Well what I was thinking about is that a year isn't a lot of time to get a good base of game developers. Heck it's not a lot of time to make a game.
So in a year, you come out with better hardware, what was the point of working on a game for the old hardware? Unless you can make it run well on both, but I would think the new hardware could be a lot better. Think dedicated 3d GPU vs the 2d ATI they have now.
Then a year from then you make another revision with even better hardware. Game consoles aren't made to be upgraded yearly as PC's are. If Tapwave really wants to market this is a game console first, then they need to understand that market. But it seems like it really should be a PDA first and game second, something they don't seem to be pushing.
Just my thoughts. It's a kickass device but for $299 for the less powerful version $399 for the other, why not get a GBA:SP unless you were shopping for a highend PDA in the first place?
Wait a year and see what sony offers and what Tapwave releases next. Zodiac has great potential, but I can see it ending up in the heap of other handheld consoles that never made it. It all depends on how they push it.
Yeah I think that's where the Sony PSP will come into play.
The Zodiac is all good, but it's really 80% PDA 20% game. Which makes it perfect for those of us who need a PDA and would like to have the option to play some good games.
What's going to kill the Zodiac as a game device is that they're already talking about the next Zodiac with totally different hardware sometime late next year!!!
That totally kills the developers and fractures your market. Consoles get upgraded once every great while for a reason.
If they're going to compete with gaming devices in a serious way they can't be upgrading after a year.
I have no doubt they are doing some good work keeping terrorists off of US soil.
Oh, by the way I have this rock that prevents tiger attacks. Better get one now! There's rumors on the chatter line of possible sightings of what might be tigers with towels on their heads.
Seriously the rock works, just buy it already. Cost of only some freedoms. What you don't want the rock? You tiger supporting anti-american communist nazi!
But also, I can't afford an iPod, and I think it's nice to have a collection of CD's to look through. And unless you have your computer hooked up to act as your stereo, sometimes you might want to just relax with a date and listen to some music on the couch, not sit in the computer room listening to the whine of fans.
too bad the songs that come from itunes store are 128kbps::)
He does have a point. The ease of use is worth something, but for less than the cost of downloading I can get the album used and rip it.
iTunes is a great free service. But $9.99 for a downloaded album is too much. Factor in the time it takes to burn the CD, print the labels etc etc. not worth it.
Downloaded it the other day, now sitting here trying to get work done on a saturday installed it, told it not to be my default player and I was off.
Gotta say, they know how to design an interface. Most impressive, imported my MP3's and easily set the equalizer for each group.
Decided to give the store a try. Got one track, downloaded incredibly fast. The quality of the 128kbps AAC is quite good.
I'll still buy my CD's used and rip to MP3, but heck iTunes is working great for me. Kudos to Apple for this software, free, quick, easy to use, and very very well designed.
# of nerds who would be interested in MMORPG's: a fixed number that might grow slowly
# of MMORPG's: a number growing by leaps and bounds
There are simply going to be too many MMORPG's and not enough players. Want to know what will drive future MMORPG's into the hands of the rest of the gaming masses? I'd tell you but that would END all the fun.::)
It's called incentive. It's not like they're selling you a crippled game and requiring that you have a friend to make it work.
Amazing the amount of bitching that goes on here. Heck I could wander into a nerd gallery like a comic book store and find someone to play with in no time.
Goto a slashdot meetup I'm sure you'll find even more people to play with too.
You're right, I will gladly trade you my Packard Bell with the way too much 2megs of RAM and the too fast CPU 286 12MHz for whatever way too fast new computer you're using.
If the next generation of game consoles came out at $150 price point?
You know how quickly they could saturate the market? Would the quikness hurt sales? I mean if PS3 came out at that point and Xbox2 was $300+ which one would you get?
This would certainly help to have a huge user base to buy games which iirc are the main source of revenue and profits.
Yeah you'd get a free game, or the GB Player for $150, but then you add in tax and a memory card and you're pushing $180.
On the other hand for $99 you can choose what games you want to buy, and get the necessary memory card for a grand total of $120.
Never underestimate the power of free choice.
Not only that but who's to say that you'll buy games, you can always rent.
What I think it comes down to is what the cost "Looks" like. $50 might not seem like much when you're single but I bet it's more significant if you're supporting a family.
The idea of having AIM, PuTTy's etc open on the second monitor makes a lot of sense and goes along the same idea as using two monitors as at work.
What I was thinking when I read gamers I was thinking more of what games make use of multiple monitors. I know the Matrox Parahelia let you use 3 monitors for a full 120 degrees of viewing on games that had a patch available. JKII is the one game that comes to mind.
Off the top of my head I think BF42 would be great with the map on a second monitor. That'd be nice.
