GeForce Now gets GeForce RTX 5080-powered servers worldwide

Less than a decade since its introduction as a beta, and slightly over a decade after the first public release, Nvidia GeForce Now has managed to dominate the cloud gaming service market. The Windows and macOS versions have just received a new update, which is labeled 2.0.78 and is not listed in the official release highlights page.

Since I applied the update to my Windows 10 machine earlier today, I can share the details displayed by the GeForce Now app in the aftermath of the software refresh. The two highlights mentioned here are improvements to Meta Quest headsets and bug fixes. In detail, Nvidia shared that GeForce Now 2.0.78 brings Blackwell RTX to all markets, providing GeForce RTX 5080-class gaming to everyone with a subscription that provides access to this hardware tier. When talking about the changes affecting GeForce Now users who use Meta Quest headsets, the list of supported hardware devices now has the ability to use keyboard and mouse for VR gaming.

In addition to the above, GeForce Now 2.0.78 also comes with "general stability and performance improvements," as usual. To enjoy GeForce RTX 5080 gaming, the Ultimate subscription is needed. Its annual cost is $199.99, while the Performance tier is half its price. Obviously, the Ultimate subscription has its unique perks, such as 4K max resolution and up to 8-hour-long sessions. The free tier is severely limited, with gaming sessions up to one hour, 1080p maximum resolution, as well as ads.

We also did some early testing, running Borderlands 4 via Team Green's game streaming service, and the notoriously hard-to-run title delivered around 120 fps, with the combination of QHD+ resolution, badass (ultra) settings, and DLSS Quality working in tandem with 2x Frame Generation on the RedMagic Astra. For a bit more of a tactile feel, we added Razer's Kishi V3 Pros ($149.99 on Amazon), and while this might not be the ideal setup for the hardcore shooter enthusiast, for a more casual test run of the looter-shooter's 4th iteration, Geforce Now delivered an enjoyable experience.