Marking its foray into the revolutionary cloud-gaming space, even despite the recent OnLive crash, Japan-based bigwig game publisher Square Enix has come up with its Core Online service, which will allow gamers to play `free' high-definition games through a web browser.

Essentially a new streaming outfit, Square Enix's Core Online is an ad-supported cloud gaming platform which does not require any gaming discs or installations; and offers a free-to-play opportunity to the gamers - though with video advertisements alongside - with a mere click on a browser link to begin playing a game.

Supporting Web browsers like Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome, the Square Enix Core Online cloud-gaming technology - which has been developed by the game publisher's Hapti. co subsidiary; and combines Google's Native Client platform - chiefly enables the gamers to enjoy popular console-quality titles in "high-definition" on the Web.

According to the details shared by Square Enix, the games which will be initially available for play on the Core Online platform will include titles like Mini Ninjas, Hitman: Blood Money, and Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light.

Noting that Square Enix has always been one of the first companies to experiment "new business and services models in the game industry," the game publisher's CEO Yoichi Wada said: "Through our Core Online technology service, users can access our content easily through the browser."