Electronic Arts patented technology for fast loading games

 

Electronic Arts is working on new technology that will allow games to start immediately without having to download them. For this purpose, the company wants to use streaming data.

EA has filed a patent application available for viewing on the website of the US Patent and Trademark Office, which was approved on February 16 this year. The patent suggests that the company will use streaming technology to eliminate download latency for new games.

The patent works like this: a new user tries to download a game that he has never installed before, this request goes to the online server. The server then instantly directs the game directly to the user's device. If the server determines that the resources available to the local device are sufficient for the user to simultaneously download a local copy of the broadcast game, then it initiates the download. Once the download is complete, the server seamlessly transfers control of the game from the streaming version available on the server directly to the local device. This will allow users to download games instantly, without having to download or install them.

Patents are filed every day and are rarely taken into account, so the likelihood that the gaming community will ever see this implementation is low. EA is also no stranger to patent filings. However, implementing a system that allows new users to instantly play the game could have a huge positive impact on the industry. Users no longer have to wait before playing their new games. This reduces the likelihood that a new user may lose interest in a larger game while it is loading, even before they start playing it.

While the overall patent is interesting, its implementation could leave many users behind. The technology to enable this kind of streaming has been around for several years, but the requirements for streaming video games are high. For the United States and other countries with good Internet connections, this technology is quite possible. At the same time, in countries with low connection speeds, there is hardly any infrastructure that can support the use of this patent.

And yet the technology itself is quite interesting, and it could be successfully implemented in a number of countries.