The days of expensive consoles and gaming PCs may be numbered, according to Amazon’s head of gaming, Jeff Gattis, who has predicted that the rising cost of hardware will push players towards cloud streaming. In an interview with the BBC, Gattis said that as technology improves and component prices climb, more people will question whether they need a dedicated device at all.
“As hardware becomes more expensive, and as streaming technology continues to improve, I think you’ll naturally see more people asking whether they actually need that dedicated device,” he said. Gattis acknowledged that some gamers will always prefer their own machines, but argued that streaming opens up gaming to a vast untapped audience. “There are somewhere between two-and-a-half and three billion people who play games around the world, but only a fraction of those own dedicated gaming hardware,” he added.
“Amazon's gaming boss Jeff Gattis predicts streaming will replace consoles as hardware costs rise, as Luna integrates into Prime Video.”
The prediction comes as Amazon announces a significant shift for its cloud gaming service, Luna, which will now be integrated into the Prime Video app on Fire TVs in the US and UK, placed under a new “Games” tab alongside shows and films. Luna was already included as part of a Prime subscription, but previously existed as a separate destination. Cloud gaming allows players to stream games from remote servers to phones, tablets or controllers, avoiding the need to download or install them.
Despite being long touted as the future of video games, cloud gaming has struggled to gain traction. Google Stadia was shut down in 2023 after failing to attract a mass audience. While Sony and Microsoft now offer streaming as part of their subscription services, most players still prefer to install games on their own hardware. The cost of consoles has climbed in recent years, with Sony and Microsoft increasing prices and Valve launching its new Steam Machine at £879.
Christopher Dring, editor-in-chief of The Game Business, said there is a clear audience for high-end titles like the upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6, “but are put off by all the technical requirements”. However, he noted that streaming still faces obstacles, including the fact that many big games require a controller. Dring also warned that the subscription model itself may be a sticking point for major publishers, who worry about its impact on traditional sales.