Are you hesitant to buy a video game? Playruo comes to your rescue! Thanks to this click-and-play service, you can test the title in seconds directly in your browser, without downloading or installation.
Cloud gaming is on the rise at the moment! Supported by giants like Microsoft with Xbox Game Pass and Nvidia with GeForce Now, this technology allows you to play video games in the cloud, without any installation, for a monthly subscription. But a French start-up has decided to take the concept further. This is Playruo, the first click-and-play offer on the market, which intends to redefine the way we play, and more precisely how we choose to buy (or not) a game. Thanks to this service, Game creators can offer Internet users instant trials of PC games directly in their Web browser, again without downloading, installing or registering. And suffice to say that the result is rather promising!
Playruo: discover a game in a few clicks
Most of the time, when we hesitate to buy a game on PC, we have two choices: either download the demo, which can take some time – and not all games offer one, far from it. there – or buy the title on Steam, install it and play it for less than two hours so that if we don’t like it, we can get a refund. So many obstacles and efforts that can postpone our purchase, or even prevent us from taking the plunge and obtaining the title in question. This is where Playruo comes in.
Contraction of Play (“to play” in French) and Ruo (“to throw” in Latin), this service allows you to play, on a limited basis, a game without having to download it, install it, or even check it. that his computer is capable of running it. There is nothing to pay: no subscription, no game, no catalog, nothing. Just click on the “Play” button to find yourself in the game in a few seconds. A way for developers to make their games more easily discovered and to help players take the plunge of purchasing. Because once we start playing, we get caught up in it very quickly. As a result, we only want to continue the game!
In short, Playruo is a new way to promote and introduce video games. “Our goal is to reinvent the way games are discovered and shared”, explains Yannis Weinbach, Product Director at Playruo. Because each interaction with a game becomes an opportunity to convert a casual player into an actual player.
Playruo: how does click-and-play work?
But how is it possible to run AAA games on a simple web browser? For this, Jean-Baptiste Kempf, one of the three founders of the company, developed Kyber technology – it was patented after two years of development. It is a low-latency streaming technology that ensures flexible, high-performance gaming sessions and is compatible with all PC games on the market. Developers simply have to provide a demo or full version of the game, and Playruo takes care of the rest! The test can be limited in time or stop at the end of a mission, depending on the studio’s wishes.
All calculations are done remotely, on servers rented from AWS (Amazon) and Google. The company plans to add suppliers over time, in order to have a wider choice. Using external solutions makes it possible to considerably reduce costs, while ensuring a flexible infrastructure, which allows them to choose servers according to the “gluttony” of the game to be run. Another advantage: going through a third party ensures that you always have a machine running at the cutting edge of technology. Because this type of equipment quickly becomes obsolete and generates significant costs, which small start-ups cannot necessarily afford. In short, it’s all good!
Playruo: an original marketing model
This click-and-play technology can have many uses. Publishers could, for example, choose to integrate access to the demo in advertising banners or on social networks. Likewise, streamers could share a direct link with their community so that they can try the title in seconds. In short, this solution could be of interest to both large behemoths and independent studios.
We were able to test Playruo on Cryptical Path, a rogue-like which will be released during the year 2024 and which allows the player to intervene directly in the creation of the dungeon in which he evolves. We were thrown into the game without delay, with high-quality graphics and almost imperceptible latency. We were in the game’s tutorial and, very quickly, were caught up in the adventure. However, it is not necessarily a title that would have attracted our attention in normal times. The fact remains that, once you have the controller in hand, you get caught up in the game. A marketing technique that can be formidable! It remains to be seen whether it will be able to find a place in a market as complex as that of video games in 2024.