How I Knew Stadia (And Similar Products) Would Fail

As soon as I heard about Stadia I started predicting the day it would enter the Google Graveyard.

Why?

Because for almost a decade I’ve been forced to scream at my monitor—along with many others—around completely useless user experiences.

One of the worst ones is hinted at above in the login process.

If you have multiple Google logins you get to play a fun game when you try to authenticate: it presents you a random one of your accounts as if that’s the one you’re trying to use.

But there’s no pulldown. No. Instead, you have to hit Next.

Then you get a pulldown.

Now, let’s say you have accounts A, B, and C. Your main account is A. You sometimes use B. And very rarely do you log into C.

As it turns out, if you ever do decide to use C, it might magically become the default for logins for the next several days or weeks—even if you have gone through the idiotic “Next” process to log into account A a dozen times since.

So you’re like:

Me: “Hey, let me authenticate to account A.”

Them: “Sure, here’s a login to account C.”

Me: “Nah, that’s ok, where’s account A?”

Them: “Just pretend you really want to go into account C and hit Next.”

Me: “Ok, well just know that I hate you.” clicks Next.

Me: pulls down the login for account A, logs in.

Now it’s later in the day, or maybe the next day. And I’ve not logged into account B or C in days at this point…

Me: “Hey, I need to authenticate to account A again, you know because it’s my main account.”

Them: “No problem, I completely understand. So it looks like you’re trying to log into account C. Here’s a password field.”

Me: “Are you fucking kidding me? You make me want to buy a cabin in the mountains. Not account C. My main account.”

Them: “No problem, you can change that.”

Me: “Cool, how do I do that?”

Them: “Hit next.”

Me: “To log into account C?”

Them: “Yeah.”

tables flip and cuss words are combined like new Taco Bell offerings

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Me: “Seriously? Again?”

Them: “Yeah.”

repeat this process for days or weeks

—

Now, here’s the fun part.

This hasn’t been broken since March. Or since 2020. Or since 2015.

This is like a major design flaw that’s probably killed thousands from strokes at this point, and it’s existed for YEARS.

And the same thing exists for logging into tons of interfaces all over Google. Admin panels. Configuration screens. Etc.

Like the functionality is great, but how do you actually find it and use it?

This is why Google Wave Plus Meetover Outhangs never took off either. Random fucking interface, which isn’t intuitive, and which changes constantly.

So they announce Stadia. An interface and technology for gamers.

I know instantly it’ll fail. Not because of the gaming stuff, but because nobody can stand to use a Google interface for more than a few attempts before they call a fucking suicide hotline.

Google isn’t at fault for making this mistake.

They’re at fault for making it constantly, over and over, for over a decade—if not longer.

RIP Stadia, and most products that come after it.

Until Google figures out a workflow for self-improvement, their technology will basically transition from cradle to graveyard.