Jump to content
IGNORED

Intellivision Entertainment launching a NEW Intellivision console


Rev

Recommended Posts

If they make heavy use of the touch interface I don't see alternate controllers being an option. Technically it has usb ports and bluetooth support.

 

I think going back to ambidextrous controllers will add to the accessability for those that don't play modern video games.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A non-violence dedicated games console is definately the right thing to do and I am sure that there is a market for it.

 

 

Is it really? I mean, is a console the necessary control factor for this? What about a series, network, channel, or brand of games for any of the consoles?

 

It seems to me that people are attributing the violence and family-unfriendly content to the machine and its platform, rather than to the content itself. I don't think the PS4 or the Nintendo Switch are the cause of such content being violent.

 

Sure you could say that the platform enables it by just allowing it, but a hardware manufacturer that has the wherewithal and discipline to control the games which will exist in its platform could apply that same wherewithal and discipline to control the games it publishes for any platform. I do not see why the control at the hardware is necessary.

 

I would understand if the brand were established already, but it is not. To anybody in the market place, the name "Amico" could just as well refer to a brand or series of games as it could a console brand. In the same way that, say, Pixar movies stand out from the rest of animation features by their mere brand and the quality attached to it -- they didn't have to invent a new storytelling medium or distribution platform; they use the same film and movie theaters everybody else did before and after, and yet they do stand out as a cohesive and illustrious brand.

 

That's my question. It is not intended to challenge the idea of the console, which I think is sound. It is intended to challenge the perceived motivations and purpose expressed in many of the interviews and press materials: that modern consoles are replete with violent and crappy games; therefore the only possible solution is to create a new console. It seems to me that creating non-violent and non-crappy games under a singular brand banner would be the simpler and more straightforward solution.

 

I don't know.

 

-dZ.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I suppose if you've got an Intellivision Amico, it will be physically impossible to play any other game than those Intellivision Entertainment permit to be played on the console. No matter how much gore, sexuality or immorality you desire, it simply won't exist. You need to sell it and buy something else, or at least gather enough money for a second console, let it be a used PS4, XB1 or even Switch (which I don't know how much violent games it offers, though I believe Nintendo want to become a little more adult oriented than they used to).

 

If you got one of the others, it will be a matter of sneaking in a different disc or memory stick to make it play non-Amico games. For households which are very strict against the kids should not be playing undesirable games, that poses a risk and perhaps is a reason why a lot of homes don't own a modern console at all these days, due to the risk the kids get involved into war simulations, get to see computer generated nudity and so on. If there was a way to lock e.g. your Switch to only play Amico games, some form of very strong parental control so kids can't bypass it, your idea in general would work. I don't know what those modern consoles are capable of doing in terms of that, if you can disable any optical drives, lock online content to selected channels and so on. Perhaps the existing consoles already have such functions which are hard to override?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I suppose if you've got an Intellivision Amico, it will be physically impossible to play any other game than those Intellivision Entertainment permit to be played on the console. No matter how much gore, sexuality or immorality you desire, it simply won't exist. You need to sell it and buy something else, or at least gather enough money for a second console, let it be a used PS4, XB1 or even Switch (which I don't know how much violent games it offers, though I believe Nintendo want to become a little more adult oriented than they used to).

 

If you got one of the others, it will be a matter of sneaking in a different disc or memory stick to make it play non-Amico games. For households which are very strict against the kids should not be playing undesirable games, that poses a risk and perhaps is a reason why a lot of homes don't own a modern console at all these days, due to the risk the kids get involved into war simulations, get to see computer generated nudity and so on. If there was a way to lock e.g. your Switch to only play Amico games, some form of very strong parental control so kids can't bypass it, your idea in general would work. I don't know what those modern consoles are capable of doing in terms of that, if you can disable any optical drives, lock online content to selected channels and so on. Perhaps the existing consoles already have such functions which are hard to override?

 

But I posit that such households control the means of access to the console, and parents always retain purchasing power over the games.

