Although players are already deciding which cloud platform to reside under when playing video games in the growing industry, there are still more competitors that has yet to announce their entrance into the cloud race. With platforms like xCloud, Stadia, Luna, and GeForce Now, there already appears to be no room for additional names to be included. But, its best to not forget that brick-and-mortar retail Wal-Mart plans to join in.
Predating back to March 2019, it was reported that Wal-Mart is constructing its own video game streaming effort to compete against the likes of Microsoft and then-rumored Google. In the report, it was disclosed that the retailer held discussions with several partners on its behalf to start the streaming platform including at GDC that year.
However, little detail has yet to emerge on the initiative since then. In a new report from The Verge on Tuesday, the publication through familiar sources elaborated on the project. Codenamed ‘Project Storm’ internally, the new video game streaming service is still in the works. But, plans are told to be delayed due to the pandemic still afoot and potentially not release. There is a provided concept for the service which you can view below:

As told by the outlet, Wal-Mart-acquired LiquidSky would power the unannounced video game cloud service. Previously, the subsidiary was responsible for the back-end of IBM Cloud servers and Nvidia’s GPUs. As gathered on Wal-Mart’s envision for Project Storm, the retailer wants to create an “open ecosystem” for players to access their licensed titles locally.
Furthermore, Wal-Mart would also integrate several launchers from other publishers already available to conjoin with Project Storm. The mentioned launchers include Steam, Uplay, Epic Games Store, Battle.net, and Bethesda Launcher. Indie games appear to be categorized in a separate category if not provided by respected launchers.
In future reference for additional cloud streaming platforms, Sony Interactive Entertainment is still underway with its efforts for PlayStation. Although enabled by Microsoft’s Azure technology, the platform is said to be unique to the PlayStation ecosystem. You can read the full report by heading here.
Are you interested to see more of Wal-Mart’s Project Storm?
Source: The Verge