As gaming hardware becomes increasingly expensive, Amazon believes more players will choose cloud gaming over buying dedicated consoles or gaming PCs, signalling a gradual shift in how games are accessed.
Jeff Gattis, Head of Gaming at Amazon, said improving streaming technology and rising hardware costs are making cloud gaming a more practical option for millions of players. While he acknowledged that many gamers will continue to prefer dedicated devices, he believes cloud gaming has significant growth potential.
Amazon has also announced that its cloud gaming platform, Luna, will now be integrated into the Prime Video app, allowing users in the US and UK to access games directly through the “Games” tab on Fire TV devices alongside movies and TV shows.
Cloud gaming allows users to stream games from remote servers using devices such as smartphones, tablets or controllers without downloading them onto a console or PC. Gattis said there are 2.5-3 billion gamers worldwide, but only a small percentage own dedicated gaming hardware. He added that as hardware prices continue to rise, more people may question whether they need an expensive gaming device.
Recent years have seen gaming hardware become costlier, with Sony and Microsoft raising console prices and Valve pricing its latest Steam Machine from £879.
Christopher Dring, Editor-in-Chief and Co-founder of The Game Business, said cloud gaming could appeal to players interested in titles such as Grand Theft Auto 6 but discouraged by expensive hardware and technical requirements. However, he noted that many premium games still require controllers and that publishers may hesitate to fully embrace subscription-based streaming because traditional game sales generate higher revenue.
Cloud gaming has faced challenges before. Google shut down Stadia in 2023 after the service failed to achieve widespread adoption. Industry experts continue to cite internet dependency, latency, inconsistent performance and the lack of a sustainable business model as key barriers.
Joost van Dreunen, Professor of Games Business at NYU Stern, said, “Gamers are willing to trade a little fidelity for convenience, but not to pay premium prices for something they don’t own which stutters when the Wi-Fi dips.” While he remains cautious about rapid adoption, he believes rising console prices could gradually encourage more players to explore cloud gaming alternatives.
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