With so many cloud gaming services, it can be difficult to determine which one suits your needs, especially if each offers different monetization methods. This is where I actually experience Amazon’s Luna, report my findings, and decide for myself if anyone interested in a game streaming service is rugged enough to meet their needs. That’s why you can do it. So, now that Prime Day is just around the corner, let’s dig into Amazon’s Luna and see how it stacks when Amazon is sure to discount its selection of smart TVs that offer access to the Luna app. prize.
Remember, my personal experience Amazon Luna Streams can be affected by the local network, the service provider’s network, not to mention the way the stream is routed and the location of the game’s servers. This can vary significantly depending on the game streaming service and region. Ephemeral is a word that comes to mind after years of testing some of these services. By the way, my internet is up and down 500 mbps, all tests are done on Omni FireTV, Fire TV Stick 4K Max, Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2, Asus ROG 5 via 5GHz Wi-Fi and Luna controller is also connected. My 5GHz Wi-Fi network.
Stable
Luna improvement quiz
Let’s start with the stability of the stream of Luna, the most important bit. Over the last few years, I’ve tested several game streaming services, but I haven’t found one that is 100% stable yet. I think it’s important how the service handles the lag. In the case of Luna, the frame fell and there were a few breaks here and there, but I haven’t experienced anything that would hurt my experience yet. Most of the game plays smoothly and stutters are short-lived and easily ignored.
Of course, we recommend connecting Luna over a 5GHz WiFi network. You can play with a 2.4Ghz connection, but Luna may warn you that 5GHz is recommended when you connect. You can also see that the game is much smoother and looks better at 5GHz compared to 2.4GHz. Therefore, if you are looking for maximum stability during play, it is a good idea to make sure your router supports that task.
After testing Luna, I placed it at the top of the pack for stream stability, slightly edged out Nvidia and Xbox Cloud Gaming, and beat the pants from Stadia. Of course, due to the nature of streaming games, this can change at any time, but without always suffering from performance issues, it can be said that game streaming is actually starting to become feasible. No matter what magic Amazon casts on the stream, it’s working. The meltdown I’ve experienced with competing services can’t be found anywhere in Luna.
hardware
Luna Controller Front and Center
Like Stadia, Amazon provides its own controller, which connects to Luna’s servers via Wi-Fi instead of connecting directly to the device (as if via Bluetooth with a third-party controller). ). This type of setup reduces the delay required when streaming video games to ensure responsiveness. A similar setup for Stadia’s controller never felt stable enough, but the game at Luna felt good enough to forget that it was a streaming game. Can be confirmed. This is almost the goal of cloud gaming and is often difficult to hit, but Luna does a bang job to provide low latency games using the Luna controller.
What’s really impressive is that the low latency of the controller is maintained regardless of the device you play. Whether you’re playing games on your Chromebook, smart TV, or smartphone, the controller stays connected and provides a near-seamless experience. It may sound ridiculous that a device being streamed can affect controller connectivity, but the weaknesses of the chain can have a wavy effect (Stadia, your way). please look).
Luna & Accessories
When it comes to controller design, it’s a rugged device that feels rugged and denser than a Stadia controller with strangely large buttons and squeaky triggers. The stance feels slightly wider than the Xbox controller, and the grip is slightly angled. These grips are very dark blue and would look black without the black plastic side of the controller. Thumbsticks provide great pop colors. Purple is Luna’s trademark. Amazon chose an Xbox layout with an asymmetric thumbstick (as opposed to Sony and Google, which center both thumbsticks). There’s also a cozy textured back that reminds you of the latest Xbox wireless controllers. This is a nice touch. Best of all, it uses standard AA batteries so you don’t have to wait for the controller to recharge. Just insert a new AA battery. Oh, if you want to use the controller on your PC, it has built-in Bluetooth support (it can also be used as a regular controller wired via USB). So even if you don’t use Luna for a long time, your controller won’t be wasted.
If you are interested in co-op, there is a feature called Luna Couch. Support is not available for all titles, but the features that support this multiplayer feature work as expected, with each player entering the code and the internet.
