Cloud gaming is having a moment right now, with Microsoft, Google, and Amazon all launching their own cloud gaming services. Now Facebook is getting in on the action, too.
Facebook Gaming now lets you stream games from the cloud onto your Android device or web browser. To play, just go to the Facebook app on Android or fb.gg/play if you're on a desktop or laptop. The first games that'll be available include Asphalt 9: Legends, Mobile Legends: Adventure, PGA Tour Golf Shootout, Solitaire: Arthur's Tale, and WWE SuperCard.
Games that include Facebook Login for Gaming will enable you to sync your progress between the cloud version on Facebook and the full downloaded game. So if you try a game on Facebook and like it, you can download the game onto your phone and pick up where you left off.
The games are all free to play so you don't have to worry about paying a monthly fee to access them. And there are no controllers needed because these are mobile-first games, meaning you'll use touch controls to play. On your desktop, you can use a mouse and keyboard to play.
Facebook's cloud gaming service will launch in the US, arriving first in California, Texas, and Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states like Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia, and West Virginia. More states will be added in the coming months.
As for why Facebook Gaming's cloud service isn't on iOS, Facebook's Jason Rubin says that it isn't clear if launching on iOS is a "viable path" even with Apple's recently-updated App Store rules related to cloud gaming. Rubin also says that there are "limitations" to what can be offered on Safari.
Facebook does say that it's rolling out cloud playable ads on Android and iOS in the US. These build on an HTML5 playable ads format and let you try a game demo directly in your News Feed. iOS users that want to try out Facebook's full-on cloud gaming service will have to load up a desktop or laptop computer, though.