Stadia expands further across Europe as it searches for first breakthrough market

Google Stadia Controller
Google Stadia Controller (Image credit: Google)

What you need to know

  • Stadia is now available in 22 countries as Google adds support for 8 more European countries.
  • Users in these countries can use Stadia starting today.
  • They include Austria, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and Switzerland.

Google has expanded the number of countries with Stadia support to 22 countries as it now includes support for Austria, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and Switzerland. It's coming to those countries from today, and users who sign up will get a free month's worth of Stadia Pro to try out games included in the Pro catalog.

Of course, you'll need to pay out if you want to own one of those larger AAA gamesthat Stadia offers right now, but at least some titles like Destiny 2 are included in the Pro Pack. Pretty soon, you'll also be able to play the hotly anticipated Cyberpunk 2077 on Stadia, so Google has some good timing on this as well.

Stadia remains a contentious topic online. While it has its charms: you can use it everywhere, your game library travels with you, and it's slick when it works — it has its flaws. Google is still actively building this service out though, and Stadia users have gotten features like messaging just recently.

More than the inclusion of new features, the continued expansion of Staida into new countries a least gives some hope that Google isn't going to kill off this service anytime soon. That Stadia was in any short-term danger has always been a curious notion, but the opening up of new revenue streams and active acquisition of new customers means that naysayers can relax a little.

Are you a long-term Stadia user? Let us know your experience in the comments below.

Michael Allison
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