Comments on: Apple only other company that can release a game console

Don Reisinger thinks Apple is in a prime position to enter the gaming industry and solidify itself as a major player. But is Apple willing to do that?

[gireviks]

There are already 3 really good consoles out there, the Ps3, Xbox360 and Wii all are worthy of a gamers money. I could see apple working with Nintendo in the future possibly, but to enter with its own hardware seems unlikely and not needed.

[pyehole]

Where I will agree with the article is that Apple could get into this market if they wanted to; they do know hardware and if they wanted to make the investment they could do it. But what the writer of this article is failing to understand though, is that the only company in the console market that actually makes a profit on hardware is Nintendo. They do that by producing a machine with less horsepower under the hood and they rely on innovations like the Wii controller. The low cost of hardware and their unique hardware has made them very successful in moving units, it is only just now getting proper developer support. In addition to that, and this is key, Nintendo has a stable of well established game franchises. Apple does not have that advantage, they do not have a Super Mario Galaxy equivalent waiting in the wings. As such, they would be forced to either buy franchises like MS did with Halo, bake their own or convince other publishers to support them. To do that, they are going to need hardware that can go head to head with what Sony and Microsoft are bringing to the table, take a look at the third party offerings for the Wii, they're pretty weak because developers have to downscale so much to work on the Wii that it is often not even possible, much less worth the effort. Nor does the nature of the Wiimote help devs make cross platform titles, and no publisher with stockholders to answer to is going to limit themselves to a single platform. Because they cannot rely on existing franchises, that means they can't do it on the cheap like Nintendo does, ergo they either eat a huge loss on every unit they sell and hope to make it back on software sales, or they bring an expensive console to market. If they bring an expensive console to market, they are trying to beat MS and Sony at their own game.

Good luck with that, in order to do that you'll need to be very publisher and developer friendly. The evidence from the iPhone development is that they are not that. Not even close. What they are going through right now with the iPhone is not a matter of growing pains, this is the same business model they have always followed. They rule their platform with an iron fist. That is just plain incompatible with being developer friendly and there is no reason to believe they will become dev friendly anytime soon. I don't even need to rely on examples like the podcaster software that they blocked because it "duplicates an iTunes function", the terms of service for the iPhone SDK are nothing short of absurd and suffice to prove my point; devs need to talk to each other to help figure out how to make the silicon dance. Apple is gagging them and tying their hands behind their back for some unknown reason.

I don't know if the Apple fanboys were paying attention, but that is how MS won the majority of the computer market for so long, they are, and always have been developer friendly because they understand that the applications drive the hardware and the OS, not the other way around. As far as gaming goes, Sony still hasn't learned that yet going into their third generation in gaming. Look at the abysmal tool set and dev support they offer for the Playstation. Apple would have to commit to a fundamental culture shift in order to make an entry into gaming viable. I'm not holding my breath. This is yet another article about Apple as a gaming platform that is full of hubris and fantasy.

[solitare_pax]

CNET has run this sort of "story"/complaint/filler a few times before. Apple tried Pippin, it didn't work. They might have games for the iPods and iPhones, but that's not their main focus- their focus is more on the ultimate multi-function device, rather than a new dedicated gaming system. Wouldn't you rather haul around one item, such as an iPhone rather than an MP3 player, a cell phone, a blackberry, a Nintendo DS and a camera?

Hmmm - If the main complaint against Apple is how their software is locked into a specific set of hardware, then why aren't more people making the ultimate gaming console hack - one box with the Nintendo-Sega-Xbox hardware - and selling it?

[headbusta27]

I completly agree with you. Espically when you take into consideration the buzz that all apple products generate. Remember when the iPhone was first announced, all the buzz it created??? Imagine if it were to announce the next big gaming console??? The world would most likly riot in excitement.

[Renegade Knight]

You are dead on that Apple could, should, and flat out needs to create a game platform. Apple TV was a toe in the water. Apple Game Console with TV+ is the next step. It's the universal console that's the next household appliance.

