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Game streaming is
huge. It accounts
for epic amounts of
web traffic and is
even an integral
part of some
companies’ survival strategies. Look
no further than Nvidia’s GRID and
Game Stream technologies, plus the
meteoric rise of Twitch.tv’s traffic—
it’s now the fourth largest peak traffic
producer on the Internet, just behind
Apple and ahead of Hulu—to know
that game streaming is big business.
Billions of dollars are spent on
games every year and being able
to access them in some form from
virtually anywhere, and on any
device, is appealing to almost all
gamers. Developers are keen on the
technology, too, because they can
make their game for one platform
and stream it to almost any other.
But streaming means different
things to different people. For some
it’s broadcasting their game so fellow
players can check out their s kills.
To others, it’s running games on a
local PC, but streaming the action
to another device, like a tablet. It can
also mean playing games that live
in the cloud—no PC required. Each
of these is completely different, but
they’re all “game streaming.”
Regardless of how you define it,
there‘s a lot to consider. There are
control mechanisms, hardware
and software configurations on the
client, server, and network sides to
account for, and a myriad of possible
bottlenecks and pitfalls in between.
But fear not, we’ve got you covered.
We’ll take you through the many
methods currently available and
explain some of the issues you may
encounter along the way.
How does it work, what are the potential
problems, and who are the major players?
about game streaming and
what it means for the PC
involved in getting game
streaming “right.” At its core,
however, the concept is fairly
straightforward. When you break things
down, every game is essentially a collection
of frames displayed on-screen that are affected
by the gamer’s input. Multiple things
must happen to run and interact with that
game, but the on-screen imagery, audio, and
interaction are what are ultimately conveyed
to the gamer through the monitor, speakers,
and input devices.
It works by taking some of the game’s
frames, converting them into a video stream
on the fly, and transmitting the video out to a
remote device. The game’s control interface
and audio is also sent to the remote device,
whether it be another PC, a smartphone, or
a tablet. On some levels, streaming is like an
interactive YouTube video. Almost every device
currently available can smoothly stream
a video from a site such as YouTube. But not
every device can render and run a complex
game. By leveraging the horsepower of a
more capable machine to actually run the
game, and then converting the game feed
into a video stream, gamers can watch and/
or play their game from a different device.
Taking control
The challenges associated with game
streaming are significant, though. Modern
hardware of all types (GPUs, mobile SoCs,
CPUs and APUs, etc.) typically have the
ability to encode HD quality video in real
time with adequate frame and bit-rates, so
generating a video feed and broadcasting
it out to another device isn’t an issue for
the most part. And neither is streaming
the audio, though streamed in-game audio
tends to be sent as a stereo signal to save
on bandwidth—not multi-channel surround.
The control schemes, however, can be
tough to get right. Not only are there the
plethora of input methods to consider, such
keyboards and mice, but the lag associated
with sending/receiving inputs can make a
gamer feel disconnected from the game. If
a game stream suffers from noticeable lag,
or latency, the action on screen won’t be
affected quickly enough, and the experience
is degraded. As such, making effective
use of available bandwidth and minimizing
lag are the keys to good user experience.
Image quality is also important, of course,
but that’s easier to control by altering game
settings or increasing compression on the
video stream. Masking and minimizing lag is
far more difficult.
The game-changers
There are a multitude of companies involved
with game streaming at the moment. AMD,
Nvidia, Microsoft, Valve, Sony, and many
others are directly involved with, or are
inventing the technologies, that make game
streaming possible or will enable new use
cases in the future. Nvidia in particular
is aggressively pushing game streaming
forward on the PC, Android, and in the
cloud. In fact, Nvidia’s GRID technology is
arguably the de facto standard of most game
streaming services. GRID is available from
Amazon Web Services (AWS) and allows
companies from around the world to rent
capacity to build streaming services. GRID’s
partners currently include companies such
as G-cluster, Playcast, Gloud, Ubitus, and
others. Nvidia was also involved with Gaikai
before it was acquired by Sony
gaming possible. " Gamers flock to Twitch, some for the entertainment, others for tips and tricks. "
There are also non-gaming companies
(we use that term loosely) involved in game
streaming. Twitch.tv, for example, doesn’t
necessarily provide any gaming-related
services per say, but millions of people
stream their games to the site nonetheless.
Twitch doesn’t facilitate remote game play or
offer interaction with the game stream, over
and above chatting with the game streamer,
but gamers still flock to the site in droves.
Some visit Twitch for the entertainment
factor alone, while others use it to find tips
and tricks for their favorite game.
WHAT DO I NEED TO STREAM MY GAMES?
The specs, the network requirements, and the
game settings that will get you streaming
The hardware requirements
aren’t steep. Just like running a
game, the more processing
power behind the host machine,
the less taxing streaming will be on the system.
But assuming you’ve got the hardware
to accelerate the video encoding process
(and almost every system sold in the last few
years should), an adequate amount of memory,
and decent broadband, then a fairly
modest system will work just fine.
