Intellivision Amico Console announced - Hundreds of millions of sprites. Superior 2D.

I just recently had a discussion with a friend about why aren't there any TurboGrafx or more Genesis/Sega CD games on Steam. That lead to why hasn't Konami attempted a Turbo mini, I don't have answers to any of it. My friend did bring up the potential to sell a device to the masses and that's where I stopped him. The masses aren't interested in retro or new retro (what I refer to as nutro), it's pretty much a niche market, it just doesn't seem like it because we live in an age of mass communication. If you have a large company that makes money, sure, you can make an attempt to earn the extra buck by churning out some retro thing... If you don't, unless your device can provide an instant orgasm each time someone presses start, I see failure.

I see failure here. First off it's Tommy Tallywhacker and I've never liked his opinionated ass. Second, why even bother bringing back the name "Intellivision"? Is that supposed to make it more appealing to the weirdo, hipster, collector crowd? You couldn't hand a seven year old a dollar to come up with a cooler name? Third, you are not going to make your money back. PERIOD. Don't even bother bringing up words like "I'm a fan" or "For the fans of" because it's actually a lie. People get into to this stuff for money, that's a fact, being a fan doesn't pay the bills. You may be a fan, but you'll see how much of a real fan you are when you don't get close to breaking even.

I didn't even bother watching the interview. There's been a mysterious unwritten rule in the gaming industry that still holds true: There can only be three major game consoles at the same time. It was briefly broken, but the Dreamcast was dealt with. I doubt this new one will even come close.

https://youtu.be/4R2CRuQNBzk

One or two interedting looking games here. I'm down for an autographed woodgrain edition.

Thought he said this was a 2D machine only but it looks like a bunch of $1 3D steam shovelware games. The odd decent looking this still looks cheap. This feels like 100-1 games with a higher price tag.

The very first game looks like a multiplayer Ecco. Other than that this is pretty underwhelming. What was the point of launching a new kind of console when the games are things we've already seen on every other platform?

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Originally Posted by axel

The very first game looks like a multiplayer Ecco. Other than that this is pretty underwhelming. What was the point of launching a new kind of console when the games are things we've already seen on every other platform?

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Like the Wii when it came out, the controller provides gameplay experiences you can't get on other consoles. But this isn't made for the traditional console market. There's lots of info out there, I don't have time to get inyo everyrhing I'm aware of as someone this console was not made for.

The biggest problem in gaming communities seems to be most people getting exposed to random things like this video 8th hand without any context.

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Originally Posted by Black_Tiger

Like the Wii when it came out, the controller provides gameplay experiences you can't get on other consoles. But this isn't made for the traditional console market. There's lots of info out there, I don't have time to get inyo everyrhing I'm aware of as someone this console was not made for.

The biggest problem in gaming communities seems to be most people getting exposed to random things like this video 8th hand without any context.

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Yeah I guess... I'm intrigued by the idea of a new console that isn't from the big 3, but I look at the controller and all I can think is that the novelty is going to wear off very fast. The controller is basically a crappy cell phone. What kid is going to want this over a Switch? If the Amico doesn't fail at launch I expect it will be offered with a more traditional controller almost immediately.

And Wii and DS came out before the wave of smartphones so that stuff was new and novel then. Now, everyone, has a phone and kids will want what their friends have. PS4/Switch. Both can be had for close to the same price.

I thought they were marketing this at the parents anyway? (and parents can be pretty stubborn at ignoring their kids)

But… yeah, that controller really ruins it. Also they promised a 2D machine yet we see 3D games, so that alone also erodes trust (even if using a 3D GPU honestly makes more sense nowadays — want to bet that it runs Android under the hood?). And saying this as somebody who thinks some of those games look cool :​P (…I wonder if any of those will be ported elsewhere after the Amico inevitably fails).

Oh, and yeah, Wii came out before the smartphones hogged the casual market. And kids nowadays spent most of their time on their parents' phones too (though consoles have the appeal of being less of a gachafest).

2D powerhouse huh? More sprites than a PS4 they said.

