Google Stadia ends today but the Stadia controller lives on

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Google Stadia rides into the sunset today, but the Stadia controller lives on with a Bluetooth update.

Unfortunately for Stadia fans, Google’s cloud game streaming platform is shutting its doors. After three years of trying, Stadia never took off or became a mainstay in gamers’ repertoire.

But Google isn’t abandoning its Stadia supporters completely. Ahead of the platform’s imminent shutdown, the company pushed a Bluetooth update for its Stadia controller.

https://twitter.com/GoogleStadia/status/1615411505838624773

The update means that your Stadia controller isn’t completely useless now that the service is no longer available.

Thanks to the update, you can override the original proprietary WiFi connection Stadia used to connect the controller.

That means you’ll be able to pair the controller to any device that supports Bluetooth Low Energy connections.

Stadia also promised to refund Stadia hardware purchases from the Google Store. Those refunds were handled automatically and should all be processed by now.

As a note, Google says you have until December 2023 to update the Stadia controller with Bluetooth. After that time, the update will no longer be available.

Stadia’s run ends today, but it’s possible we’ll hear more from Google about cloud gaming in the future.

The tech giant still owns the technology, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we see it used for a similar service at some point.

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