Speaking at Cloud Gaming USA in San Jose, THQ CEO Brian Farrell spoke about the different opportunities that cloud gaming could present and what cloud gaming could mean for THQ. He went on to explain how this new online business model would benefit not only game makers, but consumers too.
According to GI.biz, Brian predicted that future consoles with be disK-less, and that this “will result in a lower cost for the hardware manufacturer, which will result in a lower cost to consumers and therefore a lower entry point, thus driving more mass market adoption.” He continued by saying that this model would save game developers and publishers money, as there would be “no physical goods cost for game makers. No inventory, no markdowns, and all the money spent by the consumer would go to the developer or publisher.”
Brian continues, stating that:
The box, ship and done model is transitioning to observe, measure, and modify. This is a games as a service model where direct consumer feedback allows the ability to operate in this always on, always connected environment.
We intend to create an online digital ecosystem with the consumer that keeps them interested for almost a year, perhaps even longer. And we expect most of our large console games going forward will extend the base experience with DLC packs. Things like online in-game storage, and consumables and other online items that will go on for at least a year post-release.
With services like OnLive and Steam doing rather well, could cloud gaming really be the future of consoles? Let us know in the comments what you think.
