Topic: Microsoft Enters Mobile Gaming

[MaryJane]

Like the title says, MS is entering the mobile gaming arena, but the interesting part is how.

Unlike the Xbox, MS is going back to their roots and allowing/encouraging others to make the hardware while they provide the software.

I mentioned in the PSP2 thread that a company is showing a dual screen gaming device, and that is the Razer Switchblade. It has two 7" screens, with the lower screen having raised keys on it that can be changed according to game. Engadget has an in depth preview and they are convinced that Razer has the intention of bringing this device to market. They weren't allowed to get video but they report loading up WoW and being able to remove icons and mapping them to the keyboard with the icons themselves rather than hotkeys. There is also a function key that switches the keyboard to "page2" which does mean a second page of keys/icons/controls or whatever you need. Engadget also notes that the device feels good, if a tad thick, can fit easily in a cargo pant pocket, and the keyboard is just as good for typing as it is for gaming; very good.

There are also two other devices from Ocosmos; the OCS1U and OCS1E. The former is a 5" touchscreem device with dual joystick pads on either side of the landscape device, and the latter is the same device without the joysticks. I think there was even another from another company, but there's so much coming out of CES it's hard to find things.

All these devices run Windows 7 (not Windows Phone 7) and have the primary function of gaming, so there won't be a Halo 3DS. It will be interesting to see the level of games these devices can play, and if MS imposes some minimum restrictions or if it's like the PC gaming world where the device simply needs to run the OS.
I sort of figured this would happen and made mention of it in either the 3DS or PSP2 threads, or both, but I thought they would do it through gaming phones like the PSPhone, which they could still do.

The Ocosmos devices are gaming tablets, like Sony has made mention of doing with their PS line.

[Morari]

Last I read, the Switchblade was running on an Intel Atom. If that's true, it's already a failure. Besides, this has nothing to do with MS entering the mobile gaming world. It's simply a company selling their device with Windows already on it. With the level of emulation required for most games in Linux, it wouldn't really make sense to release with anything else.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Yeah, I'm not really sure what this has to do with MS.

More interesting news is the Nvidia ARM CPU/GPU that will be compatible with Windows 8.
http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/05/nvidia-announces-project-denver-arm-cpu-for-the-desktop/

edit: sounds like something Nintendo would love to combine with a Wii on chip for the next Wii or maybe even the NeXbox720 if it actually performs well.

[Chozo Ghost]

This being the case, I doubt MS is going to allow Rare to work on any more titles for Nintendo's handhelds.

[MaryJane]

PC gaming goes through Microsoft, and these PCs are dedicated portable gaming machines, more so than traditional gaming laptops. MS makes PC games, and now they have a chance to make PC games designed for the less powerful mobile systems, and ask those developers who make Windows PC games, to do the same. This of course is speculation on my part, but Microsoft would miss a big opportunity not making mobile games, especially since they already have XBLA games on Windows phones.

The Switchblade is rumored to be running on the new Atom Oak Trail CPU, but I imagine it would also house a pretty decent graphics card. It ran WoW, and if all it does is run MMOs, I still see those games being made for the specs of the less powerful devices.

[Morari]

PC gaming doesn't go through Microsoft though. You don't have to buy a license from Microsoft to release your game in the PC scene, especially when you have other operating systems to contend with. Chances are you'll see this device hacked and loaded up with Linux anyway... assuming it ever even makes it to market.

Microsoft is more than welcome to force it's own teams to make games for a mobile platform. They won't have much clout with other developers however, just like they haven't been able to convince anyone to care about Games For Windows.

MMOs already run on just about anything out there. They're hardly real-time, and all look ugly as hell. It's no surprise that this thing would run World of Warcraft.

[MaryJane]

What other operating systems is MS competing with? Chrome OS and the machines it will be built on don't really seem suited for gaming and OSX has only recently gotten popular enough/gotten the right hardware to play high-end PC games. All PC games are first made for Windows, and then other OSs might get some consideration. Games for Windows has seen the likes of Age of Empires 3, Dead Rising 2, and a few other top-notch games, so I don't see how no one cared.

It is no secret that MS has wanted a presence in the mobile arena, and they are doing it through software with XBLA on WP7, and have the opportunity to open gaming to the new segment of mobile gaming devices that are licensing Windows from them.