A failure from gaming’s future

Logitech has by no means been a serious participant within the Android ecosystem, however for its first large shot it’s hitching its cart to the expansion of cellular cloud gaming. The Logitech G Cloud is a $350 Android-powered sport machine with entry to all of the content material within the Play Retailer, and extra importantly, optimization for cloud gaming on GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Sadly, whereas the G Cloud does supply loads of methods to play, and the controls really feel very refined, however it casts such a large internet that it fails to excel at something. Google crashed and burned making an attempt to make Stadia work, however different cloud companies are including new video games and subscribers on a regular basis. If cloud gaming is the longer term (and I personally suppose that it’s) it’d make sense to have a devoted piece of {hardware} for streaming high-end video games — however not this piece of {hardware}.

About this text: I purchased the Logitech G Cloud for my very own use and examined it for round one month.

The Logitech G Cloud is roughly the identical dimension and form because the Nintendo Change. Nevertheless, it’s really a bit extra comfy to carry, because of the extra hand-friendly form. It’s all laborious plastic, although the feel on the again makes it extra grippy. The management structure is in-line with nearly any sport controller on the earth proper now — you have got a pair of thumbsticks, a shoulder button and set off on either side, a D-pad, and a cluster of ABXY buttons on the face. There’s additionally a {hardware} dwelling button, in addition to a “G button” on the other aspect. Sadly, the G button is woefully underutilized. It opens the Xbox Cloud Gaming menu while you’re in a sport, however that seems to be it.

The thumbsticks are asymmetrical, just like the Change, with the same motion vary. The shorter stalks imply they’re a bit much less exact than an Xbox or PlayStation controller, however they really feel very clean and durable. The remainder of the buttons are equally steady, and the triggers have simply the correct quantity of journey and resistance. Total, the G Cloud feels nice within the hand.

The 7-inch 1080p show isn’t the sharpest or brightest (it tops out at 450 nits), however it’s an inexpensive alternative for this system. It’s unlikely you’ll discover a cloud or Android sport that actually advantages from a better decision display, and I don’t see many individuals utilizing this system outdoor the place you’re much less prone to discover a robust Wi-Fi sign — that’s an absolute necessity for streaming video games. Likewise, a refresh price greater than 60Hz might need been good to have, however it’s not definitely worth the battery hit when so few video games are going to profit. And weirdly for a cloud-first sport machine, there’s no Wi-Fi 6 or 6E assist.

The G Cloud runs on Android 11, which is now two variations outdated. It’s really a bit stunning Google allowed this system to be licensed with such an outdated construct of the OS, however it has the Play Retailer and all the same old Google apps. Though, you may not understand it’s Android in any respect should you use Logitech’s default launcher.

The G Cloud UI is clunky, nearly fully obscuring tried and true Android interface options just like the notification shade and on-screen navigation. The launcher exhibits apps in a timeline structure, however the listing always modifications as apps begin and cease within the background. You possibly can’t even multitask — making an attempt to open a second app prompts you to shut the primary one. For those who swap to pill mode, the G Cloud behaves in a extra typical Android means, however the {hardware} controls are largely ineffective, and there are extra UI glitches. The software program is an actual weak spot, however it’s one that’s hypothetically fixable with updates.

Logitech’s software program chops are definitely missing, however it is aware of learn how to construct dependable {hardware}. The closest analog within the Android area by way of model identify recognition may be the venerable Protect Transportable, which launched means again in 2013. The controls and {hardware} high quality had been equally glorious on that system, however the kind issue was very chunky by comparability. In some methods, the G Cloud is the Protect sequel I desperately wished for a time within the years following the unique’s launch. Though, the time for this strategy to cellular gaming might have come and gone.

Normally, packing highly effective {hardware} right into a gaming handheld is an effective factor — the G Cloud has a Snapdragon 720G, which is beefy sufficient to play high-end Android video games at 1080p. Nevertheless, cloud gaming is meant to be the main target of a tool with “Cloud” in its identify, however there’s no cellular knowledge possibility. The result’s a handheld that straddles two worlds and fails to dominate in both.

