Troubleshooting and FAQ

The game won't start in the browser

In-browser play needs WebGPU. Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari ship it, but it can still be unavailable on a given machine:

• Hardware acceleration is turned off in the browser's settings.
• The GPU driver is old or the browser has blocked the GPU. In Chrome or Edge, open chrome://gpu and look at the WebGPU line.
• The browser itself is out of date.

A launch profile can send devices that can't run the build to cloud streaming instead, so those players still get in.

A build failed

Open the project's Builds page: each build says why it failed. The Quality page shows the frames Strata captured while playing it, in both graphics modes.

• The GPU check failed because of the machine, not your build. Strata retries on another GPU by itself. You don't need to push again.
• The build boots but a frame is visibly broken. That fails the check on purpose. Compare the desktop-class and mobile-class captures to see which mode is wrong.
• The failure is inside the engine, not your project. Ask your coding agent to report it to Strata, or open a support request. Engine faults are fixed in an engine release, and the next build picks the fix up.

A Strata run was refused

Each plan allows a number of runs, and of runs at once. Free: two Strata runs a day, counted over a rolling 24 hours, one at a time. A refused run never starts and costs nothing, and a run that fails because of a problem on our side is refunded. Runs and allowances has the limits for each plan.

The play URL shows error 1016

The DNS record for the play URL's hostname is missing. Add a CNAME for the hostname pointing at routing.simplystream.com. See Connect a domain.

The domain stays pending

• The TXT record's name is _simplystream-verify. followed by your domain. Many DNS providers add the domain for you, so you may only need to type _simplystream-verify.
• The value is the verification code shown on the Domains page, with nothing added.
• New records can take a while to appear. Click Check verification now again later; SimplyStream also re-checks in the background.

A cloud streaming session won't start

• Cloud sessions are paid from the project owner's credits. New sessions are refused when there are none left; add credits on Billing.
• Some office and school networks block the connections streaming uses. Try another network to rule that out.

In-browser play doesn't use cloud machines, so neither of these stops it.

Multiplayer feels slow or jumpy

Each player connection is limited to 10 KB/s by default. A game that replicates more than that falls behind. Raise the limit in your project's Config/SimplyStream/SimplyStreamEngine.ini, as shown in the Unreal Engine guide.

The game runs out of memory

By default a build has a 3,998 MB WebAssembly heap. Everything the game holds at its peak has to fit in it. Reduce what is loaded at once, such as texture sizes or how many levels stay resident.

Still stuck

Open a request from Support in the dashboard, write to [email protected], or ask on Discord. Include the project name and roughly when it happened.

About SimplyStream

What does SimplyStream do?

It runs Unreal Engine games in the browser. The game is compiled to WebAssembly and rendered with WebGPU on the player's own GPU, with no install. When a device can't run the game, the same link can stream it from a cloud GPU instead. Strata, the agent inside SimplyStream, builds each version you send, puts it online and checks it on a real GPU.

Which engines does it support?

Unreal first, with early Unity support. Strata builds Unreal projects; for a Unity game, see Unity.

Which Unreal versions can I use?

5.8 and 6.0, the Unreal Engine 6 line. 5.8 is on every plan. 6.0 is on paid plans now and comes to Free on 1 June 2027. Each project picks its line when it is created.

Do I need to install an engine fork or an SDK?

No. Strata builds your project on its own machines with the SimplyStream engine already in place. Work in the Unreal Editor you already have, or without one: a coding agent can change the project and send it. Start with Strata shows how.

Can I use Unreal's old web export?

No, and you don't need it. Epic took the old web export out of Unreal in 4.24, in 2019, and Unreal 5 has no official web target. SimplyStream is a separate WebGPU platform that Strata builds for you.

Which browsers can players use?

In-browser play needs WebGPU, which ships in Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari. Players whose browser or device can't run it can be sent to cloud streaming, which only needs to play video.

How is the delivery mode chosen?

When a player starts the game, the launch page picks in-browser play, hybrid (early access) or cloud streaming, using the device and the rules in your launch profile. The session stays in that mode until it ends.

Does it support multiplayer?

Yes. Unreal dedicated servers run on SimplyStream as WebAssembly, and browser players connect to them over WebSocket, WebRTC or WebTransport. Strata builds the server with the client. SpaceLancers, our own game, runs this way in production. See Unreal Engine for the setup and the per-connection bandwidth limit.

Can I watch recordings of sessions?

No. Session recordings are not uploaded or stored, so there is nothing to play back.

Can I use my own domain?

Yes. Verify the domain with a TXT record, add a play URL on it, and point the hostname at SimplyStream. See Connect a domain.

Pricing and billing

What does it cost?

In-browser play costs $0 per minute on every plan, because the player's GPU does the rendering. Cloud streaming and hybrid sessions use cloud machines and are paid from your credits.

Pricing has the full comparison.

How do credits work?

Credits are prepaid US dollars. They pay for cloud usage: streamed sessions and multiplayer servers. Credits you buy never expire. Promotional credits can expire, and they are spent first. You can buy between $10 and $10,000 at a time on Billing.

Can I control what I spend?

Credits are only spent on cloud usage, and new cloud streaming sessions are refused when your account has none left. Billing also has a monthly budget setting with an alert threshold, and optional automatic top-up.

How do I pay?

By card, through Stripe. For invoicing or a contract, write to [email protected].

Getting help

Where do I ask a question?

• Discord, on every plan
• [email protected]: email support on Indie, priority email on Studio
• Support in the dashboard, to open a request about a specific project