By Chrissay Brinkmann, Pre-Sales Solution Engineer at Leaseweb USA
For game developers, the choice between on-premises infrastructure or the cloud has a significant impact on gameplay, user-access, and player experience. When choosing a game server hosting option, developers prioritize reliability and top-tier performance. In comparison to on-premises infrastructure offering fixed costs, cloud technology lowers cost management during production by offering various levels of pricing reflecting the evolving needs of game development. Thus, eliminating the need for a special team or individual to be tasked with infrastructure monitoring and scaling, allowing programmers to focus on game development.
Game development requirements are constantly changing, which is why cloud leads in terms of flexibility and scalability. The cloud can instantly react when dealing with an influx of players entering game servers, while on-premises can take hours or months to increase the number of servers to keep up with demand. Having the ability to scale up resources, stress-test under various conditions, test multiple configurations, and add new features is revolutionary for the development side.
Utilizing the flexibility of the cloud, development teams can establish a robust process that allows them to quickly identify and address potential issues. This streamlines workflow and ensures the game can be continuously improved throughout the development process. The cloud enables developers to quickly address any issues, prioritize player experience, and adjust resources according to demand.
In terms of speedy deployment, the cloud reigns supreme. The cloud offers rapid implementation, while on-premises solutions require time-consuming upgrades, resulting in delays and negative feedback. In today’s world, once a game is launched users will instantly voice their opinions and leave reviews across communication channels such as social media, making a good first impression crucial.
No amount of research can predict the exact number of players who will download and log onto a game upon its launch. When choosing on-premises hardware for a game, there are two potential outcomes: over-provisioning or under-provisioning. Over-provisioning hardware is great for players as it eliminates queues and login issues, but it can be costly. Under-provisioning hardware saves money but can result in a negative experience for players and the studio. With cloud hosting, game developers avoid the hassle of over or under provisioning due to the scalability and flexibility benefits of the technology.
Post-launch, the ability to scale down as the player base stabilizes is invaluable for cost-effectiveness, operational efficiency, and long-term success. Without the ability to scale down, studios run the risk of overspending on server resources, customer support, and marketing.
In the gaming industry, cloud infrastructure not only saves money by offering scalable pricing but simultaneously eliminates the need for specialized monitoring teams, keeping the development team focused on their end goal. The shift from on-premises to the cloud is transformative, providing an agile and responsive solution to meet the demands of modern gaming development. Choosing the right infrastructure has a domino effect on the success of a game, with the cloud being a cost-efficient strategic asset.
##
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chrissay Brinkmann is a PreSales Solutions Engineer at Leaseweb, celebrated for her servant-leader approach and alignment of sales, operations, and support teams. With over six years at Leaseweb, including a tenure as Senior Service Delivery Executive, she is highly skilled in crafting project plans, managing deliveries, and leading training programs. Chrissay’s professional growth is furthermore underscored with several industry certifications, including AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials and Acronis Cloud Sales Fundamentals.
