Skip to main content

Google Stadia Pro goes free for two months after struggling at launch

Google announced Stadia Pro will get a limited-time free trial giving access to the premium service for two months. Stadia Pro normally costs $10 a month and gives players an immediate gateway to a library of free games.

Current members won’t be left out and will get two months of complimentary service.

Related Videos

Stadia Pro subscribers get nine games, notably Destiny 2: The Collection, Codemasters’ GRID, and the rhythm violence game Thumper. It also includes GyltSteamWorld Dig 2SteamWorld Quest: Hand of GilgamechSerious Sam CollectionSpitlings, and Stacks on Stacks (on Stacks).

Players can also purchase additional games that will be available even after their Pro subscriptions end.

“We’re facing some of the most challenging times in recent memory,” Google Stadia Vice President Phil Harrison said of the announcement of Stadia Pro getting a free trial. “Keeping social distance is vital, but staying home for long periods can be difficult and feel isolating. Video games can be a valuable way to socialize with friends and family when you’re stuck at home, so we’re giving gamers in 14 countries free access to Stadia for two months.”

Google will also adjust its bandwidth use to reduce internet traffic following the launch of the extended free trial. It will also add a temporary feature that changes the default screen resolution to 1080p rather than 4K. Players can change this and other data usage options in user settings.

Those interested in the two free months of Stadia Pro can sign up on Stadia’s official website or download the Stadia app on Android or iOS. Stadia works with USB-supported controllers, mice, and keyboards, along with many Android phones, including the Google Pixel, that support Wi-Fi play, making it easy for most people to jump in without dropping money on equipment.

The deal starts now and will roll out over the next 48 hours in 14 countries, including Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. A free tier is set to launch later this year.

Google Stadia launched four months ago and was widely criticized for its underwhelming graphic performance and library.

Editors' Recommendations

Shredder’s Revenge plays even better on mobile via Netflix
An image of the TMNT in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge.

Netflix's gaming library expands today with another hit, last year's excellent Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge. If you have a Netflix subscription, you can download the retro beat 'em up (which we awarded a rare five-star review) for no additional cost right now on iOS and Android.

What's more exciting, though, is that the mobile port might be the best version of Shredder's Revenge out there.

Read more
Digital Trends’ Top Tech of CES 2023 Awards
Best of CES 2023 Awards Our Top Tech from the Show Feature

Let there be no doubt: CES isn’t just alive in 2023; it’s thriving. Take one glance at the taxi gridlock outside the Las Vegas Convention Center and it’s evident that two quiet COVID years didn’t kill the world’s desire for an overcrowded in-person tech extravaganza -- they just built up a ravenous demand.

From VR to AI, eVTOLs and QD-OLED, the acronyms were flying and fresh technologies populated every corner of the show floor, and even the parking lot. So naturally, we poked, prodded, and tried on everything we could. They weren’t all revolutionary. But they didn’t have to be. We’ve watched enough waves of “game-changing” technologies that never quite arrive to know that sometimes it’s the little tweaks that really count.

Read more
CES 2023: Razer Edge 5G is an impressive (and misguided) gaming handheld
Razer's Edge 5G gaming device sitting on a table.

Razer is tapping into the cloud/mobile/handheld gaming craze with the Edge 5G. It's a unique device, packed with a powerful Snapdragon G3x Gen 1 mobile chipset for native Android gaming, as well as 5G and Wi-Fi 6E support for on-the-go cloud gaming. I had a chance to try it out at CES 2023, and it's the best iteration of this type of device we've seen. But it still loses on principle.

If you're unfamiliar with the Razer Edge, it's basically a phone that you can't call or text with combined with Razer's Kishi V2 Pro controller. The controller isn't the same as the $100 Kishi V2 you can buy now -- it's almost identical, but Razer added haptics for the Edge. You can't buy this updated version, but when I asked Razer if it planned to bring the Pro to market, the company left the door open.

Read more