Following Sony’s announcement of PlayStation Now yesterday at CES 2014, a number of hands-on videos have appeared on YouTube showing the service in action. Leveraging Gaikai’s advanced cloud streaming features, the hands-on video below shows Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us (PS3) running on a PS Vita, and God of War: Ascension (PS3) bring streamed to a PS3.
There hasn’t been much news about Gaikai recently, with the last mention of the streaming service back at E3. Sony previously announced that Gaikai would power a full-game streaming service on the PS4, allowing gamers to play PS3 titles via the Internet. According to inside sources, the streaming service won’t be launching in Europe until 2015, but will be available in North America in 2014.
Gaikai streaming wasn’t mentioned in Sony’s Gamescom Press Conference last month, but Sony Computer Entertainment Europe’s CEO Jim Ryan has detailed out the launch plans for the service. As mentioned at E3, Gaikai will first launch in North America in 2014 for the PS4, before heading to the PS Vita and then the PS3.
Sony’s cloud gaming strategy was revealed at E3, which will game use of Gaikai’s streaming technology to give PS4, PS3 and PS Vita gamers access to library of PS3 games. However, it’s been clarified that only “critically acclaimed” games will be available via the service. The latest video from the PlayStation Access team also reveals that the service will later be expanded to include more legacy PlayStation titles.
At E3, Sony confirmed that the PlayStation 4 will be getting PS3 backwards compatibility using Gaikai’s streaming technology in 2014. Initially available in the US, Gaikai will provide PS3 and PS4 owners access to critically acclaimed PS3 games, streamed through cloud.
With Sony’s PlayStation Meeting just over 12 hours away, new information has come to light which reveals what Sony could be announcing tonight. Twitter user Superannuation has uncovered a few domain registration that points to the future of Gaikai, and more importantly, it’s new name. PS-Cloud.net, PlayStation-Cloud.org and PlayStation-Cloud.com have all been registered by Gaikai, suggesting the service will be rebranded as PlayStation Cloud.
Following from yesterday’s news about Gaikai answering questions about the Sony acquisition, the Gaikai website also reveals PlayStation titles on its homepage. You can see the likes of Uncharted’s Drake, Kratos from God of War, Raiden from Metal Gear Solid and the Helghast from Killzone in the background of the site.
Gaikai has updated its Q&A page to answer questions over the recent Sony acquisition, answering questions that many gamers may have. Gaikai reveals that the team is “working on a number of exciting initiatives.” When asked about Gaikai on Sony platforms, the company said it “cannot share any details at this point in time.”
Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Andrew House, president and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, has revealed Sony’s plans on how the company will use cloud streaming service Gaikai. Sony announced that it will be acquiring Gaikai early this week.
In a press release today, Sony Computer Entertainment has announced that it will be acquiring Gaikai Inc., the world’s leading interactive cloud-based gaming company, for approximately US $380 million. With the acquisitions, “SCE will deliver a world-class cloud-streaming service that allows users to instantly enjoy a broad array of content ranging from immersive core games with rich graphics to casual content anytime, anywhere.”
