On Live Launches in UK

Cloud gaming service OnLive launched in the UK today, so I thought it would be fun to give it a try. I have a robust 40MB fibre internet connection and an adequately specified PC, so I deemed myself to be the ideal test subject. So at about 14:40 GMT I decided to head over to the site and sign up for an account. Registering was not exactly rocket science and I was amazed that the usual swathe of personal details were not required. I was not asked to provide any credit card details, or an address, shoe size or a DNA sample.
Now after registering there is the client software to install. It’s not that big and takes up a total of 7.8MB, which is nothing to cry over (if it is you seriously need a new hardrive). Once installed you’ll find a desktop shortcut to the On Live launcher. I hope this isn’t getting to technical for you? It is here that you input the email address and password you used to register. Deceptively simple, I’m sure you’ll agree. The client quickly connected and after the ubiquitous promo video, the main menu appeared on screen. What can I say? It is incredibly intuitive and self explanatory. It has cleverly been designed with TV playback in mind with large tiles and option buttons. Navigation is easy, whether your new to gaming or from a console or PC background. You can customise you game controls easily, set preferences for mutli-player voice-chat and create social groups using Facebook and other 3rd party social media services. I suppose the two biggest questions regarding OnLive are, is there a wide choice of games and how well does the service run via the cloud? Well from my point of view there was a fair amount of titles and genres to choose from. Both triple A franchises and material from the independent sector. With regard to performance, I spent some time playing Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. 2 and it responded perfectly. For a game based around flight simulation, lag would be a deal breaker but the game ran fine. I can’t say the same for my game play but then I’ve always had a issues when axis are reversed. Guess I’m not cut out to be a pilot. Now, as I mentioned earlier, I had not set up any sort of method of payment. So I was playing Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. 2, via a free trail. I was allowed up to 30 minutes of game play. It would appear that this option is available for a lot of titles, which I think is an invaluable marketing tool. PC gaming has suffered from a lack of demo’s for along time, so the chance to check out and evaluate a game before I buy it is a useful service. As well as free trails, you can buy a time pass to rent a game for a specific period of time or just purchase it out right. This flexibility is a major selling point in my opinion. Gamers with tight budgets may well like to avail themselves of this payment model.

So what else can you do via the OnLive service? Well you can select a game and watch someone else who is currently playing. There is a on-screen display that let’s you know if you are under scrutiny when playing. The spectator can also give a thumbs up or down depending on your performance. You can even talk to each other if user permissions allow it. There also a media library of clips for bragging rights where people cans how their best kills etc. Not an aspect of gaming that I personally like, but it certainly is a popular facility with some players.
An afternoon’s idle messing with OnLive doesn’t count as a comprehensive evaluation of the service. But I must admit that from what I seen so far I am impressed. The very fact that they have launched in the UK, appears to indicate that Onlive has met with success in the US. I initially wrote about OnLive back in March 2010 and a lot of the pints that I raised are still pertinent. One of the key factors is which games are available. I suspect that certain companies such as EA will be reticent to come on-board especially as they are consolidating their own service. I also suspect that our rural readers in the UK with slower connections will not find this service viable. Yet the flexibility of cloud based gaming and the business model in general is not to be underestimated. OnLive UK is therefore one to watch.