Top 5 Best Cloud Gaming Services In 2024

Cloud Gaming is like Netflix or Spotify but is dedicated to video games. It allows you to play your favorite games anytime and anywhere on various screens. With Cloud Gaming, you play freely without limitations. The only condition is to have a good quality internet connection, fiber, or 5G.

PlayStation Plus, Xbox Cloud Gaming, GeForce Now, Luna, and Shadow… There are many game streaming service providers. Each offers its unique features and benefits. Check out this guide to discover the best Cloud Gaming services in 2024.

GeForce Now

Developed by Nvidia, GeForce Now went public in February 2020 after an extended beta phase. It lets gamers stream popular games with high-quality graphics, even on low-end hardware. It is compatible with Windows and Mac PCs, smartphones and tablets running Android, and SHIELD TV. It can also be played on Chromebook and iOS devices via Safari. GeForce Now has more than 1,000 games, with new titles added every Thursday.

You must have the games in your library or purchase them from different game stores such as Steam, Epic Games, GOG, Origin, Uplay, or Battle.net. For an optimal experience on GeForce Now, the minimum recommended speed is 15 Mb/s for a resolution of 720p and 25 Mb/s for 1080p. A fiber connection is ideal, but you could get by with a VDSL2 connection. With 4G or 5G, you can play on the move with good definition, a decent refresh rate, and low latency. GeForce Now has three distinct subscriptions:

A completely free plan, which includes access to 1-hour gaming sessions. After 60 minutes, you must restart a session, with a possible wait if the servers are overloaded. The “Priority” subscription is offered at €9.99 per month or €49.99 for six months.
It provides real-time Ray tracing for advanced lighting effects. Game sessions last up to 6 hours, with priority access to servers.
The “Ultimate” offer guarantees an optimal gaming experience with servers equipped with Nvidia’s high-end graphics card, the RTX 4080. Gaming sessions last up to 8 hours, up to 4K at 120 FPS. The subscription costs €19.99 per month or €99.99 for six months.

Xbox Game Pass

Xbox Game Pass is a game streaming service that is very popular with video game addicts. It offers online gaming sessions and competitive challenges with over a million active users. Subscribing to the Ultimate version gives you access to Xbox Cloud Gaming to stream or download all Xbox games. Xbox Game Pass’s greatest strength lies in its broad compatibility. You can play it on your Xbox consoles, Android smartphone, Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC, Apple devices, or even a Samsung Smart TV.

To play on Xbox Game Pass, an Xbox controller connected via Bluetooth or USB and a WiFi or 4G+ connection are required. Microsoft recommends a speed of at least 10 Mb/s to avoid lags. The platform offers around a hundred streaming games, including successful series from Microsoft (Gears of War, Forza, Halo, Flight Simulator, etc.) and games from Microsoft-owned studios like Bethesda (Doom, Wolfenstein, The Elder Scrolls Skyrim). , etc.), Xbox Originals, and Xbox 360 games.

Other games from third-party studios or even independent ones are included in the list, such as EA Play, which has been present since March 2021. The library is enriched every month with new titles. To benefit from Xbox Cloud Gaming, you must subscribe to Xbox Game PassUltimate, which costs €14.99 monthly. In addition to streaming gameplay, you get a complete experience with Game PassCore, Game Pass PC, and Game Pass Console.

ShadowPC

Shadow PC stands out from other services by its Cloud Computing nature. It allows you to access files and software stored on remote servers. It is broader than Cloud gaming since it can meet more needs than video games. You are not accessing a simple game catalog but a real virtual PC.

Shadow PC is available on various devices, including desktop (Windows, Mac, UBUNTU, and Raspberry Pi OS), mobile (Android and iOS), TV (Android TV and Apple TV), and VR (Oculus Quest). It works like a traditional PC with dedicated storage space. You can install everything you want and stream any title you own, whether on Steam, Battle.net, Uplay, Epic Game, GOG, Origin, or even X box Game Pass PC.

A minimum connection of 15 Mb/s is sufficient to use Shadow PC. It can be established via WiFi, Ethernet, and 4G/5G. Shadow can achieve 4K UHD definition at 60 fps and 1080p at 144 fps, requiring fiber. Regarding subscriptions, it offers two options:

The Shadow PC offers €29.99 per month, giving you access to a PC equipped with a 3.5 GHz Intel XEON processor, an Nvidia GTX 1080, 12 GB of RAM, and 256 GB of storage.
The Shadow PC plan with the Power option at 49.98 euros per month is specially intended for a gaming audience. Advanced configurations allow you to play in 4K with RTX: AMD EPYC 7543P CPU with four cores and eight threads per user, an NVIDIA RTX A4500 graphics card, 16 GB RAM, and 256 GB SSD.

PlayStation Plus Premium

Although PlayStation largely dominates the home console market, its Cloud Gaming service still needs to be discovered. With PlayStation Plus Premium, you are entitled to online multiplayer, a catalog of 800 PlayStation games (including 500 PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 games), cloud storage, and exclusive discounts.

However, the PlayStation ecosystem is known for its very closed nature. The Cloud Gaming service is compatible exclusively with PS5, PS4, and Windows PCs, excluding older Sony consoles. For those who opt for the PC, the minimum configuration required is Windows 10, an Intel i3 3.5 GHz chip, or an AMD A10 3.8 GHz. It is also necessary to have 300 MB of available storage and 2 GB of RAM, a sound card, and a USB port.

The PlayStation Plus Premium catalog contains some PlayStation exclusives, such as Bloodborne, The Last of Us, and Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection or Crysis Remastered. Even if the collection is regularly enriched, games also often disappear. You can only stream titles that are part of the offer. In terms of speed, Sony recommends a speed of at least 5 Mb/s for streaming at 720p and 15 Mb/s for 1080p. The PlayStation Plus Premium subscription costs €16.99 per month, €49.99 per quarter, or €151.99 per year. A 7-day trial period is offered to test the service.

Amazon Luna

Amazon Luna is the latest video game streaming platform to hit the market. Initially called Project Tempo, it was officially unveiled on September 24, 2020. Its launch in France dates from mid-November 2023, offering Amazon Prime members free access to a limited selection of games.

Amazon Luna is compatible with many media, such as Windows, Android, and Amazon tablets. A dedicated controller is strongly recommended to benefit from better latency times. It is offered on the Amazon site for €69.99. But nothing stops you from using a PS4 or Xbox controller.

The platform offers around a hundred games, including blockbusters like ResidentEvil VIII, Control, and A Plague Tale Innocence. And, of course, Amazon exclusives, like New World or the MMO Lord of the Rings, are present. Note also the partnership between Amazon and Ubisoft has enriched the games catalog. You must have a minimum speed of 10 Mb/s for 1080p resolution to play.

For a 4K experience at 60 frames per second, a throughput of at least 35 Mb/s is required. Some games, such as Trackmania or Fortnite, are free for those who subscribe to Amazon Prime. The Luna+ subscription is offered at €9.99 per month for an expanded game library. If you want to play Assassin’s Creed or the latest titles from the French publisher as soon as they are released, a subscription at €17.99 per month is available. Finally, the Jackbox Games offer, focused on family and casual gaming, is €4.99 monthly.