Google Stadia will shut down early next year, surprising those who thought it already did

Google Stadia, the troubled cloud gaming service from Google, will shut down in 2023. The service will be killed on January 18, 2023, with Google ringing the inevitable death knell today. Google will be refunding all Stadia hardware purchased via the Google Store and all games, DLC, and add-on content through the Stadia store. According to Google, the refunds will be completed in mid-January.

Related: How to get a refund on Google Stadia purchases

“A few years ago, we also launched a consumer gaming service, Stadia. Stadia vice president and GM Phil Harrison said via a blog post. “And while Stadia’s approach to streaming games for consumers was built on a strong technology foundation, it hasn’t gained the traction with users that we expected so we’ve made the difficult decision to begin winding down our Stadia streaming service.”

Harrison also stated that Google looks to apply Stadia’s technology in other areas, saying: “We see clear opportunities to apply this technology across other parts of Google like YouTube, Google Play, and our Augmented Reality (AR) efforts — as well as make it available to our industry partners, which aligns with where we see the future of gaming headed.”

Anyone can tell you that Stadia has not been the success story Google had hoped for. Since its release reveal in 2019, the service has had many public blunders that both players and the industry have found confusing or downright baffling. At launch, Google promised (ultimately unfulfilled) features such as family sharing, Stadia controller wireless support for PC and mobile, and some of its key features touted such as Crowd Play and State Share. Google also made the controversial decision to make players pay for their games full price, whilst also paying for the service that never reach the over 200 supposed countries it planned to reach. Compared to Xbox Game Pass’s price and value, it’s no surprise Stadia has struggled to gain any meaningful ground in the games industry.

About the author

Matthew Fuller

Matt is a freelance writer based in the UK and has spent over three years covering and writing about video games. He discovered his love of games journalism while attending Canterbury Christchurch University, where he earned a bachelor's and master's degree in Game Design and has been writing ever since. He will find any excuse to play and write about games. When he isn't fighting dragons or exploring far-off galaxies, he spends his free time playing D&D, listening to music, or reading a good book. His primary game bests are Diablo IV, the Final Fantasy series, D&D, and anything new releasing that tickles his fancy.

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