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Nvidia's Shield Revisited: Console Mode, Streaming, And More

Nvidia's Shield Revisited: Console Mode, Streaming, And More
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The PC will always be my entertainment platform of choice. But there are times when mobile gaming is a lot more convenient: as I sit in the car, waiting to pick my wife up from the grocery store, any time I stand in a long line, and even when I'm sitting on the couch, trying to relax after a long day of work. I don't get serious about mobile gaming, however, unless I'm traveling by air. That's when I can really bite into content that I wouldn't have touched at home.

Understandably, then, I was excited about my first extended stint with Nvidia's Shield mobile gaming console on a flight back to Winnipeg from Montreal (remember, Chris Angelini was the one to write our Shield review back in July). I downloaded a handful of titles from the Google Play store, waited patiently for the stewardess to give me the go-ahead, and I went to town. First, I tried Ravensword 2, which is probably the closest thing that the Android platform has to The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. No luck. The Shield's controls aren't supported in the title's gamepad mode. Undaunted, I fired up Galaxy on Fire 2 HD. Once again, no joy. The controller isn't recognized.

There are some really impressive games developed with native Shield support, but those weren't the ones I wanted to play on my flight. One of Android's strengths is a plethora of choice. So, it really seemed like Nvidia missed the boat as a "pure" Android-based gaming platform. I spent the rest of my flight gaming on my Google Nexus 7 tablet, smoldering over the Shield's wasted potential.

A few days later, Nvidia totally surprised me with new functionality. Included in today's over-the-air (OTA) update is a feature that instantly turned my opinion around: the Shield Gamepad Mapper, which lets you map the Shield's joystick and buttons to screen positions, virtual thumbsticks, and even gestures.

What's Included In The October 28, 2013 OTA Update?

Before we dig into the new Gamepad Mapper, let's go over all of the changes rolled into the update:

  • Android 4.3 support: this is a fairly straightforward upgrade from the Android 4.2.1 operating system that shipped with Shield. If nothing else, it's nice to see that Nvidia is committed to keeping its console's environment current. As Chris mentioned in our launch coverage, this is "pure" Android, without any of the bloatware other device vendors seem to enjoy bundling.
  • Shield GameStream: This is the official introduction of Shield's ability to channel output from a GeForce-equipped PC, an Nvidia Grid cloud gaming service, or the Shield itself to an external display at up to 1920x1080. It's a more formal branding of the streaming feature that was previously in beta. Bear in mind that Shield is limited to PC- or Grid-based games at 1280x720 over Wi-Fi, and 1920x1080 will only be available once the company releases an Ethernet-to-micro-USB adapter. We don't have release date for this adapter, or for the Grid-powered cloud gaming service that we expect to arrive in the future.
  • Apps2SD: Shield has never properly been able to move application data to a microSD card, effectively limiting software to the 16 GB of internal storage. Today's OTA update fixes this issue, and applications that support this feature can now be moved via the Android settings>apps menu.
  • Shield Game Console Mode: This is a dedicated mode that disables the Shield's built-in display in favor of the mini-HDMI output for use with an external display (television). It's required for 1080p support, something we can use with Android games now, and with PC streamed games in the future when the upcoming ethernet adapter arrives at retail. While this new mode disables the Shield's integrated display, power usage is expected to increase because of the higher resolution workload. This is ideal for use in conjunction with a wireless Bluetooth game controller (like the Nyko Playpad Pro) so the cord-encumbered Shield can be put down beside the television. Because this feature is new, we'll look into it in some more detail later in the article.
  • Shield Gamepad Mapper: this provides a potential way to use the Shield's hardware controls in games that don't support them. Holding down the play button brings up a user interface that allows the user to map portions of a game's screen (or even gestures) to the Shield's buttons and analog sticks. Game profiles are auto-launched, can be saved locally, and can be shared via the cloud or to a friend. For us, this is the Shield's potential killer app and by far the most important aspect of the update. It's quite good (but not perfect), and we'll dig in to this feature on the next page.

Non-OTA Goodies: The Holiday Game Bundle, and Shadowplay

You may recall that Nvidia's Holiday Game Bundle launches today, and comes in two flavors. Folks who buy a GeForce GTX 770, 780, or Titan are entitled to Batman: Arkham Origins, Splinter Cell: Blacklist, and Assassin's Creed: Black Flag, in addition to a $100 discount on an Nvidia Shield. The lesser bundle is similar but doesn't include Batman: Arkham Origins and the Shield discount is halved to $50. Nvidia has added a few cards to the second bundles qualification list, which now includes the GeForce GTX 660, 660 Ti, 670, 680, and 760.

Today is also the official release of Shadowplay Beta. That's Nvidia's real-time game video recording feature and it's supposed to take the processing load off of the system and put it on a Kepler GPU's dedicated NVEncencoding hardware. It's not part of the OTA, but we've put it through the paces to show you how it works, too.

Finally, Nvidia has secured some more distributors for Shield, including some heavy hitters like Amazon.com. This isn't big news, but it does speak to Nvidia's dedication to the platform.

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