Google Stadia: Everything you need to know

While only one new game made it to Stadia this week, the platform did see the arrival of the Alien Conspiracy Battle Pass for Crayta as well as gaining support for the new online multiplayer mode for Ubisoft’s Watch Dogs: Legion.

Many Stadia players on iOS are unable to play games this morning as issues arise with games refusing to load and controllers being non-responsive.

Update: According to Google the issue has now been fixed.

The latest Alpha update for Xbox One and Series consoles updates the Microsoft Edge browser to the more recent version based on Google’s Chromium, and players have already found a way to run Stadia.

One of the strangest features to be missing from Stadia for Android is the ability to join voice chat. Stadia app version 3.5 moves another big step closer to party chat on Android, while Project Hailstorm dissipates.

With Stadia set to lack any first-party exclusives moving forward, the torch has been passed to third-party titles and developers moving forward. PixelJunk Raiders is one such “exclusive” that leverages the unique solutions that only Stadia can currently offer — namely State Share.

For March 2021, Google is adding four games to Stadia Pro in a continuation from last month. Led by PixelJunk Raiders, AVICII Invector and PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle are other free incoming titles.

After publicly announcing the closure of Stadia Games & Entertainment, continued reports have revealed further details about what the studio was working out. Apparently, now-canceled first-party projects from Stadia included a multiplayer action game known as “Frontier,” a sequel to Journey to the Savage Planet 2, and an exclusive game from the legendary Kojima.

This month has been… something, for Stadia fans. Between closing its studios, new exclusives, questionable updates, a possible lawsuit, some new games and 100 more promised, and one incredibly damaging report, being a user of Google’s gaming platform has never been more of a wild ride. It’s clear that Stadia is not in a great place right now, and it’s got us thinking, what could Stadia have done differently during its first full year?

A new report has detailed some of the circumstances that may have led to the closure of Stadia Games & Entertainment, including missed user targets and the developers’ desire to launch in beta.

For better or worse there has been a ton to unpack for cloud gaming wholesale as we leave the second month of 2021 behind us. Even if you’re feeling positive, from afar it may look very much like the writing is on the wall for Google’s premiere gaming platform, which — sadly — makes February 2021 yet another eventful month for Stadia.

The PixelJunk series from Q-Games spans a wide variety of genres and an even wider assortment of consoles. Now the series is making its Stadia debut with PixelJunk Raiders, an exclusive 3D roguelike that deeply integrates State Share as a core feature of the game.

It’s been a pretty quiet week for Google Stadia, with no new games, but we did get info on a coming expansion for Marvel’s Avengers focused on Hawkeye, a big update for Assassin’s Creed, and more.

At the start of February, we were shocked when Google announced the end of its efforts to run in-house game development studios, and as it turns out, the developers were just as surprised. Just days before the public announcement, Stadia General Manager Phil Harrison sent a mass email to Stadia Games & Entertainment (SG&E) employees, commending them for “great progress” so far.