Alphabet Inc’s Google said on Monday it would stop the internal development of games for Stadia, making the cloud-based game-streaming service altogether reliant on titles from other game designers and publishers.
Stadia was launched in 2019 alongside an internal game development unit that was relied upon to make titles for the platform.
The organization said on Monday it was closing down the unit because of the significant expenses associated with developing games that attract clients.
“Creating best-in-class games from the ground up takes many years and significant investment, and the cost is going up exponentially,” Phil Harrison, vice president and general manager of Google Stadia, said in a blog post.
Harrison additionally said that Jade Raymond, top of Google’s Stadia Games and Entertainment, would leave the organization to seek after different opportunities.
Stadia saw a surge in clients a year ago after the tech giant gifted two months of free access to its premium version to gamers sheltering at home because of the COVID-19 pandemic.