OnLive delivers the latest and hottest Games On Demand to any TV or any computer – anytime. It’s the last game platform you’ll ever need.

When I first heard about OnLive, founded by Steve Perlman (WebTV, QuickTime) and planned for launch Winter 2009, it took a few moments for the idea to sink in. Gaming on demand? Live streaming of gaming? Then the penny dropped – think thin client for gaming – why has no one thought of it before? If it works it will be nothing short of revolutionary.

About The Service

Can we really play high-end games without a high-end PC or dedicated gaming console? OnLive seem to think so and is offering to stream our gaming experience directly from its servers to our TV and entry level PCs and Macs. We are not talking little flash based, or retro, games here – high-end software developers are seemingly climbing over each other to partner with the service including the likes of Electronic Arts, Eidos, Atari, Codemasters and Ubisoft.

To ensure its success OnLive have a a strong team on board to deliver the service, including Steve Perlman (Found and CEO), Mike McGarvey (COO), Tom Paquin (EVP of Engineering), John Spinale (VP of Product Development), Paul V. Weinstein (VP of Business Development) and Charlie Jablonski (VP of Operations). The service has been in development for seven years prior to its official announcement in early 2009.

How It Works

The OnLive system requires an Internet connection, presumably the faster the better, and operates, in your home, from what OnLive is describing as a MicroConsole. A software plug-in is also going to be available to allow PCs and Macs to access the games using a browser.

The service is likely to be a monthly subscription service and work in the following way:

• Initiate a connection to the OnLive service using TV, PC or Mac
• Select and choose a game to play
• OnLive connects to a game server
• The game runs on a OnLive game server in their data centre
• Game control commands are transmitted to the game server and the results are streamed back

Some of the games on offer include Fear 2, Tomb Raider, Grid, Crysis Warhead, Unreal Tournament 3, Prince of Persia and Lego Batman

The OnLive MicroConsole™

The OnLive MicroConsole is a small device with all the necessary connections required to support up to 4 players in a gaming experience.

• Ethernet Connection
• Micro-USB
• Video/Audio Out
• S/PDIF optical out
• USB Controller (can also be used for Keyboard/Mouse)
• Up to 4 wireless controllers
• Up to 4 Bluetooth headsets

A Revolution In Gaming

At our home we have a Nintendo Wii and we play it from time to time with games like Guinness World Records and Wii Play. I do fancy the idea of playing games like Grand Theft Auto but my PC just would not be able to give me a reasonable gaming experience and I have yet to find a compelling reason to buy an Xbox 360 or PS3.

If OnLive deliver the goods they could open the door to a huge new audience of gamers.

One of the big problems with multi-player gaming is the notion of network lag time. If player A has a better Internet connection and computer than you they will likely have a lower lag time and therefore receive a smoother faster gaming experience (with more frequent updates so they can often Frag you before you realise what is happening). OnLive could improve this problem of network lag time as the games are actually run out of their own data centre with much better network connectivity than the average home. I am still left wondering if the bandwidth required for constant screen refresh will affect the experience and possibly replace network lag with a new video lag issue.

The ultra high end gamers out there are likely to argue they will benefit little from this sort of technology but it may well bring a better gaming experience to the masses. This, in turn, could drive down costs opening up gaming to a much wider audience.

The success of the service has repercussions not just in gaming but in business too. The mechanism behind the thin software-as-a-service delivery model could act as a catalyst for all manner of business applications including office applications, ERP, and CRM.

OnLive will initially launch in the US. I wonder if the UK broadband scene is ready for the service yet? Where I live we still have no Cable connection and even our ADSL connection speed is limited. In the UK we are still dogged by monthly capping of Internet downloads and this looks set to continue for some time to come.

If you are over 18, have a broadband connected PC (Vista/XP) or an Intel-based Mac, and live in the US you can sign up for the beta test program.

Read More About OnLive

• Time: Is OnLive the New Fourth Game Console? Actually, Maybe
• USA Today: OnLive promises video games without the hardware
• Gamespot: GDC 2009: Analysts sold on OnLive
• The New York Times: A Video Game Start-Up Banks on the Cloud
• BBC: A gaming world without consoles?

Images Courtesy OnLive

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