Topic: My dream: The unified console standard

[tendoboy1984]

Why isn't there a unified console standard like with DVD players, PC's, and smartphones?
 
PC software can be used on any Windows PC, regardless of manufacturer or hardware components. Android apps can be used on any Android device, regardless of manufacturer or hardware components. Why can't game consoles be this way?

[Ceric]

Then they be PCs.

[tendoboy1984]

But my point is, instead of making multiple versions of the same game for different consoles, developers could just make one game that runs on any console.
 
Example: If I buy an app for my Samsung Galaxy phone, I can also use it on my HTC One. If I buy a PS4 game, I should also be able to use it on an Xbox One.

[shingi_70]

But if I buy an app on my nexus 4 I can't use it on my ipod.

[Khushrenada]

Greed.

[tendoboy1984]

But if I buy an app on my nexus 4 I can't use it on my ipod.

But all Android devices can run the same apps, regardless of what hardware they use. Maybe game consoles should adhere to a specific standard like how Android and Windows devices are.
 
I guess this is what Valve is doing with their Steam OS. The OS controls the experience, not the hardware.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I believe they tried that with the 3DO(?) and CDi(?) back in the day, but gaming tech is on a cycle and the hardware manufacturers want to win the market to themselves. Nintendo likes to control the hardware they make to maximize the influence of their games.

At this point, who would be the OS maker? who would be the one design they use to control the games? Who gets the 3rd party profits? I don't think the major 3 could come together to agree on specs or direction, they will not form gaming standard and they will not come together with other tech companies to create a gaming consortium that decides all this stuff like DVD & Bluray.
Maybe once the technological advance hits actual diminished returns, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

tl;dr

Greed.

[Ceric]

We actually see this a little bit bit the XBox brand and the PC.  A lot of games are built on XNA or use DirectX.  Part of the reason we have seen a renaissance in getting PC versions is that its just so easy to port to the XBox consoles.  As in if you code it right its not even really porting.

[broodwars]

PS3 and Vita's (and, to some small extent, PS4's) cross-buy and cross-play games say "hello".

[BranDonk Kong]

There would only need to be one console if that were the case.

[tendoboy1984]

Not really. Look at Android and Windows. Multiple manufacturers build devices that run those OS's. Why can't game consoles all operate under a similar unified standard?

You can have multiple manufacturers building different devices that run the same console OS, and therefore all games would be cross platform. I guess I'm thinking of Steam OS, just with Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox running it.

[BlackNMild2k1]

The whole point of console gaming is that all the software is designed to be optimized to one set of hardware standard.
The problem with PC gaming is that the games are coded to work with so many different things that no game is every really optimized for peak performance. Which is why you always need more powerful hardware to get better results. You have to over compensate on the PC due to unoptimized software coding.
Console gaming would get you the most bang for your budgeted dollar as each game is coded to work with a specific amount of RAM, and specific feature set GPU and a specific CPU.

The universal console could work if all the hardware players were willing to work together or all the software makers were willing to rally behind one hardware standard. But since neither of those things are going to happen anytime soon, or ever, we get back to the tl:dr answer of:

Greed.

[BranDonk Kong]

In that case Ouya, Nvidia Shield, etc are what you're looking for. This is just the way that it is. The only good answer would be to just have one console.

[Hey Einstein!]

I think this is a more interesting question then tendoboy is being given credit for and I like imaging the world it suggests.


As has been pointed out, 3DO and CDi tried it and failed. But I don't personally think they failed because it was a bad idea, they were far too expensive and most of the games weren't as good as what we  already had on SNES, etc. Jaguar and Sega CD failed at the same time too, and they weren't trying to create a universal format, they just cost too much and lacked games.


Ouya doesn't count to me because you have to go through their shop front and use their bespoke controller. So it's not like you could buy a game on your Ouya and transfer it to your Android phone (correct me if I'm wrong).
I don't really see Cross Play in the same way. The dev has to make 2 or 3 bespoke versions of the game, so it's more like those Triple play movie boxes where you get 2 discs and a download code isn't it.


I thought Onlive had a shot as creating a unified experience as it promised the exact same code on my desk top, lap top, TV, tablet and phone. Which it does do.... but it's a pretty terrible service. I guess a cloud service could deliver on that promise some day, but Onlive have proved pretty convincing that it's a very niche thing right now. Watching their big financial failure last year left me worried I had a £40 controller I could never use again (sold it and bought New Super Mario Bros 2. Thank you ebay) and convinced me that physical media is still the best choice because if the makers go bust I still have unlimited access to what I paid for.
I digress.


It's interesting to me that in music and movies there have been various attempts to create what we've essentially had in the console world for a long time: 2 or 3 formats all competing for dominance but managing to co exist. Remember when Philips DCC and Sony Mini Disc were battling it out and both wanted to replace CDs?
Or more recently when people actually paid cash money for HD DVD players?
Or those crazy VCR formats Philip developed in the 70s to compete with VHS and Beta?
Or when Laser Disc was the height of awesome over priced geek chic?


