Nvidia GeForce Now gets a free upgrade that makes a big difference to gameplay

Latency and frame rates get a huge boost

Nvidia GeForce Now on multiple devices
(Image credit: Nvidia)
Quick Summary

Nvidia's cloud gaming service GeForce Now has added a couple of essential new features it promised earlier this year – G-Sync support and Nvidia Reflex.

You can now also pay for a day pass rather than subscribe monthly or bi-annually.

Ever since Nvidia first launched GeForce Now almost a decade ago, the company has overhauled and refined its cloud gaming service to become the de facto way to play PC games at their finest without needing the best gaming rig.

However, latency has always been the sworn enemy of cloud gaming and leaves many players happier to stick with locally installed titles, irrespective of their personal PC's specs.

That's where a new update to GeForce Now comes in. First revealed at CES in January, the update adds G-Sync support to the service for the first time, which will work in conjunction with a compatible monitor to run the display at the same frame rate as the game. It should help eliminate stutter and, in combination with Nvidia Reflex technology (that's also been added), greatly reduce latency.

It's available to GeForce Now Ultimate members initially, so you'll need to be a subscriber to the top tier, but that will also ensure you're streaming the very best version of a game.

That's because it runs on RTX 4080 servers with full ray tracing support, 4K visuals and up to 120fps. In fact, you can even get 240fps if you're willing to drop the resolution to 1080p.

G-Sync support is also only available on PC and Mac at present, and requires a compatible monitor with VRR (variable refresh rates). That should include some gaming laptops, though.

Ultimate membership costs £19.99 / $19.99 per month), and you can pay for 6-months in advance at £99.99 / $99.99.

Nvidia GeForce Now Day Passes

Also now available are the previously announced Day Passes. These allow you to pay for a day's access to Priority or Ultimate streaming.

They are priced at £3.99 / $3.99 and £7.99 / $7.99 respectively, so quite pricey in comparison with a whole month's membership, but do allow you to just play when it best suits you.

Priority access does include ray tracing (albeit on an older "premium" rig), but you are limited to 6-hours of play, instead of 8-hours on Ultimate. You can also only play at up to 1080p at 60fps.

Nvidia has also now included adverts in its free Basic tier, with ads playing while you queue for access to your game.

Rik Henderson
News Editor

Rik is T3’s news editor, which means he looks after the news team and the up-to-the-minute coverage of all the hottest gadgets and products you’ll definitely want to read about. And, with more than 35 years of experience in tech and entertainment journalism, including editing and writing for numerous websites, magazines, and newspapers, he’s always got an eye on the next big thing.

Rik also has extensive knowledge of AV, TV streaming and smart home kit, plus just about everything to do with games since the late 80s. Prior to T3, he spent 13 years at Pocket-lint heading up its news team, and was a TV producer and presenter on such shows as Channel 4's GamesMaster, plus Sky's Games World, Game Over, and Virtual World of Sport.