Amazon has revealed in a recent announcement that they’ll be trying their luck in the cloud gaming competition by announcing Luna, its very own cloud gaming service.
Luna is comparable to Google Stadia, although they differ in the fact that while Google Stadia allows you to play games after you purchase them individually, Luna users will be able to access games by subscribing to what Amazon calls “channels.”
For instance, subscribing to the Luna+ channel will offer various games you can play, such as Resident Evil 7, Control, Panzer Dragoon, A Plague Tale: Innocence, Grid, as well as Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair.
Other channels are currently in development, such as a Ubisoft channel that will give you access to games such as Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Far Cry 6, and Immortals Fenyx Rising as soon as they launch.
In a recent announcement, Ubisoft also reveals its plans for its partnership with Luna. Not only with there be new releases featured in their designated Ubisoft channel, but you will also find their older games as well.
https://twitter.com/Ubisoft/status/1309227192161898510?s=20
Luna will be able to support your regular and conventional controllers, as well as a mouse and keyboard setup. However, if you want the full Luna experience, the streaming service also has its own, Alexa-enabled controller that is capable of directly connecting to the cloud so that you can play your games with ease.
In Ubisoft’s announcement, they also further discuss how the system works with Alexa. Basically, you can use Alexa the same way you would normally use it for, let’s say, Prime Video. You can request it to play a certain game and it will open up the game for you.
Amazon also boasts that the controller has “a multiple-antenna design that prioritizes un-interrupted wifi for lower latency gaming.” Sounds pretty cool.
As a matter of fact, the tests that Amazon has done show “a reduction in roundtrip latency” when they tried comparing the “Luna Controller with Cloud Direct vs. Luna Controller via Bluetooth.”
Another great reason to use the Luna Controller instead is the fact that, as mentioned, it connects directly to the cloud servers. In other words, you will be able to effortlessly switch between different screens, like mobile to Fire TV and vice versa, with no extra configuration needed.
Luna will also be able to support 1080/60fps graphics, while 4K support for only a certain set of titles is in the works. Of course, Luna will also be intertwined with Twitch i.e. players will be able to check out game streams in Luna. Not only that, but you can also start up Luna games within Twitch itself.
Now, let’s talk about pricing. The Luna+ channel will be available for $6 a month throughout the early phase of Luna. As for the Ubisoft channel, no price has been set for that just yet.
Interestingly enough, different channels won’t offer the same set of features. For example, Luna+ subscribers will be able to stream games on two different devices at the same time. That is if they have the bandwidth capacity to do so. The Ubisoft channel, on the other hand, will only allow you to stream on one device.
US-based Amazon customers can now request early access to Luna.
