Gaming Forums => General Gaming => Topic started by: MaryJane on October 04, 2010, 08:57:25 PM
Title: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on October 04, 2010, 08:57:25 PM
Its a new portable gaming system from Panasonic. Its a clamshell device with a full QWERTY keyboard, and touch panel D-Pad and button configuration. It was apparently built with MMORPG's in mind, and its fugly... I would post a link but copy/paste function on my phone is not coorperating right now, so Google it.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Adrock on October 04, 2010, 09:11:18 PM
Source: Engadget (http://www.engadget.com/2010/10/04/panasonics-jungle-portable-gaming-system-emerges-gets-shown-of/) Yeah, good luck with that, Panasonic....
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Guitar Smasher on October 04, 2010, 09:36:48 PM
If it's ever released, it'll provide stiff competition for PSP Go.
Mind you, the idea of quality MMOs on a portable is actually smart (from a business standpoint, not an ethical one). Think social-Tamogotchi for adults. However, after seeing just a single image of the unit, I judge this to be lacking in execution.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Stogi on October 04, 2010, 10:41:49 PM
This is a terrible idea. It supposedly has hella guts and hella screen resolution, which means hella terrible battery. Good luck with that!
And yes, it's terribly ugly.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: BlackNMild2k1 on October 04, 2010, 11:43:27 PM
You know what I'm thinking?
Atari Jaguar.
and where are Jaguars found...?
in the Jungle.
do you see where I'm going with this?
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Chozo Ghost on October 05, 2010, 01:26:08 AM
Panasonic actually has prior experience manufacturing video game consoles. First off, they were the ones that manufactured the Q, which was just a Gamecube with a DVD player built in. Before that they were one of two companies that manufactured 3DOs.
But in both those cases the hardware they created didn't really go anywhere sales wise. I'm sure this handheld will be the same way. Tomagatchi for grownups is a concept that just won't fly, mainly because, unlike kids, Adults just don't have the time for it.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: TJ Spyke on October 05, 2010, 09:26:23 AM
Not that it matters, but three companies made their own versions: Panasonic, Goldstar, and Sanyo.
My bad. I remember Panasonic and Goldstar did, but Sanyo I didn't recall. But my point that they have prior experience with gaming hardware is what I was getting at.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on October 05, 2010, 11:32:36 AM
I agree with Guitar Smasher in that the concept of portable MMOing is a good idea. If this thing plays WoW I bet there would be a lot of people willing to play in between their home sessions and cubicle sessions. I just can't see this being a mass market device, it's too big and fugly (and dare I say complicated) to attract women buyers, and those same things will make it unpopular with tweens and kids who's fingers won't be able to reach across the thing. So all that's left is men with big hands who don't get embarassed by ugly hardware. What saved the DSPhat from being hidden away despite its heft, was that once open having two screens made you and onlookers forget the aesthetics, and by the time the novelty of two screens wore out the DSLite launched. If the Jungle had a 3D screen that might save it, because of how high res the screen is supposed to be and its assumed multimedia capabilities, but its far too plebian imo to even take market share from the PSP.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: BlackNMild2k1 on October 05, 2010, 12:13:30 PM
Looks like that quad-core Armada processor won't be having apps for breakfast after all -- confronting Marvell's Jack Kang at Mobilize 2010, he told us the chips proved too power-hungry for devices without a dedicated cord. That doesn't mean we won't see them soon, however, as the man let slip that it's actually the quad-core chip that will appear in a new game system, though we can probably rule out the Nintendo 3DS for the same reason as the phones.
So it's a low power chip, that was just a little too power hungry for a handheld device, but is making it's way into a gaming console.... That rules out any involvement with the 3DS and the PSP2 (or does it!? dun dun duuun), so what do we have left... I doubt Sony would stray away from PS3 BC and I'm sure 360 would love some Kinect/360 BC of it's own and that chip isn't anywhere near powerful enough to emulate those systems, so could it be the potential CPU for the Wii2H3D?
