Can computer clusters be used for general everyday applications?

Question

Does anyone know how a computer cluster can be used for everyday applications, like for example video games?

I would like to build a computer cluster that can run applications over the cluster that were not specifically designed for computer clusters and still see the performance increase. One use would be for video games, but I would also like to utilize the increased computing power for running a large network of virtualized machines.

Answer 1

It won't help, especially in the case of video games. You have to build around the cluster; the cluster does not work around you.

At any rate, video games require sub-50ms response time on input and response,and network propagation would just destroy any performance gains you might see. Video processing, on the other hand, benefits GREATLY from the cluster as the task is inherently geared toward parallelization. It does not require user input, and output is only measured in terms of the batch process.