I like how it has the potential to drive down the price of other systems.


Ouya Kicktarter Website.

It has zero potential to drive down the price of console games. This is competing solely with the downloadable game space, where $25 is about as much as you can ask from a player.

_________________

I just want the next gen consoles to BE next gen and come out pretty soon. Damn ps3 and the 360next have been out too damn long.

_________________
Larreth Wolfsong (long retired)
Lanys T'vyl, Everquest

Zinky, Lvl 60 Warlock
Thunderhorn, WoW

Nice. I needed another platform to download console emulators to.

Android.

The OS that has to recompile its applications for compatibility between different releases of the same phone hardware? That Android?

A console launch is a failure, dead on arrival, if it can't sell a million units on launch. Ideally, you want ten million, but without at least a million there's no install base for anyone to write games for, and so no one makes anything for your console. As of this moment, the Kickstarter page for Ouya has 42,418 backers. They're 570% funded! $950,000 is a realistic goal for a console launch, right?

And hey, how about that controller? There's a touchpad on there! No, it's not a touch-screen; it's like the touchpad on your laptop that you absolutely hate using, or the touch-sensitive surfaces that everyone complains about on the back of the otherwise-cool PS Vita.

No, only one controller per console. Multiplayer requires a console per player, and who cares for under $100, right? So why not just put buttons on the console hardware, make it a touch-sensitive screen, and save yourself some hardware?

Hell, as long as you're in there, make it work as a phone, too.

Yeah I think everyone got all that already. Thanks for saying it again.

_________________

Can't wait to receive spam from an android console botnet.

Randy, could you point out where I repeated literally anyone, at all? I mean, your contention was that the whole post was review, but backing up that contention on just one line-item would be a good start.

You said "thing uses Android" and took 800 words to continue saying "thing uses Android, like the phones!" None of that is new or valuable information.

_________________

Interesting controller.


Here's the first full look at the Ouya gaming controller. The big circle at the top is a touch-sensitive pad.

Never gonna happen.

_________________

How in the holy name of fuck did they get five million, six hundred and sixty six thousand, one hundred fifty five dollars from that Kickstarter?

people are stupid.

_________________

World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

People who care enough about mobile operating systems to be a fan of one over another are autists with money to spend, who are blind to the fact that this still not even close to properly funded and is quite likely a scam which will never produce a console release.

_________________

Not a scam, we vetted that. It's for real, and might even be released, but it's not an anything "-killer." We won't be talking about it in two years.

A console doesn't have to do anything special or original to be successful. Haven't Sony and Microsoft proven this a collective 5+ times over?

Ahem, funding and marketing power aside.

It's always an uphill battle, but it's too soon to say IMO. I actually think it has a shot

I really wanna give you a ZING award or something, but I can't. I'm sorry.

There have only been 3 Sony consoles. In that time, they have enjoyed multiple victories:

- First to market with real title support on a rotary optical drive (CD/DVD)
- The Dual Shock Controller (which literally everything copies)
- Force Feedback (see above)

There have only been 2 Microsoft consoles. In that time, they have enjoyed multiple victories:

- First online service to be taken seriously, at all, even now
- First non-controller motion-track device to enjoy even passing success (Kinect)
- First console title to sell 10 million copies, at all, period

Hell, even Nintendo (5 consoles) managed a ground-breaking innovation this generation:

- First motion controller, at all, period

The assertion that any of the three have been napping on innovation is not just wrong, it's offensive. All three bust ass to get the coolest shit possible out to you before you get bored. That requires both special and original, all the time, without exception. Marketing power ebbs and flows with however we all do at the above -- sometimes Sony's up, sometimes Microsoft's up, in the distant past Nintendo's been up. ]

It needs:

- Adoption base. In order to attract developers to make launch titles, developers have to be assured that a console will be adopted by X number of users to make it worthwhile for those developers to make anything for that console. It's actually more expensive to make a game for a new console than it is for an established one, because the SDK is already made; you've used it a few times, and your employees are familiar with it. The new guy is very hard to sell to the training department.

- Launch titles. You have to convince your public that your console is worth having, and 50% of that decision lives or dies on what software is available for it! If you can't get 1 (preferably 10) million consoles practically sold before manufacturing begins, you have to expect your devs to accept on faith that your console will succeed, and invest millions of dollars on that bet. Android is a terrible bet for that.