Then again, it could be something completely out of left-field, like a new competitor entering the ring, or something like OnLive the set-top box.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: KDR_11k on October 05, 2010, 12:27:21 PM
Didn't Panasonic also make the CDi?
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Chozo Ghost on October 05, 2010, 12:46:15 PM
let's see, where did I post 2 times in a row within minutes of each other?
You didn't, but you and several others said the same thing over and over again. Its been established Phillips made CDi so there was no reason for it to be repeated four times...
Let's just move on now, please?
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Ian Sane on October 05, 2010, 07:33:10 PM
Quote
But my point that they have prior experience with gaming hardware is what I was getting at.
Prior experience with incredibly unsuccessful hardware that remains the butt of jokes over ten years later for anyone who has even heard of the hardware in the first place. With that sort of "experience" you might as well be brand new at this unless they learned what not to do. But looking at the Jungle they did not.
It's for MMOs. Does it have World or Warcraft? No? Well then it is fucked. Plus if I want to play MMOs on the go can't I just use a laptop?
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on October 05, 2010, 07:46:36 PM
I think TJ was trying to move on, and btw TJ it is definitely being released, at least in Japan.
Also, the Jungle is reported to be powered by Tegra, no mention of which version.
One other thing is that it seems like it's only able to play browser-based MMO's that could either be its bread and butter, or its demise. The games could be free, or really cheap, and it may have 3G which means contracts, and low launch price.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Guitar Smasher on October 05, 2010, 09:16:43 PM
It's for MMOs. Does it have World or Warcraft? No? Well then it is fucked.
There's always room for new killer apps. I think the MMO community is ready for a new game that makes WoW look old.
Quote
Plus if I want to play MMOs on the go can't I just use a laptop?
So that's why mp3 players never took off... how enlightened.
Sorry if I'm giving you attitude, but it seems you didn't put too much thought into your post.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on October 05, 2010, 09:48:42 PM
Mp3 players 'took off' before laptops 'took off' so that's not a fair comparison. And their functionality is so radically different it further makes your point moot. Mp3 players offer tons of music in your pocket, while a laptop is much too big for a pocket and does so many other things that using it only to play music is ridiculous. Even as I say that it makes me think of pocket-sized tablets which actually would be practical for only playing music on the go. Which also makes me think that tablets might negate the need for something like the Jungle.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Guitar Smasher on October 05, 2010, 10:45:38 PM
Mp3 players 'took off' before laptops 'took off' so that's not a fair comparison. And their functionality is so radically different it further makes your point moot. Mp3 players offer tons of music in your pocket, while a laptop is much too big for a pocket and does so many other things that using it only to play music is ridiculous. Even as I say that it makes me think of pocket-sized tablets which actually would be practical for only playing music on the go. Which also makes me think that tablets might negate the need for something like the Jungle.
My point's valid - why spend $800 for a system that's much too large to be truly 'portable', that lasts no more than a few hours before the battery's dead, and that's designed for way more applications than you're actually interested in? Laptops aren't well suited to being portable music players, and they aren't well suited to being portable game systems.
Of course tablets would be better suited to portable gaming than laptops, but their prevalence is still so small that a dedicated MMO machine could carve out its own segment if it strikes with the right software.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: ShyGuy on October 05, 2010, 11:17:41 PM
It's for MMOs. Does it have World or Warcraft? No? Well then it is fucked.
There's always room for new killer apps. I think the MMO community is ready for a new game that makes WoW look old.
They're way ahead of you. It apparently drops in early December and it's called "Cataclysm"... oops.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on October 06, 2010, 12:09:50 AM
@Guitar Smasher I wasn't saying that a dedicated MMO machine was a bad idea, in fact I've already said, in this thread, that it's a good idea. All I was saying was that Ian had a valid point, and your argument against his argument was (and still is) moot. Laptops are viable portable gaming machines, especially with 3G for MMO's. You couldn't play a game on a laptop while walking but what's to prevent you on a car, bus, plane, or train?