 

-dZ.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

... that poses a risk and perhaps is a reason why a lot of homes don't own a modern console at all these days, due to the risk the kids get involved into war simulations, get to see computer generated nudity and so on. If there was a way to lock e.g. your Switch to only play Amico games, some form of very strong parental control so kids can't bypass it, your idea in general would work. I don't know what those modern consoles are capable of doing in terms of that, if you can disable any optical drives, lock online content to selected channels and so on. Perhaps the existing consoles already have such functions which are hard to override?

 

Yes, modern consoles have parental controls, and, most stores, at least here in the US, try to enforce age policies if a kid tries to buy an M-rated physical game without a parent present.

 

Also, I don't get your statement, "is a reason why a lot of homes don't own a modern console at all these days,". Modern consoles are as popular as ever based on the sales data. I really don't think allowing all types of games on a console are really an impediment to sales. Certainly I can understand the hook the folks at Amico are presenting here, but I'd argue it's just that, i.e., it's not solving an actual market problem but makes for a nice bulletpoint (you have to stockpile those up as an underdog).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was trying some form of irony without explicitely marking it as such. I also understand that modern consoles are very popular, and if a family doesn't have loads of cash and already bought one of the top three, they're less likely to spend another 150 - 200 USD on a lesser capacity console in two years time from now, just because it specifically caters to a market nobody else considered being important.

 

However perhaps there are households where the parents would like some parental control, but don't understand or can't be bothered to configure the console, so they let it be and hope the kid doesn't bring any unwanted games played when they're home alone. For that niche market of concerned but technically inept parents, a system that simply doesn't need parental control because there won't be any unwanted material may have a market.

Edited by carlsson
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Yes, modern consoles have parental controls, and, most stores, at least here in the US, try to enforce age policies if a kid tries to buy an M-rated physical game without a parent present.

 

Also, I don't get your statement, "is a reason why a lot of homes don't own a modern console at all these days,". Modern consoles are as popular as ever based on the sales data. I really don't think allowing all types of games on a console are really an impediment to sales. Certainly I can understand the hook the folks at Amico are presenting here, but I'd argue it's just that, i.e., it's not solving an actual market problem but makes for a nice bulletpoint (you have to stockpile those up as an underdog).

According to these statistics videogame console penetration in US households peaked in 2013 at 51% and decreased to 40% by 2016.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/736125/home-gaming-console-us-household-penetration/

 

This one is closer to 50% but also decreasing. https://www.telecompetitor.com/game-consoles-forecast-household-penetration-below-50-by-2019/

 

Either way there's a market of about 50% of US households that for whatever reason don't have one of the current videogame consoles.

 

--------

The E10 rating stuff is a marketing spin. Parents know, just like their cable TV boxes, they can turn on a parental lock. However, they might not realise this if something like a nintendo is marketed for children.

 

By the way, Horse Racing won't qualify as E10+ unless they take out the simulated gambling.

Edited by mr_me
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was trying some form of irony without explicitely marking it as such. I also understand that modern consoles are very popular, and if a family doesn't have loads of cash and already bought one of the top three, they're less likely to spend another 150 - 200 USD on a lesser capacity console in two years time from now, just because it specifically caters to a market nobody else considered being important.

 

However perhaps there are households where the parents would like some parental control, but don't understand or can't be bothered to configure the console, so they let it be and hope the kid doesn't bring any unwanted games played when they're home alone. For that niche market of concerned but technically inept parents, a system that simply doesn't need parental control because there won't be any unwanted material may have a market.

I understand, but it is not clear to me if the market of low-to-mid-income households that desire a video game console but do not know how to control access, yet are aching for one that does it for them; is really that large.

 

My armchair-analyst back-of-the-envelope market research tells me no; but I admit that my methods may not be as rigorously scientific as Tallatico & Co.'s ;)

 

dZ.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Given population fluctuations, I'm sure the raw numbers are roughly the same. Either way, we're just referring to modern consoles. We're not even taking all the play on PC, Web, and mobile into consideration. I'm just skeptical of any real market vacuum. Either way, though, there's probably a solid market potential in the hundreds of thousands to very low millions with brilliant execution, but whether that audience can be reached with this type of product remains to be seen.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really do not think that there's so many parents who are so concerned with violent games that they can create a target audience for a new console. Those who are already have plethora of tools at their disposal, simplest of which is a "Family Friendly" filter available in any digital store, PEGI ratings, parental locks, common sense & conversation and so on.

