Okay, so I’d been using GeForce Now for a while. It was decent, really, letting me play some beefy games on my older setup. But eventually, I started getting curious, maybe a bit restless. Sometimes the queues were long, or a game I wanted to play wasn’t supported. So, I thought, let’s see what else is out there. Time to do some digging for services like GeForce Now.
Starting the Hunt
First thing I did was just plain searching online. Typed in stuff like “cloud gaming alternatives” or “services similar to GeForce Now.” Got a bunch of names popping up. Some I’d heard of, others were new to me. I made a quick list, just jotting down the ones that seemed most promising or kept appearing in different places. Didn’t want anything too obscure, needed something relatively established.
Trying Out Shadow PC
The first one I decided to give a real try was Shadow PC. Heard folks talking about it giving you a full Windows machine in the cloud, which sounded pretty powerful. So, I went to their site. Signing up took a bit, there was a bit of a waitlist thing depending on location, which was a minor hurdle. Once I got access, I downloaded their client. Installing it was straightforward enough. Fired it up, and bam, there was a Windows desktop. It felt weird at first, like remote-desktoping into a super-powered PC. I installed Steam, downloaded a couple of games I owned. Performance was generally quite good, definitely felt like a proper gaming PC. But, the cost was higher than GeForce Now. It felt like renting a whole computer, which it basically is. It was flexible, sure, but maybe more than I needed just for gaming sometimes. I used it for a couple of weeks, tested different games, even tried some non-gaming software just because I could. It worked well, but the price point kept sticking in my mind.
Next Up: Boosteroid
After my time with Shadow, I looked back at my list. Boosteroid caught my eye. Seemed closer to the GeForce Now model – focused purely on games, accessed through a browser or app. The price looked more appealing too. So, I signed up for Boosteroid. The process was quicker than Shadow. Got access pretty much right away. I tried it first through my web browser. Logged into my Steam account through their interface. Found a game I wanted to play that GeForce Now didn’t always have. Launched it. The experience… well, it was okay. Sometimes the stream quality dipped a bit more noticeably than I experienced with GeForce Now or Shadow. Input lag felt slightly more present on certain days, maybe depending on server load or my own connection that day. It wasn’t bad, definitely playable, but it felt a step down in consistency compared to the others I’d tried. I appreciated the game library, it had some titles I was missing. Used it for about a week, mainly for those specific games.
Exploring Other Paths
I also briefly looked into other options.
- Xbox Cloud Gaming (xCloud): This came with Game Pass Ultimate, which I already had for my Xbox. Tried it on my PC and phone. Super convenient, integrated well. The library is limited to the Game Pass selection, obviously, but for those games, it worked surprisingly well. Setup was basically zero since I was already in the ecosystem. Just clicked ‘play’ on the cloud icon.
- Amazon Luna: Signed up for a trial. It had a channel-based subscription model which felt a bit different. You subscribe to game libraries. Tried their main channel. Setup was easy, web-based mostly. Performance felt pretty solid, comparable to GeForce Now maybe. Library felt a bit smaller unless you subscribed to multiple channels.
- Using Parsec with a Cloud Provider: I read about folks renting raw GPU instances from places like Paperspace and using Parsec to stream. This sounded like the Shadow approach but more DIY. I looked into Paperspace, saw the hourly pricing. It seemed flexible but also potentially complicated to set up correctly and manage costs. Decided this was maybe a bit too involved for what I wanted right then. Felt more like a project than a simple gaming service.
Final Thoughts After Trying Things Out
So, after dipping my toes into these different waters, I realized there’s no single perfect alternative. It really depends on what you’re looking for.
Shadow gave me the most power and flexibility, basically a remote gaming PC, but it cost more. If you want to do more than just game, or need absolute control, that’s a strong contender.
Boosteroid was cheaper and had a decent library, filling some gaps, but the performance consistency wasn’t quite top-tier for me compared to the others.
Xbox Cloud Gaming is fantastic if you’re already in the Xbox ecosystem and happy with the Game Pass library. Super simple.
Luna felt slick and performed well, but the channel system might not suit everyone’s library needs or budget.
In the end, I learned a lot just by trying them. Each service has its own feel, its own setup process, and its own quirks. It was valuable just going through the motions – signing up, installing, connecting accounts, launching games, and seeing how each one actually felt to use day-to-day. For now, I’ve got a better idea of the landscape and which service might fit best when GeForce Now isn’t cutting it for a specific game or situation.