Google Stadia getting added to the graveyard of failed services

Posted:
in iPhone edited September 2022
Almost three years after launching, Google said on Thursday that not only is it closing the Stadia game streaming service, it is also refunding all hardware and software purchases made for it.

Google Stadia exits beta on iOS
Google Stadia exits beta on iOS


The announcement was made in a post on Thursday afternoon. In that post, Google's Vice President and General Manager of Stadia Phil Harrison said that the service will shut down for good on January 18, 2023.

"We're grateful to the dedicated Stadia players that have been with us from the start. We will be refunding all Stadia hardware purchases made through the Google Store, and all game and add-on content purchases made through the Stadia store," Harrison said. "Players will continue to have access to their games library and play through January 18, 2023 so they can complete final play sessions. We expect to have the majority of refunds completed by mid-January, 2023."

Google said that the closure was because of a lack of "traction" with gamers and users that it expected.

In a FAQ about the closure, Google says that while games will be playable, they are expecting some problems. Specifically, games requiring in-app payments will be impacted. Additionally, game progress is likely to be completely lost, with the exception of some cross-platform games.

Refunds will ultimately be provided for hardware and software purchases made through the Google Store. Stadia Pro subscriptions are not eligible for refund, but will remain active through the January 18 shutdown date.

The company has not yet posted how to obtain a refund. Google says that most hardware is not required to be returned, but other than a brief list of what it doesn't want back, hasn't elaborated on what it does want returned.

Stadia first came to iOS and iPadOS in December 2020 in the form of a beta web app. It is far from the first product Google has killed, and not even the first one in 2022.

Read on AppleInsider

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    JapheyJaphey Posts: 1,767member
    I mean, does this really surprise anybody? 
    scstrrfdewmelollivertdknoxFileMakerFellerwatto_cobraargonaut
  • Reply 2 of 16
    I am surprise they haven't killed Google+ yet. I have no idea what it does beside just being a profiler of an existing Google profile?
    scstrrflolliverwatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 16
    I've never seen a company introduce and kill so many products. They should instead release all new products as betas if they want to see if it will stick or not. Strange.

    Hope this isn't a sign of how our younger generation will run companies.
    scstrrfwatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 16
    DAalsethDAalseth Posts: 2,783member
    I would think that it would reach the point where users would simply stop trusting Google to not kill a service. They could introduce the best thing ever but I know I would be hesitant to start using it because I’d worry they would pull the rug out in a couple of years. 
    I am surprise they haven't killed Google+ yet. I have no idea what it does beside just being a profiler of an existing Google profile?
    I thought they had. 
    scstrrfrezwitsravnorodomtdknoxwatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 16
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,033member
    I am surprise they haven't killed Google+ yet. I have no idea what it does beside just being a profiler of an existing Google profile?

    They shut down Google+ services in 2019.

    I think Google Plus URLs resolve elsewhere just to prevent 404 errors.
    scstrrfrezwitsravnorodomtdknoxHrebFileMakerFellerwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 16
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,335member
    You can say whatever you want about the G-force, but the "it is also refunding all hardware and software purchases made for it" part is very commendable. Imagine if more consumer products companies were so generous about products that were destined for permanent residence on the Island of Misfit Toys. I'm sure Stadia will be welcomed with open arms by its new neighbors on the island, including Microsoft Bob and Apple MobileMe.

    DAalsethentropysmuthuk_vanalingamchasmFileMakerFellerwatto_cobraMplsP
  • Reply 7 of 16
    How in the F, does Microsoft pull this off?  Doesn't Xbox have a similar "streaming" service?  Thru the browser or something?
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 16
    It was totally obvious this would happen when they canned the entire Stadia development team over a year ago.
    FileMakerFellerwatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 16
    rezwits said:
    How in the F, does Microsoft pull this off?  Doesn't Xbox have a similar "streaming" service?  Thru the browser or something?
    For MS, it's just a value added subscription for the things they already do. They own the studios that make the games on it, make the operating systems and game consoles it runs on (outside of streaming), and run the server farms that serve it. They just have to attach three people who wouldn't have bought a game for every one who would and they make money on the service. Plus, they don't give away the DLC so they make money on attaching that to the subscribers.

    The difference between GamePass and Stadia is that the games come with the subscription on GamePass - over a hundred of them at present and more added and rotated in and out all the time, including every title that their AAA game studios release. Google expected you to pay a monthly fee AND buy the games (other than a few bones they threw at you). GamePass is a good deal - you break even if you were going to buy two games a year that come with it. Stadia was a virtual game console that you had to pay for every month and got nothing else from.

     In between the two is GeForce Now, which is literally a gaming PC you pay a monthly fee to stream, but you play the games you have already bought from Steam, Origin, and Ubisoft so if they ever shut down you at least still have your games to play on a PC elsewhere.
    edited September 2022 ravnorodomrezwitslolliverfreeassociate2tmayFileMakerFellerwatto_cobraargonaut
  • Reply 10 of 16
    p-dogp-dog Posts: 131member
    This news just in! Google decides to kill off…Google search!

