While most people who own a Chromecast know it as the effortless streaming stick for almost all forms of digital content, there’s considerably fewer users who see the gaming potential within the device. This is something you’re going to see Google highlight more and more, now that Amazon has decided to take on the Chromecast with the upcoming Amazon Fire Stick.
To address the claims that Amazon’s stick will be a superior mobile gaming rig due to the included remote, Google has launched a series of multiplayer-focused games for the Chromecast that all offer things you simply won’t be able to do on the Fire Stick.Since the Chromecast is just a tiny linux box running a special version of Chrome, just about any game you can play in a browser could theoretically be played on the television. Like everything else with your Chromecast, you’d need to use your phone or tablet as the controller, but if Google can ensure a high quality experience the end result should be a lot of fun.
We already know Google is a big fan of multiple smartphones and tablets being used together to play the same game, and when you combine those experiments with the existing Chromecast game support you end up with something cool.
Google’s announcement today includes browser-based hits like Just Dance Now and classic board game experiences like Monopoly Dash and Scrabble Blitz. Each of these games already have the ability to support multiple players across a local wireless network, and the addition of the Chromecast enables the living room space to be your dance floor or your gaming table.
When coupled with the list of single player games that already exist for the platform, Google has all they need to refute Amazon’s superior gaming claims. On the other hand the physical remote does make a lot of single player games easier to play, and there’s typically no worry that your remote is going to run out of power in the middle of a gaming session. Amazon and Google are going to be competing head to head this Holiday season to try and earn a spot in your living room, which is great news for anyone interested in seeing these two platforms grow and improve.