General / Off-Topic Planet Coaster & LiquidSky

SleepyPanda · Mar 7, 2017

Hello all! [big grin]

Recently I came across a new service, LiquidSky, and it made me wonder: Is this the perfect solution for building HUGE parks? Let's see what LiquidSky is.

What is LiquidSky?

LiquidSky gives you a high performance gaming PC in the cloud.
Access your SkyComputer from any device and play with ultra low latency and high performance graphics.

So basically you just install a game on their VM, which doesn't really need to run instant (LiquidSky has a ~40ms delay to stream it to your screen) like Planet Coaster or Cities: Skylines, and the game will be streamed to you. I have a mid/high end PC, however those huge parks and cities can really tank the framerate. The most powerful plan will allow AAA games to run at 144fps and 1440p. That's a whole lot of assets and mods, aka a huuuuge park. [yum]

All that leaves me wondering, is this the solution and maybe an option for Frontier to work together with LiquidSky as it's a good solution for both? Huge parks/higher acceptable number of items for the players and LiquidSky gets to promote a game that doesn't suffer from the delay (like online FPS games). Maybe even optimize for their systems or give extra options?

Let me know what you think, as this sounds very interesting to me.

DistortAMG · Mar 7, 2017

SleepyPanda said:
Hello all! [big grin]

Recently I came across a new service, LiquidSky, and it made me wonder: Is this the perfect solution for building HUGE parks? Let's see what LiquidSky is.

So basically you just install a game on their VM, which doesn't really need to run instant (LiquidSky has a ~40ms delay to stream it to your screen) like Planet Coaster or Cities: Skylines, and the game will be streamed to you. I have a mid/high end PC, however those huge parks and cities can really tank the framerate. The most powerful plan will allow AAA games to run at 144fps and 1440p. That's a whole lot of assets and mods, aka a huuuuge park. [yum]

All that leaves me wondering, is this the solution and maybe an option for Frontier to work together with LiquidSky as it's a good solution for both? Huge parks/higher acceptable number of items for the players and LiquidSky gets to promote a game that doesn't suffer from the delay (like online FPS games). Maybe even optimize for their systems or give extra options?

Let me know what you think, as this sounds very interesting to me.

This is exactly the same as how PlayStation Now and the now bankrupt works. It's a crap solution. Needing an always on internet connection.

Edit, it works in the same way, just executed different. Sill unsure.

Crowdpleaser · Mar 7, 2017

Noooo... no please don't. Streaming Games never really worked, I don't know why they keep trying. Ther are a whole lot of downsides to it.

SleepyPanda · Mar 7, 2017

DistortAMG said:
This is exactly the same as how PlayStation Now and the now bankrupt works. It's a crap solution. Needing an always on internet connection.

Edit, it works in the same way, just executed different. Sill unsure.

Yeah... Exactly the same as PS Now, except the part where it's very different. [rolleyes]

- You get to install it yourself, it's basically just your PC in the cloud.
- You can install mods.
- Play on your pc, laptop or phone.
- 40ms latency is not an issue with games like PC.
- Tons of power for users with a low to mid-end PC, as long as you have a good connection.

I really don't understand your strong negative opinion about it? I assume most of us live in decent nations with high speed internet that works 99% of the time.

Anyone got access to the Beta that would like to test it out? Otherwise I'll just wait for the service to open later this month. [happy]

Crowdpleaser said:
Noooo... no please don't. Streaming Games never really worked, I don't know why they keep trying. Ther are a whole lot of downsides to it.

That's not a reason to give up on it forever right? Explain the downsides? Yes, you have some latency (~40ms) but Planet Coaster isn't an online game. People even play games like BF1 with 50ms latency, so that should totally make it worth it to be able to build huge parks.

gregorburns · Mar 7, 2017

I certainly don't think it will be the best solution for building HUGE parks, as your title suggests. Your likely to see worse performance while running on a server to be honest. I can see how it may work for users who don't have the money for a powerful gaming rig of their own, but you're not going to see any bigger parks with it than people get currently on medium-spec PCs.

Crowdpleaser · Mar 7, 2017

SleepyPanda said:
Yeah... Exactly the same as PS Now, except the part where it's very different. [rolleyes]

- You get to install it yourself, it's basically just your PC in the cloud.
- You can install mods.
- Play on your pc, laptop or phone.
- 40ms latency is not an issue with games like PC.
- Tons of power for users with a low to mid-end PC, as long as you have a good connection.

I really don't understand your strong negative opinion about it? I assume most of us live in decent nations with high speed internet that works 99% of the time.

Anyone got access to the Beta that would like to test it out? Otherwise I'll just wait for the service to open later this month. [happy]

That's not a reason to give up on it forever right? Explain the downsides? Yes, you have some latency (~40ms) but Planet Coaster isn't an online game. People even play games like BF1 with 50ms latency, so that should totally make it worth it to be able to build huge parks.

I don't think that it's a good idea being wholly dependent on my or their internet connection. Or their server. Nothing is under my control there.

Furthermore forcing an offline Game to be an online game seems just silly to me.

