Nvidia GeForce Now will soon limit monthly play time for all users

If you’re a heavy user of Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming platform, you might want to make a note of its biggest new change.

Starting in 2025, users (including those who pay for premium service) will be limited to 100 hours of streaming per month. While that’s a fairly high limit, it still bites hard versus the unlimited playtime that the subscription has allowed up until now.

If you’re currently a paying user, or if you sign up for a paid GeForce Now subscription between now and December 31, you’ll be grandfathered into unlimited streaming until 2026. (Just don’t let that subscription lapse.) Otherwise, if you go over the streaming limit and still want to continue playing, you can buy additional game time in 15-hour chunks for $3 (standard tier) or $6 (ultimate tier).

What’s with the new limits? According to Nvidia’s announcement post, the limits are there to “continue providing exceptional quality and speed — as well as shorter queue times — for Performance and Ultimate members.” Nvidia says that 94 percent of users currently fit under this limit, though some less-than-precise wording means that might also include users on the free tier. (I’m getting flashbacks to when mobile carriers were trying to convince us that most people didn’t need more than 2GB of over-the-air data.)

Nvidia

There are some changes coming to the tiers, too. “Priority” has now been renamed “Performance,” and service for streaming games has been upgraded from a 1080p maximum to 1440p. The free tier isn’t going anywhere, but Nvidia says that free users “will now see they’re streaming from basic rigs, with varying specs that offer entry-level cloud gaming and are optimized for capacity.”

Which reads like “don’t call it a downgrade” to me, but frankly I’m surprised Nvidia has kept the free option around this long. It might be operating as a loss leader to get people to upgrade for that better experience. That would also explain why new restrictions are the go-to move instead of higher prices.

If you’re interested in checking it out, remember that GeForce Now operates a little differently than other cloud gaming platforms: your GeForce Now game library is tied to compatible games that you already own on stores like Steam, Epic, Xbox, Gog, Ubisoft, and EA. New games announced for support this week include Starcraft II and Starcraft Remastered, Planet Coaster 2, and TCG Card Shop Simulator.

Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld

Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he’s the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop “battlestation” in his off hours. Michael’s previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he’s covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he’s always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.

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