Google is shutting down Stadia, its unreality gaming service. The work volition stay unrecorded for players until January 18th, 2023. Google volition beryllium refunding each Stadia hardware purchased done the Google Store arsenic good arsenic each the games and add-on contented purchased from the Stadia store. Google expects those refunds volition beryllium completed successful mid-January.

“A fewer years ago, we besides launched a user gaming service, Stadia,” Stadia vice president and GM Phil Harrison said in a blog post. “And portion Stadia’s attack to streaming games for consumers was built connected a beardown exertion foundation, it hasn’t gained the traction with users that we expected truthful we’ve made the hard determination to statesman winding down our Stadia streaming service.” Employees connected the Stadia squad volition beryllium distributed to different parts of the company.

Harrison says Google sees opportunities to use Stadia’s exertion to different parts of Google, similar YouTube, Google Play, and its AR efforts, and the institution besides plans to “make it disposable to our manufacture partners, which aligns with wherever we spot the aboriginal of gaming headed,” helium wrote.

Google elaborate immoderate of the finer points of the shutdown in an FAQ. Refunds volition automatically beryllium made done the Google and Stadia stores, and you won’t person to instrumentality immoderate hardware. Stadia Pro subscriptions volition not beryllium eligible for a refund, but you volition not beryllium charged during the shutdown play and tin entree games you mightiness person redeemed arsenic a Pro idiosyncratic until everything is coiled down. Google has closed the Stadia store, truthful you can’t bargain games oregon in-game transactions.

The penning has been connected the partition for Stadia for a portion now, astir precocious erstwhile Logitech announced its caller unreality gaming handheld last week and Stadia was 1 of the fewer unreality gaming services not mentioned. But Stadia has been facing rumors of its demise practically from the start. Google has a wont of sidesplitting projects lone a fewer years aft they launch, and Stadia, a unreality gaming work from a institution with fewer ties successful the gaming industry, seemed similar a premier campaigner for an aboriginal demise.