Today cloud computing will be introduced mobile gaming. OnLive will play the part of matchmaker as it rolls out a series of games previously not available for your phones and tablets. Until now, the problem of getting graphics-heavy games like “L.A. Noire” on your phone has been processing power. When that game came out over the summer, even people playing it on desktop computers had problems loading the whole thing up.
OnLive’s idea is to let its (cloud) computers do all the heavy lifting, giving you, the gamer on the go, access to your shoot-’em-ups wherever you go. The company is hoping to lure casual gamers or people who might have even been dismissive, with games like “L.A. Noire” and and the upcoming release of “Grand Theft Auto V”.
The idea is not entirely new, The New York Times reports that other companies are working on similar systems. The problem, so far, is to get the timing worked out. Even if there’s a split-second delay between you touching the screen to turn your race car’s wheel to the time it actually turns, you’re not going to have a good experience. The Times reports: “OnLive says it has solved this problem by figuring out a method of efficiently packaging video images of a live game that it delivers over the Internet, and that allows for instantaneous response to actions by players as they control the movement of characters within a game.”
For those of you who broke out in a cold sweat of excitement just thinking about playing Assassin’s Creed on the subway, OnLive will offer a way to use portable controllers – joysticks and the like – for a more tactual experience. Oh, and that cold sweat? Nothing to worry about. Just a touch of PacMan fever. Take two power pellets and call me in the morning.
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