? I then took a marketing class in Texas, and they explained the idea of 'mystique marketing;' it's actually cool to have a hard-to-say name, because it means if you know how to pronounce it, then you're in the club.

"So any time you hear Gaikai pronounced wrong, you can go 'Hrm, this guy doesn't know what it means, or how to say it even.' That's mystique marketing, so I thought, 'Huh, maybe we give this a try.'

"It turns that the actual word is a Japanese word, and it means 'a large open space,' like out on the open ocean, and if you look around on the open ocean, you can go in any direction. And that's what we believe cloud gaming enables."

Gaikai is a technology company that provides streaming game middleware to third-party corporations such as Walmart.

Like this feature? Be sure to check out the What's In A Name Archives.

What's in a Name: Gaikai originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 16 Oct 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Game-streaming service Happy Cloud launching this month

Justin McElroy — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 00:00:00 EST

Boy, the future is getting crowded.

Just as we're adjusting to the futuristic game streaming of OnLive and different, but still pretty astounding Gaikai, we have to welcome the new kid. PC game streamer Happy Cloud will officially launch on the 18th of this month.

Where services like OnLive stream video of your gameplay from a remote server, Happy Cloud is actually bringing the full game to your computer. You download just the files you need to get started and then, as you play, you download the rest of the required files in the background until you have the entire game on your hard drive. Notable advantage: Offline play!

If Happy Cloud has a hurdle (and it's a big one) it's the severely limited selection. There are currently fewer than 10 titles on offer, though others like Cities in Motion and Europa Universalis will arrive soon. The company told us more games are on the way, but, for the moment, Happy Cloud's game selection seems like it's desperately in need of a silver lining.

Game-streaming service Happy Cloud launching this month originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai partners with Walmart.com

Justin McElroy — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 21:00:00 EST

If you're a game streaming service like Gaikai that's looking to partner with online retailers, Walmart.com seems like a pretty good option. (In case you're reading this on a mobile platform that can't see italics, we put them on those last three words to emphasize that were were understating the point. Classic Joystiq!)

The retailer has, according to VentureBeat, added Gaikai in-browser game streaming to its GameCenter page for Dead Space 2 and possibly other titles. At the moment, none of us on staff can see the option to stream the game, but we know it's automatically disabled if you don't have the requisite bandwidth. Maybe we all just need to get fatter pipes?

Assuming it'll all work as designed sooner or later, this could set a pretty important preceden for online game shopping. We just selfishly hope you'll still read our reviews when Skynet lets you try everything before you buy it.

Gaikai partners with Walmart.com originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 21 Jun 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Phil Harrison sees dominant Apple, biometric screens in the future

JC Fletcher — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 16:00:00 EST

Edge Online polled Phil Harrison, formerly of Sony and Atari, and now of Gaikai, about the future of gaming and technology in general. He very quickly identified one trend that it's hard not to see coming: continued growth for Apple's game platforms and the App Store. "At this trajectory, if you extrapolate the market-share gains that they are making, forward for ten years - if they carry on unrestrained in their growth, then there's a pretty good chance that Apple will be the games industry."

He had some predictions about the way games are presented, as well. Specifically, still on screens, but much fancier ones. Because of the declining cost of flat-panel displays, and the TV's place as a new "social hearth," those will continue to be in wide use, but in much higher resolutions and with both touch and biometric input. " I think there will be an industry that will appear out of 'personal biometrics' where as a human being you will take more control of your own health and well-being by getting data from your own body," he said. According to Harrison, private biometric data about the user's own lifestyle will be monetized by the game industry as soon as the healthcare industry delivers the technology. Vitality Sensors for all!

Phil Harrison sees dominant Apple, biometric screens in the future originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 21 Jun 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Phil Harrison joins Gaikai advisory board

James Ransom-Wiley — Tue, 17 May 2011 15:30:00 EST

Backing up his talk, Phil Harrison has joined the advisory board of cloud-gaming service Gaikai. In his keynote address before the Italian Videogame Developers Conference last December, Harrison precipitated "the browser wars of the 21st century" -- a battle to distribute console-quality, triple-A games on any browser-equipped device.

