console giants stance on indie development

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20 comments, last by Riviera Kid 18 years ago
Sony, microsoft and nintendo dont want people development software for free because of security issues and money. There is a simple solution to the problem where everyone can benefit. As it appears to me. The PSP flopped. Why? It had no content. €60 games and stupid UMD movies. It was riddled with security flaws and the public managed to do some development on it. Thats why i purchased one and i got stuff running :D. Look at this scenario: Sony release a PSP emulator and a compiler to the pc. People make software for this emulator. When they have made something interesting they submit it to sony. Sony evaluate the software and decide what to do with it (price? who gets money?). If they release it, they sign the code and put on their site for download to your PSP. the psp now has tons of content and the homebrew stuff is monitored. Instead, they have viruses floating around and no content, great! I beleive the same process could be done for the ps3/360/rev. Another benefit is free training. There will be more developers looking for jobs who are gurus at console development. Games would be better from the start. Im not saying the system is full proof but i think it is definitely worth the risk. Once every is hooked on the free/cheap content they can raise the price. What do you think?
--------------------------------Dr Cox: "People are ***tard coated ***tards with ***tard filling."
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Thats basically how xbox live works and "PS3 live" will work. In fact, most companies work like that, except for the fact that the SDK's for each system cost an arm and a leg. The good part is you can port a game fairly easy to most of the new consoles because they are just computers in a different case. So make a game, once its good enough to earn some money, buy the SDK, and watch the royalties build up. Oh wait, this isn't a dream world... there are risks involved just like every other business in the world. This works the same, it costs money to make money and nothing is free.

Also, if emulators were free to download, why would people ask Sony to release a game. Why not have people download it off your site?
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yeah sounds a good idea to me, would certainly help to combat alot of issues, but ive a feeling it's been brought up before...
The problem is that Sony make money off the licensed games, not free/unlicensed homebrew. They charge devs a lot of money plus royalties for official games. The console itself costs more to manufactuer than the actual retail price (forget the actual figures). Even if monitored, homebrew is still homebrew and Sony will lose money rather than make it. More homebrew would mean more people will buy the PSP just for that, or buy less games than they normally would. It would be good for Sony, PR-wise, but it would be a pretty bad situation profit-wise.

This is why Sony are sort of strong-arming people to only be able to play official games.
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i didnt say the homebrew would be free.
Terms and conditions, you make your silly 2d side scroller, submit it to sony, they release it for $x, at very little cost to them.

Im talking about little things which are good for a laugh. Imagine channel4 games available on your ps3 for download. Its a reason to subscribe to an online service.

If sony feel the game is too good and compromises existing titles, they dont release it. Simple. Sony control the homebrew. Free developers.

The emulator would be debug and slow and awkward. Basically, the system doesnt harm anyone but removes irritating indie hackers who want to develope for consoles.
--------------------------------Dr Cox: "People are ***tard coated ***tards with ***tard filling."
ehh... did the psp flop? I know from umd it did, but games, it is great... when I bought mine, I didnt think I was going to buy a music/movie player, I bought it for games, and I could not be happier!
>wilhil<
Quote:Original post by Riviera Kid
i didnt say the homebrew would be free.
Terms and conditions, you make your silly 2d side scroller, submit it to sony, they release it for $x, at very little cost to them.

Im talking about little things which are good for a laugh. Imagine channel4 games available on your ps3 for download. Its a reason to subscribe to an online service.

If sony feel the game is too good and compromises existing titles, they dont release it. Simple. Sony control the homebrew. Free developers.

The emulator would be debug.


That would be better for them I guess. I thill think they'd be opposed with the idea, simply because an emulator/public SDK would make it easier for "hackers" and the like to make homebrew that wouldnt be distributed by sony.

Obviously, your idea would be ideal! Unfortunatelly, big companies are money-grubbing and like to control what the users will and won't use. If they feel a released SDK would facilitate the developpement of illegal* homebrew (emulators, iso loaders). I just don't see it happening, not with Sony IMHO. :)

*I know technically emulators aren't illegal, but big companies like to say they are anyway. just trying to put myself in their shoes :D
__________________I have a computer!
Quote:Original post by wilhil
ehh... did the psp flop? I know from umd it did, but games, it is great... when I bought mine, I didnt think I was going to buy a music/movie player, I bought it for games, and I could not be happier!


maybe it sold some units, maybe it sold some good games.

But the system itself, crap, and expensive. You cant even browse your pc harddrive via wireless because they wanted to sell them stupid memory sticks.

Its a very expensive system, most people cant afford to even buy games.

The gameboy advance still sells more. I heard it isnt making much money for sony (the psp that is).
--------------------------------Dr Cox: "People are ***tard coated ***tards with ***tard filling."
I just looked at a psp homebrew site.

There were over 200 homebrew games / ports. I think they are all legal, i.e. doom ports dont contain doom content, just binary.
--------------------------------Dr Cox: "People are ***tard coated ***tards with ***tard filling."
Quote:Original post by Riviera Kid
Quote:Original post by wilhil
ehh... did the psp flop? I know from umd it did, but games, it is great... when I bought mine, I didnt think I was going to buy a music/movie player, I bought it for games, and I could not be happier!


maybe it sold some units, maybe it sold some good games.

But the system itself, crap, and expensive. You cant even browse your pc harddrive via wireless because they wanted to sell them stupid memory sticks.

Its a very expensive system, most people cant afford to even buy games.

The gameboy advance still sells more. I heard it isnt making much money for sony (the psp that is).


but that does not mean in failed just because something else sells more.

the psp is making a loss per unit, (I think) it is the same with ALL consoles, they are sold at a loss to the manufacturers so that they can sell games at a profit, same with printers are subsidised so that they can sell ink.

I am sure the psp did not ail, it may be expensive, I personally prefear my DS, however the psp is far superior to any handheld console I played when you look at graphics, however I do not think it failed at all, it may be expensive, but still, I think it is worth every penny, as for the memory stick..... it is so you can upgrade later, change over sticks..... every console in the last x years has used some kind of memory stick (excluding gameboy and DS), frankly no console can browse your hard drive!
>wilhil<

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