PC gaming is getting crazy expensive, at least if you want the latest and greatest hardware. So why not take local hardware out of the equation? I’ve been bullish on cloud game streaming alternatives like Xbox Game Pass and Nvidia GeForce Now as ways to play the newest high-end games at a discount. Today, Nvidia is offering its streaming service with a big discount for a six-month membership.
Specifically, Nvidia is offering the “Performance” tier (ad-free 1440p game streaming with a ray tracing-capable RTX card) for $30 for six months. Thirty bucks for the whole six months, working out to effectively $5 a month. That’s a 40 percent discount. Not bad at all. The free tier is still, well, free, with 1080p streams, 1-hour time limits, and lots of queueing. The “Ultimate” tier, with 4K streams at up to 240Hz, still costs a hefty $100 for six months. That’s after some recent price hikes.
I think it’s a good move. Thirty bucks is less than half the price of a new game, and it offers access to better graphics at 1440p than my aging RTX 3070 can put out. It’s especially good if you already have a huge collection of Steam games—or perhaps dozens of Epic Game Store freebies you still haven’t touched—and you’d like to make a dent in your backlog. GeForce Now doesn’t work with every single PC game, but it hits enough of both the popular classics and the newcomers (like this week’s Blades of Fire and Onimusha 2) that it’s a great option.
I also like GeForce Now for travelling. It was a surreal Christmas experience to load it up on my phone, connect a USB monitor, and play Fortnite and Baldur’s Gate III with a mouse and keyboard from my grandmother’s dining room table. Nvidia says the Summer Sale deal is available for a “limited time,” but exactly when it expires isn’t spelled out. If you’re interested, best grab a subscription while you can.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 15-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.