SleepyPanda · Mar 7, 2017

gregorburns said:
I certainly don't think it will be the best solution for building HUGE parks, as your title suggests. Your likely to see worse performance while running on a server to be honest. I can see how it may work for users who don't have the money for a powerful gaming rig of their own, but you're not going to see any bigger parks with it than people get currently on medium-spec PCs.

Hmm, true. Huge parks might be a little over the top, but my current specs are the Sapphire R9 290 (4GB VRAM), 8GB RAM and a i5. The specs of the LS ultra plan are 8GB VRAM, 32GB RAM and 12 CPU cores. That has to make a big difference right?

As seen as this example below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Bg5V7Fhpl0

Titanfall 2 maxed out on a i3 with Intel Intergrated graphics. Imagine that with PC. [big grin]

Wagi · Mar 7, 2017

I'm not seeing where anyone is being forced to do anything. Wouldn't it be an OPTION, for those who choose to use it? You would indeed have control - you decide whether to use it or not.

I think there's certainly some possibilities with the idea for those who wish to use it, no one is being forced to.

Crowdpleaser · Mar 7, 2017

Yep it's your money to spend... It sure won't be for free, i can tell you that for a fact. I still don't see the point.

WingardiumLevicoaster · Mar 7, 2017

I would be interested to know how this turns out [happy], if it was affordable and actually worked well it would be a good solution, but I use a VM at work to avoid latency on certain projects and it can be quite bad visually sometimes, so I can't imagine what it would be like for gaming. Would the money not be better spent on upgrades?

Wessy · Mar 7, 2017

This looks quite interesting. If they can play a fast paced FPS with those settings, this might very well be an option for Planet Coaster for people with laptops or low end rigs.

@WingardiumLevicoaster: Sure you could spend the money on upgrading your computer, but a new graphics card or processor can be quite expensive, and if we calculate with say 20€/Month that this service may cost you, you could play a year just for the price of a new processor (that isn't even as powerful as the stuff they have)

For people with a fast very stable internet connection, I could see this as a great option.

Crowdpleaser · Mar 8, 2017

Wessy said:
This looks quite interesting. If they can play a fast paced FPS with those settings, this might very well be an option for Planet Coaster for people with laptops or low end rigs.

@WingardiumLevicoaster: Sure you could spend the money on upgrading your computer, but a new graphics card or processor can be quite expensive, and if we calculate with say 20€/Month that this service may cost you, you could play a year just for the price of a new processor (that isn't even as powerful as the stuff they have)

For people with a fast very stable internet connection, I could see this as a great option.

Yes I sounds interesting on paper, but remember OnLive? A Service that was basically this? It didn't live long, because it didn't work. It's unreliable.

Wessy · Mar 8, 2017

Of course, if it's unreliable, it will be bad for everything and will not last long, but under the assumption that it works like the video above (that's ~50-60 fps on a shooter) it could work great for planet coaster and could be a great alternative for many people with older computers or laptops.

SleepyPanda · Mar 10, 2017

Wessy said:
This looks quite interesting. If they can play a fast paced FPS with those settings, this might very well be an option for Planet Coaster for people with laptops or low end rigs.

@WingardiumLevicoaster: Sure you could spend the money on upgrading your computer, but a new graphics card or processor can be quite expensive, and if we calculate with say 20€/Month that this service may cost you, you could play a year just for the price of a new processor (that isn't even as powerful as the stuff they have)

For people with a fast very stable internet connection, I could see this as a great option.

Agreed. I guess we'll have to wait and see. [tongue]

SleepyPanda · Mar 13, 2017

New prices got announced. Very acceptable IMO.

Might get a little expensive to work on a park full time, but could be a lot of fun from time to time. Especially when building a park that is getting so big that performance is low. See your creation with the highest settings and packed with guests. Perfect for making videos and screenshots too. [yesnod]

Ooooh, what about downloading some huge parks from the Workshop and have a look at them without having to struggle with ~10 FPS. [yum]

Joël · Mar 13, 2017

SleepyPanda said:
New prices got announced. Very acceptable IMO.

https://blog.liquidsky.tv/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/performance-packages.png

https://blog.liquidsky.tv/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/2d-Monthly-Plans.png

Might get a little expensive to work on a park full time, but could be a lot of fun from time to time. Especially when building a park that is getting so big that performance is low. See your creation with the highest settings and packed with guests. Perfect for making videos and screenshots too. [yesnod]

Ooooh, what about downloading some huge parks from the Workshop and have a look at them without having to struggle with ~10 FPS. [yum]

According to those screenshots, you can buy 10,560 SkyCredits for $39.99, which in turn will let you play up to 44 hour if you want the Elite package. That is $0.91 per hour for the Elite package.

If you are gaming 20 hours a week, every week of the year, then that would be $18.20 per week, or $946.40 per year, based on the prices in the screenshots and the Elite package.

WingardiumLevicoaster · Mar 13, 2017

It does seem reasonable enough for a short term play for bigger parks.

SleepyPanda · Mar 13, 2017

Yeah, ~$950 per year for the elite pack is very reasonable for 4 hours a day. With the 'Gamer' pack that's already ~$475 per year and ~$237,50 for the lowest tier.

It is a nice compromis for the short term play with bigger parks, taking in consideration that a PC with the same specs would cost $1500+, $1000 and $500. Will give it a try as soon as possible. [big grin]