Cloud gaming is a service model in which the game runs on powerful remote servers. The server renders each frame, compresses it into a video stream and sends it to your device, while your button presses travel back over the internet.
Why it matters
It lets phones, low-power laptops and TVs play demanding games without a strong GPU. The trade-off is that quality depends on your network. Every action must make a round trip before you see the result, so latency, jitter and packet loss are felt directly as input lag and visual glitches. Providers adjust the stream with adaptive bitrate techniques.
Example
A 1080p stream at 60 FPS often needs a steady connection in the tens of Mbps; check the provider's stated requirements. If your round trip is 20 ms and encoding plus decoding adds another 20 ms or so, the total delay before an action appears is roughly 40 ms or more.
Common mistakes
- Playing over congested Wi-Fi instead of a wired connection or the 5 GHz band.
- Judging by download speed only; stability and latency matter more.
- Assuming you own the game; many services require you to own it elsewhere or to rent access.
Related
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This page is general information written by our editorial team and updated when documentation changes. Servers and providers differ, so test changes safely first. See our editorial policy and disclaimer.