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NVIDIA GeForce Now to give Stadia a run for its money as it is now open to all
The NVIDIA GeForce Now game streaming service is much older than Google’s Stadia service. Stadia though, for whatever reason, seems to have more buzz surrounding it. That might change now that GeForce Now is officially out of beta and open to all without a waiting period.
Previously, GeForce Now was in a beta state and you needed to sign up on a waiting list just to test it out. Starting today, anyone can sign up and start playing games at no cost.
In a new blog post from NVIDIA that throws a metric ton of shade at Stadia, the company details the two different tiers of subscription plans. If you want to use NVIDIA GeForce Now without cost, you’ll get unlimited one-hour-long gaming sessions and access to nearly every game in the library, which is well over 1,000 at this point.
Related: Google Stadia vs GeForce Now: Which cloud game service is best?
There is also a premium membership option that gives you unlimited six-hours-long sessions. You also get priority access to NVIDIA’s gaming servers and access to exclusive RTX content that the free membership does not provide.
As an introductory special, NVIDIA is offering the premium subscription at just $4.99 per month. That price will last throughout 2020, at which point it will almost certainly see a price hike. However, NVIDIA does not say how much of a price hike there will be (or even that there will be one, but come on…there will be).
What is NVIDIA GeForce Now?
Just like Google Stadia, NVIDIA GeForce Now allows you to play PC video games by streaming the game itself from the cloud. This means you are not required to own a gaming rig — a laptop, a cheap desktop, or even your phone can play even the most resource-heavy AAA titles using GeForce Now.
Of course, in order for this to work, you will need a fast data connection. NVIDIA recommends a 5GHz Wi-Fi connection or a wired connection via Ethernet for the best results. Even then, you will also need a fast internet connection for the massive amount of data a long gaming session will require.
GeForce Now is just like Stadia, except GeForce Now has one killer feature that Stadia doesn't.
Assuming you have the data capabilities, you should be able to play games at 1080p and 60fps on many different devices, regardless of the specs of those devices. That means you can play games incompatible with macOS on a MacBook, or play a graphics-heavy monster like Metro Exodus on your Android phone. The service also works on NVIDIA’s own series of media streaming boxes, the NVIDIA Shield family.
The thing that makes NVIDIA GeForce Now unique over something like Stadia is that you can import your current game library from Steam, Origin, etc. With Stadia, you are stuck playing the free-to-play games that come with a premium membership or buying new games through the Stadia marketplace. With GeForce Now, you can simply connect it to your Steam library and play away (assuming the games are in NVIDIA’s compatible library).
To give NVIDIA GeForce Now a shot, click the button below.