"Somebody is going to win," he said at the time. "Somebody is going to deliver console-level 3D graphics, video and audio into a web browser." It would appear that Harrison has placed his chips -- or at least some of them -- on Gaikai. The one-time president of Sony Computer Entertainment (oh, and Atari, too -- don't forget), Harrison will maintain his role as rich guy investor at London Venture Partners, which he co-founded last year with some other fat cats.

Joining the rich guy on the Gaikai advisory board is rich gal Robin Kaminsky, the former executive VP of Activision, who led both studio and marketing activities. Kaminsky's marketing experience in particular is coveted by Gaikai CEO David Perry. "The first use of Gaikai's open cloud is to disrupt how video game advertising works," he said in today's advisory board announcement.

Gaikai's current mission differs from the service provided by chief competitor OnLive (oh, and Otoy, too -- don't forget) in that it seeks to provide browser-based demos that developers and publishers can feature on their websites to drive full-game sales. Gaikai is currently in a closed beta testing phase.

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Phil Harrison joins Gaikai advisory board originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 17 May 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai is live with streaming demos of Mass Effect 2, Dead Space 2 and more

Randy Nelson — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 16:25:00 EST

Following more than a year of media demos and beta testing, cloud gaming startup Gaikai is letting the public try out the fruits of its efforts: Demos of Mass Effect 2, Dead Space 2, Spore and The Sims 3 are all playable from within your web browser. That is, if you have the bandwidth -- we don't, apparently. (Granted, we're on gratis Wi-Fi here at GDC.)

You might have better luck at home: You can visit Gaikai's site where you'll be prompted to launch Mass Effect 2. "Just wait and if your connection quality to our Server is fast enough," instructs CEO David Perry, "one of several pop-up designs will appear."

Additionally, taking a survey about the service will grant you access to the Dead Space 2 demo. Spore and The Sims 3 trials can be found here and here, respectively.

Gaikai is live with streaming demos of Mass Effect 2, Dead Space 2 and more originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 16:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai, Otoy not worried about OnLive's cloud gaming patent

Griffin McElroy — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 01:00:00 EST

OnLive's recently acquired patent, which covers "Apparatus and method for wireless video gaming," may seem like a death knell for other players in the cloud gaming space. However, Gaikai's David Perry recently told VentureBeat he's not too concerned with the future of his game-streaming company, saying, "We do not expect the general concept of remote gaming to be patentable, as many of us played remote games in the 70s, 80s and 90s." Should the patent stick, he added that Gaikai's focus on embeddable demos of PC games is far removed from OnLive's set top box business model, which should prevent any potential infringements.

Fellow game-streamer Otoy's CEO Jules Urbach also chimed in on the patent, saying, "We respect the valid intellectual property rights of others but we'd be surprised to see a valid patent issue today that would preempt the entire field of server-side rendered gaming." Wait, you can do that? Well, man, we've been wasting so much time. We patent ... um, sandwiches! And gardening! And pet supplies! And candy! We're going to be so super rich.

Gaikai, Otoy not worried about OnLive's cloud gaming patent originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 17 Dec 2010 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget gets its hands on Gaikai closed beta

Justin McElroy — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST

Our geekier, yet still kind of cute in her own way sister site Engadget recently took Dave Perry-fronted streaming service Gaikai for a spin, and posted the results for all to see. Though the performance sounds about comparable to OnLive, the greatest strength of Perry's competing service is that it's not, in fact, attempting to compete.

Gaikai is primarily a way to sample games before purchasing them on a retail console or PC, so the inherent limitations aren't as large of hurdles as they are on OnLive, which aims to replace the home console. Or, at least, that's how Perry's pitching it. Get more of his take (and more Engadget reaction to the Gaikai experience) right here.

Engadget gets its hands on Gaikai closed beta originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai gets Intel, Limelight backing

Randy Nelson — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 01:01:00 EST

Filed under: Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

As the September launch of game streaming platform Gaikai draws ever-closer, the company has announced its latest business win: investments from Intel and Limelight Networks. This news (for which the full press release can be found after the break) comes just over a month after Gaikai inked a multi-year deal with EA to provide its titles via in-browser streaming.

Gaikai isn't disclosing the nitty-gritty, dollars and cents details of the investments, but we know that the company was already at work building its servers utilizing Intel's "overkill is not a word" six-core CPUs and solid-state drives. Which, essentially, makes Gaikai a showcase for Intel's most cutting-edge tech; tech that will be installed at "key nodes" within Limelight Networks' infrastructure. (We also hear it'll give Gaikai a fresh, citrus-y smell.)

