Stadia, Google’s cloud gaming service, has, for the short time that it has been available, been accessible through a handful of devices. At first, it was limited to Google’s own Pixel smartphones before, early this year, it finally opened up to non-Pixel smartphones.
Now, the service is available on all Android smartphones, at least on an experimental basis.
The revelation is tucked away in the flood of news announcing the addition of OnePlus’ smartphones (those in the 5,6 and 7 series) but is perhaps one of the most significant since the service was announced. This is because, given the prevalence of smartphones around the world, for many, they’re the constant channel for accessing games – whether on the go or otherwise.
To go along with the expanded experimental support for all Android devices, Stadia now allows users to set resolutions for each device they are accessing it from. Previously, one could only choose one resolution for all devices, something that may not bode well for those playing from their phones and probably using mobile data as that has a bearing on the latency, a big factor when gaming (a little lag and you’re dead in a battle royale).
While it is easy to get carried away by this news, since the added support remains experimental, bugs, lots of them, can be expected and it many not be smooth-sailing for all but the few fully supported devices. Still, by using the service on such devices is when, perhaps, their users can get closer to getting full Google Stadia support in coming days. Of course, this is where we remind you that in Kenya, none of all this is guaranteed. This means that when you head to the Google Play Store, where you can officially find the Stadia app, you’ll be greeted with the rude message that none of your devices are compatible.