The Google Stadia streaming service is officially shutting down, and while users will be getting refunded for their purchases, they will be losing access to their games. The writing has been on the wall for Google Stadia for some time, with rumors cropping up a few months ago that the service was looking to shut down. The official Stadia social media came out to deny those claims, but now it's officially happening.
The bad news is that Google Stadia users will be losing access to the games and DLC that they've purchased through the service or claimed through Stadia's free games program. The good news is that Google will at least be refunding Stadia users for all their purchases made through the Google Store, with most of those refunds expected to be finalized by mid-January 2023. That will coincide with the service's shut down date, as Google has confirmed that Stadia will be shutting down on January 18, 2023.
The Stadia technology will still be used by Google, with the technology set to be implemented across YouTube, Google Play, and Augmented Reality projects. Google also plans on making Stadia technology available to other gaming companies. "Many" employees who have been working with the Stadia team will be relocated to other departments at Google.
Google Stadia Shut Down Date
- January 18, 2023
Google Stadia came out swinging with a solid launch line-up of well-received multi-platform titles like Destiny 2, Mortal Kombat 11, Red Dead Redemption 2, and others. The Stadia launch games also included exclusive game GYLT, which is a more family-friendly twist on the survival-horror genre. GYLT earned mixed reviews at the time of its release, but there may still be those who will want to check out the game. Unfortunately, GYLT ports for other platforms have not been announced at the time of this writing despite Stadia shutting down.
Google giving gamers refunds for Stadia hardware and software they purchased is great, but there are may still be those who are upset about losing access to their games. It serves as a grim reminder about the downside of digital gaming. There's always the chance that these companies could shut down their online services, and in turn cause gamers to lose access to their gaming libraries.
Stadia's vision of a console-less, cloud gaming future was ambitious, but it seems gamers weren't ready to make the leap. Cloud gaming will continue to be a part of the conversation, however, with it being a key feature of services like Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Plus.