Continue reading Gaikai gets Intel, Limelight backing

Gaikai gets Intel, Limelight backing originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 22 Jul 2010 01:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dave Perry on the innovation of Gaikai

Mike Schramm — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 17:38:00 EST

All of the questions about Gaikai and OnLive have revolved around whether the streaming technology actually works. Can a company actually process your games on a remote server, and then stream them to you in a playable format? For Gaikai's CEO Dave Perry, there's no question: It works. "Yeah. Yeah," he says. "Absolutely. No problem at all."

The question that Gaikai is trying to answer, then, isn't about whether the cloud works, but how. OnLive has launched with a subscription model, but Perry's doing it differently. Rather than build a service for customers, he wants Gaikai to serve as a sort of distributor -- a go-between for game publishers (like EA and Activision), online content creators (like Joystiq), and game players. Gaikai's "secret sauce" isn't in the streaming technology itself, but in the business model that makes it possible and profitable for everyone.

Perry explained his plan to us in detail at the company's headquarters in Southern California last week, and told us why and how Gaikai is different from all of the other streaming services out there.

Continue reading Dave Perry on the innovation of Gaikai

Dave Perry on the innovation of Gaikai originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 30 Jun 2010 17:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai signs multi-year licensing deal with EA

Ben Gilbert — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 01:15:00 EST

Filed under: Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

Gaikai may not be ready for action just yet (the service doesn't have a release date), but the company was more than happy to drop news of a multi-year licensing agreement with Electronic Arts today. The news appears to be delivering on promises that the company's fearless leader, Dave Perry, made back in April of a big E3 announcement. Among the games Gaikai will be bringing to the web-streaming service are The Sims, the Battlefield: Bad Company series, the Dragon Age series, the Mass Effect series, Medal of Honor and Need for Speed.

"Gaikai's innovations open whole new experiences for both current players and new customers looking for the best of interactive entertainment," EA's Richard Hilleman said of the licensing deal. We're open to both "whole new experiences" and "interactive entertainment," so that sounds just fantastic to us.

Gaikai signs multi-year licensing deal with EA originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 01:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gaikai up to $15 million in capital with second round of funding

Ben Gilbert — Mon, 24 May 2010 22:00:00 EST

Tired of what we silly game journalists have to say about the upcoming Gaikai game streaming service and thirsting for comments from the venture's latest investment partners? We were too! Thankfully this morning's announcement that several investment groups will be adding another $10 million to the already $5 million-strong coffers at Gaikai brought with it a handful of quotes from just such folks.

Rustic Canyon Partners' Nate Redmond sees "interesting new growth opportunities for the industry" in the streaming service, while Benchmark Capital's Mitch Lasky envisions the business as one "poised to take advantage of sweeping changes in how games are bought, sold, and ultimately even played brought about by the industry-wide shift to digital distribution." Unfortunately for us, however none of the investment partners seem to know when Gaikai will become usable by the general public, instead offering word of upcoming announcements about "other strategic industry investments and partnerships soon." We're thinking E3 might be a good time for that. And hey, that's pretty soon!

Gaikai up to $15 million in capital with second round of funding originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 24 May 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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World of Warcraft streamed to iPad using Gaikai

Ben Gilbert — Mon, 03 May 2010 11:00:00 EST

Although we assuredly could've made the worrisome connection between Gaikai's game-streaming capability, the Apple iPad, and gaming's own methamphetamine, World of Warcraft, it seems the folks at Dave Perry's company are one step ahead of us. As revealed in the image seen above (accompanied by the statement, "Was walking through the office, saw this, thought you'd like to see ... soon I'll be able to play WoW with my Cornflakes!"), Perry reveals our worst fear: portable WoW.

He adds, "We're really interested to see what works well with streaming and will be trying just about every genre of game, on every device possible as we explore server-side computing. This is World of Warcraft streamed from a Gaikai server over regular wifi." Previously, we've seen Perry demonstrate a handful of other games streaming over the service, but never to a handheld device. And though we doubt that it would work over the iPad's upcoming 3G data network, playing WoW over wi-fi on an iPad is an ... appealing idea.

[Via Dave Perry's Twitter account]

World of Warcraft streamed to iPad using Gaikai originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 03 May 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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