Apple can't do it alone though. They will need to snap up Sega or another has been powerhouse to pull it off.

[unkonchus]

this whole blog is a re-hash. They had something on this topic a few months back. lets keep it moving here. Apple + console = why???????

[ericrall]

Apple's game console should absolutely include a full blow AppleTV to rival the online market place seen on Xbox and PS3. They would have no trouble designing a revolutionary HID that rivals Wii and Xbox (the best) controllers. They would strive to produce the best graphics using the latest and greatest hardware. It would achieve enormous hype upon release. There would be a premium, but it would most certainly be worth it.

[JMax19]

Another thing...this article is very poorly researched. It's not just Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo that have made significant consoles. In the modern era (post 1995), Sega made the Saturn and the Dreamcast. The Saturn was an abject failure, although it has some hardcore devotees (myself included), it did not make money. Sega made money on the Genesis (which was the cool system) and then proceeded to invest in a poorly developed console, and began to lose money. They lost so much that by the time they got around to producing a friendlier console (Dreamcast, which was based around a Windows CE OS, and a standard graphics chipset) they had to let it die because they had no money to compete with the more popular PS2.

How does this relate to Apple? Currently, they have one of the most popular products on the planet: the iPod. In order for a new console to be successful, they'd need to sink a lot of that iPod profit into the development of a new system (like Sega), which wouldn't make any money for the first 4 years or so. (As proven with the Xbox and PSOne, neither of which made money for quite some time. The PS2 actually lost $200 per unit when it first came out.) Does Apple want to remain profitable? Yes. Is this type of risk worth it? No.

Can Apple get into the console market? Yes. Here's how: they need to partner with Sony or Nintendo to use the Mac OS to run one of their machines. This gives benefits to both parties: the console manufacturer gets an "off the shelf "OS, thus cutting development costs, and Apple gets their name on a console, like Microsoft did with the Dreamcast. (Remember the little "Powered by Windows CE" stickers?) They find a way to split the software royalties and everyone makes money. The last part is the toughest because consoles make money from the software, not the hardware, but it could be done.

It won't happen though. Since the Mac OS is based on Linux, which is free, it would be cheaper and easier to just to use that. And for the people who are saying that Microsoft wasn't a hardware company before the Xbox: you're wrong. They used the same factories to build the Xbox that they used to build mice, keyboards, and game controllers decades before the Xbox was released.

[BLUEMANRULE]

Apple's philosphy, as of late, is to become core to the active consumer's lifestyle. The Ipod and Iphone are both massively successful because they both appeal to our current, on the go, lifestyle. Apple does best providing services and features that satisfy this consumer. A videogame console requires less mobility and more dedication. I don't think that it fits Apple's groove right now and furthermore, I think it would be cost prohibitive.

Being a gamer though, the idea does excite me. You know Apple would make killer hardware (form factor anyone?) and a great OS. I just wish Apple was "In the console war to bring the best value to the consumer." We all know that Apple's pricing-skimming strategy results in slow adoption rates of their products. In the gaming industry, just puts a manufacturer very far behind.....just ask Sony.

[byronkim]

I can really only see this working if Apple were to come at it from a completely different and unexpected angle. I don't think it would work to go head to head with Sony and MS in the established arena that they have firmly established.

Say for example if the iPhone and Touch were to take off as a gaming platform (and I'm not sure that it will) than that could perhaps morph into something interesting...like if the iphone or touch were to act as controller and console with a wireless connection to a TV. We're not technologically there yet...and I can't take credit for the idea...but the idea of a console in your pocket is an idea that I think people would latch on to.

I think that they should focus on retooling AppleTV. They have the most potential to make inroads there, and ultimately the unit could incorporate games.

[brezznatch]

"That said, I don't think any company can break into the console space. In fact, I would say that only one company can do it."

Well, which is it?

