Tales of the Rampant Coyote

Adventures in Indie Gaming!

Sony Enters Microconsole Market; Nintendo Extends Indie Outreach

Posted by Rampant Coyote on September 10, 2013

Wait, whut?

It’s a little pricier than the Ouya, at $100 without a controller, or $150 with a controller and an 8 GB card (it has only 1 GB RAM on-board).  Mysteriously, it’s entering the market at about the same time as the PS4. While on the surface it’s not a great deal compared to the Ouya, it will come with something the Ouya currently does not: a strong library of games.

And while not quite as open as the Android-based microconsoles, they have been actively wooing indies.

I dunno. I see potential flop here, but isn’t everything? It wouldn’t take much to outsell the Ouya. Right now the whole microconsole market (which is – at least as of today – the Ouya) is still questionable as far as what it is, and who plays the games.  Is Sony just being really forward-thinking here, seeing potential that makes others hesitate? Or is it may just be an alternative strategy to boost lackluster (to be generous) Vita sales? I dunno.

And now even Nintendo is looking at loosening up their process to make it easier for indies to work with them.

The world has gone topsy-turvy. Indies and mainstream console makers getting so cozy? Sony trying to compete with the Ouya? Dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!

So I guess you could say that the industry is now in upheaval, turmoil,  and transition. While the core of indie gaming has stayed the same, the marketplace for indie game has radically changed at least twice in the time I have been involved. It looks like we’re entering a new phase, and mainstream gaming is transforming itself at the same time.  I don’t know how it will end up. Perhaps more stratification of game developers, with more tiers between “indie” and “mainstream” taking more solid form? The return of the mid-tier? More mixing and blurring the lines? All of the above?

Interesting times, to be sure. Maybe it’s just the optimist in me, but as a developer and a gamer, I’m hopeful.


Filed Under: Indie Evangelism, Mainstream Games - Comments: 4 Comments to Read



  • Rachel said,

    I’m excited for anything that will expand the Vita’s library…

  • Felix said,

    And yet again, big media tries to copycat a success story without really understanding what made it a success. Never mind that the Ouya isn’t a success story yet. Oh well, let’s wait and see what happens.

  • Xenovore said,

    A copycat? Hardly, especially considering: PS Vita TV not coming to the West

    But hey, as possible future competition for Ouya, let’s see:
    * Huge existing library of polished games. Check.
    * Marketing that doesn’t treat it’s audience like 12 year old boys. Check.
    * Built foremost to stream media. Check.
    * Uses existing, proven controllers. Check.
    * Has a form factor that makes sense. Check.
    * Doesn’t (currently) have indie games. Whatever. (Most gamers don’t give flying crap if a game is indie or not; they only care if the game is good or not.)

  • Rampant Coyote said,

    @Rachel – I’ve pretty much ignored the Vita up until now. So maybe… 😉

    @Felix – That is exactly why I wonder if this is a desperation move. I mean, the Ouya may be successful by its own standards – it may be perfect in a world where there’s only a few hundred thousand units out there. If it can thrive on those numbers, awesome. But in the big console world, anything less than 10 million is a massive failure.

    @Xenovore – Well, rain on my parade already, why doncha… 😉 Still an interesting move on their part, just not one I may actually end up owning…

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