Google bringing high-end gaming to Chrome via Native Client

By Jeff Hughes December 9, 2011

Google showcased the power of its Chrome browser recently, announcing a slew of new console-quality browser games exclusive to Chrome. Among the companies utilizing the browser’s Native Client feature include Square Enix, Bungie and Unity Technologies.

Native Client came with Chrome 14, allowing the browser to run applications securely in languages like C and C++ rather than the simple JavaScript or HTML; languages that have been standards for the web app industry. Web browsers so far haven’t been strong enough to handle high-end games, but Square Enix chief executive Yoichi Wada and others believe that Google has changed that.

“Gaming in the browser greatly expands the video game market to new consumers, devices and platforms,”said Wada during the Native Client event at Google’s Mountain View headquarters. “ Native Client enables the same consumer experience in the browser as in a native application. With the power of this technology, Square Enix is pushing the boundaries of the browser gaming market to include high quality games in addition to our popular portfolio of casual games.”

Square Enix is the company behind the Dragonquest and Final Fantasy series’. The first offering from the Japanese video game company will be the Mini Ninjas RPG, first released in 2009 for many consoles. Square Enix plans on making more titles available on Chrome sometime in 2012.

bastion — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Other games include Wolf Toss as well as Supergiant’s award winning Bastion which was previously relegated to the Xbox and PC, now available in the Chrome Store. Along with a wider range, developer’s are also being encouraged to use Native Client to port because of the ease of use. For example,VentureBeat points out that the Unity 3D engine allows a check box for developers to click; no need for any rewriting which accelerates delivery.

If you want to try out Mini Ninjas for Chrome its in open beta, but you’ll need to wait for the new Chrome 17 beta to be available in a few weeks.

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I'm a SF Bay Area-based writer/ninja that loves anything geek, tech, comic, social media or gaming-related.

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