OnLive goes, well, live, the week after next. Monthly access fee is currently listed as $14.95, but rumored to be lower at launch. Price of games is TBD. No word on game catalog yet either. Normally I'd balk at a monthly fee + a game fee. But OnLive works on PCs or Macs. And because there is no download (OnLive plug-in required), the games will even run on computers not equipped to handle large hungry games. So this is sounding kinda good to me. Plus, you can get (details TBA) a Micro Console adapter w/game controller to play games on your big TV. So the story is short on details, but this might be a good service for some.
Sadly, I missed the pre-register offer which conferred up to one year's free access.
What say you?
http://www.onlive.com/service.html
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
Spike, do they have any servers where you can see how quick the ping response is from you to their site? Everything you do with OnLive will be over the net, so it'd be nice to know what the expected delay would be before signing up...
My Dark Souls single player sensibilities are protected by a +10 GfWL Firewall of Ineptitude
Helmut, I know I read something about that a few days ago, but I can't find it on their website today. You know how it is, you get to jumping from one page to another and sometimes can't remember how you got to the one with the info you want to find again.
Below is what I could find. Doesn't answer your question, but maybe you could find the answer on their website.
US release is June 17, upcoming, TBD, are UK Belgium and Luxembourg. Onlive says that "if you live within 1000 miles of one of our 3 US servers...". Servers are in the Bay area (San Fran.), Dallas, and the Washington DC area. Their map shows that there should be some overlap to Canada, but as of now no Canadian release date is planned. It seems that they need an investment/infrastructure in the countries where they will offer service. And there are bits of the US mainland in northern Montana, North Dakota and Minnesota that are not within the coverage areas. Forget Alaska and Hawaii (Well, most folks do, don't they, what with Hawaii not even being a state according to some.)
I also read today that there will be a plan that doesn't require the monthly fee, but no word on just how that will work. We should know within a few weeks how this will all shake out. They also don't show many games on their launch list, but I'm sure this will get better after June 17th.
From their website:
OnLive works over nearly any wired broadband connection (DSL, cable
modem, fiber, or through the LAN at your college or office) with 5Mbps
or greater for HD-resolution games. OnLive requires 1.5Mbps for
SD-resolution, but initially at launch, OnLive will only offer
HD-resolution. Although OnLive technically works over WiFi wireless
networks, the reliability of wireless networks can vary greatly, due to
interference sources such as microwave ovens, and other wireless
networks sharing the spectrum. Initially at launch, OnLive will not
support wireless networks.
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
Your
connection to the OnLive Game Service starts with a check of your PC or
Mac's video and network performance. The results of these tests are
used to determine whether or not the OnLive Game Service will run on
your current hardware configuration and Internet connection.
My Dark Souls single player sensibilities are protected by a +10 GfWL Firewall of Ineptitude
I'm liking the sound of this less and less. From Reuters and Mac World:
* "...more than 20 games available for rental or purchase at launch on June 17th." Not a huge catalog, but a start, I guess.
* No membership charge for 1st year, with a 2nd year option of $5 per month for those who sign up early. Not too bad.
* Purchase games for up to $60. I can buy a hard copy at that price.
* Rent games for 3 or 5 days for less than $10. Only those with no jobs, school, or families to care for can play a large game
in 3-5 days.
The upside is that those with older PCs or Intel Macs can play games which wouldn't otherwise run on their computers. I can see that the performance check is necessary. Too many idiots don't read the fine print and tech stuff. "Uh, waddya mean I can't get OnLive on my old Power PC Mac, dude?"
Membership is free for 1 year, and $5 per month for the 2nd year. That might make me willing to sign up for the free year and see if I use it. If not, nothing lost. I'll think about it for the rest of the day.
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
I don't know about older systems. A dual processor is required. That's pretty common nowadays, but certainly not everywhere. I think sustained 5 Mbps is more the problem. I have well faster than that at peak but rarely in the middle of the day.
My Dark Souls single player sensibilities are protected by a +10 GfWL Firewall of Ineptitude
Just went to sign up for the "Founding Members" 1 year free membership. Found this:
Welcome to the OnLive Founding Members Program
presented by AT&T.
Subject to availability, Founding Members will be selected from this Waiting List on a first-come, first-serve basis starting June 17th, 2010. Limited-time, limited-availability offer. See information below for additional terms of this program.
Well, ok, there's no guarantee I'd be picked (although I'd guess the chance is high in the first 24 hours, but still). Then I found out that in addition to the usual registration stuff, and the "will my computer be able to run this" test, they want a credit card number. Don't think I'm gonna register. No guarantee I'd get in, and I might not ever have bought anything anyway, so I don't want a credit card number sitting around on their servers for no good reason.
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
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