Fun huh!

[BranDonk Kong]

I don't know where this CDi and 3DO cross-compatibility talk is coming from...I've never heard of that before and can't find any supporting evidence.


You can't take a game from Ouya and play it on another device *easily* but the reverse is relatively painless. But the point is they are the same game, nonetheless. You don't exactly need to add Ouya controller support, just controller support period (most Android games do now). Really the only difference between an "Android version" and an "Ouya version" is the packaging and where you put it up for sale. You don't have to use the Ouya controller on the Ouya though, you can use a PS3 controller, Wiimote, Wii U Pro Controller, MOGA, etc., as well.

[NWR_insanolord]

This will never happen as long as Nintendo's still in this market.

[Spak-Spang]

What would be interesting is if the industry could develop a universal format.  I think it would be wiser, if all the whole industry got together and created a format.  Minimum specs crossplay, and such.  And if a developer wanted to make their games only available to one system...they could, but it would be a poor decision. 

Nintendo could realistically do pretty well in this environment because they could still make funky Nintendo controllers that they use to sell their special gaming experiences.  Heck, Nintendo could then try to push those controllers to be used by other developers. 

If Nintendo doesn't make traction with consoles, I could see this being the new Nintendo standard.  Picking a partner, and developing only for that one system, and releasing special controllers or balance boards for the Nintendo experience.  Maybe they could even get a deal with that partnership to exclusively make the controllers and such for the system.

[Hey Einstein!]

I don't know where this CDi and 3DO cross-compatibility talk is coming from... I've never heard of that before and can't find any supporting evidence.

Cross compatibility between CDi and 3DO isn't what we were on about and never happened. What did happen is in CDi both Philips and Sony owned the format and the idea was for different companies to licence the tech and make their own players, same as happened with CD players. I think Magnavox was the only non Philips company to make a CDi player though.


3DO was also a format manufacturers could license. The only ones I remember were made by Panasonic, Gold star and Sanyo but their may have been more.

[BranDonk Kong]

Right, but that doesn't really count then, since those would technically still be the same console.

[magicpixie]

I'd settle for being able to play online with different platforms, where possible.  There have been a few games that have attempted this, but I'd love for that to grow, especially with co-op.

[ThePerm]

you can side load android apps onto ouya. I got the amazon store and then got a couple games.

Also, lets not forget the Panasonic Q

[Ian Sane]

For such a concept to work we would have to get rid of any third party licensing.  The current console model has every third party developer giving Sony, Nintendo or MS a cut of every game.  So if we had only one console then is there some company in charge of it that gets a cut for every game?  I figure if any of the big three had that going on they would abuse that position and that would just open the door for someone else to make a competing console with more friendly third party policies and then we don't have a universal console anymore, do we?  The only way to prevent a competitor from making their own format would be government legislation preventing it or if the whole thing was owned by some consortium that included any company that had the resources and know-how to release their own competing console.  Considering that every console format is made by just Nintendo or Sony or MS, we're not appearing to go down that path any time soon.

And people will make games for whatever they can.  So even if you have one universal console, you still would have people making PC games.  No matter what there will always be multiple formats for videogames and converting between then will likely never be as simple as converting sound or movie files.  I would like cross-platform play for consoles and handhelds made by the same company but I think having multiple console makers keeps everyone honest and creates fierce enough competition to encourage a better product.  With no competition MS would have introduced all those consumer restrictions on the Xbox One.  You know with ONE console we won't own ****.

[tendoboy1984]

No no no. You guys have it all wrong. I'm not talking about "one console to rule them all".

I'm talking about an open console standard where there are multiple manufacturers making devices that all run the same games, and it's all unified under a single OS.

You buy a machine from Samsung, and it plays the same games as the machine from LG. Developers only need to make one copy of a game instead of wasting time doing ports.

Google was able to unify the snartphone industry with Android, and Valve is doing something similar with their Steam OS... Why can't the console industry create a unified standard like that? Consoles will then become as commonplace as phones and PC's. Isn't that what the industry needs to expand and survive?

[NWR_insanolord]

This has been attempted a couple times and never really caught on. The whole appeal of a console is you have one company with one vision and one hardware standard. What you're proposing is basically the worst aspects of console platforms combined with the worst aspects of PC gaming.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I believe they tried that with the 3DO(?) and CDi(?) back in the day, but gaming tech is on a cycle and the hardware manufacturers want to win the market to themselves. Nintendo likes to control the hardware they make to maximize the influence of their games.

At this point, who would be the OS maker? who would be the one design they use to control the games? Who gets the 3rd party profits? I don't think the major 3 could come together to agree on specs or direction, they will not form gaming standard and they will not come together with other tech companies to create a gaming consortium that decides all this stuff like DVD & Bluray.
Maybe once the technological advance hits actual diminished returns, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

tl;dr

Greed.