Google’s Stadia blasts past 1 million installs thanks to free offer

Looks like offering people two free months was a good idea for Stadia. Google’s service now has over 1 million installs.

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To say that Google’s Stadia was a slow starter is an understatement. The game streaming service, which allows gamers to stream games to different machines, had an incredibly sluggish start.

There are a few reasons for that, starting with the fact that the internet speeds needed for playing are out of reach for quite a few people. But beyond that, Google also has set up the service as a paid one. That might not seem like an issue for those unfamiliar, but you then also have to pay for the games that you’d stream. So you’re effectively paying for access to the games, and the games themselves.

That though, was a cost that was temporarily eradicated thanks to the company’s coronavirus initiative. Google gave homebound fans two free months of the service, along with access to a few select games, and it’s led to huge signup numbers.

According to GamesIndustry.biz, subscriptions have now exceeded one million overall. New subscribers actually had a massive boost right off the bat to get the service there too, with some 225k fresh installs the week that the promotion kicked off.

So Stadia most definitely has a chance to shine now. Will it stay that way once the free period ends? That’ll be something to watch.

Source: GamesIndustry