Luna controller + phone clip
Of course, if you want to play games on your smartphone, Optional clip Can be used to connect a phone to a controller. As with all controller phone clips, off-center weight can be annoying, especially if you’re using a large and heavy gaming phone, but it’s nice to be able to choose Luna games on the go.
software
Luna’s home screen
The point of Luna is in the software. This is because it interfaces regardless of the device selected. There are websites accessible on any supported browser / device and the Luna controller app for Android and iOS used to connect the controller to Amazon’s servers. If you own a Fire TV Stick, you can use the progressive Luna web app, but this app isn’t listed on the Play Store, so Shield and other ATV users are excluded. There is a short list of phones that officially support PWAs (including Google, Samsung, and OnePlus handsets), but unsupported devices can also install PWAs from the Luna website. However, PWAs may not work perfectly. I’ve tested PWAs on Tab S8 + and ROG5, neither officially supported, but it worked fine, but mileage may be different.
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Luna controller app
I had few issues with Android, ChromeOS, and Fire TV Stick 4K. You can launch games on your Chromebook just like you would on your smartphone, tablet or Fire TV Stick. Magically, the Luna controller connects to your game’s server (easy to set up in another Luna Controller app). So while Luna’s software may sound like it’s currently limited, the ones available are clearly rigorously tested and working well. This is what you want to see when you buy a cloud gaming service. After years of trying to troubleshoot endless issues with competing services, wherever Luna plays, it’s a breath of fresh air right out of the box.
Monetization
Luna + Game Selection
Luna will be monetized like Amazon Prime Video. Signing up for Amazon Prime gives you access to several Luna games, just as you can access a selection of streamable Prime videos. If you want to move beyond the small rotations of Prime’s bundled games, you can subscribe to several game channels. Luna + costs $ 5.99 per month and offers a variety of titles such as Dirt 5, Resident Evil Biohazard, and Yakuza: Likea Dragon. However, there are also Retro, Family, Ubisoft +, and Jackbox Games channels, with prices ranging from $ 2.99 to $ 17.99 per month, and Ubisoft channels are high-end.
Luna channel available
You can subscribe to the channel that contains the game you want to stream, and you have the option to drop one and move to another at any time. Yes, you need to coordinate various subscriptions through your Amazon account, but all subscriptions are centrally located under one account for ease of management. Unfortunately, even if you only have one channel you want to play, you won’t be able to get individual games.
Personally, I don’t enjoy the hassle of dealing with multiple subscriptions, so I like the Stadia and Nvidia models that buy the games I want to play. Of course, Nvidia offers veteran gamers the perfect system because they can play games they already own on services like Steam and Epic. So Luna doesn’t offer my favorite pricing model, but admits that the subscription model is perfect for anyone who likes to try a wide range of games without having to commit for more than a month. I am.
Final idea
Luna controller that looks stylish
For me, Luna sits in the middle of a fledgling game streaming space. Its streaming quality is the best I have ever experienced. It is reasonably stable and gives clear images up to 1080p. Sure, there’s no 4K here yet, but that doesn’t mean that streams don’t look good on 4K TV. If anything, I think most games have graphics comparable to Stadia and Nvidia and are capped at 1080p. Given that all the streams are already compressed, you’re not getting a true 4K experience with competing services anyway. Performance is of paramount importance to me, and Luna nails it.
Luna Controller Rear Plus Close Shot
In this particular example, with my device, location, and the game I chose to play, Luna seems to be working well. Does this apply to you too? Well, that’s everyone’s guess, that’s why video game streaming is such a whimsical beast. Fortunately, it’s easy to check the service, especially if you’ve already paid for Prime. Just log on and launch one of the free games on the Prime channel. Yes, pricing can be turned off after a second or third channel subscription, but at least you have the option of choosing the type of game category you want to experience.
Therefore, like all game streaming services, Luna may or may not appeal depending on your needs. One of the biggest issues for me is device support. It will be easier if more devices are supported across Android. However, given the increasing pain and very low entry prices, it doesn’t hurt to try Luna to see how it stacks on the network. I’m certainly happy with Luna. You can see that I have been dating for a long time.
Luna controller box
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