I don;t know any gamers that use multiple monitors other than those who play flight Sims.
And as far as having multiple monitors at work, it rocks. Find a cheapo 15" CRT or something and you'll be amazed at how restricted you feel if you go back to one monitor.
This is true, Metroid Fusion really is just Super Metroid 2.
But Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is totally new to me, Advance Wars 2 will probably be my next purchase. Supernifty hardware still doesn't make good games.
The Zodiac is poised to become the next big homebrew device. Many GP32 programmers are already looking at it as it is also based on an ARM9 CPU, but has many more features.
It costs a little more up front but its ability to act as a PDA and its design out do the GP32 on all fronts.
Give it a look see and check out Zodiac Gamer for a good deal of info.
I myself just got a GBA SP, and am loving it. Haven't had this much fun since the original SNES (DC comes close). Just wish it was a lil bigger, too small for my hands.
I would think though at this stage of the game when they're testing code against Steam which is on the internet it might have been hard not to be connected to the internet for testing purposes.
Why they were running Outlook on these machines is beyond me though. You want to check mail? Have a cheapo seperate box setup. For a company the size of Valve I can't believe they couldn't afford a couple of extra $500 Dell PC's to do this with.
The GP32 and the forthcoming Zodiac are both excellent homebrew handhelds.
The Tapwave is really just a Palm designed for gaming.
Read up on them, many emu's came out for the GP32 and the Zodiac promises much of the same. It will most likely have full speed SNES and Genesis before long. Givens are NES, TG16, ATARI, GB/GBC, and possibly MAME and Neo-Geo.
Slashdot Mirror
Well what I was thinking about is that a year isn't a lot of time to get a good base of game developers. Heck it's not a lot of time to make a game.
So in a year, you come out with better hardware, what was the point of working on a game for the old hardware? Unless you can make it run well on both, but I would think the new hardware could be a lot better. Think dedicated 3d GPU vs the 2d ATI they have now.
Then a year from then you make another revision with even better hardware. Game consoles aren't made to be upgraded yearly as PC's are. If Tapwave really wants to market this is a game console first, then they need to understand that market. But it seems like it really should be a PDA first and game second, something they don't seem to be pushing.
Just my thoughts. It's a kickass device but for $299 for the less powerful version $399 for the other, why not get a GBA:SP unless you were shopping for a highend PDA in the first place?
Wait a year and see what sony offers and what Tapwave releases next. Zodiac has great potential, but I can see it ending up in the heap of other handheld consoles that never made it. It all depends on how they push it.
So's global warefare.
Yeah I think that's where the Sony PSP will come into play.
The Zodiac is all good, but it's really 80% PDA 20% game. Which makes it perfect for those of us who need a PDA and would like to have the option to play some good games.
What's going to kill the Zodiac as a game device is that they're already talking about the next Zodiac with totally different hardware sometime late next year!!!
That totally kills the developers and fractures your market. Consoles get upgraded once every great while for a reason.
If they're going to compete with gaming devices in a serious way they can't be upgrading after a year.
I have no doubt they are doing some good work keeping terrorists off of US soil.
Oh, by the way I have this rock that prevents tiger attacks. Better get one now! There's rumors on the chatter line of possible sightings of what might be tigers with towels on their heads.
Seriously the rock works, just buy it already. Cost of only some freedoms. What you don't want the rock? You tiger supporting anti-american communist nazi!
Off to the Bay with ya!
Yeah, there is the point of having it backed up.
But also, I can't afford an iPod, and I think it's nice to have a collection of CD's to look through. And unless you have your computer hooked up to act as your stereo, sometimes you might want to just relax with a date and listen to some music on the couch, not sit in the computer room listening to the whine of fans.
too bad the songs that come from itunes store are 128kbps ::)
He does have a point. The ease of use is worth something, but for less than the cost of downloading I can get the album used and rip it.
iTunes is a great free service. But $9.99 for a downloaded album is too much. Factor in the time it takes to burn the CD, print the labels etc etc. not worth it.
Downloaded it the other day, now sitting here trying to get work done on a saturday installed it, told it not to be my default player and I was off.
::P
Gotta say, they know how to design an interface. Most impressive, imported my MP3's and easily set the equalizer for each group.
Decided to give the store a try. Got one track, downloaded incredibly fast. The quality of the 128kbps AAC is quite good.
I'll still buy my CD's used and rip to MP3, but heck iTunes is working great for me. Kudos to Apple for this software, free, quick, easy to use, and very very well designed.