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Guitar Smasher on October 06, 2010, 12:42:28 AM
@Guitar Smasher You couldn't play a game on a laptop while walking but what's to prevent you on a car, bus, plane, or train?
Consider this: - limited battery life (many MMO quests last multiple hours) - heating issues (can't keep a gaming laptop sitting on your lap) - control input (not having a mouse makes navigation difficult) - need to plan ahead (you have to commit to taking your laptop with you; with a handheld it's likely already waiting in whatever bag you've got with you)
Yes, under specific conditions a laptop can be used for gaming outside the home. However it is far from being truly 'portable'.
Quote from: Shaymin
They're way ahead of you. It apparently drops in early December and it's called "Cataclysm"... oops.
That's a WoW expansion, correct? So basically, more of the same? Eventually WoW gamers are going to get bored with the theme, and look for something fresh.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on October 06, 2010, 08:21:10 AM
Why would my portable already be in a bag? I don't have a purse (I'm not a girl my handle means something else) and I would likely have been playing it. Unless you're on a road trip there's no portable that would allow to play a quest that lasts more than a couple hours because you simply wouldn't have the time. If you were on a road trip you would be able to plug the laptop into car charger. Also you don't need an actual cooling pad, just something to take it off of your lap without blocking the fans, like a couple of hardcover books.
All of this makes me think of another point, how important is battery life? When do really need your portable to last more than a few hours? In all the situations I can think of needing more than a few hours I also think that the opportunity is there to charge the device. I think 5 hour battery life would be the magic number, 2hour commute each way and half an hour to an hour lunch is about the max a working person would have to play, and a student who has time to play between classes also has time to charge up in the library or elsewhere. I suppose you may forget to charge it one night, but that's hardly the manufacturers fault. Most people play their portable at home anyway, and if you can get away with playing at work, you can probably get away with charging it too.
Edit: As for control input, WASD is used for movement in most PC games, and if you need a mouse ALL laptops have a trackpad, most of which you can change the sensitivity on so you not making furious swipes to move across the screen.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Stogi on October 06, 2010, 11:18:00 AM
Quote
Why would my portable already be in a bag? I don't have a purse (I'm not a girl my handle means something else) and I would likely have been playing it.
Best opening statement.
Listen, I think you guys are forgetting something. The screen, while gorgeous, is tiny. Well tiny compared to laptops and computer screens. I've never played WoW, but it seems like there's a **** ton of things on the screen at all times, some of which looks squint worthy on a nice sized LCD. Now imagine that shrunken down. That's why it won't work.
Something like Pokemon, something simple, could work though. But this is never going to work. There is a small, scratch that, extremely small niche for this product. It first cuts the gaming market by selling to MMO fans only, then to fans who would like to play an MMO while on the go. But I don't think there are many of those people. I maybe wrong, but after being forced to live with someone that lived and breathed WoW, I think he truly liked sitting his ass next to his liquid cooled computer in a secluded room. Why? Because he could be his dorky little self without being judged.
I can see this selling to a person like me for one reason though. Homebrew. Let me play hacked PSP/PS2/GC/N64....games on it and I'll buy one in a second.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on October 06, 2010, 01:53:55 PM
I like your idea of homebrew for the Jungle, but infortunately for Panasonic they can't market it that way.
Also, there are so many people who play MMO's, especially in Japan, that if they can convince people they're getting a good experience it can sell. As for all the extra stuff on the screen, that can be mapped to the QWERTY keyboard, and only the 'action' screen is displayed on the device.
For the record, I'm not saying this is going to work, but as has been mentioned Panasonic still gets a lot of crap for the 3DO and if they wanted to redeem themselves, the MMO market is a good place to at least try, because of it's massive (yes, pun intended) established base, and because of Nintendo's dominance and Apple's headway in the 'normal' portable gaming market.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MegaByte on October 06, 2010, 02:05:31 PM
I can see this selling to a person like me for one reason though. Homebrew. Let me play hacked PSP/PS2/GC/N64....games on it and I'll buy one in a second.