The very fact is, bodily controllers aren’t crucial in Android video games anymore. The previous decade has seen cellular gadgets converge on the flat glass slab kind issue, and contact controls in video games have develop into a lot better — or folks have at the least gotten used to them (in 2020, solely a 3rd of AA readers used a controller). Take Fortnite, for instance. It turned the preferred cellular sport on the earth even earlier than it gained controller assist in 2019. So, having a standalone handheld for Android video games appears a bit pointless.

On the cloud gaming aspect, the G Cloud has rather more juice than it must stream video games. All you technically want for cloud gaming is sufficient energy to decode a high-resolution video stream with out introducing an excessive amount of lag. The Snapdragon 720G chipset within the G Cloud is overkill and should have performed a consider unnecessarily inflating the worth. And that’s what finally spells “sport over” for the G Cloud — the $350 price ticket is solely unjustifiable. There are different Android handhelds on the earth from manufacturers like Anbernic, Retroid, Ayn, and extra, and whereas they aren’t as refined, the G Cloud remains to be a worse worth.

The G Cloud’s worth proposition might need been stronger if Stadia wasn’t headed to the gallows. Google’s streaming tech is incredible, and it will have been good to apply it to the G Cloud. I’ve to suppose that when Logitech started designing this system, it moderately anticipated Stadia would nonetheless exist in late 2022. Now, we’re left with GeForce Now and Xbox because the market leaders, neither of that are nearly as good as Stadia — at the least in my expertise. They appear to get extra slowed down during times of excessive utilization, and regardless of having a lot wider sport libraries, they aren’t as user-friendly.

For individuals who are extraordinarily into emulators for traditional video games, the G Cloud may make a tiny bit extra sense. It handles nearly all video games up by means of the N64 period with aplomb, however emulation usually requires tinkering to get video games working completely, and Logitech’s clunky software program solely makes that extra irritating. Although the actual fact it might probably’t play extra demanding Gamecube video games — a typical benchmark for Android heldhelds — with out instant hiccups could also be a deal-breaker for hobbyists.

For those who’re going so as to add one other cellular system to your arsenal, it must do one thing your cellphone can’t — the G Cloud fails at that. The one particular win for Logitech is the battery life, which may hit 10-12 hours. However for $350?

The very fact of the matter is, the Logitech G Cloud doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Regardless of its stable controls and battery life, it’s not priced competitively. For simply $50 extra, you will get the Steam Deck, which performs PC video games from Steam’s library, can run basically each emulator you may consider, and presents cloud gaming by way of the browser. If Valve’s handheld is simply too cumbersome or fast to expire of juice, there’s the Nintendo Change for $50 lower than the G Cloud. Nintendo’s video games may not be as superior as what you may stream over GeForce Now or Xbox, however the choice is worlds higher than native Android video games, and Nintendo already dabbles in cloud variations of some tough-to-port video games.

Even should you don’t have a kind of sport machines, you already personal a tool that’s nearly as succesful for gaming because the G Cloud: your cellphone. Slap a mount on an Xbox controller, pair it over Bluetooth, and your cellphone could possibly be a good higher gaming hub than the G Cloud. The expertise can even be higher in relation to managing apps with out Logitech’s hamfisted Android modifications getting in the way in which. As an additional advantage, your cellphone will get cellular knowledge, which theoretically permits you to stream video games away from Wi-Fi (even when 5G is usually nonetheless falling in need of the blazing speeds we had been promised).

Players are programmed to hunt out one of the best specs, however that’s not what issues in cloud gaming. Logitech gave the G Cloud extra energy than it wants for streaming, and Razer is about to go even additional with the Edge and its Snapdragon G3X Gen 1 chip. To me, this looks like a mistake. Producers ought to go the opposite technique to make a Chromecast-equivalent handheld — one thing light-weight and dumb that streams video games with out breaking the financial institution. In any other case, it is best to simply use your cellphone.