Portable Xbox 'A Matter of When,' Not If [Archive]

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DoctorFinger

07-20-2009, 05:57 AM

Rumors of a portable or mobile Xbox have been swirling for years (just do a Google search for ''Handheld Xbox' (http://images.google.com/images?q=handheld%20xbox&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi) or 'Portable Xbox' (http://images.google.com/images?q=portable%20xbox&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi) for examples) but comments from Xbox honcho Shane Kim in this interview (http://games.kikizo.com/news/200907/portable-xbox-a-matter-of-when.asp) seems to have reignited the dreams of a portable Xbox.
"For us, it's a matter of focusing on 'when', because if we chased after a mobile or handheld opportunity, we would not have the resources and ability to do things like... Project Natal. So we've chosen to focus on the living room experience from a hardware standpoint, if you will, but we're building a service in Live that will... will extend to other platforms. No question about it." So, you can pretty much guaran-damn-tee a dedicated handheld gaming console from Microsoft at some point, right? Not quite. Kim notes that while Xbox Live would be the "connective tissue" between any devices - a claim Microsoft has been pushing since the 2006 announcement of "Live Anywhere" - they haven't decided on the form a portable Xbox unit would take. It could be an add on to the existing Windows Mobile, it could be a stand alone gaming device, it could even be a straight up challenger to Apple's iPhone. At this point not even Microsoft knows which path they're going to take.

Why such a rush to get in on the mobile gaming market? Because it's huge, profitable and growing faster than the home console market. Both Nintendo's DS and Sony's PSP reap more profits than their bigger console cousins, and every publisher and platform maker out there drools at the thought of building a content store like Apple's App Store for the iPhone.

Sources - Kikizo (http://games.kikizo.com/news/200907/portable-xbox-a-matter-of-when.asp); 1UP (http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3175208).

MosBen

07-20-2009, 06:10 AM

I think one factor is that they want their eventual handheld to be able to play XBLA titles. At the first hints about the Zune HD people were going nuts for the possibility that they could buy a game on their 360, play it on their TV, then transfer the game to their handheld and continue playing it on the go.

They'll also want to integrate their Zune music and video services into any eventual device. So my guess is we're looking at a 2012 timeline for a handheld device. Maybe 2011, but that seems unlikely to me for some reason.

Gorvi

07-20-2009, 06:12 AM

Yeah, no thanks. I don't need another portable, I can barely play the games I want on one, I don't need another to feel bad about not playing. Then again, maybe I can go portables only next gen, just let me hook them up to my TV like the PSP can now, but let me do it wirelessly.......

Shadowstorm

07-20-2009, 07:31 AM

So,

http://i26.tinypic.com/b7iflc.jpg

you can pretty much guaran-damn-tee

http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/1617/spongebobstandupo.jpg

a dedicated handheld gaming console from Microsoft at some point, right?

http://i30.tinypic.com/28c28mf.jpg

Not quite.

http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/5703/emospongebob738436.jpg

Mike Kelehan

07-20-2009, 08:52 AM

The language makes it sound like Microsoft is too small of a company to take on two projects at once.

Sl1pstream

07-20-2009, 09:18 AM

I'll wait and see. If they do come out with something, it's going to take a lot to get me to give up my DS. If it's superior in quality, if it gets the games it needs and the battery life is decent, I might pick one up.

Orca

07-20-2009, 09:21 AM

It's been rumoured since they confirmed the Zune HD would have a Tegra processor. Too bad it doesn't have any of the other things it'd need to be a serious handheld - like controls...

Telefrog

07-20-2009, 09:22 AM

It's been rumoured since they confirmed the Zune HD would have a Tegra processor. Too bad it doesn't have any of the other things it'd need to be a serious handheld - like controls...

Yeah, or a touchscreen... ;)

violent

07-20-2009, 09:23 AM

There is always room for another AAA portable device as far as I'm concerned. It's my best chance of actually getting Gears of Golf.

MosBen

07-20-2009, 01:03 PM

I had a DS, then I traded it in for a PSP, but honestly, I've never really played either much. If I'm at home and want to play some games, it'll probably be on either a home console or my PC and there just aren't a ton of times when I have more than a few minutes to just sit somewhere when I might pull out a gaming system. Still, I love having the PSP on an airplane/at the airport, especially as a video playing device, and I'd love something that worked in my Zune Pass account as well as XBLA games and video playback.

Hawkzombie

07-20-2009, 02:37 PM

Zecon

07-20-2009, 03:00 PM

Yeah, or a touchscreen... ;)
Wait they're taking out the....
Oh, I see what you did there. :p

Purple Santa

07-21-2009, 04:47 AM

I have a PSP and a DS...I play both regularly. I find it odd they're finally deciding to get into the handheld market, but I don't think it'll be with new hardware, or a dedicated gaming system. Main reason is they pretty much threw in with Nintendo a few years back and the DS...unless they can bring something major to the table, I doubt they'd be able to have much of a foothold. Hell, even Sony is STILL facing uphill battles compared to the DS.

Why do it? The Doctor had that covered:
Why such a rush to get in on the mobile gaming market? Because it's huge, profitable and growing faster than the home console market. Both Nintendo's DS and Sony's PSP reap more profits than their bigger console cousins, and every publisher and platform maker out there drools at the thought of building a content store like Apple's App Store for the iPhone.

You don't need to be the leader on the leader board to be profitable. Sony's PSP numbers may not compare to the DS, and although the perception of they were going to wipe the floor with Nintendo when it came to the handheld market, the bottom line is profits. MS doesn't need to beat Nintendo to be #1 in the handheld market to be profitable.

Hawkzombie

07-21-2009, 02:37 PM

Why do it? The Doctor had that covered:

You don't need to be the leader on the leader board to be profitable. Sony's PSP numbers may not compare to the DS, and although the perception of they were going to wipe the floor with Nintendo when it came to the handheld market, the bottom line is profits. MS doesn't need to beat Nintendo to be #1 in the handheld market to be profitable.

True. I hadn't thought of that before.

Ultima Thulian

07-21-2009, 10:03 PM

As far as I'm conerned, nearly a third of the best games this generation have been on the DS, and the PSP has it's share of quality titles too. I'm always up for another quality portable.

So, if they do make a handheld, I hope it's good and does something to seperate itself from the PSP and the DS.