Xbox Co-Creator Nat Brown Joins Apple

[MacRumors]

Following a four-year stint at Valve, Xbox co-creator Nat Brown has now taken on a role at Apple, announcing his new position on Twitter.

Brown said that he has an obsession with platform ecosystems and systems engineering, and he's looking forward to continuing his work in these areas at Apple. Brown says that he will be "focusing on all applications of graphics" and working with developers using graphics on Apple platforms.

Prior to joining Apple, Brown was working as a VR engineer on Valve's VR team, but Valve laid off its VR team earlier this year. Before he was at Valve, Brown was one of the first engineers to join the Xbox project back in 1999.

ohai! so today I start at apple. a little thread if you're interested... - Nat Brown (@natbro) July 29, 2019

Back in 2013, Brown shared a blog post arguing that the Apple TV had the potential to destroy console gaming thanks to its support of third-party apps. Microsoft and other gaming platforms now support indie games, but at the time, Brown argued that Apple could have killed the Playstation and the Xbox by introducing a game ecosystem for the Apple TV. From Brown's 2013 blog post:

Apple, if it chooses to do so, will simply kill Playstation, Wii-U and xBox by introducing an open 30%-cut app/game ecosystem for Apple-TV. I already make a lot of money on iOS - I will be the first to write apps for Apple-TV when I can, and I know I'll make money. I would for xBox if I could and I knew I would make money. Maybe a "console-capable" Apple-TV isn't $99, maybe it's $199, and add another $79 for a controller.

Apple did not do so in 2013, but later did open up the Apple TV to apps and games with a dedicated Apple TV App Store. Unfortunately, the Apple TV App Store hasn't exactly been a console killer.

It's not clear what specific graphics applications Brown will be working on at Apple, and it's not known if he will be joining Apple's rumored AR/VR team.

Article Link: Xbox Co-Creator Nat Brown Joins Apple

 

[farewelwilliams]

featuring apple ar with red ring of death

 

[Tucom]

This is sick - funny dichotomy of companies to transition to and from.

Now BRB while I play Jet Set Radio Future on my 2020 Mac Pro. At 8K. LET'S GET SCRATCHIN'!

 

[v0lume4]

Alright boys, let's go!

 

[Saipher]

Back in 2013, Brown shared a blog post arguing that the Apple TV had the potential to destroy console gaming thanks to its support of third-party apps.

I still believe the ATV can be a great gaming platform, rival to the other major players in this industry. Here is hope that Brown’s hire is an indication that Apple might actually follow that path.

 

[whooleytoo]

Alright boys, let's go!

That image reminds me... the thing that I get most excited about when I hear "new console" is a new controller design. That Pippin one looks pretty cool still.

Ok, It needs to have about 10 more buttons these days, but still, it's something different!

 

[ButteryScrollin]

I still believe the ATV can be a great gaming platform, rival to the other major players in this industry. Here is hope that Brown’s hire is an indication that Apple might actually follow that path.

Agree. Apple really dropped the ball on controller support when tvOS came out as well as other areas. Maybe Apple Arcade + support for PS4/xbox controller support will help push it in that direction.

 

[Bswails]

I still believe the ATV can be a great gaming platform, rival to the other major players in this industry. Here is hope that Brown’s hire is an indication that Apple might actually follow that path.

I agree if Apple wants to get serious about gaming. You gotta hire serious people. Google Stadia is a good start with its intentions. I would love to only have an Apple TV and choice of comfortable controllers for gaming..but it’s gotta be more than big screen phone games

 

[Cosmosent]

RE: "Unfortunately, the Apple TV App Store hasn't exactly been a console killer."

That got me LOL, BIG time !

 

[JagdTiger]

That image reminds me... the thing that I get most excited about when I hear "new console" is a new controller design. That Pippin one looks pretty cool still.

Ok, It needs to have about 10 more buttons these days, but still, it's something different!

Yes ten more buttons which are never used and no one can figure out how to anyways.

 

[CreeptoLoser]

The ARM cores in the televisions are getting more powerful every year. It's just a matter of time when Apple TV gaming features migrate to the Apple TV app.

 

[NickName99]

AppleTV has tons of potential, good performance, better support for gaming controllers, but none of the game franchises people are into are there. It seems like Apple may need to reach out to some game studios to get some AAA titles ported in; it may even take an initial investment to take the gaming ecosystem to the next level. Apple could offer some incentives or even just throw money at them. They could afford it.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

The value proposition for game developers just doesn’t exist for the Apple TV. The device reaches a very limited demographic compared to established consoles and other platforms like PCs and mobile devices.

Most game development shops take the safe route of catering to existing platforms instead of taking a chance on a niche product. So Mr. Brown was a bit out of touch with reality on this one.

Regardless, try playing an Apple TV game with the supplied controller. Now imagine that’s the only allowed controller when said Apple TV was released. So not only is there very little incentive for developers, but on day one playing any game on Apple TV was extremely frustrating.

This is why the game selection for native Apple TV apps is disappointing, and why this situation will probably not change very much even with Apple Arcade.

