Polar Foil: True cross-platform gameplay is upon us! I’m not talking about the PC – Xbox that exists today, I’m talking about the glorious convergence of PC/Steam, Xbox, Play Station and yes…Nintendo! The best part of this whole deal, it’s being handled by Amazon and the console companies can’t do a damn thing to stop it!
How is it this even possible? It all starts…”inside.” Intel has been developing a new type of memory. Very fast memory called 3D XPoint—pronounced “three-dee cross-point” marketed under the banner Optane. This new memory is the fastest available, and so effective it’s being gobbled up by all of the big companies, Google, Facebook…and Amazon. I’m sure you’ve heard of the “cloud,” well…it’s about to be powered by Optane.
What makes it all possible! Image courtesy of Intel!
One of the biggest portions of the cloud is owned by Amazon. Server farms as far as the eye can see. The best part of Amazon’s running of the cloud is their dynamic approach. They have the ability to expand and contract the amount of space used by each client in real time. This makes them both cost effective and reliable to their clients. So what? Who cares? What does this have to do with me playing games with my friends? Well, you see, Amazon wants to sell server space to all of those wonderful game developers you all love. Amazon leases space on the servers to the developers, which frees up cash that the studio can put back into making the game. As part of the deal, Amazon also hosts gameplay when the game goes live. Who did you think was running the servers for all of your Rainbow Six game sessions?
Now cross platform play, how do they do it? Enter Polar Foil, the follow up to Amazon’s Glacier webstorage service. What is Polar Foil? Well think of it as Rosetta stone on steroids! You see, Amazon is using the fastest memory in the world to translate code…really fast. You see, part of hosting all of these games requires Amazon to “work” with their infrastructures and code for the various gaming platforms. Why host three different communities of Battlefield, when you can compact them down to one, leaving even more space for Amazon to rent, and costing DICE less to maintain. Is this legal? Sure is, Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo…none of them ever negotiated exclusive servers, and developers certainly have no reason to get involved. The only way this doesn’t happen is if one of the big hardware developers decides to purposely obstruct the process and risk alienating their fanbase.
The game changer!
Polar Foil is currently being tested on three platforms, PC, Xbox One and PS4, with the free-to-play MMO Neverwinter, and for the major consoles with BioShock: The Collection with great success. Rumor also has it that Star Wars: Battlefront II will be Polar Foil’s official public debut, opening the doors to a lot of new friends. Let the mayhem begin.
Verdict – Shut up and take my money!
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