Amazon shows off cloud gaming service, Luna

What does the future of gaming look like? Do consoles and gaming PCs still have a place? In one aspect, of course they do, but it seems a lot of big companies have been doubling down on game streaming services. Sony have Playstation Now, Microsoft have xbox game pass which currently has an Android app in beta, Google have Stadia and now Amazon have announced their own service… Luna!

On the 24th September Amazon announced they would be releasing their take on a game streaming service, Luna, in October 2020. They say they will have 100 different games at launch, featuring games to suit the taste of everyone. From sporting game giants EA’s FIFA 21, to the frighteningly awesome Resident Evil 7, even including the 2020 remake of XIII! The lineup seems strong, but how do you join in the fun?

Luna+ Early Access Game Library:

• Resident Evil 7
• Control

• Panzer Dragoon
• A Plague Tale: Innocence
• The Surge 2
• Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair

• Iconoclasts
• GRID
• ABZU
• Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons

Well, Amazon have said that at launch, you will be able to play Luna on PC, Mac, Fire TV, also iPhones, accessed via a web app. Currently the service isn’t available on Android, however this is said to be coming in the future.

Luna Device Compatibility:

• PC (requires Windows 10 with support for DirectX 11)
• Mac (OSX 10.13+)

• FireTV devices (Fire TV Stick – 2nd gen, Fire TV Stick 4K, or Fire TV Cube – 2nd gen)
• Chrome web browser (version 83+) for PC and Mac
• Safari web browser (iOS14) for iPhone and iPad

An interesting thing to note is that, in the past, Microsoft and Google have had issues with their streaming services on iOS devices. Although Apple did make changes to their rules, Microsoft has still stated that it isn’t the best experience for gamers.

Luna is going to set you back $6 per month, however this is going to allow you to play the games in the expansive library at up to 4k 60FPS and you can also play on multiple devices at once. This subscription will not allow you to reap the benefits of the their newly announced partnership with Ubisoft however, they will be offering up all their big titles to the Luna, games like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Far Cry 6 and Immortals: Fenyx Rising will all be available to play on release day via their own channel on the Luna service.

So what is the point in the Luna service? Well, the whole idea is that for a small fee, you gain access to a gaming service that will let you take advantages of your already existing devices, such as phones, fire TVs etc, however they are releasing their own dedicated controller, which will set you back around $50, which compared to the cost of additional controllers for other devices, it kinda looks like a bargain.

So how can you get involved? Although the service isn’t available right now you can request an early access invitation by going to Amazon, however before you hop over there it may be a good idea to double check that you have the required speeds to get the best experience. They’ve recommended a speed of at least 10mbps if you’re wanting to game at 1080p, or 35mbps+ if you’re wanting to push to 4k. They’re also suggesting that if you’re playing games at 1080p you can expect to consume up to 10gb of data per hour, that is if you’re gaming on mobile, wow!

One last thing to note is that early access members will also be invited to have their say on the service, and let the developers and those that matter know how its going, so be sure to tell them the pros and the cons.

Could Luna see Esports titles?

With how unstable streaming platforms have been in the past, it’s probably unlikely. Especially in the early days. But if over time they can tweak things around, who knows. It would be great to get esports titles on one platform that everyone can have access to on any device, then you could check out CS:GO betting previews and other esports matchups where everyone is on a level field, rather than having some people play games on Xbox, PlayStation or PC, complaining that some have advantages over others due to system performances.

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What do dou think? Is streaming games the way of the future or is it just a crazy idea doomed to fail?

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