 

[JagdTiger]

AppleTV has tons of potential, good performance, better support for gaming controllers, but none of the game franchises people are into are there. It seems like Apple may need to reach out to some game studios to get some AAA titles ported in; it may even take an initial investment to take the gaming ecosystem to the next level. Apple could offer some incentives or even just throw money at them. They could afford it.

Yes but Bethesda has made a game for iPad and it’s not the same type of elder scrolls.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

AppleTV has tons of potential, good performance, better support for gaming controllers, but none of the game franchises people are into are there. It seems like Apple may need to reach out to some game studios to get some AAA titles ported in; it may even take an initial investment to take the gaming ecosystem to the next level. Apple could offer some incentives or even just throw money at them. They could afford it.

But is it worth the effort and would they see significant returns on such an investment? Most likely not but the actual objective may be to just grow the platform a little more, instead of trying to take any really significant market share from consoles.

 

[dannyyankou]

This seems like a good move, with Apple Arcade coming out soon. Maybe we can get a good standalone game system out of it too.

 

[NickName99]

But is it worth the effort and would they see significant returns on such an investment? Most likely not but the actual objective may be to just grow the platform a little more, instead of trying to take any really significant market share from consoles.

Yep, I totally agree.

 

[konqerror]

Most game development shops take the safe route of catering to existing platforms instead of taking a chance on a niche product. So Mr. Brown was a bit out of touch with reality on this one.

Not really, he got it right on. The Apple TV is merely a variant of a platform, the iPhone, which has a very established following. A developer simply takes their iOS game and modifies it to a TV and controller. For a lot of genres, there is little work. The platform, particularly the OS and graphics hardware is nearly completely unchanged.

If you look at the established console players, this is very much what they're doing, especially Microsoft. They take PC platform games and modify them to a TV and controller.

Likely, an Apple TV console would compete right in Nintendo's Switch market: mobile games on TV.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

Not really, he got it right on. The Apple TV is merely a variant of a platform, the iPhone, which has a very established following. A developer simply takes their iOS game and modifies it to a TV and controller. For a lot of genres, there is little work. The platform, particularly the OS and graphics hardware is nearly completely unchanged.

If you look at the established console players, this is very much what they're doing, especially Microsoft. They take PC platform games and modify them to a TV and controller.

Likely, an Apple TV console would compete right in Nintendo's Switch market: mobile games on TV.

But this isn’t what actually happened.

The key is the actual experience of playing games on Apple TV.

For example look at Transistor. Compared to playing this game on a smart phone or tablet (or even a PC with mouse & keyboard) it’s just not a good experience.

Many mobile games just don’t translate well to a console experience. Yes some do but will developers bother to make the additional effort? Most development shops will not because the numbers for Apple TV simply don’t justify the cost.

 

[konqerror]

But this isn’t what actually happened.

Because Apple didn't care. They couldn't sell controllers or Apple TVs to a level that would produce iPhone-like revenues, so they let it stagnate. Same with Game Center. All of the consoles and PC launcher platforms have a strong social component for playing with friends and now streaming. Apple seemed to realize this, did it halfway, then got bored and killed it.

Many mobile games just don’t translate well to a console experience.

You appear to be unfamiliar with modern markets. Look at how big PUBG mobile is, and that really is a total crap experience playing a shooter on a touchscreen. But that's what China has: you either pay $2000 for a full gaming PC, or its mobile (consoles were banned and are now tightly regulated). This repeats itself to many markets, including the South Korean market (again, consoles were banned in the past and never recovered).

That's how its shaping up, make either a mobile game or a PC game then everything else has to be based on one of those. There's no more console-first or console-only games.

 

[gnipgnop]

Many mobile games just don’t translate well to a console experience. Yes some do but will developers bother to make the additional effort? Most development shops will not because the numbers for Apple TV simply don’t justify the cost.

I believe that's part of the strategy with Apple Arcade: every game will appear on ALL of Apple's platforms. You'll have your choice of where you play it, which in turn would stimulate greater use of the Mac and Apple TV for gaming.

 

[Johnny907]

Besmirch it all you want, but that Gen 1 Xbox was a BEAST. I loved that thing and it marked the point at which I became an adult gamer. I genuinely enjoyed everything about It, even the giant controller which was great for me as I have largish hands and the PlayStation controllers always felt like a hand cramp waiting to happen.

 

[4487549]

Apple, if it chooses to do so, will simply kill third party wireless routers by reintroducing the Airport Extreme and Airport Express. Maybe a "backup-capable" Time Machine isn't $99, maybe it's $199.

Hire me.

 

[ShinySteelRobot]

Apple: We're bringing games and other apps to the Apple TV by introducing the Apple TV App Store!
Hundreds of thousands of iOS game developers: YAY! Let's get started writing games for Apple TV!!
Apple: And you're required to use our stupid little remote control as a supported game controller in every game!
Hundreds of thousands of iOS game developers: (in unison) Uhhh.. Hard pass. Forget what I said earlier...

 

[Tucom]

Alright boys, let's go!

CoD Modern Warfare at 4K 120FPS correct? Where do I wait in line?