Google needs to actually make games if it wants to matter

Google has begun teasing its video game initiative. During a session at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco next week, the company will announce its “vision for the future of gaming.” This likely involves a combination of cloud streaming and hardware. But whatever it does, Google’s gaming service could show up dead on arrival.

In the teaser trailer that it posted to YouTube yesterday, Google invited gaming fans to “gather around.” The 37-second clip doesn’t show off hardware or any other details. Instead, it’s a series of scenes from what look like various blockbuster video game genres. It jumps from a sports arena to a remote jungle cavern to a military aircraft. These vignettes bring games like FIFA 19, Tomb Raider, and Call of Duty to mind without using any of their names.