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Infinium Labs Phantom Unveiled In August
Jerek Dain writes "GameSpy.com has an article about the Phantom console from Infinium Labs with some new information. Apparently it will make its big debut (complete with proof of its existence) at the Ultimate Gamers Expo in August. But from the sound of things, can it really compete with gamers' PCs?" Of course, our previous story on the Phantom mentioned prototypes would be available in March, but we suppose delays never hurt anyone, as long as a product has good support and decent game quality when it does ship?
we have seen this kind of thing before haven't we? Anyone remember Atari Jaguar? Ugh! There is no room for a fourth console in this market.
Here.
Until I see some evidence that somebody has actually *seen* or *touched* this wonder console that does everything, it's pretty much my take, too.
Chris Mattern
Haven't other ocmpanies tried the internet games thing? Where is it now? Wasn't PS2 supposed to have it?
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They said there were at E3 but they do not appear in the exhibitors list
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Seriously, who will want to play PC games on an console that will quickly be obsolete and unable to run the newer and more powerful games? The thing will have even less then a regular game consoles life expectancy.
Besides, I really doubt the libary of stuff they claim to have. Unless the console is just a Windows box, I really doubt they will get all of the PC games ever published on that thing.
Can you imagine the kinds of work that will be needed to get the OK from every publisher, company, etc to put the games on it? I sure can't.
... if indeed this isn't the most appropriately named console ever.
Why do I M2 everything negatively?
Amazingly enough the folks from infinuim were at E3 but not as Exhibitors. They did a couple of press demos however they did not bring any prototypes with them. In the words of one of the people who talked to them, infinium is "clueless".
for those that dont know, Phantom games are downloaded, instead of buying a CD/DVD.
one thing i really like about consoles is that since it is impossible to patch a game once its been released, they are usually pretty bug free.
that begs the question, will Phantom owners be able to expect the same quality of software, or are they supposed to just download the new version once the bugs are fixed?
Unless of course we're talking about Microsoft; then we rant and rave and scream FUD and vaporware.
I feel fantastic, and I'm still alive.
Has anyone noticed how many systems are being released way over the current price point? N-Gage and the phantom console are both jumping into a market where both companies are complete unknowns and both at a price point twice (or more) of all other contenders.
You have to be curious why someone would jump into a market (especially the video game market which has companies good at what they do (read: Sega)) forcing themselves into bad situations.
Are they just ignoring the facts? Or do they know something we don't?
"If the good lord had intended us to walk, he wouldn't have invented roller skates." -Willy Wonka
While there are three consoles in the market, you have to look at the segment that they are all trying to penetrate.
If you look at the console market as one big pie, the pie is actually getting bigger (i.e. greater revenues for each console, game publishing company)
The size of the pie does not remain the same, and it is a wrong to assume that as one console enters the market each "piece of the pie" by the other already present consoles diminishes.
In reference to my second sentence imagine what revenues for the industry were when the SNES and Sega were competing...1/3, 1/4, maybe even 1/10 of what the entire revenue is today.
As the gaming population ages the pie gets larger and more $ is to be had. Therefore, there still doesn't exist a barrier to entry based just on how many consoles the market can support at one time.
Thirty years from now when the age of a gamer spans from 5 yrs old to 75 yrs old (whereas now it's about 5 yrs old to 45 yrs old), then it would probably be right to assume that the revenues have peaked (in total population able to support the industry, mind you) and there will be evidence to support just how many consoles can be out there at once.
But then one must consider the possibility that every generation after their own has roughly 1.5 times the population of theirs (the population of the earth is getting bigger)...hmmm...just thought of that at the end of this...
The fact is that consoles are one of those things where if you can shave a few bucks off the thing, you do it. And the console companies are going to want to move to a subscription model for that matter as well. Even the software developers will be in favor of this model as well. Anything that saves them pressing and packaging costs they'll be in favor of.
The model will be that you buy the console for cheap, discounted if you pre-pay for N months of coverage with the associated online service. I tend to think there will be a variety of subscription models from 'pay as you play' to 'all you can play'.
The software companies will deal with the console manufacturers and their servers to get their software loaded on a system. They can do things like bug fixes and other sorts of updates seamlessly. Even if a title flops, there's a greater chance for the problems with the game to be fixed and a new version uploaded.
Oh yes. Piracy becomes a lot harder. Software companies will love that. Region enforcement is an interesting issue, though in theory the servers can determine the incoming IP address and place the region its coming from.
The consoles will be cheaper and more reliable because there's no moving parts in them. That means a lot in the console business where even ten bucks in the hardware costs can add up.
The big downside is that once the servers are shut down, the box becomes junk. Of course the companies might find a way to turn PCs into servers once they're no longer interested in running their own. The software companies selling the games will be interested in that to make a second round of profits. First you rent the game and then when the console is dead, sell the game a last time to the enthusiasts.
I don't believe you.
I think there *is* room for a 'fourth' console.
Its just that it had better Seriously Kick Ass if it wants to compete.
Frankly, looking at the existing stock, I can think of at least 10 ways a new 'under the radar' console could compete.
Come on. Does *nobody* remember the actual lessons of MSX? eh?
Okay, I'll give you a hint:
a) There will *always* be a 'dying' console in the console war. Work on the *games*, not the 'marketing'.
Here's another:
b) He who has the most software, wins.
Anyone wanting to build a new console to compete with PS2/XBOX/GC need only keep in mind those two rules, and then get to work.
Complacency is fine, but you wait until someone comes up with a console which breaks some rules. It could, and might, happen.
; -- the corruption of government starts with its secrets. a truly free people keep no secrets. --
then we will call it the Phantom Menace.
"As for the hardware itself, Phantom will use mostly standard PC parts", says the article. Well, we all know what that means: big and expensive! It's all very well if you're Microsoft and can afford to sell a console at a loss after wasting money putting unnecessarily general-purpose components into it. But some startup reckons they can do it? Ludicrous. There may or may not be room for a 4th console in the market, but there's never been room for a "console" built out of standard PC components, produced by a company with no reputation to lure developers and no billions in the bank to buy into the market.