LG Electronics had announced a partnership with Google to bring its Stadia cloud gaming service to LG's latest webOS smart TVs in the second half of this year - with its CES 2021 announcements here and the steam of LG's CES 2021 "Life On TV" keynote embedded at the end of this article.
We're told that Google will bring Stadia to its Google TV equipped TVs first, but after that, LG will be the first TV maker to natively support Stadia gameplay via webOS.
LG also says it is "demonstrating its commitment to supporting premium gaming on its state-of-the-art displays for a compelling viewing experience with support for 4K and 5.1 virtual surround sound for Stadia Pro users".
At time of launch, LG informs us that Stadia will only be available on LG smart TVs running webOS 6.0, which is only available on the 2021 LG TV range, but there is good news for owners of LG TVs with webOS 5.0, as they "will receive the service later this year" - so it's good to see some backwards compatibility with the last generation of webOS 5.0-equipped smart TVs.
What kinds of games will be available?
Stadia on LG TVs will allow customers to play hit Stadia games such as Cyberpunk 2077, NBA 2K21, Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla and Watch Dogs: Legion with just a Stadia controller and no additional hardware or game downloads required - and obviously, there will be many more games on offer.
How will you be able to get Stadia on your LG TV?
LG says it "plans to launch the new service in the second half of 2021 on LG Smart TVs as a downloadable app from the LG Content Store in countries where Stadia is available. Stadia already offers more than 130 games with more added regularly.
"Games can be purchased individually, or gamers can claim a regular cadence of games to be played for free with a subscription to Stadia Pro, which includes exclusive discounts and games in up to 4K resolution.
"Exhilarating gaming with immersive 5.1 channel virtual surround sound and support for up to 4K HDR and 60 FPS makes the Stadia platform a compelling choice for anyone looking for a great gaming experience without the need for a dedicated gaming console.
"And when it comes to gaming, it is hard to beat the advanced combination of Stadia and LG OLED TVs. OLED self-lighting pixels help ensure best-in-class HDR picture quality with deep blacks and extremely accurate colours. LG became the first company to launch HDR-capable 4K OLED TVs in 2015 and content on LG OLED TVs – both streaming and externally stored – benefit from the display’s fast 1ms response time, low input lag enhancing the gaming experience".
Lee Sang-woo, the Senior VP of corporate business strategy at "LG Electronics Home Entertainment Company" said: "Supporting Stadia on LG TVs is our commitment to customers that gaming is an increasingly important feature expected by LG TV owners.
“Stadia is changing how people access their favourite games and by providing webOS compatibility, we’re making an early commitment to the platform.”
LG OLED TVs, new LG QNED Mini LED TVs (with the company’s propriety quantum NanoCell color technology and mini LED backlighting) and upgraded LG NanoCell TVs are on display in LG’s virtual exhibition booth during CES 2021 starting January 11.
LG's CES 2021 keynote "Life is On TV" is embedded below!
