Always trust what you see on Facebook, right?
RIP Stadia? More like Stadia’s ripping some troll a new one. Between the ardent fans of Google’s cloud gaming platform and the cynics who just want to see a Goliath admit defeat, there’s no shortage of The Discourse™ happening around it. Of course, there’s talk and then there’s rumor mongering: this week, two random posts from one user in a Stadia fan group on Facebook proclaiming the imminent death of Stadia had gotten some circulation in the gaming press. All that negative attention seems to have perked up Google’s snark.
The post was highlighted by the Twitter account Killed by Google on Thursday. We weren’t able to independently confirm the source of the text, but for what it’s worth, here’s what the user said:
Heads up:
Old coworker and friend of mine, Is now one of the regional managers for Google. He’s actually the one who got me started with Stadia. They had a pretty large employee/retail seminar in California this past weekend, and long story short Google is beginning their exit plan. They did not have an exact date that end of service will happen, but they did say by the end of summer. He also mentioned that they will not be transferring their services or servers to any other competition per se, and it will be much like they did with “Google Play Music”
Same exit approach and strategy
I’m obviously not as big as a fan as some of you, but you guys have always been super cool and helpful so I thought I’d return the favor and give you a heads up.
[…]
There were a few other details I could post if you would like but nothing too groundbreaking. I do believe he also mentioned that all members would be informed 30-60 days before, and that the last month of service will be refunded and no charge for it’s usage.
Also, any available subscription months will be a refunded fully to your linked bank account.
I will speak to him tonight and ask any questions you may have.
Thanks again guys.
Blessings.
Word quickly spread around with questions, replies, and news stories being written up.
Google responded to furore on Friday with a tweet to one concerned user.
So, where was all the drama coming from? A later post from a moderator of the Facebook group was shared on Twitter where he cited the user comments as coming from one “Donny Jepp” who had been “making snide posts about Stadia for months” and was banned.
Still, there never should be a lost opportunity for some dunking. In promoting a free-to-play weekend for adventure platformer Wavetale, Google Stadia posted this tweet:
Don’t get me wrong: Stadia has failed to overcome multiple structural hurdles and has had to pivot time and again to avoid being cast as a loss-leader spiraling into obscurity. It’s still vying for the confidence of its stakeholders from the players to the studios to even those inside of Google. Add to that the prospect of rough waters for the global economy and you realize there’s a lot of stuff sat under a quad-color axe, attached to the ceiling only by a thread.
But man, if you’re not enjoying the ridiculous play-by-play right now, you don’t know how to have fun while you’ve got it.