- Money. The Kickstarter project for this console would need $50M to meet the manufacturing costs of even a 1-million-console launch. Where's the rest coming from? No one knows. We've done the homework necessary to establish that this is not an Infinium Labs/Phantom scenario -- the designs and the backers are real -- but they still don't have the funding to make this happen in public. (NOTE: Private finance is not our purview, and it's possible [barely] that these folks have a billion dollars somewhere just out of view, but it's not the way to bet.)

- Support! Android requires that every game ever made be ported not just to this OS, but to this specific device -- picture Java support if the VM's didn't exist!

- Ease of Use. This is the other 50% from the adoption figures earlier. The touchpad needs to be a touch-screen right now, becaues if it's not, your console's ease of use is a step back from my phone, and that's no longer acceptable. If you can't support the user interface options common to simple communication devices of the current day, you cannot realistically sell a next-gen console.

- Timing. It has to be a next-gen console! Everyone knows that all three of the big players are making new consoles as we speak -- Nintendo has showcased their intended (first player) controllers already. I won't review those here, but the fact that announcements have alreayd begun trips an important switch -- you have to measure up to hardware you cannot possibly understand, and the comparisons will be more about power than mobility. The makers of a mobile console with anemic hardware, in that market, might as well just grind up their money and snort it for all the return they can expect.

There might be a Google console on the horizon, poised to threaten the Big Three. We've been waiting for them to do that for a while now. But this isn't it! If it's coming, this is just a diversion while they whip out the real Xbox Killer.

TL, DR: This thing still isn't real and probably won't be for a long time. If/when it is real, it's doubtful it will be worth giving a shit about.

_________________

PSX didn't have DVD, but yes the optical drive was important. Original in terms of using optical disc? Well, not really, it had been done on several others(Phillips, Sega CD, etc). PS2 using DVD wasn't really unexpected, given the trends, and it was the only logical move for a next-gen system at the time looking to boast AAA titles that required lots of space. Hardly original. PSX was slightly more original, but developers were knocking on their doors day and night to get more space anyway(FF7 devs claim they went PSX instead of N64 at the time because of space, though there are conflicting reports). I suppose some points for originality are in order for this one, but it came out of a natural evolution/necessity, not pure innovation.

The Dual Shock Controller is a mashup of many previous controllers, such as N64 and the SNES. The analog is still in the same position as the N64 for its left thumb. The only big difference is having two analog sticks and a few more buttons. The buttons and d-pad still remains in similar positions. I'd give it almost no points for originality: It did everything previous controllers had done, for the most part, but it did them WELL. It improvised, rather than originated.

Same for force feedback, been done since N64 era(and not just by Nintendo).

The online service for the Xbox was its only significant "marvel". The difficulty was in getting an online service to work WELL. Again this is a question of implementation, and you can probably find 5,000 things from all sorts of difference consoles to force your claim of "Welp, this HAD been done before, but in this case they finally did something RIGHT!" I emphasized originality for a reason.

Trying to separate Kinect out from Nintendo's tracking to claim originality is silly. They both aim at the same goal: Tracking physical movements of the player rather than relying on button pushing. Sony even had some success with the Move, even if it wasn't on Kinect's level... Neither relied on purely original concepts, yet they enjoyed sales.

I didn't mention NIntendo because they HAVE made a few innovations =)

I wouldn't argue that these companies didn't work hard to get where they are, it's just that originality was never an indicator of their success. It takes clever skill and crafting to make something epic, whether it's original or not. It's just stupid to look at something and say it won't be successful based on a claim where it lacks in that department given the history of consoles.

As for your assertions on what makes consoles successful, only one is important: Adoption base(and money which I already mentioned). The original Xbox, PS1, and PS2 had absolute shit for launch titles. Nonsense. There is absolutely no reason for the touchpad to be a touchscreen, that's like a G11/G15 keyboard argument. Whatever needs to be shown can be on the screen. Several consoles have been released in the past at absolutely stupid times and still manage either mid or late-term success. It really DOESN'T need to be a next-gen console for the market that it's aiming at: the casual and softcore audiences. I doubt the Ouya was ever intended to be an "Xbox-killer."

I say "adoption base," but frankly I use that term conservatively. Consoles can and have survived in at least interim periods with small numbers of committed third-party developers as well as first-party if they can manage it. Nintendo is a bad example to use for first-party success since they have such a massive and excellent team, but it is possible on the smaller scale.

