Gaikai + Playstation = Backwards Compatibility and Devices!

[RxCxDietrich]

TL;DR summery below xD

So now that the PS4 is out, I'm wondering how many people here are thinking about the cloud service Gaikai that Sony acquired. I have yet to get one myself, but I've always been a fan of everything going digital and being played off the cloud. I loved what OnLive was trying to do for cloud gaming and I know it's not very popular now it still served the purpose of showing it can be done. I have many reasons to be excited again because with Sony getting their hands on that technology it'll be possible to completely forget about the dreaded "Backwards Compatibilty" question that comes with each successive generation of consoles. On top of that, this quote from President of Sony's Worldwide Studios for Sony Computer Entertainment Inc Shuhei Yosida, from Japanese publication Dengeki Online (translated into English)

“Speaking of the ultimate goal, we would like to deliver PlayStation games to all devices. So we’re considering various things like PC, TVs, Blu-ray players, smartphones and tablets. We hope to continue to expand not only to Sony devices, but even to devices other than Sony’s.”

shows that we might not even have to worry about wondering when there will be a PS5. Can you imagine that in the next 10 years as games get bigger, better, and prettier, all we'll have to do is buy the game and play it on your system of choice, no hardware upgrade required?

Now, on the flip side of this, I know a lot of people like their physical goods. Many people who enjoy collecting niche games (myself included, others who want to be able to choose what to do with their owned games. My question to them is would you rather keep needing to buy more hardware for each generation just so you can own your physical goods? If so, would it make it easier to accept digital if you were able to sell them back to the cloud/other users like you could with the disc based games?

And one last argument with this is if all of this was to happen, then it would become an online only system/service. Now I'm not one to say "Deal With It" but in my opinion I think going digital and cloud is the way to go, but it's only an opinion. Are there ways that Sony/Gaikai could cater to both in the next decade? If so what would it take for people to at least give it a chance?

I can't wait to hear everyone's opinions!

TL;DR Excited for cloud gaming but I acknowledge not everyone is ready to embrace it.

 

[desarijulian]

I'm not really interested in Gakai or the cloud but I can see the appeal to it. But I'm more than willing to play the wait and see game. If it works the way that Sony claims that it will, I'm pretty sure that we'll eventually phase out of manufacturing physical discs. Until then, I like my hardware.

 

[DrRipley]

In my opinion, it is inevitable, especially since the tech market is homogenizing at a fast pace. Soon, phones will be as powerful as laptops, and since they all have bluetooth, companies can just offer exclusive controllers instead of consoles. They are selling their consoles at a loss now anyway, so this may be in their best interest, although, aside from the controllers, I wouldn't know how else they would set themselves apart if they do decide on it.

 

[TheDarkDefender]

Cloud service is awesome and I'm so happy it exists cause when my ps3 croked, my save files were safe. I hope sony utilizes cloud in every possible way (without f'n it all up of course)