[sting7k]

I think Apple has enough on its plate with getting the iPhone 3G working. Let Microsoft and Sony duke it out for awhile longer alone.

[jacomo]

If they do develop the Gaming device they could team with Google for the On Line Gaming Platform allowing their system to dominate the On Line Gaming Market immediately with Low Latency tightly secure access to Googles Data Centers.
They need to start with a Portable Device and then migrate into a Home Based Gaming Platform.
I would buy one and I am an avid PC player and do not like Consoles
Jim

[upfrommydown264]

I don't know how well consumers would respond to an Apple brand game console. It is my experience that people who invest in games are familiar with Computer games as well as console games, and are probably significanly invested as it is. Meaning they are already do not have favorable opinions of Apple products because of the lack of OSX support for many games, and any Apple product (because of Apple's legendary proprietary strategies) would be completely incompatible with anything already on the market, hence people would have to not only purchase the console and games, but also any accessories to boot. The PS3 and 360 at least were somewhat compatible with games and products made for their previous generations.

The idea of making Apple TV compatible with computer games is a good idea, and would actually make it a useful product. Apple would also have to be more friendly towards developers so that there would be decent variety of games available.

[dobrazupa]

I think it's a matter of time before Apple releases a console type game device. If their track record is any indication, they won't just announce a dedicated unit, but instead they will tweak an existing product to bubble up to the surface as a gaming platform. What the Ipod Touch and the iPhone are to portable gaming, the Apple TV will become to console gaming.

Then again, who will buy it? I own a 360 and a PS3. These two take care of all my video-watching and game-playing needs just fine. To get the hard core gamers on their side, they'd need a heck-of-a killer app (Bungie was a mac developer back in the day, weren't they?). To get the casual gamers, they'd need to out-Nintendo Nintendo. Perhaps a new model of gaming is needed, one that blends home and portable gaming and computing and blogging and and and... into one. Perhaps that's what the iPhone will become.

Recently I've read that the iphone's processor rivals that of the PSP and Nintendo DS. Its gaming capabilities have bubbled up to the surface and all of a sudden it has become a portable gaming platform. My call is that Apple will not release a single purpose gaming console, but will instead leverage existing tech to allow a device to become one.

ps. Some of these ideas were mentioned above, credit where its due. My 2 cents.

[bigofs92]

apple needs to take the apple TV, turn it into a game console, and use ipod touches and iphones as the controllers with the buttons on the touch screen..

[queerlib]

Who are we kidding? Ant self respecting under 21-year-old KID wouldn't be caught dead with an APPLE gaming machine! Apple will need to first rid it's own more than 20-year-old reputation as a company that makes poorer (than Windows) video card-equipped computers.

[flosstein]

As a longtime Apple faithful. I can see where it might seem enticing to Jobs, but I think he knows that business is just one major loss to the hardware ce's. Therefore I don't see him jumping that gun yet. Although to say they can't do it is completely wrong and just shows how little some actually know about console gaming as compared to PC gaming. The original Dev kits for the XBOX360 were in fact PowerMac G5's. And now with the Mac using an Intel chipset it makes it even easier. Developers do not care about what they have to do to write codes for as long as they know they will turn a profit.

[Gromit801]

I don;t think Apple will release a console.

I think they will release a wireless system coupled with the AppleTV. A logical extension of what they already have.

[medezark]

Apple is an "IMAGE" company, not a hardware or software company. I saw a response, above, quoting a $1,200.00 price tage for an Apple game console. That's probably about right. You'll get a really nice, super sharp/futuristic looking Apple IGame, with the internals of a Nintendo Famicon, and refurbished Atari 2600 one button joysticks (painted glossy apple white, or custom colors for $100.00 more), that you'll only be able to play Apple Approved Games on, and only Apple produced and approved peripherals, and licensing fees for each will be so high that any third-party products will cost out the yang. But, it will be an Apple!!. First game to be released will cost $2,000.00 and will be a red circle that turns at random.