What do people here think of Ouya console?

ammianus · Post by **ammianus** » Fri Dec 28, 2012 10:01 pm

I just heard about this, Ouya, a kickstarter project to launch a small android OS based console game system that will supposedly be more "open" than other current console systems.

http://www.slashgear.com/ouya-details-s ... -28262375/

Here are the tech specs from their site

Specifications:

Tegra3 quad-core processor
1GB RAM
8GB of internal flash storage
HDMI connection to the TV, with support for up to 1080p HD
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth LE 4.0
USB 2.0 (one)
Wireless controller with standard controls (two analog sticks, d-pad, eight action buttons, a system button), a touchpad
Android Jelly Bean
Ethernet

I know it's not related to sega, or particular geared towards retro gaming. But since people here do talk about developing on other homebrew boards and such, this seems like a natural outlet for us homebrew developers who have game ideas and may want to try things like HD graphics, or using more than 256 KB or memory

I was actually looking around for some sort of console like this before I decided to try my hand with 32X development, as I have some game ideas for years but not had the real interest to do it professionally. I think creating awesome stuff on an older system has it's own appeals, part history, part nostalgia, kind of like people working on emulating the software and computers from the Apollo moon missions.

djcouchycouch · Post by **djcouchycouch** » Sat Dec 29, 2012 12:56 am

It looks fine as a console. There's no lack of choice when it comes to messing around with hardware platforms nowadays. Maybe it'll get more eyeballs than the others.

Chilly Willy · Post by **Chilly Willy** » Sat Dec 29, 2012 3:16 am

I bought in while it was on kickstarter. At the very least, it'll make a cheap test platform for Android development.

ammianus · Post by **ammianus** » Sat Dec 29, 2012 12:46 pm

Chilly Willy wrote:I bought in while it was on kickstarter. At the very least, it'll make a cheap test platform for Android development.

I think there is something to be said for the experience of playing a game with a big television screen using a game pad, at least for certain kind of games. I've never really liked the mobile experience.

So a cheap (legal) way for independent devs to do that seems like a good idea.

sega16 · Post by **sega16** » Sat Dec 29, 2012 4:52 pm

ammianus wrote:So a cheap (legal) way for independent devs to do that seems like a good idea.

I don't think there is an illegal way to develop for a game console see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega_v._Accolade

Post by **KanedaFr** » Sat Dec 29, 2012 7:20 pm

I was surprised of its success since the Archos game system is near this one
so nothing "new"
perhaps because of the openess ?

Chilly Willy · Post by **Chilly Willy** » Sat Dec 29, 2012 7:40 pm

KanedaFr wrote:I was surprised of its success since the Archos game system is near this one
so nothing "new"
perhaps because of the openess ?

That and Archos is a mobile device. The console market is still mostly non-mobile. Most people playing games want to sit in the privacy of their living room and spend a few hours having fun without worrying about getting mugged for their mobile. If you're going to play a mobile at home, you might as well be using a regular console.

Where I live now is one of the first places I've lived where I could be in public with something worth more than $20 and not get mugged. The biggest market for the iPhone is still the underground market. Whole gangs now rotate around stealing smart phones and tablets... one of the reasons I don't have either.

ammianus · Post by **ammianus** » Sat Dec 29, 2012 8:26 pm

Chilly Willy wrote:
KanedaFr wrote:I was surprised of its success since
Where I live now is one of the first places I've lived where I could be in public with something worth more than $20 and not get mugged. The biggest market for the iPhone is still the underground market. Whole gangs now rotate around stealing smart phones and tablets... one of the reasons I don't have either.

Serious? Where did you live? Seems like here in urban parts of New England, smart phones are ubiquitous, or you live in a rural area, so the chances of a gang of muggers getting critical mass to plan robberies is pretty slim.

But I have had Game Gear, PSP and now smart phones, nothing compares to console or PC gaming.

Chilly Willy · Post by **Chilly Willy** » Sun Dec 30, 2012 2:41 am

Pretty much anyplace that isn't a small town will have muggers after smart phones and tablets and handhelds like the NDS/3DS/PSP/PSVita. It's bad enough that some insurance companies now have insurance policies you can purchase for your mobile device. Any major city (like LA or NYC or Miami) will have gangs dedicated to the theft of mobile devices. One person does the snatch and then passes it to another who removes the battery to prevent tracking who then passes it to another who wipes the device clean and then passes it to a fence to resell as "used". They often don't bother with any personal info - just wipe it clean... which is good for the people involved. Hell, even airports are an issue - the TSA has had more of their security personnel arrested for stealing mobile devices than all the criminals they've caught (outstanding warrants and such). It's one of the laughably pathetic facts about the TSA.

powerofrecall · Post by **powerofrecall** » Sun Dec 30, 2012 3:22 pm

Speaking of the TSA, this blog is pretty interesting:

https://takingsenseaway.wordpress.com/

It's a former TSA screener critical of the whole thing.