以雲端優勢縮短上市時程、加快全球部署、確保一致化玩家體驗
跳脫地點和設備的限制，雲遊戲以更低的門檻為玩家帶來無所不在的體驗。日商優必達株式會社 Ubitus K.K.（以下簡稱優必達）身為雲遊戲技術領導者，結合專利技術與合作夥伴如微軟，提供雲端遊戲軟體即服務（SaaS）的一站式解決方案，除了協助遊戲開發商將既有遊戲雲端化，同時也支援遊戲公司和電信公司打造自有品牌的雲遊戲。
Jumping away from location and design limits, cloud games bring with them an ubiquitous experience of lower doorsteps for players. In addition to assisting game developers to transform existing games into clouds, Japanese competitor Ubitus K.K. (hereinafter referred to as JB) is a technical leader in cloud games, combining know-how and collaborating partners such as Microsoft, providing a one-stop solution to cloud games software, or service (SaaS), and also supporting video and video companies in creating branded clouds.
優必達執行長郭榮昌表示：「以最少資源進行最快速的部署，橫跨不同遊戲載具和地點提供一致的玩家體驗，正是我們獨特的技術優勢。尤其雲遊戲的串流體驗與網路連線品質息息相關，確保最後一哩路的順暢不延遲極為關鍵，全球佈點且即將進駐台灣的 Azure 資料中心就是我們不可或缺的助力。」
Executive Director Guo Yongchang said, "It is our unique skill to provide the most rapid deployment with minimal resources across different games vehicles and locations, and it is our unique skill to do so. In particular, the fluorine experience of cloud games is linked to the quality of network connections, ensuring that the last mile of the road is not delayed, and that the Azure Data Center, which is about to enter Taiwan, is our indispensable support.
微軟本身研發 Xbox 遊戲主機和運營遊戲的多年經驗，也讓 Azure 成為最懂遊戲產業需求的雲平台，植基於 Azure 的?Game Stack?(Azure for Game Development) 就為遊戲開發商提供完整的遊戲開發工具、平台、服務。微軟除了帶入現代化、效率化及創新的遊戲開發方法，更要因應開發資源珍貴、上市時間分秒必爭的挑戰，協助遊戲開發人員提升生產力；另一方面，則是提供跨平台無縫接軌的玩家體驗。
Microsoft itself develops years of experience with Xbox hosts and operating games, and makes Azure the cloud platform that best understands the needs of the game industry, based on Azure? gamestack (Azre for Game Development) provides a full set of tools, platforms, services for game developers. Microsoft software, in addition to bringing in modernity, efficiency, and new game start-up methods, has to be more responsive to the challenges of capitalizing, rising times in the market.
台灣微軟總經理孫基康表示：「微軟深信在雲端找到可信的夥伴很重要，包括以資安為前提來保護遊戲IP，符合歐美 GDPR 對隱私的規範。因此，我們與優必達的合作不只在平台或技術，而是以生態系的方式合作，共同商討需求預測和藍圖規劃，協助遊戲開發商和製作公司能更活躍在雲平台，讓遊戲快速部署到全球 60 多個 Azure 資料中心。目前，除了微軟購併的 Blizzard，許多知名的遊戲公司如 Tencent、Ubisoft、Nexon、PUBG、Krafton（被 PUBG 購併）、SEGA、SNK 與 Bendai Namco，都將他們的 3A 遊戲大作運行於 Azure。」
Taiwan's Microsoft Managing Director, Kim Ki-kang, said: "Microsoft is convinced of the importance of finding a credible partner on the cloud side, including by protecting the game IP on the premise of equity, in line with the European-American GDPR's privacy rules. Therefore, we work together not only on platforms or technologies, but in an institutionalized way to negotiate demand forecasting and blue mapping, and to assist game developers and producers to become more active on cloud platforms, allowing the game to rapidly deploy to more than 60 Azure data centers around the world. At present, in addition to the Microsoft-incorporated Blizzard, many well-known games such as Tencent, Ubissoft, Nexon, PUBG, Krafton (by PUBG), SEGA, SNK, and Bendai Namco operate their 3A games in Azure.
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雲端資源讓遊戲開發及運營不受限
目前用來玩遊戲的裝置主要是主機、電腦和手機，遊戲主機有三大品牌，電腦也有 Windows 和 Mac 之分。面臨愈來愈高的遊戲開發門檻，要在不同軟硬體之間取捨，在不同架構和平台做出一致的體驗，其實非常消耗資源；連帶地，要在同一天將同一款遊戲發布到所有平台，而且提供一樣好的體驗，更是極之困難。
The devices currently used to play games are mainly mainframes, computers, mobile phones, three major brands of the game host, and Windows and Mac on the computer. It is extremely difficult to have the same game distributed to all platforms on the same day, and to provide the same kind of experience, in the face of increasingly high-rise games, to take money from different hardware, and to have a consistent experience of different structures and platforms.
