Microsoft: Future games need cloud services to achieve cross-platform experience

In the recent game industry, the word "cloud" may be mentioned by many people, but for developers around the world, it has become a reality to provide cloud functions for their own games.

But for a studio that didn't realize the opportunity, Rob Fraser at a recent press conference as a hint.

Indeed, Fraser, the CTO of Microsoft's UK cloud service, is keen to point out that developers who do not consider taking full advantage of the cloud in the game will "miss the opportunity".

Like playing, cloud services can bring unique attractions to the game, increase participation and operating rates, and bring new business models.

Big and small

"This is very useful for big companies and small businesses," says Fraser, a cloud service that allows small independent studios to have access to a lot of feedback and tools, only to pay for the specific projects they need.

"The cloud is like Ant & Dec," Frasershuo said. "Any future device will have a cloud function, they are inseparable."

Fraser is convinced that while many people believe that the cloud is a service for sharing data between devices, there are actually more innovations in cloud applications that directly affect game play and device performance.

For example, some developers have begun experimenting with storing AI data in the cloud, accelerating performance and quality improvements.

He added that the UK developer Mediatonic has been using cloud storage data to improve the difficulty of game play for the user experience.

Different equipment

Fraser also talked about traditional online data use, such as user data handsets and analytics systems.

He spends a lot of time in Microsoft's Windows Azure Service, a cloud storage and processing service that is open to independent developers and supports in-house projects such as the TrueSkill server for Halo 4 and the Xbox Live Platform's distribution system.

Azure will be a service that allows developers to store data on any platform, from Windows 8 through Windows Phone,ios and from the Android platform.

This provides an opportunity for the gaming sharing experience between devices, and players can interact with each other on multiple platforms and even without the same operating system.

Predictably, future games will be more of a variety of gameplay forms and across multiple device platforms. For example, a racing game may be played mainly for the television experience, and other custom and startup tools may be for tablets or mobile phones.

New Play

To support this, Fraser says Microsoft has built a huge data center to support the size of up to 5,000 servers.

The service is designed for a variety of different developers, and companies only need to pay for the space they need, without much expense. Fraser points out that J.K.Rowling's Pottermore website is a success model for using this service.

But while Microsoft believes "data is important for free operations", there are comments that Microsoft's own free game still has a long way to go, let alone provide appropriate support on the Xbox platform.

It is inferred that we will experience these business models on Microsoft's next generation of hosts, which Microsoft has adopted on its mobile platform.

In fact, Fraser that the game experience across the host, mobile, flat and web platform is the future trend, but also to improve user participation in the most advantageous way.

Cloud services can provide a new game of data-sharing security, Fraser said, future games will no longer be a single mobile, host or PC platform, but multiple platforms and devices between the Cross-platform experience.

(Responsible editor: The good of the Legacy)