Google Stadia Controller gets Bluetooth certification days ahead of Stadia shutdown

Google will be shutting down its cloud-based game streaming service, Google Stadia, on January 18. Ahead of shutdown, the company has announced that it will soon be rolling out one last update to Stadia Controller that will bring support for Bluetooth technology to the device.

That said, unlocking Bluetooth connectivity on its Stadia Controller isn’t exactly a simple process and it requires the company to do more than just releasing a software update. First, the company need to obtain certification or approval from the Bluetooth Special Interest Group in a bid to let its Stadia Controller be used as a wireless controller. Once it gets the necessary clearances, it will have to roll out an update enabling the functionality on all its Stadia Controller devices that is being used by gamers around the world.

At the moment, Google’s Stadia Controller is listed on the website of the Bluetooth SIG. This listing says “HoGP BLE Profile support for Stadia Controller”, which indicates that the Stadia Controller will soon be getting support for Bluetooth Low Energy.

“In addition, many of you have expressed the desire to enable Bluetooth on the Stadia controller. We have some good news: next week we’ll be releasing a self-serve tool to enable Bluetooth connections on your Stadia Controller. We’ll share details next week on how to enable this feature,” Google wrote in a Stadia support page hinting towards a potential timeline as to when the company will be unlocking the feature.

With the upcoming update on Stadia Controller, users will be able to use the gaming controller with other gaming consoles such as Xbox or PlayStation. Simply put their Stadia Controllers will not lie in a corner of their homes completely useless.

Separately, Google has released its last game dubbed as the ‘Worm Game’ on Stadia ahead of the shutdown.

You might have seen one last game arrive on Stadia today. It’s a humble 🧡 thanks 💜 for playing from our team.

Find it here: https://t.co/PyAUH181v1

— Stadia ☁️🎮 (@GoogleStadia) January 13, 2023

Google, in the description of the game, said that its team was using this game for testing various features that it for developing for the platform and that it wanted to share it with all the Stadia users as a note of thanks before the shutdown.

“Play the game that came to Stadia before Stadia came to the world. “Worm Game” is a humble title we used to test many of Stadia’s features, starting well before our 2019 public launch, right through 2022. It won’t win Game of the Year, but the Stadia team spent a LOT of time playing it, and we thought we’d share it with you,” the company wrote in the description.