Path: chuka.playstation.co.uk!scea!greg_labrec@interactive.sony.com From: "Sean Kennedy" Newsgroups: scea.yaroze.freetalk Subject: Re: Did anyone see this? Date: 16 Apr 1998 20:19:09 GMT Organization: SCEA News Server Lines: 81 Message-ID: <01bd6975$f92fee40$2964d68e@dilbert.humberc.on.ca> References: <352A946E.AD2704FC@ix.netcom.com> <352a6358.9594437@news.scea.sony.com> <352aa934.27179277@news.scea.sony.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: ratbert.humberc.on.ca X-Newsreader: Microsoft Internet News 4.70.1155 Hi Everyone, Been Buzy again.. Jerry Jessop wrote in article <352aa934.27179277@news.scea.sony.com>... > Bill's comments were from an article online at www.gamasutra.com > recently. > Jerry Yes I saw this article too. > On Tue, 07 Apr 1998 17:41:10 GMT, matth@bellatlantic.net (Matthew > Hulett) wrote: > >>Bill Rehbock said: > >> > >>"The one thing you could do with Net Yaroze is a very good game > >>prototype. It can't stream data from the CD. In my > >>humble opinion the pricing of the Yaroze system was insane. $750 is too > >>high for a hobbyist thing." It is a little mental perhaps if the Yaroze system was to be distributed in REAL BULK quantities. But it isn't. So the classic business economics of the project, dictates that the price will be high. But look at what you get. The is the Web system, Software, Access to fellow hobbyists, and the ability to really get "Inside PSX" and lot's more. I am, and still believe there are three distinct groups of people in this technology. Those that spend the money to see something. Those that Speng more money to see How it was done. [Yaroze] Those Who Spend all the money to actually do what was done. [ Mr. J. Cameron?] > > Where did you get this quote from? I'd like to read the whole > >article. Considering that we were given the opportunity to educate > >ourselves on a modern 32-bit system, and that even Digipen students > >are learning on SNES systems, I found the price to be tolerable. > >There's never been an opportunity before like this. Digipen uses MacOS and Win32/NT systems to do development. This is the standard way of doing dev work. They then use Dev tools with SNES systems because they could get a lot of them, for an economical price. > > I doubt Sony is > >making much money at all from the program. I think Bill has a conflict > >of interest, I wouldn't be surprised to find out VM Labs is planning > >to release a hobbyist kit to compete with Sony when Project X is > >released this August. What better way to get prospective talent > >working in your corner, supporting your system? > >-Matt Kudos Matt, an excellent observation. But I would not expect any other tactic from VM Labs, with just that premise. Why? Well, what has been the biggest killer of Consoles/Handhelds {read EGM May98 pp22 'Power Play'} that have been tried to be put out in the last 9-10 years: [ I Quote] DIED: Lack of software support, high price "Lynx" DIED: Lack of Software, price "Game Gear" DIED: High Price, Death of TurboGrafx "Turbo Express" Lack of software support is one of the WORST things to try and get over when starting off a new platform. BUT, The easiest way of getting software developed is to work hard bringing development houses on-side, use well known software [GCC or CW or Visual C++], and make add-ins for current development products on the market. To take care of the creative side, offer an economic solution that can be examined with a lot of freebies. LINUX is a good example of this type of premise. Just look at the amount of "Free" unix software is on the net and how much of it runs on LINUX. Same thing here. -sean