 

I get the idea in general, but given this is Intellivision not Nintendo, with substantially smaller marketing clout and possible market penetration, I think it's setting themselves up for a fall. Big N already has this party/kids/family angle covered, with massive franchises to boot.

 

So I don't think they can afford to refuse some more mature content on their new machine. Besides, it's all so vague and hard to define, even if you're using some official yardsticks. And, there were plenty of violent/crappy games on consoles in the past too. Custer's Revenge, anyone?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Custer's Revenge caused a bit of a stink in the media. That and all the crappy cartridges didn't help the industry at that time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPe47_xL0h0

 

Going after the family friendly market is not a bad strategy. You eliminate two of your competitors. If they ever become successful, they can always change their policy to expand their market.

 

Edit:

If you look at the 43s mark in the CBC video, you'll see they are playing Mazeatron and Night Stalker in the store. And they have the free Astrosmash offer posters up. The first store has the $50 rebate flyer up,

Edited by mr_me
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Going after the "family friendly" market may be a good business move, but as I stated above, I question if doing so with an entirely new console is the way to go.

 

It seems a bit like throwing out the baby with the bath water, in that, yes there is a problem of crappy content out there, but a new console may not be the silver bullet -- new quality content is and aggressive marketing to push it.

 

I am not convinced that the latter requires the former. In fact, in my view, it just distracts by adding an entire level of incidental complexity and resource requirements that were not there before.

 

dZ.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That of course assumes that the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 are competitors to the Intellivision Amico. Quite possibly Intellivision Entertainment thinks so, but less likely Microsoft and Sony think so. It reminds me about all those people who "know" or are friends with a lot of people, but the friendship tends to be single direction. I may call you my friend, but you at best may recognize me from a party where we briefly met 3 years ago.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Obviously the Intellivision Amico will have an upward battle as there is plenty of family friendly content available on the Playstation, Xbox, Switch, and 2DS/3DS. However, a lot of it gets drowned out pretty quickly, especially on Playstation and Xbox as the big AAA titles are things like Call of Duty, Red Dead Revolver, etc. Nintendo's first party content is more family friendly (especially on the 2DS/3DS), however games like Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild are single player grinders, too. I do think Intellivision has a shot to make it in the market, but obviously not at the level that Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo are. Still, I don't believe they are really competing against them either.

Edited by Hwlngmad
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Half of my problem with modern consoles is the online interaction. It isn't remotely close to anything I want my kids on and it feels like more and more games have that as a requirement to play.

 

Online gaming appears to be more about hate, anger, poor coping, and drug friendly. I have had to make multiple phone calls to schools out of state and received them from schools out of state due to students talking about cutting themselves or wanting to commit suicide while playing Fornite, CoD, or whatever.

 

Now people always complain about Nintendo's online interaction amd for the most part I am fine with it over the years. I am finding that being normal online is starting to be a less normal thing. Must be why unless it is a Nintendo system I find myself going back to first and second gen gaming more than my modern stuff.

 

I hope them the best and I am rooting for them. I don't see this as trying to compete with the big 3. I see this as being the system I set beside my modern console and have family fun playing time.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't really have time to play online, so it's not really much of an issue for me when playing on modern consoles or PC. Most experiences are local single player friendly. Obviously, if you want to play competitive first person shooters, online is a key component of that (but again, for someone like me, even with those games I stick mostly to local play).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you're hung up on cliche gamer demographics, then you don't understand what the markets the Amico is aimed at. It's aimed at new markets that the big 3 consoles have failed to capitalize on or have abandoned.

 

Regarding brand power, no, the Intellivision does not have the brand power of XBox, Playstation, Nintendo, or Atari. However, it does have a modest amount of brand power in its own right. Looking at those direct-to-TV retro systems, the Intellivision 10 and the Intellivision 25 sold 4 million units. In comparison, the Nintendo Classic sold 3 million units. That's with the Intellivision 10 and 25 games being inaccurate recreations of Intellivision games. There were a number of serious mitigating factors why the Intellivision beat Nintendo (Intellivision would have lost in a fair fight). Markets have changed a bit since then but... 4 million units is nothing to ignore.

