Last week, a Japanese technology journalist by the name of Zenji Nishikawa claimed that he had huge news to share regarding Sega, which got fans really riled up. Was the company planning a grand return to the console space with a new Dreamcast, where it’ll do battle once again with Sony and Nintendo? Sadly, no.
According to Ryokutya2089 (via Gematsu), Sega is prepping a novel game platform called “Fog Gaming,” which will turn arcade machines across Japan into a cloud network of some sort. Their CPUs and GPUs will be used to reduce costs and deliver ultra-low latency service.
Article now with info:
— Dr. Serkan Toto / Kantan Games Inc. (@serkantoto) June 3, 2020
– yes, "Fog Gaming" is the "scoop"
– Sega will use arcades in Japan as the technical backbone
– CPUs and GPUs housed in arcade machines are mentioned specifically
– ultra-low latency is touted
– commercial idea is to use arcades outside business hours https://t.co/LWOiYuDAYj
“Fog Gaming would repurpose arcades across Japan as part of the cloud, as well as channel arcade game machines’ CPUs and GPUs, resulting in lower costs,” Gematsu explained. “This would provide ultra low latency, and the concept is similar to fog computing. Players would be able to enjoy high-quality games, and arcades would be able to make money even after business hours.”
Nishikawa had hinted that this platform would be “revolutionary” and “rile up the games industry,” but it remains to be seen what kind of an effect it’ll have on Japan’s gaming ecosystem. The technology is unlikely to make waves stateside, however, as arcades are pretty much extinct in the US.