Streaming game service OnLive is back, with new CloudLife and OnLive Go

Posted March 7, 201410 yr

OnLive is the game service that lets Mac users play games that haven't been released for the Mac yet. The service works by streaming instances of the game remotely through OnLive's cloud service, making it playable on Macs, PCs and Android tablets.

OnLive made a big splash at its announcement in 2009, even launching its own set top box console that enabled OnLive players to play on their TV. But by 2012 the company had crashed and burned, laying off employees and entering into an "Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors" (a bankruptcy alternative) which saw it handed off to VC firm Lauder Partners. Now the company is back, this time with two new services called CloudLift and OnLive Go.

CloudLift is a new subscription-based service priced at $14.99 per month. You can access games you've already downloaded from the cloud, playing them anywhere. It works on select games you already own, and you can also buy download codes (available for separate purchase) from OnLive.

OnLive Go is a new service aimed at massively multiplayer online (MMO) game operators, providing OnLive-style cloud-based streaming to low-end computers and tablets that otherwise might not be able to play the game. OnLive Go is in open beta with Second Life, the virtual world from Linden Lab. The company's also announced a partnership with Gaijin Entertainment, makers of War Thunder.

For users concerned with OnLive's ability to deliver, the company said it's made major infrastructure investments, with new data centers in Chicago and Seattle and expanded footprints and upgraded hardware in existing data centers in Virginia, San Francisco, Dallas and Luxembourg.