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Apple TV As a Gaming Console?

gkarris said:
Exactly - consoles have controllers with real buttons (as well as gaming portables).

The post did mention a possibility of an Apple Gaming Controller - the Pippin had one as well as the Apple II... ;)
Click to expand...

Seems to me that the controller will be another iDevice.
 
Sorry but this would be embarrassing.

You can't compare the PS3, 360 and even the Wii to what can run on the handheld mobile iDevices.

If you want Angry birds on your 42" TV, you can buy the £250 Advent Vega Tegra2 Android tablet with HDMI out and play it today.
 
I don't understand the point of putting apps on the appleTV when I can use airplay and stream it from my iphone/ipad? and I already have two controllers for the appleTV (remote and phone) do I need a third? But the thought of playing apps on the tv will be great
 
No no no no.

It sounds more like SPORTS programming support (standings, games played).

The controller part refers to a programming concept used in Objective-C and Cocoa/iOS frameworks. Not video game controller.

Thunder sounds like a codename for some segment of sports programming, MLB maybe? NFL? Season pass?
 
nostaws said:
Do serious gamers really like to stream their games?
Click to expand...

No...streaming makes sense for something you're probably just going to watch once (TV/movies), but it's mostly nonsensical for gaming, with a long list of disadvantages compared to local content and very few advantages.

Sayer said:
No no no no.

It sounds more like SPORTS programming support (standings, games played).
Click to expand...

Far more logical, indeed.

--Eric
 
sterlingely said:
Nice. Saw that one coming 2 years ago. ;)

http://argentumstudio.com/2009/03/apple-tv-the-next-big-multiplayer-gaming-system/
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Yup. I think we both should see a share pf the profits and be credited when it arrives. To make it work properly though Apple needs a specific wireless controller for it to work as a games platform. Playing the little games on the iphone iPad etc might work for a few games such as Angry birds but the money is at the FPS end and the efforts on the iPhone iPad just dont work.

Dont know about the whole streaming games though. there is more than enough stirage on the ATV to allow the download and storage of the game. It can then be stored in the cloud for future use. Apple needs to get a rocket up their ass and seriously get this out to the consumer.
 
gkarris said:
Exactly - consoles have controllers with real buttons (as well as gaming portables).

The post did mention a possibility of an Apple Gaming Controller - the Pippin had one as well as the Apple II... ;)
Click to expand...

There are a plenty of games that don't require button-mashing and could work very well in a TV-iGadget combo setup:

Driving games (using the iphone as a steering wheel)
Golf (think: flicking)
Scrabble
Monopoly
Pictionary

Basically, any kind of board game and a lot of the "casual games" that offers multi-player gameplay would do very well with the TV as the main display.
 
This wouldnt be able to compete with the likes of the Xbox or PS3...maybe the Wii though due to their weird little ecosystem they live in.

Xbox 360 Specs
3.2Ghz Tri-Core (3 cores) PowerPC CPU
512MB DDR3 RAM (700mhz)
ATI Xenos Graphics Card

PS3 Specs
3.2Ghz CBE CPU
256MB System RAM (+ 256MB for Gfx)
NVIDIA GFX Card

AppleTV
Apple A4 CPU (better known as the ARM Cortex-A8 with a PowerVR GPU) @ 1Ghz
RAM: 256MB
Graphics: None - uses integrated PowerVR inside the A4.

See the problem? The AppleTV is MAJORLY flawed for serious gaming...cant really see Call of Duty running well on a 1Ghz CPU with no RAM.

Sorry, but its not going to work without a serious hardware revision in the next update, which probably wont happen as it would bump the price up by at least $50.
 
Several references have been found pertaining to "ATVGames" and "ATVThunder" that point to a controller of some sort, leaderboards (think Game Center), a way to schedule games (multiplayer?), and a store front (think App Store, iTunes).
Click to expand...

http://www.ithunder.com/ seems to redirect to me.com

Perhaps the name of a new gaming platform?
 
rmwebs said:
This wouldnt be able to compete with the likes of the Xbox or PS3...maybe the Wii though due to their weird little ecosystem they live in.

Xbox 360 Specs
3.2Ghz Tri-Core (3 cores) PowerPC CPU
512MB DDR3 RAM (700mhz)
ATI Xenos Graphics Card

PS3 Specs
3.2Ghz CBE CPU
256MB System RAM (+ 256MB for Gfx)
NVIDIA GFX Card

AppleTV
Apple A4 CPU (better known as the ARM Cortex-A8 with a PowerVR GPU) @ 1Ghz
RAM: 256MB
Graphics: None - uses integrated PowerVR inside the A4.

