A recent Reddit post in the Google Stadia community went viral, calling attention to what they describe as a 40-day drought from the service. The post claimed that Google hadn't made a game announcement or release, a feature update, or a "real community update" for almost six weeks. Google has now responded, offering up a statement in reply to an official request. Google doesn't apologize or insinuate that any change will occur, but rather states it "understands" and is "excited to share more" soon.
To start, Google refutes the idea that it isn't providing community updates and notes that it provides weekly updates on the official Stadia forum. It also posts monthly recaps on the official Google Keyword blog. Regarding features, Google doesn't bring up the subject. And as for games, Google isn't able to make any specific promises. "We understand the desire to hear more specifics on the games," is how Google starts its train of thought. However, it doesn't have any plans that it's able to share at the time being.
Instead of sharing plans, Google tries to provide context for the current content drought. Referring to its previously announced 120 upcoming Stadia games in 2020, Google says it's up to publishers when to make announcements. "There are a lot of reasons for the time of those game announcements," Google notes. While it isn't explicitly said, Google's perhaps acknowledging that late December and January are often slow windows for news and announcements.
Google also acknowledges that it has 10 exclusive games of its own coming to Stadia. "We are excited to share more about some of the exclusive games coming to Stadia soon," is all Google's willing to offer, however. Google has fewer excuses here, since it's able to decide when and how it reveals these games. As such, Google chose to leave this window without announcements, instead choosing to save them for later.
Shortly after the Reddit thread went viral, Google did announce the free February games it would be giving to Stadia Pro members. It's not much, but it's something. The free games aren't likely to sate frustrated early adopters. They're still left wondering about Stadia features like 4K mode for browsers, iOS support, family sharing, and, still yet, games. Google still has a lot of work to do before it opens Stadia up to the public. Its response to frustrations doesn't seem likely to help.
Google Stadia Pro is available now exclusively for Google Stadia Founder's and Premiere Edition owners.
Source: GamesIndustry.biz, Reddit