Tencent expands 'Start' cloud gaming platform in China

Tencent has scaled up its 'Start' cloud gaming platform in mainland China with the help of Nvidia. 

The service, which began public testing in two regions earlier this year, promises to let players access triple-A games anytime, anywhere, "with an experience that is consistent with playing locally on a gaming rig." 

Start is being powered by Nvida’s GPU technology, and has recently added a number of notable PC titles to its catalog including NBA2K Online 2, Path of Exile, and Fortnite.

Although a press release from Nvidia claims the platform has now "launched" in China, Niko Partners’ analyst Daniel Ahmad suggests the streaming platform has simply been opened up to more users -- and is still in the public testing phase.

Either way, it’s clear Start has been quietly marching forward under the watchful eye of Tencent, which could soon enter the cloud streaming market alongside Microsoft and Google. 

"Nvida's leadership in building the world’s most powerful GPUs paired with their experience in cloud solutions will empower us to scale our Start platform to millions of gamers,” said Steven Ma, senior vice president at Tencent. "Today marks a new opportunity for our companies to further push the frontiers of gaming."