Ouya 2.0

Quote:

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Originally Posted by axel

Yeah I guess... I'm intrigued by the idea of a new console that isn't from the big 3, but I look at the controller and all I can think is that the novelty is going to wear off very fast. The controller is basically a crappy cell phone. What kid is going to want this over a Switch? If the Amico doesn't fail at launch I expect it will be offered with a more traditional controller almost immediately.

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I think that it was stated earlier in this thread that one already exists.

I won't bother digging up the features of the stock controller that have been shown so far, but it is very much not a smart phone.

It has actual buttons and a unique disc pad that also spins. If you've tried to play classic games in an emulator on a touch svreen you know how bad it is.

Bringing your controller to a friends house is supposed to allow you guys to play all of your library there without logging in or anything.

The games may be cheap, but I think that they needed to keep the price lower, which was the intention. But considering that they're not an established console maker or mega corp I'm surprised that it's still as low as it is.

I think that marketing is what will make or break it and it needs to be saavy more than simply tossing a bunch of cash at tradition ad channels.

That skiing game looks kinda neat. I might look into it if it pops up for a buck or two on PSN

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Black_Tiger

I think that it was stated earlier in this thread that one already exists.

I won't bother digging up the features of the stock controller that have been shown so far, but it is very much not a smart phone.

It has actual buttons and a unique disc pad that also spins. If you've tried to play classic games in an emulator on a touch svreen you know how bad it is.

Bringing your controller to a friends house is supposed to allow you guys to play all of your library there without logging in or anything.

The games may be cheap, but I think that they needed to keep the price lower, which was the intention. But considering that they're not an established console maker or mega corp I'm surprised that it's still as low as it is.

I think that marketing is what will make or break it and it needs to be saavy more than simply tossing a bunch of cash at tradition ad channels.

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It looks at least a decade out of date. There were MP3 players like the Sansa Fuze that used a click wheel and screen back in 2008, not to mention the original iPod from 2001. When did a wheel become the preferred input method anyway? When have you ever played a game and thought "you know, I'd rather have a little wheel instead of a D pad or joystick?" A wheel might be useful for playing Tempest but not much else.

I think games will end up using the screen for buttons anyway because when the controller is held horizontally you don't have any buttons on the face. That's when you'll see a new controller released, probably an analog joystick + wheel on the left side and four buttons on the right, with the screen in the middle.

I'm not trying to drive the bus over this thing because I would love to see another consolemaker get in on the fun but I cannot see how this is supposed to succeed against tablets and phones, let alone traditional consoles.

One thing that worked for Wii was the controller looked familiar. A remote. Anyone could pick it up and understand it. I agree this looks like my old Sansa Fuze. Amico needs it's own Wii Sports and I don't mean clone that game. Just a simple and easy game that fully illustrates the controller.

Wii remote is not totally dead as Joycons exists. I don't see click wheels anymore. "Bring all your library with you" "family market" like a Switch or Switch lite for the same price? Willing to bet the only people who really buy this are nostalgic collectors and no one else really.

Those Intellivision wheel controllers were perfect for Burgertime. That game was unplayable on the NES. And what's with all the complaining about the controller anyway? It's not like they'll realistically be competing with PS and XBox. Just because those consoles have identical controllers, doesn't mean every console has to follow suit. Heck, even the Switch Pro controller has the same button layout. Another company dares to do something different, and some people just have to crap all over them. I wish them luck with this thing, but it sure looks like it'll be an uphill battle.

Now all we need is a new console that uses the paddle controllers. Still the only way to play Kaboom. They slap that game on every Activision comp that comes down the pike, but it is unplayable with anything other than the paddle controller.

I'd buy a new console that used paddle and wheel, and trakc-ball, and other long forgotten controllers that you could play ports of classic arcade games on a modern tv. It doesn't look like this Intellivision thing will be that though, sadly. Video games used to be so creative and innovative back in the 70s/80s. Now that corporations rule the roost, we get the same couple styles of game over and over. There's been very little evolution in game design since the late 90s. Sure, graphics and size have grown exponentially, but I think Doom and Wolf3D are just as much fun to play as all the latest and greatest FPS that flood the market.

Didn't mean for my post to detour so much, whoops. Good luck to this new Intellivision Amico project. Godspeed, fellas.

My brother and I played Burgertime on the Intellivision controller, at the National Videogame Museum, and we both agreed that the console's controller was crap.