Google is partnering with three notebook makers to launch a gaming Chromebook. Yes, I know what you're thinking: the Chromebooks don't have the graphics performance needed for gaming, especially at high frame rates, and if that's not enough of a problem, they don't use an OS compatible with gaming right out of the box. So what does this all mean?

Well, these three new notebooks from Asus, Acer, and Lenovo are built to maximize the potential and playability of cloud gaming - think GeForce Now, Xbox Cloud Gaming, and Amazon Luna. To that end, they share a few key features:

Google has stated that they plan to reduce the upfront cost of gaming so that more people can get into the game, and felt that cloud gaming on Chromebooks was a good way to do that.

The three gaming Chromebooks range in price from $399 to $799. Some models have more powerful CPUs with Intel 12th generation mobile chips, but if you plan to spend most of your time streaming, you may be able to get away with a cheaper model.

All three gaming Chromebooks will be available starting October 22, 2022.

In addition to hardware, Google is rolling out several software changes to make cloud gaming work better on Chromebooks. Launcher search integration has been added so that even games on various cloud gaming platforms can be easily found, and Google has also stated that these three devices (and those to come) will come with an out-of-the-box cloud gaming experience, setup process included.

Google is also working with peripheral manufacturers, including HyperX, Corsair, and SteelSeries, to certify their products for use with Google's ChromeOS. This is part of Google's "Works With Chromebook" program. These manufacturers will prepare progressive web apps for Chromebooks to allow access to all the features offered by Chromebooks.

However, the irony (opens in new tab) of Google announcing a Chromebook for gaming (opens in new tab) shortly after announcing in January that it was discontinuing its own cloud streaming platform is not lost. During a recent Q&A about Google's new Chromebooks, the team answered several questions about Stadia. Ultimately, the team responded that Nvidia, Microsoft, and Amazon are the current cloud gaming service providers, and they seem as committed as ever.

I agree with Google on this point. I don't think cloud gaming is going anywhere, and GeForce Now is a really good service for people who have already started building their Steam libraries and don't want to have to buy games back. As for the experience you can expect, it depends on your internet connection and latency. In general, the ones I've personally tested are great on fast Wi-Fi, but can struggle on slow public Wi-Fi connections or hotspots when you're on the go. In any case, one should keep this in mind when using such Chromebooks.

However, it is good to see more support for game streaming by Google in other ways after the end of Stadia. Cheaper and easier access to games is always a plus for me.