If you really want that, there's already Pandora and the GP2X series of handhelds (though none are powerful enough to go beyond Dreamcast at this point).
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Ian Sane on October 06, 2010, 02:46:15 PM
The reason this will fail is because it designed specifically with MMOs in mind. The whole selling point of such a device would be that you wouldn't be tethered to your PC to keep playing your MMO. You could also play it on the go. I think a key part of this is that it has to be the same world, same character, same everything. It's not like you have your Jungle exclusive MMO. No, you want to play your regular MMO at home and then be able to connect to it on the go using this. That's why a laptop is an ideal solution because you CAN do that.
Without that feature this is just like the DS or PSP except you're very specifically trying to cater to one specific genre. I don't see the market for that.
The remote connection point to your MMO is the good idea hidden in this but this doesn't seem to be truly capable of doing that. So unless Panasonic can create their own MMO killer apps I don't see this going anywhere. I think what's important is that you take the MMO nut who already has found the game they're addicted to and let them play THAT game on the go. Not sell them a new game but let them play THAT game. That's why I think having World of Warcraft is essential and not like a port, it has to run the existing game. This can't do it.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: BlackNMild2k1 on October 06, 2010, 03:32:41 PM
I haven't been able to stop hearing the title to this thread sung as part of that song ever since you posted that.... [smite] :P
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Chozo Ghost on October 06, 2010, 05:57:36 PM
"Welcome to the Jungle" would be an excellent choice to use as the official theme song to the Panasonic Jungle... at least up until it becomes an obvious commercial failure and has to have its MSRP slashed, at which point "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" would suit it better.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: ThePerm on October 06, 2010, 08:33:35 PM
this is sad, i've made better joke mockups then this product.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Chozo Ghost on October 07, 2010, 03:20:44 AM
"Welcome to the jungle We got fun 'n' games We got everything you want Honey we know the names We are the people that can find Whatever you may need If you got the money honey We got your disease In the jungle Welcome to the jungle Watch it bring you to your knees, knees"
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: vudu on October 07, 2010, 02:49:15 PM
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: TJ Spyke on March 01, 2011, 01:03:55 PM
During the Game Developers Conference, Panasonic announced that they have ceased production of the Jungle: http://www.industrygamers.com/news/panasonic-cuts-down-the-jungle/
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: BlackNMild2k1 on March 01, 2011, 01:07:56 PM
Can't say that I'm surprised.
Panasonic has wanted in on the gaming industry for a while, but they just never seem to know what to do to get in.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Stogi on March 01, 2011, 05:46:46 PM
Probably a smart move, but still a shame. I'm all for competition.
What would I have made if I were Panasonic? A little slate like device that is a little smaller than a shirt pocket, that has a touchscreen and a back touch pad and is extremely thin. The processor and gpu would be inferior. Only good enough to top average cellphone games like Angry Birds. Have WiFi and 3G built-in with the same kind of plan Kindle has (only for downloading). Make the screen resolution decent and have the battery life top 15 hours. Sell it for 79.99 with a brain age type game built-in and market it towards older people who like to play soduko or chess when they are bored.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: Chozo Ghost on March 01, 2011, 06:34:23 PM
While I'm sure it would have been a complete and utter failure, I'm still disappointed it wasn't released. Its nice to have more players in the market. Long gone are the days back in the 5th generation when there was the Saturn, Playstation, N64, Jaguar, 3DO, Neo Geo, and also the SNES and Genesis still clinging to life. That was a golden age because there was so much going on. Of course, over half those systems were dead in the water and did poorly but it was just nice knowing they were there and it was something that could be discussed.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: BranDonk Kong on March 01, 2011, 11:52:43 PM
Get a Pandora.
Title: Re: The Panasonic Jungle
Post by: MaryJane on March 02, 2011, 09:12:45 AM
With Nintendo offering glasses-free 3D and Sony offering a level of power never before seen on a mobile, that doesn't leave much room for Panasonic, or anyone else for that matter.
