Taking on rival such as Amazon’s Luna, Google’s Stadia and Microsoft’s xCloud, Facebook is throwing its hat in the ‘Cloud Gaming Service’ ring with the launch of Facebook Gaming. This service will allow Facebook users play cloud streamed games alongside HTML5 games in the redesigned Gaming Tab or News Feed in the Facebook app (Beta on Android) and on web browser at fb.gg/play.
According to social media giant’s press release, mobile users require no controllers to play the instant games while desktop users can play with a mouse and keyboard. The company is starting out with free-to-play cloud games available starting with titles such as Asphalt 9: Legends by Gameloft; PGA TOUR Golf Shootout by Concrete Software, Inc; Solitaire: Arthur’s Tale by Qublix Games; and WWE SuperCard by 2K Games.
These games will be initially available in the US starting with the following states: California, Texas, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington, D.C., Virginia, and West Virginia. Regional access to Facebook Gaming will be expanded to the whole country when the necessary infrastructure is put in place.
Facebook has also made provisions for Cloud playable ads on Android and iOS. These ads are designed to allow users try out new games in demo and allow developers reach a large-scale audience. With Cross Play, developers can integrate ‘Facebook Login For Gaming’ to enable users continuation (cross-play) between the cloud version on Facebook and downloaded version. Finally, Players Names allow gamers used their preferred names and gaming-themed avatars instead of the details in their profile.
