cloud gaming

OnLive, a cloud-gaming company that had at one time been poised for preeminence in that market, was recently sold for a surprisingly cheap sum.

Venture capitalist Gary Lauder acquired OnLive for just $4.8 million, the company has confirmed in an e-mailed statement to CNET. The Mercury News was first to report on the acquisition, citing a letter it had obtained. The letter, which was reportedly sent to OnLive's creditors, claims that the company owed $18.7 million. The company's creditors will only receive one quarter of that back, according to Mercury News.

Over the summer, reports surfaced, … Read more

If you've questioned the Ouya's core gaming chops, developer Boxer8's might have addressed some of your concerns about its Android-based, Kickstarter-funded game console this morning. The company says it has secured Ouya support from game streaming company OnLive, which will add its large cloud gaming library alongside the Ouya's own game store.

By bringing in OnLive, Ouya can boast AAA-quality titles like Warner Bros' Batman: Arkham City, THQ's upcoming DarkSiders II, and UbiSoft's Assassin's Creed games. Not every major game publisher offers its wares on OnLive -- Activision Blizzard and Electronic Arts are notable absentees, but by adding even some console-quality titles alongside the likes of Angry Birds, the Ouya console will likely gain some respectability among core gamers.… Read more

It happened a little later than the rumors predicted, but Sony has indeed gone shopping for a cloud gaming service. With its purchase of Gaikai, announced this morning, Sony has potentially disrupted the nascent cloud gaming market, and also added an interesting wrinkle to its own competitive fortunes across platforms.

A few thoughts on how this acquisition will affect the various players.

OnLive The other, arguably better-known cloud gaming service, OnLive was another rumored Sony target. Presumably Sony's done cloud shopping, but other suitors, namely Microsoft, could still be interested.

17 months ago, VentureBeat reported analyst valuations around $1.… Read more

I don't want to spoil anything for you, but dudes. iPad. In our first ever Always On Torture Test, we froze it, overheated it (and not by playing Angry Birds, I'm talking electric oven), dropped it multiple times, dropped several things on it, and dumped a glass of water on it. I was sweating by the end of it.

A few people accused me, when they first saw the trailer for the torture tests, of pulling a "Will it Blend" style stunt by shoving the iPad in an ice chest. But let me assure you that … Read more

More details of God of War: Ascension? A cloud gaming acquisition? A reason to care about PlayStation Move?

We've already outlined what we expect Sony will announce at this year's E3 press conference. To see the news as it happens, heat up some dinner and check back here on Monday, June 4, at 5:45 p.m. PT/8:45 p.m. ET.

While you're waiting, feel free to peruse our ongoing coverage of E3 2012.

OnLive has rolled out its cloud-gaming service to the U.K., the company announced today.

Gamers in the U.K. will be able to access 150 games from an HDTV, PC, or Mac, and will soon have the ability to play those titles from the iPad and Android tablets. OnLive didn't say when the service will be made available on those mobile devices.

OnLive's move to the U.K. is an important one. Prior to the launch, the company was only offering its service (which lets users play a host of popular games, including Assassin's Creed Brotherhood … Read more

Cloud gaming service OnLive has boasted since its inception of its ability to act as a game trial service that can save game developers from having to develop their own separate demos. Today, OnLive announced that functionality will sit side by side next to game reviews, through a partnership with review site GameSpot (disclosure: GameSpot is a property of CNET parent company CBS).

The idea is to let game consumers quickly get hands-on time with a game they've read about. Because OnLive hosts the game code on its remote servers, there's no demo version to download. Instead, you click the link from the game review page, which launches the OnLive application. You will also need an OnLive account to play the demo.… Read more

Cloud-gaming service Gaikai has signed a deal to offer streamed game demos on Walmart.com, VentureBeat reported yesterday.

Integrated into Walmart.com's Game Center retail page, Gaikai will let shoppers sample games for free to help them decide on a purchase. The service is not yet enabled on Walmart.com, but Gaikai CEO Dave Perry was quoted saying: "Over the next 12 months, when people see a video game on TV and want to try it out, they can be sure the fastest way will be on Wal-Mart's Web site."

It's also unclear whether Gaikai … Read more

Gaikai CEO David Perry announced the launch of his company's cloud-gaming service on Friday. Designed as a platform to allow game publishers and others to embed streaming gameplay trials on their Web sites, Gaikai has been in development since 2008. Gaikai investors include Intel and Limelight Networks, and the service counts Electronic Arts among its game publisher partners.

While Perry said in his blog that Gaikai is live, the corporate site still lists the service as being in beta. Perry's blog lists trial versions of five games available to play now, including Dead Space 2, Spore, and The Sims 3.… Read more