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Sega To Take X-Box To Arcades
kikta writes "Well, after our previous speculation about what Sega would do after they got out of the hardware biz, it appears we have our answer. CNN is reporting that they will be producing motherboards to port the Xbox to the arcade. GamePro also weighed in on the announcement."
They may not have put out a good (read: profitable) game system since the Genesis, but innovative games like Jet Set Radio and the ridiculously addictive Samba de Amigo should show everyone that Sega's still got plenty to offer when it comes to the often-stale world of video games.
Easy does it!
This comment has been submitted already, 276865 hours , 59 minutes ago. No need to try again.
This is a legitimate business move. One of the main reasons people go to arcades is to play other people. A good friend of mine bought a copy of Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for his Dreamcast and hardly plays it anymore. He's had it maybe three weeks. However, he still goes to arcades and spends hour after hour playing Marvel vs. Capcom 2. The Dreamcast version he can play at home on his big screen TV is arcade perfect (arguably better than the arcade version), but playing a computer-controlled opponent just can't compare to playing another person. Computer-controlled opponents have routines and tendencies that become familiar to players after a while. On the other hand, if console networking continues to improve that incantive decreases. There is a lure to having a physical opponent to scream insults at, but is it strong enough?
My Karma is so good, I'm the Dalai Lama...or something.
No, this is the environment that Sega knows they have been and ARE successful in.
This is only about introducing the Xbox as another arcade hardware platform for the company, not a change in their strategy. I imagine they'll use Xbox hardware for the "commodity" games, and they'll continue to use their custom hardware for the "A" games.