Both Nvidia’s Game Stream and Steam’s
In-House Streaming recommend using
a quad-core Intel CPU (or six-core AMD
processor). We’d also suggest having at
least 8GB in the system. As always, more
memory is better. The client systems have
more modest requirements, however. They
should have a GPU with built-in hardware
accelerated H.264 decoding, but just about
any modern computer or device should have
that. If you can smoothly play high-quality
HD video streams, you should be good.
Getting wired
The network requirements are a bit trickier
and arguably more important. Not only must
there be adequate bandwidth between the
game streaming host and client system, but
low latency is paramount as well. Ideally
you’d h ave a ll systems wired to the same
network via a network switch, but even a
100Mb connection would offer more than
enough bandwidth. Nvidia recommends a
10Mb/s upstream and 2Mb/s downstream,
which is nothing for a modern wired network.
Should you have to use a wireless
network, a fast, dual-band 802.11ac or
802.11n router/access point would be the
next best setup. Nvidia has even worked
with a number of partners to certify
wireless network devices as Game Stream ready
(check out http://bit.ly/11jtnC3). Also
note the clients connecting to the wireless
access point should feature matching
network controllers. It’s best to be in close
proximity to the router to ensure a strong
signal, and to employ the cleanest channel
to minimize interference. Our “Ultimate
Router Guide” (http://bit.ly/1vs9YvW) has
stacks of suggestions. Streaming outside of
your local network is possible, but you’ll be
at the mercy of your broadband provider.
Image quality
Game settings matter—lower resolution
will require less bandwidth, while turning
off vertical sync will help minimize input lag.
In-game image quality, resolution, frame
rates, and bit-rates can all usually be altered.
and finding the right balance between image
quality, bandwidth, and latency/lag is key to
a good experience.
"The balance between quality, bandwidth, and latency/lag is key"
The Shield Portable and Shield Tablet can stream from a PC or the cloud.
We’ve found that game streaming
locally is typically awesome if you meet
the minimum system requirements and
have a fast home network. Steam’s In-
Home Streaming and Nvidia’s Game Stream
on the Shield Portable and Shield Tablet
often seem just as good as playing on a
local PC. Game streaming from the cloud
isn’t always perfect, but will improve as
broadband speeds rise and more servers
are introduced into the ecosystem. As Nvidia
adds more servers, the user experience for
GRID should improve since the load will
be shared and gamers can access servers
closer to their location.
GAME STREAMING WITH STEAM, NVIDIA, AND AMD
Setting up made simple
Although they have some features in
common, there are fundamental differences
between Valve’s, Nvidia’s, and AMD’s current
solutions. Steam, for example, can stream
games between systems on a local network
that are capable of running the Steam client
(currently available for Windows, Linux, and
OSX). Nvidia’s GameStream technology can
stream games from a PC to an Nvidia Shield
device on a local network or across the web,
provided there’s enough bandwidth available
and the latency is acceptable. Nvidia also
gives owners of its Shield devices access to
the company’s GRID service to stream PC
games directly from the cloud, though the
service is still in beta. AMD’s Gaming Evolved
utility (by Raptr) doesn’t have any built-in
mechanism for streaming games to other
devices, but it can stream and record in game
action for remote viewing on Twitch.
TV. We should note that Nvidia’s GeForce
Experience app with ShadowPlay support
can also record and stream in-game action,
but we’re not going to cover that here.
Steam in-home
Streaming
Using Steam’s In-Home Streaming is
incredibly simple. All you need to do is run
the Steam client on systems connected
to the same local network and log in with
the same account on all of the machines.
The host machine, as in the machine that
actually houses and runs the games, must
be a Windows-based PC at this time. When
you log into the client machines, the option
to stream games from the host will be
available in the game library. Simply click
on the streaming icon for that game and
you’ll be off and running. Should you need
to tweak the game stream for any reason,
Valve offers a number of suggestions on its
support site (http://bit.ly/1cZRUdF).
Nvidia GameStream
Streaming your PC games to an Nvidia Shield
device is also relatively straightforward
if you meet the necessary requirements.
You’ll need to have an Nvidia GeForce GTX branded
graphics card installed in the host
machine, powered by a Kepler or Maxwell based
GPU. Game Stream (and GRID) uses
Nvidia’s hardware H.264 video encoder
to encode and stream in real-time inside
the GPU as a game is being rendered. This
encoder is only available on Nvidia Kepler
and Maxwell GPUs. You’ll also need to have
Nvidia’s GeForce Experience application
installed and running on the host PC. The
GeForce Experience application will scan
the system for compatible games and offer a
list of suggested settings for the best game
streaming experience. On the Shield device,
all you have to do is access the Shield hub.
In the menu on the left, an option labeled
“My PC Games” will be listed. Select “My
PC Games” and your Shield will scan the
network and present the list of compatible
games available in the GFE application.