This is not a victory. Your shit is terrible sorry. Fruit Ninja is the only game on the piece of shit that works with the Kinect on any decent level, and that is available on multiple platforms.

Also all motion gaming is bullshit so in reality you can at least take comfort knowing that your shit is the same state of shitty shit as everyone else. So you all win I guess.

Also 360 has consistently had the worst and slowest interface available through this generation. I wouldn't have a reason to even turn it on if not for HBO Go. The original Xbox was ok, I think, but it also didn't do anything.

_________________

I actually thought the first XB360 interface(or whatever version it was in 2007 when i finally got a 360) was ok, but it seems like every "update" Microsoft is determined on making a more shitty, laggy, useless, and cumbersome interface.

I don't mind the current GUI. It is leaps and bounds better than the weird one(s) they used to have.

But hey at least you have ads on a service you pay for, with multiple services requiring a separate subscription (Netflix, Hulu and HBO Go, namely) blocked behind that pay wall. It's just a damn shame that the 360-specific UIs for those subscription services are also the worst versions available.

_________________

You forgot to complain about the ESPN player requiring you to have an account with a content provider that totally obviates the need for delivery on your Xbox.

I just don't ever use that, but yes it's the stupidest, especially since you have to pay Microsoft to use something you pay someone else to use.

_________________

Dont buy a xbox 360 and your fine.?

_________________
"Creating Havoc and Pie Since 2001!"
My Website: http://www.anthonyhays.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cakvala

ESPN 3 & HBO GO are not generally available on cable/satellite, they are web/mobile applications (perhaps a few of the providers DO offer them as channels, but it's not the norm). So although I agree with it being dumb that you need to pay for XBox Live to be able to use them, if you have Xbox Live already, and subscribe to one of the approved providers, being able to watch them on my TV is still better than watching on my cell phone.

Are the Roku boxes worth two shits?
http://www.roku.com/roku-products

I have a Boxee which is kind of cool but no Hulu. If I remember correctly, Roku can't read video off a LAN, which is why I didn't go with it. But yeah, they're good. Boxee has a HDTV Tuner available too, which is where we get our local TV stuff.

_________________

Yeah, if I had known the 360 service would have been this bad when I bought one a few years ago, I wouldn't have bothered.

_________________

Roku boxes are awesome for bedroom tvs. netflix/hulu/crackle, along with hbo go (unless you have comcast, they haven't turned it on for roku yet, fuckers)

As for reading off a lan, it can't read off a generic shared drive, but if you install Plex Media Server, there's a Plex app for the Roku that will stream your library.

_________________

World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

Cheap enough to be worth it?

Have $109? Ouya game machine available for pre-order



Cheap enough to maybe pre-order.

They've already increased the retail price by 10%? Also no, not worth it.

_________________

so basically this thing is trying to be a Roku, at almost twice the price.

_________________

World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

Why would you want phone-quality games on a 50-inch screen? I don't think they've actually thought about that experience.

The same could be said of people who buy a Wii.

People who are casual gamers and don't care about graphics will love this thing, especially if it can do Hulu and Netflix and has 3rd party support for other things.

I think the concept is... okay. I don't like that it costs over $80, but even if it was cheaper, I already have a device that does everything I'd want this thing to do.

_________________

World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

The same could also be said about the majority of games (the good ones) on XBox Live.

Or: "Why are you playing 2D Flash games on your PC when it's capable of running Crysis 2 at high res/full settings?!?!!1111"

People don't care about the type of platform that delivers the content anymore.

OnLive just went tits up. I bet they're glad their Kickstarter finished a week or so ago.

Not death -- metamorphosis. It'll continue under one of its older investors, returned to the fold. I don't know how long it'll live under this new banner, though -- I don't think the new bosses have any tricks that the previous guys didn't know.

The whole thing about them having bought enough servers to support something like 8 times their current customer base couldn't have helped. That just shows a lack of foresight.

_________________

World of Warcraft: Kallaystra, Gweila, Steakumn, Tarathia [ Feathermoon/Horde ]

Well... yes, but not in the way that sounds. What they did was only stupid because they underestimated the incumbents' drive to keep new players out of the market. OnLive was only going to work if they could get the firmware installed in TV's out of the box, and it must have been child's play for their competitors (one of which makes, um, TV's) to leverage market influence to keep that from happening before they ran out of money.