Well, I didn’t really expect to come across this news. According to The Keyword, Stadia is “terminating” its in-house game development studios called “Stadia Games & Entertainment” to focus on partnerships with third parties. Before we go any further, it’s important to note that Stadia itself is alive and well and Stadia Games & Entertainment (SG&E) is just Google’s first attempt at making games for their own platform.
While it is difficult to identify which games were developed by the SG&E team, they are as follows: None. That’s right, we haven’t seen a single title coming from Google in the two years the studios have been up and running, because, “It takes many years and significant investment to get the best games off the ground, costs are rising exponentially.”
However, they have published several titles on behalf of other developers. GYLT, Orcs must die! 3, Submerged: Hidden Depths, and Outcasters have all made their way onto the platform with help from Google, but none of them, aside from Outcasters, seem to have had much of the hype surrounding them. Google’s decision is understandable and it even makes sense when you consider how much time and effort they put into building Stadia’s infrastructure.
Phil Harrison, vice president and GM of Stadia, said the company would refocus in the future on helping game developers leverage their technology and deliver games directly to players. To do this, they will continue to provide development hardware, technical assistance and even funding through the Stadia Maker program. All the games they wanted to develop personally after 2021 have been canceled and most of the team is being shuffled to get new roles in other departments at Google. With all that covered, what exactly does this mean for Stadia gamers? Is this the end yet? No.
“We see an important opportunity to work with partners looking for a gaming solution all built on Stadia’s advanced technical infrastructure and platform tools,” Harrison wrote in a blog post today. “We believe this is the best way to build Stadia into a long-term sustainable company that will help the industry grow.”
Phil Harrison
With over 400 third-party games over the next few years – something recently announced, probably with today’s news in mind – The Stadia team has big plans for the future and you can continue to buy and play games like it’s another Tuesday. In fact, “GraceFromGoogle” took the time to repeat this on Reddit. Since SG&E has done virtually nothing for Stadia from a consumer-focused perspective, nothing will change.
I personally don’t believe the end is approaching Stadia as a platform, and unlike “Killed by Google” I think the “Google Graveyard” is a myth. All innovations made by Google always go to the next venture. What I’m saying is that the company is basically one big, ever-evolving product made up of a lot of moving parts and while this approach isn’t great for end users in the short term, it’s something I’ve assumed is better in the long term . Regardless, they have stated several times that they intend to stay with Stadia for the long haul and I have to believe they will keep repeating this despite seeing internal SG&E going downhill from the start.
Media consumption has reached a record high in the past year. We are all still largely trapped in our homes, and Stadia has had a chance to really take advantage of that. Whether you believe they did everything they could to make the most of that time, closing their own in-house studios seems like a strategic move. One thing is certain: it doesn’t look good at all.
Here’s my take – Google has a habit of doing things itself, only to realize that despite its weight in the market, it should leave some things to the pros who have over a hundred years of experience, and instead focus on its strength – partnerships and support. I think an opportunity to grow up comes in the form of not trying to eat a slice of every pie if they think they can’t do it long term. The bottom line is, I don’t know if they really thought they could have developed exclusive titles right to the finish or if they just wanted to play around with the idea. If it is the latter, they should keep in mind how this will affect their public image and plan their future efforts accordingly.
Exclusive titles are often secured for a platform to sell more hardware consoles and to bring in new, dedicated gamers, but if Stadia doesn’t have exclusives and you can play all of its games on other platforms, you have to decide for yourself whether you’re loyal to Google for games, or for its technology. I personally believe that the cloud-native features could be unique enough to want to see how the gaming landscape is transformed by them – regardless of whether Google makes the games they use or not.
However, if it no longer makes its own titles, other developers could lose faith in Google’s vision and bail. However, I think what will happen is that they can approach all potential developers, reassure them with their vision to support them, and turn this into a win. I cannot say enough how much I think they play their cards really well here. Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think I am. I’m just saying not to lead the way or feed the trolls who are already showing up on social media and in the news proclaiming “Stadia is dead!”
Stadia is here to stay, based on a desire to “help game developers and publishers take advantage of its platform technology and deliver games directly to players”, I wonder if it might have plans to offer its infrastructure outside of Stadia.com as part of that plan. Imagine buying a game from the Ubisoft or Square Enix website, and clicking the ‘Play’ button there to launch it without leaving that page! The wording here could mean that Google has plans to let publishers and developers use the technology directly, but we’ll have to wait and see how this turns out. In the meantime, enjoy your Stadia Pro titles for February!