    Google/alphabet is ridiculous and a laughingstock. Don’t invest yourself too heavily into Google services because they will kill off any initiative within 2 to 5 years. Visit “killedbygoogle.com“.
    edited September 2022 watto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 16
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,152member
    dewme said:
    You can say whatever you want about the G-force, but the "it is also refunding all hardware and software purchases made for it" part is very commendable. Imagine if more consumer products companies were so generous about products that were destined for permanent residence on the Island of Misfit Toys. I'm sure Stadia will be welcomed with open arms by its new neighbors on the island, including Microsoft Bob and Apple MobileMe.

    Speaking of dead initiatives, I still use mac.com as my email address.  I never used eWorld or Ping! though. They were lame.
    edited September 2022 tdknoxFileMakerFellerwatto_cobraargonaut
  • Reply 12 of 16
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,033member
    rezwits said:
    How in the F, does Microsoft pull this off?  Doesn't Xbox have a similar "streaming" service?  Thru the browser or something?
    Yes, through the browser.

    It's important to understand that Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Google all took different approaches in cloud game streaming.

    Microsoft has content both as a studio and as a publisher due to its long experience with Xbox. Google had nothing and they really aren't a content company.

    Meanwhile Microsoft acquired Bethesda/ZeniMax and is trying to acquire Activision-Blizzard. Microsoft made studio acquisitions primarily to prop up their portfolio to drive subscriptions to the Xbox Game Pass. The xCloud game streaming service is an add-on benefit to Game Pass subscribers and leveraged off Microsoft Azure datacenters.

    Microsoft already knows how to run a successful gaming business. Same with Sony and Nintendo so those two will have a better chance of success at cloud game streaming when they tackle it head on. Nintendo has a few cloud titles available through Switch Online but they are taking a very cautious pace.

    Non-gaming companies like Google and NVIDIA have a much steeper learning curve.
    edited September 2022 rezwitsravnorodomFileMakerFellerwatto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 16
    chasmchasm Posts: 3,275member
    Not to defend Google here (they have a serious focus problem on anything outside mail and search), but let’s not pretend that Apple is free of abandonware. From eWorld to OpenTransport to Ping, Apple has launched and killed many many software-based and service-based ideas. That number has gone down significantly since Cook took over, but no company that takes risks is immune from miscalculations when dealing with a fickle public.
    muthuk_vanalingamentropysFileMakerFellerwatto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 16
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,033member
    The saddest part of Stadia’s shutdown is that Google’s game partners didn’t receive any notification.

    https://www.pcgamer.com/stadia-game-developers-had-no-idea-google-was-killing-stadia/

    Google didn’t just screw some of its employees, it unapologetically screwed a bunch of third party developers.

    Sure Google can offer displaced Stadia employees opportunities to work elsewhere in the company but employees working on Stadia games for developer partners are left out in the cold holding the bag.

    Not cool Sundar, not cool at all.
    edited September 2022 FileMakerFellerwatto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 16
    DAalseth said:
    I would think that it would reach the point where users would simply stop trusting Google to not kill a service. They could introduce the best thing ever but I know I would be hesitant to start using it because I’d worry they would pull the rug out in a couple of years. 
    I am surprise they haven't killed Google+ yet. I have no idea what it does beside just being a profiler of an existing Google profile?
    I thought they had. 
    This is why Microsoft is still favoured in the business world. Painful though it may be to use and configure some of their software, and as expensive as it can be, the time you invest in MS systems is rarely wasted. Google (and to some extent Apple) behave as though everyone has the inclination and the ability to implement new technology in a matter of weeks; large organisations (especially those governed by strict regulations) can take more than a decade to adjust.

    You can argue that technology is important enough to need a more nimble approach, but you can also argue that a dollar spent on technology is a dollar not spent on patient care (or an endless number of other operational activities that are usually under-funded relative to demand). And there is a limit on the rate at which people can adapt to something new.
    watto_cobramuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 16 of 16
    MplsPMplsP Posts: 3,911member
    DAalseth said:
    I would think that it would reach the point where users would simply stop trusting Google to not kill a service. They could introduce the best thing ever but I know I would be hesitant to start using it because I’d worry they would pull the rug out in a couple of years. 
    I am surprise they haven't killed Google+ yet. I have no idea what it does beside just being a profiler of an existing Google profile?
    I thought they had. 
    Yup - just add this to the over-stuffed graveyard of abandoned google products. It's part of (but not the only) reason I didn't get a Google WiFi router. I agree with @dewme , though - it's laudable that they are refunding the hardware purchases. Many companies wouldn't have done that and/or tried to weasel out of it. (then had to deal with a class action suit with the end result of consumers getting pennies on the dollar, google paying more in legal fees and the lawyers taking all the money)
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