PC gaming is vastly becoming the go-to platform for many gamers these days, but with games getting more technically demanding, the cost of having a system to run such games is getting higher and higher. How can gamers on older, slower machines keep up? The answer is Playkey. I recently put some questions to founder and CEO Egor Gurjev about what Playkey is and how it can help those on the lower end of PCs.
First things first, what is Playkey, and how does it work? Playkey is a cloud-based service that allows those on lower spec PCs to play the latest releases. Egor explains how exactly such a thing is possible:
“Playkey uses a network of powerful gaming servers now; however, in the future the new decentralized system, will allow the users known as “miners”, to use their high-powered computers to create the new network. We run games in the cloud, which provides Playkey subscribers with a high-quality video stream of the game.”
In actuality, you are streaming a game via a higher spec PC somewhere else in the world.
This system will require at the very least a decent internet connection. This is what Egor had to say for those of us unfortunate enough to have a low end PC and poor internet connectivity speeds:
“A connection as low as 7-10mbps would be enough to provide a suitable gaming experience. However, the Playkey technology is best suited to a high-speed broadband internet connection. You could say it is a vital component as the whole video game process is streamed in real time to ensure a high-quality stream of the video game.”
Most, if not all, UK households should have an internet speed of around 18 mbps, so you will be able to use this software if you’re looking into getting started in the PC gaming scene.
Playkey has completed its initial coin offering campaign, raising over $10.5 million and is now looking to get more people involved in being the miners by offering them incentives to do so. Egor said on his plans for the technology:
“The current plan is to create an ecosystem for decentralized cloud gaming. We want to offer a service that provides advantages and benefits to all participants which will fuel growth in the number of independent service providers and our platform users. Put simply, we want to provide a resource for gamers to play the games they enjoy with ease and on any PC that is connected to the internet.”
Egor also spoke to us about the benefits of blockchain technology, which is currently revolutionising the way we look at traditional gaming. He said:
“This technology shifts the power to the consumer as they are free to transact without intermediaries and are protected by a smart contract. Ultimately, it provides gamers with more control and flexibility when it comes to their gaming experience. The entire process will become more streamlined.”
By giving power back to the consumer, it could mean that the overall cost of being a gamer could decrease as there would be less financial risk to the companies and consumers will be able to game how they like. Egor spoke of what this technology means for his company:
“We anticipate that a decentralized cloud gaming ecosystem will provide both private and professional miners with the opportunity to generate 2-3 times more revenue with a lower risk level than crypto mining. Running parallel to this, the system will decrease gaming prices for users. This means, we are able to expand the Playkey user base in unison with the number of hardware providers.”
So, if you’re interested in taking that leap into PC gaming but don’t have the cash to splash on a big machine, then Playkey could be for you.