Gamers typically value tradition and nostalgia, and the entire idea of cloud gaming goes against those values. There's something to be said about sliding a disc into a console or starting up a game saved to your computer's hard drive. Nostalgia aside, there are performance considerations too. Cloud gaming will never offer the same level of performance as physical hardware, with all other things equal. And yet, after extensively using cloud gaming services over the past year, I love it. If you think cloud gaming is awful, I'd reason you probably haven't tried it in a while or have bad internet.

Cloud gaming involves connecting to a gaming PC or console in a server farm somewhere and streaming a game's contents. A wireless connection sends the graphics to your device, and your inputs are sent back to the server. It creates a base-level performance bottleneck that you can't overcome. Here's the thing that cloud gaming detractors always forget to remember: wireless connection isn't the only bottleneck. Whether you use cloud gaming or on-device processing, there will be bottlenecks. Internet speed could be a bottleneck, processing power could be a bottleneck, and input lag can be a bottleneck — just to name a few.

If you have a no-compromises gaming PC, fiber internet, and professional-grade peripherals, you will absolutely notice the bottleneck caused by cloud gaming compared to your typical usage. For everyone else, it's negligible. The bottleneck caused by streaming with cloud gaming might not be as severe as the performance or input lag bottlenecks you'd get with your on-device hardware. That's without considering price, storage considerations, and more. That's the thing to remember. Cloud gaming always loses when all things are equal. But things are rarely equal.

3 It's cheaper

We really can't compare cloud gaming to pricey gaming PCs

Whenever we review or test a product or service, it's important to evaluate it in context. For example, when I reviewed the Google Pixel 8a, I didn't say that $500 phone was bad because it couldn't keep up with modern-day flagships costing in excess of $1,000. It was good for the price, and the limitations that derive from its positioning in the market. I consider cloud gaming, through services like Xbox Cloud Gaming, Nvidia's GeForce Now, and Amazon Luna, using the same logic. The benefits are worth the drawbacks, which are obviously increased latency.

One of the more obvious benefits to cloud gaming is cost savings. There are various subscription services available at different pricing tiers, but Xbox Cloud Gaming is a good example of a value pick. Microsoft's Game Pass Ultimate subscription costs $20 per month and includes the functionality that was previously tied to Xbox Live, hundreds of games, and the ability to stream them from the cloud. If you own an Xbox, you might subscribe to Ultimate anyway, and cloud gaming is included. Competitors like GeFoce Now and Amazon Luna also have similarly-priced tiers that offer a lot of value for what you get.

Subscriptions aren't fun, but cloud gaming services are still appealing. You could pay for one of these services for years before you even cover the cost of a high-end GPU in 2024. That's without considering the cost of the rest of your PC, the price of Windows, the peripherals you'll need, and the cost of individual games. With cloud gaming, you pick up a device with a browser and controller support, and all you need is a subscription to play hundreds of games. Modern titles are expensive — usually $60 or more — and if you play a lot of games, something like Game Pass Ultimate could be worth it for this reason alone.

When you consider what you get from a cloud gaming service for the ultra-low monthly cost compared to a PC or console, it's a lot easier to accept its drawbacks. For just $20 per month or less, you can play AAA gaming titles on your iPhone or Android phone and get an experience that's more than playable. If you told someone that a decade ago, they'd scoff at the remark. So, why aren't we more impressed?

2 It runs on anything

If your device can connect to a controller and has a browser, it can game in the cloud

One of my favorite parts of cloud gaming, using an extreme exaggeration to get the point across, is that it could run on a potato. In reality, you'll need a screen, a browser, and controller support to use it. But seriously, cloud gaming can be used with basically anything, and that point was just proven when Microsoft announced that literal Amazon Fire TV Sticks can use Xbox Cloud Gaming as of this month. If your internet is good, you'll get way better performance while using cloud gaming than you would if you tried to use devices other than a console or premium gaming PC.

Again, we're not really comparing a dedicated gaming PC to cloud gaming. We're comparing cloud gaming to using your smartphone, a VR headset, or a budget gaming device. For most people, the choice isn't between a top-end gaming PC or a cloud gaming service. It's between a cloud gaming service and not playing these games at all, or playing them in lower quality due to meager hardware.

I've used cloud gaming in plenty of situations where on-device gaming just isn't an option. One of my favorite games right now is MLB: The Show, and it's not available on PC at all. I use it on my Mac and on my Asus ROG Ally through Xbox Cloud Gaming, so I'm getting to experience a game that would be impossible to play without cloud gaming. Similarly, I've played Fortnite and Forza on my Apple Vision Pro headset, experiencing those games on a massive virtual screen in a surreal way. I also used the $199 Retroid Pocket 4 Pro to play AAA titles, proving that you can use cloud gaming on really weak hardware.

I can't understate how impressive it is that, for as little as $199 plus a monthly subscription, I can play the best gaming titles. That's the proposition that cloud gaming offers, and it's even better when you consider the device you have probably works with already.

1 Better-than-solid performance

Cloud gaming probably isn't the problem, it might be your internet

I don't own a gaming PC other than my two PC gaming handhelds: the ROG Ally and Steam Deck. Cloud gaming is so good that I don't feel the need to build one myself for a lump sum, especially since I get a great experience for a much lower cost now. In fact, I often use Xbox Cloud Gaming on my iMac when I'm at home instead of picking up one of my handhelds, and that says something. From my testing, the key is really your network connection. I have 1 Gigabit Ethernet wired to my iMac, and I can barely notice that I'm streaming a game when I'm using cloud gaming on that computer.

My average Wi-Fi speeds are about 300-400Mbps, and games are still more than playable on wireless devices like phones, VR headsets, and tablets. I play a lot of games where input lag can be a serious problem, ruining competitive gameplay, and I can attest that cloud gaming will still keep you competitive with solid internet speeds. While playing Fortnite, I got a victory royale with a good number of kills using Xbox Cloud Gaming on Vision Pro. MLB: The Show is arguably more dependent on response time, and this input lag will definitely affect gameplay. Still, with my wireless network and certainly with an Ethernet connection, I was able to win games. The latency issue is overblown, as long as you have good Wi-Fi.

The great thing about cloud gaming is that you only have one thing to worry about: input lag. If you can take care of that with a solid network connection, you'll be fine. For example, Nvidia's GeForce Now Ultimate subscription grants you access to a system with an RTX 4090 graphics card, and Xbox Cloud Gaming is based on Xbox Series X hardware. You'll get good performance, because the game is actually running on good machines. How the experience goes will depend on your internet connection. If it's solid, your gameplay will be more than playable.

I'm not telling you to replace your PC or console

I think this is clear by now, but let me double down: I'm not suggesting you replace your PC or console with cloud gaming. No one is winning e-sports championships while streaming a game. My point is that cloud gaming is now a very good option for situations where you can't play AAA titles on your device. Maybe you want to play a console exclusive on PC, a demanding game on lesser hardware, or simply want to save money. The possibilities are really endless, and the concept of cloud gaming overall has come a long way. If you haven't used cloud gaming in a while, it might be time to revisit it. If you still think it's bad, your internet might be a problem.