14 DAY TRIAL // Gaikai and Electronic Arts have recently announced that they have entered into a multi-year licensing agreement that will enable the video streaming of some of the PC games published by EA to any Internet browser through Gaikai's technology. Electronic Arts is the first publisher to make this kind of agreement with Dave Perry's unusual digital distribution service.
The franchises that are mentioned in the press release that accompanies the announcement are The Sims, Battlefield: Bad Company, Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Medal of Honor, and Need for Speed. The games will be available on any Internet terminal equipped with a normal web browser, from Windows PCs to Macs or even iPads.
Dave Perry, the chief executive officer of Gaikai, is quoted as saying that, “EA has some of the most important franchises in the video game industry, and we're excited to be able to use our streaming technology to help new audiences discover these amazing properties. We are also excited to be powering a cutting-edge digital strategy with EA developers.”
Gaikai is a digital distribution service that is based on cloud-computing, similar to what OnLive is trying. The big difference here is that the games available from Gaikai will be playable directly through a browser with no installs needed either for the title one wants to play, or for Gaikai. This is achieved through live video and audio streaming of the title's contents to the users, while they input commands like they would in a normal situation.This gives the option to embed the game in a website's interface, removing the need for unnecessary links.
The move is said to deliver advantages to both consumers and publishers, as it will cut down the prices of titles, while removing the concern for piracy, as users never get to play with a copy of the titles’ code. Gaikai is currently in beta stage, with the launch expected to happen sometime this year in North America and Europe.