Google Stadia's launch has gone surprisingly smoothly, with the service not having any major technical issues or controversies. However, that hasn't helped with the service's popularity, as games like Destiny 2 show that communities are shrinking. What Google Stadia needs is a boost of excitement, which it appears to be in preparation to do. According to Google, the company plans on releasing over 10 games in the next six months that will be available exclusively through Stadia.
2020 is going to be Google Stadia's big year, the company has revealed. While the limited release in 2019 was nothing to be disappointed in, 2020 will show Google's determination to remain a competitive gaming platform. Google announced via press release that in 2020 over 120 games are going to be brought to the Stadia service. Of those 120 games, at least 10 will be exclusives to the platform. And better yet, those 10 games will all launch in the first half of 2020.
Google doesn't have any specific announcements about Stadia's exclusives to make at this time, unfortunately. That means that while the idea of 10 exclusives is exciting, Stadia users still don't know what games or even what kinds of games to expect. For all Stadia users know, the games could be mobile game-sized titles from unknown developers. On the other hand, they might include some of Google's own in-house developed AAA games. The potential is there, but Stadia still has much to prove.
Currently, Google Stadia only has one exclusive game available on the streaming service. That game is named Gylt and it's developed by Tequila Works. It is a horror game and while it's very interesting visually, Gylt has a disappointing 68 rating on Metacritic. As it stands, Gylt shows just how much Stadia has left to prove when it comes to getting exciting exclusives brought to the platform.
Another question that needs to be answered by Google soon is when the free-to-use version of Stadia will become available. Google's previously said that a free version of Stadia that streams at 1080 will be launched in 2020, but no specific details are available. With 10 exclusives coming to the platform, there are a lot of potential Stadia users who will be put off by the idea of spending $129 on a Google Stadia Premiere Edition for access to the platform in addition to the costs of each individual game. Having the free 1080p service available would make it immediately more attractive.
Google Stadia game streaming is available now with the purchase of the $129 Stadia Premiere Edition.