 

attachicon.gif81HqT2b-B5L._SL1393_.jpg

 

I don't think that's too fair a comparison; those 4 million were over a range of different unit iterations, while w/ NES Classic is just a single SKU. There's also the pricing disparity so it's easy to see the NES Classic made more revenue (and profit), not to mention NES Classic was supply-constrained (artificially so, but still).

 

The question now is, can they manage a 4 million sold-through rate at a price substantially higher than those Intellivision clones and NES Classic (or other mini clone systems of other popular consoles), at a price that puts it in contention (either directly or indirectly) with PS4, XBO and Switch? That's going to be the test, and even if Intellivision's saying they're aiming for a much different market, people only have so much time to play games; most of the casual parental types are going to be eying those PS4 bundles at $149/$199 PS4 bundles by then, or those $199 Switch holiday specials by the time this thing releases.

 

That's what most parents are going to be comparing the Amico to if they're looking for cheaper family-friendly gaming options for the kids (and that's assuming they aren't already occupied with a new smartphone on a contract family plan).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The question now is, can they manage a 4 million sold-through rate at a price substantially higher than those Intellivision clones and NES Classic (or other mini clone systems of other popular consoles), at a price that puts it in contention (either directly or indirectly) with PS4, XBO and Switch? That's going to be the test, and even if Intellivision's saying they're aiming for a much different market, people only have so much time to play games; most of the casual parental types are going to be eying those PS4 bundles at $149/$199 PS4 bundles by then, or those $199 Switch holiday specials by the time this thing releases.

 

That's what most parents are going to be comparing the Amico to if they're looking for cheaper family-friendly gaming options for the kids (and that's assuming they aren't already occupied with a new smartphone on a contract family plan).

For classic gamer markets, yes, any parent debating on Amico vs XBox/Playstation/Nintendo will have to make a choice. For new markets, there won't be a choice between consoles since they weren't buying XBox/Playstation/Nintendo anyways.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For classic gamer markets, yes, any parent debating on Amico vs XBox/Playstation/Nintendo will have to make a choice. For new markets, there won't be a choice between consoles since they weren't buying XBox/Playstation/Nintendo anyways.

 

The question still tho is...what's this new market? The casuals that went to Wii moved over to either smartphones or PS/Xbox (or heck, even PC) after that. So who is left, theoretically?

 

Just a personal opinion, but in terms of potential mass-market (ish) territories I think two underserved markets would be an enthusiast-leveled system, and arcades. For the former, I still think there's a market for a modern-day enthusiast system without the multimedia focus, not overpowered to try being some beast capable of RDR2 at 4K, but not so underpowered that it'd only be seen as a quick stop for cheap Android ports. Something that can provide some inspiration for the type of passion projects in the demoscenes for old-school systems like SNES, MegaDrive and Neo-Geo, but for a modern archietecture, emphasizes physical media for collectible reasons, priced between $99 and $199.

 

The Amico as it is right now satisfies some of that, but not all of it imho. We have to see what they're doing with these revamps, what developers they can get on board, revising their game pricing (at those prices they'd literally need hundreds of millions of units sold to make it profitable for publishers, which isn't happening. Even for smaller-scale efforts, they'd likely need at least a couple dozen million, and that will be a STRONG uphill battle).

 

Then there's the arcade market; there's been a lot going on there that's been impressing me personally. The Exa-Arcadia platform, companies like Raw Thrills supporting it big with Halo and Walking Dead games, SEGA recently with HOTD: Scarlet Dawn and Sega World Driver's Championship, that Pong arcade machine etc. But there's still SOOOO much room in that sector I feel; in this day and age actually having a gaming environment where people can socialize in person would probably be an exotic appeal for people who are just normalized to online gaming, plus there's methods of game controls that can be done with arcades that are 100% impractical for most people who game on mobile or at home. It'd of been nice to see Intellivision throw their hat into that ring again, even if historically they don't have a strong lineage with the arcade industry. They could even leverage that with this home console initiative, which could've made for some interesting marketing points.

 

Still tho, I'm looking forward to this; as said before it's much better off than the new Atari, but they really need to clarify what's up with the 2D capabilities, and fix that game pricing. Lots seem to be mixed on the controllers; personally I don't have much an opinion on them just hope they're quality.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...