Notes ·
Prime Video Is Becoming a Game Console
In Amazon Is Bringing Games to Prime Video, Slashdot reports that Amazon is integrating its Luna cloud-gaming service directly into the Prime Video app.
“There’s nothing to download or purchase to start playing.”
Prime members in the United States and United Kingdom can now open a Games tab on a Fire TV and stream titles such as Fallout 4, Hogwarts Legacy, EA Sports FC 26, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. They can play with a Bluetooth controller or use a phone as one. Amazon says support for more devices and countries will follow.
This is notable because the streaming box under the television is quietly becoming the game console. There is no expensive hardware, installation, storage management, or separate gaming application. Someone who would never purchase a console may discover a game next to the shows they already watch.
It is also another step away from owning games.
The library can rotate, licenses can expire, and the entire experience depends on Amazon continuing to operate Luna. It is convenient in exactly the same way that streaming video is convenient, but access lasts only as long as the service and subscription do.
I like the idea of making games easier for families and casual players to discover. I just hope convenience does not become another excuse for the industry to stop selling games people can actually keep.