Also note that Nvidia gives users the
ability to stream games outside of their
home network as well. Nvidia recommends
Internet bandwidth of 10Mb/s from your PC
down to Shield and 2Mb/s from Shield up to
your PC. The streaming experience will vary
depending on the quality of the connection,
but it is possible.
" Nvidia gives users the ability to stream games outside of their home network. "
AMD Gaming evolved
Have an AMD GPU and want to stream
your in-game activities to Twitch.tv? No
problem. The AMD Game Evolved utility by
Raptr, which gets installed as part of AMD’s
Catalyst driver suite, has the ability to record
and stream to Twitch built right in.
First you’ll need an account on Twitch.
Once you’ve created an account, run the
AMD Gaming Evolved app and click on the
Broadcast button on the main interface.
You’ll be asked to log into Twitch—do that,
then minimize the app. When you run a
game, the Raptr overlay should be visible in
the upper-left corner (if not, exit the game,
access the Raptr preferences and enable
under the “In-Game” menu). Then all you
have to do is hit Page Up + B when in a game,
give your stream a name, and then click the
Start Streaming button.
The speed/quality of your broadband
connection plays a large part in determining
the quality of your stream. If you need (or
want) to alter the bit-rate, resolution, or
frame rate of the stream to improve quality
or smoothness, they can be changed via the
Twitch menu in the Raptr preferences menu.
CAN I STREAM MY GAMES?
Which games will work, and on which devices?
There are no hard and fast
rules to determine which
games are best suited to
streaming, but there are
some guidelines to follow to minimize
frustration. If you’re streaming from
one PC to another PC (or another device
with a mouse and keyboard), the
network is arguably the most important
link in the chain, because the
control scheme is identical. For best
results, the host PC should be wired.
If that’s not possible, the wireless
connection needs to be strong and
reliable—an 802.11n or 802.11ac
5GHz router/access point should be a
requirement, though a good 802.11g
router will technically work as well.
The game’s preferred input method
is also a major consideration.
Nvidia has a huge list of games posted
online that it’s certified as compatible
with its Game Stream technology
(http://bit.ly/1wJigAm), which also
illustrates what types of controllers
are supported. What you’ll find is that
many games support multiple controllers,
but a particular type would
be ideal for certain games. For example,
shooters work best with a mouse
and keyboard or maybe a game
controller, but they’re less suited to
touchscreens. Conversely, racing
and sports games are perfectly playable
with a game controller or touchscreen,
but a keyboard and mouse
aren’t quite as intuitive.
Testing times
Then again, preferred input methods
are subjective. Less subjective is
our tolerance for latency. When the
latency between the game server (the
system running the game) and client
(the one receiving the stream) is too
high, the experience won’t be good.
Ultimately, the games best suited
to streaming are those compatible
and playable with multiple controller types.
"Shooters work best
with a mouse and
keyboard, they’re less
suited to touchscreens."
Game Stream and In-Home
Streaming are compatible with a wide
range of titles in all genres, but game
streaming isn’t universally possible
across all games and systems/
devices.
THE FUTURE OF GAME STREAMING
Could single-platform games
become a thing of the past?
For game streaming to go mainstream
and become one of the
preferred methods for gamers
to get their fix, many things
need to improve. Should all of the stars
align though, there could be serious implications
for the PC gaming industry. By its
very nature, game streaming somewhat
negates the need for gamers to own their
own powerful PC or game console. A system
of some sort capable of actually running
the game must be available at some
stage of the pipeline—most likely in the
cloud—but the gamer’s device receiving the
stream need only have the ability to connect
to a network, accept user input, and playback
the game video.
Theoretically, streaming games from the
cloud could obliterate the consumer addin
GPU market. So, you’d think AMD and
Nvidia would despise the technology, but
they don’t. GPUs are still needed to render a
game, whether it be local or in the cloud. And
ideally, each game being streamed would
have adequate GPU resources allocated to
render it in the highest quality and for each
gamer connected to the service. To that end
both AMD and Nvidia have developed boards
strictly for use in game streaming servers
that can be virtualized to support multiple
game instances simultaneously.
So, even though streaming could
cannibalize local PC gaming, there’s still
huge potential for GPU makers and a need
for significant GPU resources. They just
may not live under your desk in the future—
they’ll be in the cloud.
The cloud’s the limit
When we asked Nvidia how it sees game
streaming evolving in the future, it answered
with, “Nvidia is committed to giving users as
many choices with their games as we can.
We are gamers; we enjoy games on many
different platforms and usage models.
We want to give Nvidia customers choices:
they can enjoy local PC games on their own
GeForce PC, they can stream the games they
own using Game Stream, or they cannot even
own a PC and stream games from GRID to
a Shield.” And that’s really the crux of the
issue and why game streaming is being
actively pursued by so many players. Game
streaming could ultimately give gamers
more choice and developers more flexibility.
"Streaming games from the cloud could
obliterate the consumer
add-in GPU market."
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