GeForce Now Lets You Stream Your Own Games From High-End PCs, But It's Not Cheap

Nvidia has announced an interesting new version of its GeForce Now streaming service for PC and Mac. The cost, however, may keep many people away.

Unlike the Netflix-esque version of Now available for Nvidia's Shield device, this new version doesn't come with unlimited access to a pre-selected library games. Instead, you're able to install games you own--through Steam, Origin, and other platforms or standalone clients--on cloud-based servers and stream them to your computer. Provided you have a capable internet connection (25 Mbps is required), this allows you to play games on high-end hardware (a computer running either a GTX 1060 or GTX 1080) on a slower desktop or laptop. Driver and game updates will be handled automatically.

Nvidia will initially debut this service with a free, early access period you can register for now on its website. You'll have a limit of 1 TB's worth of games at a time, and, at least initially, you'll need to be in the continental United States to use the service.

GeForce Now is not going to be available for free indefinitely. Each minute you play costs a certain number of credits depending on whether you choose to play with a GTX 1060 system (two credits per minute) or a GTX 1080 system (four per minute). According to USGamer, the free access comes with 1,000 credits, and additional allotments of 2,500 credits can be purchased for $25.

That equates to 8 hours and 20 minutes of free time on a GTX 1060, or 4 hours and 10 minutes on a GTX 1080. $25's worth of credits gets you about 20 hours and 50 minutes with a GTX 1060, or 10 hours and 25 minutes with a GTX 1080. Keep in mind, this is an added cost to that of the games themselves, which you'll still buy as you normally would.

GeForce Now's early access period begins in March.