Here's How Google Chromecast Will Play Stadia Games Without An Official Controller

As Stadia version 3.15 begins to roll out through the Google Play store, a new feature called “bridge mode” has been spotted. As it stands, if you want to play games on Stadia using a Chromecast Ultra, you can only use a Google-made Stadia controller that works over Wi-Fi. With the bridge mode feature, however, you could use your phone’s touchscreen as a controller, similar to what you'd do when playing games directly on the phone.
Furthermore, reports are surfacing that Google will be opening the Stadia experience to a “wide world of new controllers, as bridge mode will be able to pass inputs from controllers connected to your phone directly to the instance of Stadia being played on your TV.” This effectively builds on the Stadia Controller’s tandem mode that allows users to connect other controllers through the Stadia controller.

It's not clear how Bridge Mode will be enabled just yet or how to link a phone, but we're sure an official announcement from Google will be made soon. Of course, you will need to be on the same Wi-Fi network as the TV or Chromecast Ultra for this to work. In any case, it is a rather nice feature that will allow more people to play games anywhere they have a broadband connection, phone and a Chromecast Ultra without the need for the Stadia Controller. It will be interesting to see what the control layout ends up being on a mobile device, so stay tuned to HotHardware for more info as this unfolds and let us know what you think.