PC games retailer Robot Cache allows players to start games 200x faster than any other games store

Players can now buy games via Robot Cache and play them 'almost instantly' as they download.

The PC games retailer is using DACS Laboratories' ROCKITPLAY FastStart Technology on more than 50 games to create 'the fastest game store in the West'.

ROCKITPLAY is effectively a Netflix-like click-to-play solution. It launches gameplay with as little as 1% of the game downloaded. Players can then enjoy the title while the rest of the game is downloaded in the background. Gamers have been conditioned to wait for hours or even days for big game downloads, and Robot Cache is looking to be a pioneering store to end gamers frustration by offering the FastStart option.

Games in the collection include Elex 2, Darksiders 3, Soulstice, Destroy All Humans, Syberia: The World Before and many more. These games can start up to 200 times faster than they do on Steam. The move is designed to bring video games in-line with TV, movies and music, where users expect to watch their show or listen to a track without waiting for it to complete the download.

As an example, Darksiders 3 on a 100 Mbit/s networking connection takes roughly 30 minutes to download, but it takes less than one minute via Robot Cache and ROCKITPLAY to start gameplay.

“I was sceptical at first," said Robot Cache CEO Lee Jacobson.

"It sounded too good to be true, but the technology delivers. Today, FastStart games on Robot Cache start up to 200X times faster than on Steam or any other game store, providing an unmatched user experience"

DACS Laboratories says that ROCKITPLAY FastStart doesn't require any game developer support and removes all technical obstacles for anyone looking to use it. It enables fast patching, which reduces patch sizes by up to 50%. And it also stops the download if gamers stop playing, which saves up to 60% on bandwidth, costs and energy, the firm says.

The way the tech works is by only delivering the data required, in sequence, according to what's needed during the first moments of gameplay. It all runs locally, so there's none of the lagging issues associated with cloud gaming.

“German Engineering lives up to its reputation with ROCKITPLAY FastStart," added Mark Caldwell, CTO at Robot Cache.

"We have worked side by side with the DACSLABS team and tailored the solution to our gamers’ needs.. Bringing this technology into Robot Cache almost completely eliminates wait time for game downloads. With FastStart our players can finally stop thinking about scheduling downloads and just start playing!”

Outside of improving the experience for retailers like Robot Cache, the FastStart technology also offers up opportunities for the wider business. Indeed, with games studios, publishers and retailers seeking to develop additional revenue streams during a challenging time for the industry, a service like FastTrack could allow for almost instant access for free-to-play games, which would further eliminate friction on that side of the business. There is also the potential to use the technology to develop a subscription solution (or improve an existing one), which could benefit publishers, developers and retailers.

Robot Cache hopes to show the way with its use of the technology. And to deliver the games, it’s also partnered with Akamai’s low-latency content delivery network.

“Akamai developed low latency content delivery to lay a foundation for innovation," explained Thomas Stark, sales manager EMEA Media at Akamai Technologies.

"Robot Cache with ROCKITPLAY FastStart is blazing the trail by slashing game start times powering a new era of click-to-play gaming.”