郭榮昌說：「雲端以無窮無盡的運算資源解決了這些難題，上雲的遊戲品質一定是最好且最能確保一致化體驗。遊戲開發商魚與熊掌可以得兼，將運算放到雲端處理，就能在同一天將遊戲首發於所有平台，又不需要妥協於載具的效能，這也是遊戲產業的主流趨勢。」
Koo said, "The cloud solves these problems with endless resources, and the quality of the game on board must be the best and best to ensure consistency. Game developers can combine fish and bear palms, they can handle the calculations at the end of the cloud, and they can launch the game on all platforms on the same day, without having to compromise on the efficiency of the load, which is also the dominant feature of the game industry."
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優必達在全球擁有近四十項專利，其中有十多項都在美國，再加上深耕市場多年，因而能以用最少的資源、最快的速度，將客戶的遊戲部署到雲端；此外，優必達也提供 SDK 給合作的遊戲公司，加快將既有遊戲轉換上雲的速度，由於許多遊戲原本都是採取 Windows 架構，因此微軟的諮詢協助，也成為一大助力。
With nearly 40 global patents, more than 10 of them in the United States and many years of deep-farming markets, it has been possible to deploy client games to clouds with minimal resources and as fast as possible; in addition, it has also provided SDK to collaborating game companies to speed up the conversion of existing games to clouds, as many of the games were originally based on Windows structures, so microsoft counselling has also been a major help.
郭榮昌表示：「我們選擇 Azure 做為合作夥伴之一，其一考量是微軟有自己的遊戲主機和遊戲平台，對遊戲產業非常了解，彼此的溝通非常順暢。另外，微軟在全球的資料中心的覆蓋點和負載能力，以及為遊戲產業提供企業級 24×7 服務支援的專屬工程團隊，也是加分優勢，因為遊戲商在推出大型遊戲時，特別需要強大的技術與營運支援做為後盾。」
"We chose Azure as one of our partners, and one of the considerations is that Microsoft has its own game host and platform, has a good understanding of the game business, and communicates well with each other. In addition, Microsoft has a global data center coverage and load capacity, as well as a corporate 24 #215; 7 service-supported dedicated engineering teams are also excellent, because they need a strong back-up of technology and operational support when they launch large games."
由於雲遊戲是重度串流應用，類似於 Netflix 等影音服務，對於網路連線品質和最後一哩路延遲度的要求比傳統遊戲更高，雲端資料中心的佈點和 GPU 伺服器的數量愈多，才能確保不同國家的玩家都能有一致化的體驗，
Since cloud games are heavy stream applications, similar to audio services such as Netflix, the requirements for network connection quality and last mile delay are higher than traditional games, and the number of locations in the cloud data centre and GPU servers is larger to ensure that players in different countries have a consistent experience.
因應離尖峰落差的調度能力和超前規劃
多家知名的日本遊戲開發商都由優必達負責全球發行，進軍北美及歐洲市場。即使擁有豐富的營運經驗，但遊戲運行期間的離尖峰落差始終是一大挑戰。舉例來說，晚餐過後到上床睡覺這段時間是尖峰，比起白天的離峰時段是五到十倍的流量差距，如果是新遊戲上市首日的峰值會更加驚人。
Many of the well-known Japanese game developers are responsible for global development, moving into North America and the European market. Even with their rich experience, the gap between the peaks of the game and the end of the game is always a challenge. For example, the period between dinner and bedtime is a peak, a five-to-ten-fold traffic gap compared to the peak of daytime, and would be even more dramatic if it were the peak of the first day of the new game.
Azure 後端 API 的自動化部署和自動擴展（Auto Scaling）功能發揮極大助益，隨需供給的資源讓優必達可在短短數分鐘內調度各地區的 Azure 機房加開機器，近期推出的新遊戲上市之初，甚至幾乎獨佔了 Azure 全球的 GPU 運算資源，即使半導體持續面臨短缺及供應鏈大亂的現狀，優必達仍能毫無後顧之憂地為客戶提供服務。
The Azure back-end API auto-deployment and auto-exploitation (Auto Scaling) function has been extremely helpful, with the availability of the necessary resources allowing the Azure machine to be installed within a few minutes, and the recent introduction of a new game that has almost exclusively captured the GPU operating resources of Azure worldwide, even in the face of persistent shortages and major disruptions in the supply chain, to serve clients without fear.
郭榮昌說：「微軟承諾提供足夠資源給遊戲產業，這對我們極為重要，因為遊戲愈來愈多，需求愈來愈大，長期合作的夥伴可以協助我們提早預測及規劃未來所需的運算資源。」
"Microsoft promises to provide enough resources for the game industry, which is of great importance to us, because the game is becoming more numerous and the demand is growing, and long-term partners can help us anticipate and plan the future resources we need."