See the problem? The AppleTV is MAJORLY flawed for serious gaming.
Click to expand...

The two consoles you quote are geared up for serious (a.k.a. hardcore) gaming.
The problem is that hardcore gaming as a business is a flop. Sony's game division have haemorrhaged cash since the PS3 launch while MS have struggled.
So please don't get hung-up on Apple trying to emulate a business model that is broken.

In terms of power the Apple TV is more than a match for the Nintendo Wii - which *is* a profitable platform.

C.
 
ten-oak-druid said:
Netflix seems to be broken on apple tv - many times it stutters or stalls. I have PS3 in same physical location and it does fine. I thought I had it working but I was wrong.

Apple needs some OS update to fix this.
Click to expand...
I think the problem with Netflix on the Apple TV is the result of inadequate buffering between the Netflix service and the Apple TV. Apple (or Netflix or the content owners themselves) may not allow the content to be buffered to the Apple TV's flash memory. Thus, no matter how fast your internet connection if you suffer even a short disruption in the content delivery then the stream may need to pause because the buffer in DRAM is so small.

Thus, you might measure an instantaneous 10Mbps download rate from your ISP and you may think that all is well with your network and your ISP. But, if the rate slows down significantly for a minute or more then you may get a pause in the playback.

As an example, it's possible that someone with a rock-solid 2.5Mbps DSL connection may have less problems with Netflix than another user who has an advertised 10Mbps cable connection that has periodic slow downs to rates at or below 1Mbps (even for only a minute or two).

Of course, this doesn't fully explain why some PS3 users have reported better Netflix performance under the same network conditions as with the Apple TV. But it could still have something to do with the buffering of the content, perhaps on the PS3 the stream is being buffered to the PS3's HD.
 
CplBadboy said:
Yup. I think we both should see a share pf the profits and be credited when it arrives. To make it work properly though Apple needs a specific wireless controller for it to work as a games platform. Playing the little games on the iphone iPad etc might work for a few games such as Angry birds but the money is at the FPS end and the efforts on the iPhone iPad just dont work.

Dont know about the whole streaming games though. there is more than enough stirage on the ATV to allow the download and storage of the game. It can then be stored in the cloud for future use. Apple needs to get a rocket up their ass and seriously get this out to the consumer.
Click to expand...

See Chopper 2 as a game that transfers nicely between multiple platforms, and adapts very nicely to the different ways of controlling it. Also, it does a great job of marrying the iPhone/iPad/Mac in a controller combination.

Another thing to keep in mind is what the 4.3 version of Airplay will do for iOS game publishers. Think about being able to stream the video and audio of the game you're playing on your iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad to your television, and maintain control on your handheld device...
 
An Apple gaming console that competes against the xbox360/ps3 is my dream :eek:

i know its the apple tv, but they could give it a huge update to rival that of the ps3. i mean im a ps3 gamer, and well a ps3 is for games but lately ive noticed all these updates for LOVEFILM (UK film rental thing or something, with streaming to ps3) and catch up services for BBC/STV/Channel 4. So if the ps3 as a game console is gaining tv/film updates. im sure the apple tv as a tv device can gain gaming specs?

id love an "iConsole" :D i mean, if theres games like...need for speed, fifa, call of duty, battlefield already on the app store, why wouldn't it be possible?
 
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rdlink said:
Piggie said:
If you want Angry birds on your 42" TV, you can buy the £250 Advent Vega Tegra2 Android tablet with HDMI out and play it today.
Click to expand...


Or you can wait about three weeks and play it on your iPad with Airplay, and not have a 20 foot HDMI cable tethering your tablet to your television....
Click to expand...

As far as I know, airplay only works for videos.
 
Carniphage said:
The two consoles you quote are geared up for serious (a.k.a. hardcore) gaming.
The problem is that hardcore gaming as a business is a flop. Sony's game division have haemorrhaged cash since the PS3 launch while MS have struggled.
So please don't get hung-up on Apple trying to emulate a business model that is broken.

In terms of power the Apple TV is more than a match for the Nintendo Wii - which *is* a profitable platform.

C.
Click to expand...

Oh yes hardcore gaming is a flop
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gamesblog/2010/dec/22/call-of-duty-billion-dollar-sales
:rolleyes:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/28220/Xbox_360_Division_Pushes_165_Million_Profit_For_MS_Q3.php

I think April was before the xbox launch and of course Halo Reach.
 
...

wasn't there a rumor awhile back before the new Apple TV launched that they were working on an AppleTV that was like an iphone but without a display? I think there were even pictures of it and perhaps that was the appletv controller since it obviously wasn't the appletv
 
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