What you need to know
- NVIDIA GeForce Now is a cloud gaming service powered by NVIDIA's high-end RTX GPUs.
- During CES 2023, NVIDIA announced that GeForce Now's Ultimate tier will be moving to the RTX 4080 platform.
- This means support for up to 240 FPS while streaming games, with DLSS 3 and full RTX ray-traced visuals.
- NVIDIA is also working with car manufacturers like Hyundai and Polestar to bring GeForce Now to cars.
Cloud gaming is an excellent way to game wherever you are, and NVIDIA's GeForce Now is one of the most impressive services currently available. Powered by NVIDIA's industry-leading RTX GPUs, GeForce Now lets users stream well over a thousand different games, and it's about to get a major performance upgrade and become available in new places.
Announced by NVIDIA during CES 2023, GeForce Now is making the jump to the immensely capable NVIDIA RTX 4080 GPU, allowing players subscribed to the service's most premium "Ultimate" tier to take advantage of the latest NVIDIA technologies. With the 4080 in tow, players will be able to stream games at the highest settings, up to a staggering 240 FPS, with DLSS 3 and full-fledged RTX ray-tracing on board.
NVIDIA is promising improved visuals and reduced latency with the introduction of the RTX 4080. GeForce Now is also gaining frame-pacing technology when used in its 240 FPS mode, allowing varied streaming rates to further reduce input latency.
NVIDIA GeForce Now gained support for up to 120 FPS in Aug. 2022, and it's already upping the ante significantly alongside its major power boost. The Ultimate tier, which is $19.99 a month or $99.99 every six months, is already powered by the still-impressive RTX 3080. Current subscribers will be upgraded to the RTX 4080-powered servers when they become available starting later this month in North America and Europe.
In other news, GeForce Now will also become available in more places, as NVIDIA is partnering with several car manufacturers to bring the cloud gaming service to your vehicle. Hyundai, which also owns the Kia and Genesis brands, and Polestar will count among the first manufacturers to include NVIDIA GeForce Now in their vehicles, allowing users to stream hundreds of their favorite PC games when away from home (and presumably when at a stop).
Windows Central take — Making cloud gaming better and more accessible
I recently wrote about how I finally believe in the dream of Xbox Cloud Gaming, after reviewing one of the first cloud gaming-focused devices in the Logitech G Cloud (which also supports NVIDIA GeForce Now). I'm interested in seeing the space continue to evolve, and NVIDIA certainly has one of the most interesting solutions.
Rather than paying for a service that provides the games over the cloud, NVIDIA lets you stream the games you already own on Steam, the Epic Games Store, GOG, and more via its own servers. This is how GeForce Now supports over 1,500 PC games, including some of the most popular titles in the world, and can stream those games at the very best settings — as the NVIDIA RTX 4080 is significantly more powerful than any console, including the Xbox Series X. It's great to see NVIDIA invest more into GeForce Now, and for the service to already begin supporting the company's latest generation of gaming technologies.
I'm a little more dubious about the usefulness of cloud gaming in vehicles, but NVIDIA isn't the first to attempt this. Teslas recently gained the ability to play Steam games, and Windows Central's Sean Endicott believes that the feature isn't as stupid as it may seem at first glance. Either way, I'll be interested to see if GeForce Now in vehicles is what the service needs to really hit the mainstream.
