F8 fantasy console!

You can talk about almost anything that you want to on this board.

Moderator: Moderators

User avatar
tokumaru
Posts: 12427
Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 9:43 pm
Location: Rio de Janeiro - Brazil

Re: F8 fantasy console!

Post by tokumaru »

I think it's hard to beat the appeal of coding for one of the most famous consoles of all time that was part of so many people's childhoods. People don't like the NES because of its specs, they like it because of the great times they had with its games.

As for the average programmer, he's usually not after the authentic experience of coding for 80's technology, most would rather use modern engines/frameworks that greatly speed up the process of creating games. Learning assembly and doing everything from scratch probably isn't in the to-do list of anyone who wants to quickly release a game they designed.
User avatar
Fautenic
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Aug 05, 2018 10:38 am

Re: F8 fantasy console!

Post by Fautenic »

The whole idea was to make a system that others could develop for, and make my own games for it as well. Not simply as a hobby though, but also as a means of income. I dedicated months to the design of the console and the development of the game which I thought was great, and people I knew also thought so. Only now, now that I'm trying to figure out a marketing strategy, has it really set in that maybe this design isn't a good idea, that it won't work.

I don't know whether I should modify the existing console design, make a new design, or ditch the idea of a fantasy console entirely. After all, there are platforms like Construct, RPG Maker, Scratch, Unreal Engine, Unity, Steam, etc.. So I know it can be done. The problem is, I've dedicated so much time to this concept, that I have no other ideas. I'm almost bone-dry.

I'm just so frustrated and stressed out at this point, and I don't know what to do.
User avatar
tokumaru
Posts: 12427
Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 9:43 pm
Location: Rio de Janeiro - Brazil

Re: F8 fantasy console!

Post by tokumaru »

Well, if it's good enough for your own games, that's already a win. But if you really want others to adopt your framework, I guess you'll have to decide who this product is really for (can't please everyone, unfortunately) and go ask them what their needs are. In 2018, assembly language is definitely a hobbyist thing... people trying to pump out commercial games quickly will look for something that increases productivity. Coding game engines from scratch is hardly commercially viable these days, because the typical number of sales of retro games doesn't cover the hours of work necessary to build something from the ground up.
User avatar
Banshaku
Posts: 2417
Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2008 8:38 pm
Location: Japan
Contact:

Re: F8 fantasy console!

Post by Banshaku »

It's hard to give advice in that case. If the main motivation was monetary then a proper market research before starting would have been a good idea.

Usually project like theses are based on passion and the main goal is not monetary but more a sense of personal accomplishment. Like mentioned by Tokumaru, people works on older consoles not because they are convenient but more out of childhoods memories they had about them. Myself included, I would have a hard time to create a project for your fantasy console since for now there is not much information about it, doesn't have a physical version (for me this is important) and already just for the nes I have not a complete project yet so it would make little sense to try something on it.

Before continuing on your project you need to define your target audience and get more information about it. Your friends will always support you and give a "rose tinted view" which may give you a false sense of everything is fine.

Your project is interesting and it's great that you made it that far. It is an accomplishment by itself. Now the next step is finding your audience.

Don't give up! Maybe just take a break from it, that's important too ;)
Oziphantom
Posts: 1565
Joined: Tue Feb 07, 2017 2:03 am

Re: F8 fantasy console!

Post by Oziphantom »

You probably should have a look at the Pico8, as you are basically competing with it, and the C.H.I.P. also see the new Atari console.

To be commercially viable you need a store, and advertising. Porting something like Shovel Knight is pointless however, as I can run it on PC, 3DS, Vita or Switch?? already, what does me the person starting at the screen care that it is running on a emulated 6502? Its still on my PC screen just the same. Porting it NES is a different story as then I can to put a NES cart in to my NES and play with a REAL NES like I did when I was a little kid and that is different, although technically inferior to any of the above methods.

The improved graphics patches seems to be somewhat of a hit, so maybe being able to run improved graphic versions of NES games, might be something people go for, but again that can't be commercial. Steams being a great pile of garbage with a few gems in it, if you can make a point that you will have games and curate games of a certain style and quality you might be able to carve out a niche.
User avatar
rainwarrior
Posts: 8732
Joined: Sun Jan 22, 2012 12:03 pm
Location: Canada
Contact:

Re: F8 fantasy console!

Post by rainwarrior »

Maybe worth pointing out that the commercial success of pico-8 itself directly relies on the fact that all of its games are not commercial.

The real "fantasy consoles" that are used to make commercial games are just engines (RPG Maker, etc.) we just don't call them that because there's no pretense of this being some fictional machine, but it's more or less the same thing. Some sort of virtual system that has its own set of limitations and capabilities, and you use it to make a game.
User avatar
Bregalad
Posts: 8056
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2004 2:49 pm
Location: Divonne-les-bains, France

Re: F8 fantasy console!

Post by Bregalad »

Just saying, this thread remind me that other thread I made just 2.5 years ago about making your own arcade games which basically means designing your own gaming system.
Post Reply