值得注意的是，疫情對遊戲產業的協同開發模式也造成莫大影響，過去都是使用內部機房的高規格主機，資安和保密都沒問題，但近兩年不少大型遊戲推遲上市時間，就是因為疫情期間禁止進入公司，家用電腦無法做重度渲染計算，而且顯卡持續缺貨的疊加結果。
It is worth noting that the epidemic has also had a significant impact on the cooperative development of the games industry, which used to use high-level mainframes in in-houses, security and confidentiality, but many of the major games in the last two years have been delayed from the market because companies have been banned from entering during the epidemic, computers have been unable to do heavy restatement calculations, and there have been consistent stock-taking results.
因此，除了協助客戶將最終完成的正式版本遊戲發行至全球，已有客戶在開發過程就使用優必達的串流技術來進行協同開發。郭榮昌認為，微軟在雲端提供預先整合的工具集?Game Stack?(Azure for Game Development)，也是協助大家專注開發的利器，同時也以雲端優勢來解決無法進辦公室的協同合作問題。
As a result, in addition to assisting clients in distributing the final official version of the game to the world, clients have been developing collaboratively using the best available stream technology. Kwoongchang believes that Microsoft provides a pre-integrated tool set on the cloud? GameStack (Azure for GameDevelopment) is also an instrument that helps to focus attention, and at the same time, to solve problems that cannot be addressed in cooperation with the Office with the best of the cloud.
跨業推動元宇宙創新應用體驗
遊戲產業的專業分工化已是大勢所趨，像是微軟?Game Stack?(Azure for Game Development) 也提供了很多現成工具如排行榜、引擎，是協助遊戲的原創者專注在創意本身，做出很酷很好玩的遊戲。
ID@Azure?提供 Azure 的免費使用額度、技術諮詢與售後服務等三大要件，讓遊戲開發團隊加快開發時程、提升效率和生產力，以及無後顧之憂的全程支援。以 Azure 免費使用額度為例，從 5 百美元起跳，上限為 5 千美元；同時，還有由 PlayFab 工程團隊 24×7 提供 15 分鐘內回應的直接技術支援，搭配上班時間內提供的技術諮詢服務。
Microsoft also continues to expand new and additional services to support the game industry. For example: ID@Azure provides free access, technical advice and after-sales services to Azure, allowing the game development team to speed up the start-up process, increase efficiency and productivity, and provide full-time support without after-care. In Azure, for example, the free use of five hundred dollars, with a ceiling of five thousand dollars; in the same time, there is also the free use of Azure by the PlayFab engineering team 24×7 direct technical support is available within 15 minutes to match the technical advice provided during working hours.
至於?Azure Game Development Virtual Machine?則以客製化的 GPU 支援來提供預先整合的 Azure 開發環境，內含多重工具，免除自行安裝及維運的負擔。此外，還可整合協力廠商技術如 Unreal Engine、Perforce Helix Core、Parsec，以及 HP 旗下的 Teradici，使用預設的 RDP（Remote Desktop Protocol）模式快速建立可支援遠距多點協同合作的遊戲開發平台。
遊戲技術的跨業應用則是另一個值得注意的趨勢，當前風行的元宇宙、AR、VR、XR，仍不脫當前的遊戲技術和體驗，即使是非遊戲應用的渲染體驗，源頭技術仍來自遊戲產業。優必達在遊戲產業的 Know How 也帶來很多跨業的新客戶，雖然使用與雲遊戲相同的 SDK，卻是用來執行非遊戲的應用。
Another notable trend is the cross-practice application of video games technology, where the meta-cosm, AR, VR, XR, and even the non-player Rendering experience, is that the source technology comes from the game industry. Know How, who must be in the game business, also brings in many new, cross-practice customers, using the same SDK as a cloud game, but is used to run non-playing applications.
郭榮昌表示：「從時尚、文化、藝術到運動，許多不同行業紛紛進軍元宇宙，非遊戲的企業客戶的成長潛力很大。我們使用的本質技術都相同，不同點之一是對象，從玩家變成各式各樣的消費者；另一個不同則是運營模式，像是時尚業客戶的春裝發表線上活動，瞬間流量遠超過各款遊戲。」
"From fashion, culture, art, to sports, many different industries enter the military universe, and non-gaming business clients have great potential. One of the main techniques we use is the same, from player to user, and the other is the mode of operation, such as spring-loading on-line activities of fashion clients, which are more instantaneous than games."
白天使用率較高的一般企業客戶，對上以晚間為尖峰的遊戲玩家，這樣的互補性正可衝高雲端資源的利用率。優必達也將持續優化底層的遊戲平台，解決將遊戲或創新應用部署到各個國家的難題，結合自動化上雲的機制，協助遊戲開發商和製作團隊更專注在原創的內容和玩法，盡情發揮創意。
A typical client with a higher utilization rate during the day, who is able to interact with a game player with its peak in the evening, is able to tap into cloud resources. It will also continue to refine the bottom-of-the-ground platform, solve the problem of deploying games or innovative applications to different countries, combine the mechanisms of self-inflicted clouds, and assist game developers and production teams to focus more on original content and games, and to do what they need to do.
本文轉載自iThome
This paper is reproduced from iThome.
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