AirConsole claims to be cloud-gaming but for Xbox, PS4 or Switch titles

Google and Apple have implemented their own Stadia and Arcade streaming services in an attempt to leverage the massive expansion in mobile gaming, which has seen further booms in the Covid-19 era. AirConsole is a service that also integrates a user's mobile device into its product; however, in this case, the games are console titles.

The company claims to be the first to offer games from the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4 or Xbox via a web-based portal. It apparently only needs no hardware besides what the user already has to hand. AirConsole boasts approximately 160 console games, including Death Squared (Switch/PS4/Steam) and No Heroes Here (Switch/PS4/Xbox/Steam).

AirConsole has also announced compatibility with Android TV, thereby "offering more convenience than ever before". It claims to have grown its usage by 500% during the pandemic era, with an average of 65 minutes' worth of playtime with 3 users for every main screen. It has a subscription-based model, priced at US$4.99 per month, or $23.99 per year; however, there is also a free version.

This, then, sounds all too good to be true. Then again, AirConsole's efficacy as a game-streaming platform may depend on a number of factors, as with PC cloud gaming. Nevertheless, the company insists that its technology addresses "the previously unsolved challenge of latency when playing games using smartphones as controllers", at least.