Now, do I get an iPod for Xmas? Hmmmm
# of nerds who would be interested in MMORPG's: a fixed number that might grow slowly
::)
# of MMORPG's: a number growing by leaps and bounds
There are simply going to be too many MMORPG's and not enough players. Want to know what will drive future MMORPG's into the hands of the rest of the gaming masses? I'd tell you but that would END all the fun.
No we won't.
I totally agree.
It's called incentive. It's not like they're selling you a crippled game and requiring that you have a friend to make it work.
Amazing the amount of bitching that goes on here. Heck I could wander into a nerd gallery like a comic book store and find someone to play with in no time.
Goto a slashdot meetup I'm sure you'll find even more people to play with too.
You're right, I will gladly trade you my Packard Bell with the way too much 2megs of RAM and the too fast CPU 286 12MHz for whatever way too fast new computer you're using.
No need for multitasking when you got DOS 3.0
The new mariocart supports hooking up to anther cube. Just for anyone who is reading. It does not enable netplay.
If the next generation of game consoles came out at $150 price point?
You know how quickly they could saturate the market? Would the quikness hurt sales? I mean if PS3 came out at that point and Xbox2 was $300+ which one would you get?
This would certainly help to have a huge user base to buy games which iirc are the main source of revenue and profits.
Wow, you really have been brainwashed. You know no one will think less of you for having a gamecube. In fact your friends will probably thank you.
The cube has the best selection of 'party' (4 player) games available. I guess you can't enjoy these titles though since they're on a kiddie system.
Also, not everyone has $200+ to throw around for a system, memory card and game. $100 is still a lot of money to a lot of people these days.
So people do buy PS2's or Gamecubes because of price.
This driver will not work on Windows 2008.
Then SunComm can sue M$, Nature, Father Time, the cosmos all for undoing their amazing DRM.
I mean look at that flash on their page! We all know flash animation means good products right?
Yeah you'd get a free game, or the GB Player for $150, but then you add in tax and a memory card and you're pushing $180.
On the other hand for $99 you can choose what games you want to buy, and get the necessary memory card for a grand total of $120.
Never underestimate the power of free choice.
Not only that but who's to say that you'll buy games, you can always rent.
What I think it comes down to is what the cost "Looks" like. $50 might not seem like much when you're single but I bet it's more significant if you're supporting a family.
The idea of having AIM, PuTTy's etc open on the second monitor makes a lot of sense and goes along the same idea as using two monitors as at work.
What I was thinking when I read gamers I was thinking more of what games make use of multiple monitors. I know the Matrox Parahelia let you use 3 monitors for a full 120 degrees of viewing on games that had a patch available. JKII is the one game that comes to mind.
Off the top of my head I think BF42 would be great with the map on a second monitor. That'd be nice.
I don;t know any gamers that use multiple monitors other than those who play flight Sims.
And as far as having multiple monitors at work, it rocks. Find a cheapo 15" CRT or something and you'll be amazed at how restricted you feel if you go back to one monitor.
I am currently in a discussion with some people over what tapwave plans for the next year.
Some sources say they will be releasing a new Zodiac next year around the time of the PSP. This strikes me as amazingly stupid.
I to will wait, and I pray that tapwave wouldn't be so moronic as to release another handheld just a year after the first.
This is true, Metroid Fusion really is just Super Metroid 2.
But Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is totally new to me, Advance Wars 2 will probably be my next purchase. Supernifty hardware still doesn't make good games.
The Zodiac is poised to become the next big homebrew device. Many GP32 programmers are already looking at it as it is also based on an ARM9 CPU, but has many more features.
It costs a little more up front but its ability to act as a PDA and its design out do the GP32 on all fronts.
Give it a look see and check out Zodiac Gamer for a good deal of info.
I myself just got a GBA SP, and am loving it. Haven't had this much fun since the original SNES (DC comes close). Just wish it was a lil bigger, too small for my hands.
Hrm, does that mean I can get real Chinese food delivered to me in 10minutes? ::)
Was the exploit using a known hole in outlook? Or is this a new unpatched hole that they learned of themselves?
I don't think the release was entirely clear.
I would think though at this stage of the game when they're testing code against Steam which is on the internet it might have been hard not to be connected to the internet for testing purposes.
Why they were running Outlook on these machines is beyond me though. You want to check mail? Have a cheapo seperate box setup. For a company the size of Valve I can't believe they couldn't afford a couple of extra $500 Dell PC's to do this with.
The GP32 and the forthcoming Zodiac are both excellent homebrew handhelds.
The Tapwave is really just a Palm designed for gaming.
Read up on them, many emu's came out for the GP32 and the Zodiac promises much of the same. It will most likely have full speed SNES and Genesis before long. Givens are NES, TG16, ATARI, GB/GBC, and possibly MAME and Neo-Geo.