Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

11 hours ago, Shawn said:

Are all the games shown in the video completed? Is the hardware and controller setup final? I'm gonna flat out say the controller looks like it's gonna miss the mark and I would like to know if there is a conventional controller available from launch. With 10 million going towards advertising alone, when can we expect to see more than a quick sizzle real?

Games: with over a year to go and the dev kits about to ship I think worries about if those games are complete is kinda silly.

Controllers: Personally I think they are just right for what the Amico is going for. Wait for reviews if you are worried. I am not personally. The features like the touch screen are integral to how most games will work, what controller is going have that unless IE provides it and why would they? There could be a chance that there are other controllers possible in the world beyond an Xbox or PS4 clone.

Advertising: Here is how not to launch a project - blow a bunch of your $10 million budget over a year out. Tommy has said big presence next E3 and real push starts next Summer. I would expect sizzle reel stuff to keep in the public eye until then.

11 hours ago, Shawn said:

Are all the games shown in the video completed? Is the hardware and controller setup final? I'm gonna flat out say the controller looks like it's gonna miss the mark and I would like to know if there is a conventional controller available from launch. With 10 million going towards advertising alone, when can we expect to see more than a quick sizzle real?

No, these games are not completed.  They're far enough advanced in Unity to present a polished sizzle reel.

We're the percent of the market that is hyper-focused on a new console, on retro games.  Most Nintendo/Sony/Microsoft console owners are not watching Nintendo Directs or Sony Plays or keeping up with E3.  This sort of sizzle reel served two purposes - enthusiasm among the passionate early watchers, and, more importantly, a progression of development and reveals to buyers, developers, publishers and media, including social media influencers.  We're going to see a stream of more gameplay, more announcements, more refinement, more on the webpage.  Most products launched go through this upramp trajectory of exposure leading to launch.  Intellivision should NOT be spending their warchest in marketing at Gamescon or Portland Retro Gaming Expo - those are smaller milestones and markers.  Their money should be on general consumer advertising.  Kiosks in malls, at box retailers, getting Amico kiosks placed at airport gates, at state fairs next fall, and finally producing commercials showing where the Amico has a "Jump in, play with others" vibe.  It makes no sense to produce that kind of marketing dollars spent 14 months out.  The consumer isn't marketed holiday purchases until weeks before the holiday season.  Probably early 2020 they'll get the first dedicated commercials and those increase with frequency leading up to the first purchase date.

4 hours ago, vprette said:

if you're looking for a traditional controller, Amico is not for you, you're missing the approach of this console

And considering that most cellphone owners stupidly film their videos vertically, the Amico controllers would be right at home sitting vertically in their incompetent videographer hands. I hear the orientation can be shifted around and customized for Genesis users used to holding their boomerang controllers horizontally.

23 minutes ago, Blarneo said:

And considering that most cellphone owners stupidly film their videos vertically, the Amico controllers would be right at home sitting vertically in their incompetent videographer hands. 

AMEN to that! Too bad these "smart" phones aren't smart enough to detect when you're being dumb and refuse to record vertically.  🤣

What's next, vertically oriented TV's? Yeeeeep!

https://www.trustedreviews.com/news/samsungs-making-vertical-tvs-for-millenials-yes-you-read-that-right-3707922

I wish the Amico had come up with this:

This has just been revealed by Nintendo and I believe can be defined as the ultimate video game controller.

This will change the history of video games forever and the only question at this point is what are the other companies going to do now.

13 minutes ago, IntelliMission said:

I wish the Amico had come up with this:

 

 

This has just been revealed by Nintendo and I believe can be defined as the ultimate video game controller.

 

This will change the history of video games forever and the only question at this point is what are the other companies going to do now.

That thing is very interesting, but the question is...what type of games will that be compatible with?  Seems to me it would only be very few motion type games, and that's it.  Don't think people will be playing Zelda or Smash games with that.  But we'll see.

My curiousity is piqued but I'd also like to see how it interacts games and what types of games it works well with.  Sounds like we'll know more in a week.

Looks like another silly forgettable and disposable Nintendo gimmicky toy to me. Exactly what I'm *not* looking for in a game system. Besides, looks like too much work. Today's modern gaming is tedious and exhausting enough!  🤣

You want to flail about, run in place or pretend you're doing Pilates or whatever? Go outside or join a gym. Play catch with a frisbee or ball. OUTSIDE. That especially goes for apartment dwellers who live on upper floors.  

1 hour ago, IntelliMission said:

I wish the Amico had come up with this:

This has just been revealed by Nintendo and I believe can be defined as the ultimate video game controller.

This will change the history of video games forever and the only question at this point is what are the other companies going to do now.

I suspect @Tommy Tallarico will point out that every segment of the video shows a room full of people watching one person play a game, which is the opposite of what he's said the Amico is about.

AHEM.............

🙄

I was being ironic, by the way.

Imagine the reaction if this was called the "Fairchild Channel Infinite".

1 minute ago, IntelliMission said:

I was being ironic, by the way.

 

Imagine the reaction if this was called the "Fairchild Channel Infinite".

it's a really poor commercial because i'm a gamer and i still have NO idea what these people are doing so i can only imagine a non gamer really being confused...all i see is a bunch of adults pretending to have a good time spinning a modern day hula hoop type device 

6 hours ago, Swami said:

I’m sure people thought the same thing about the wii remote.

Yes, Tommy Tallarico was one of them by the way; at the time he said he wished the wiimote and nunchuk could be tied together like a regular controller.

How freaking embarrassing. A bunch of people watching you exercise. What planet is this normal?

1 hour ago, OldSchoolRetroGamer said:

AHEM.............

 

🙄

 

 

 

2 hours ago, IntyFanMatt said:

That thing is very interesting, but the question is...what type of games will that be compatible with?  Seems to me it would only be very few motion type games, and that's it.  Don't think people will be playing Zelda or Smash games with that.  But we'll see.

Given how they set up the tease, it's a new version of Wii Fit or Wii Sports. Something great for casuals (it might even be the "Quality of Life" thing that Nintendo kept talking about years ago). Either way, it's probably going to target the demographics that made the Wii a huge success and will shift more Switches, but they'll still sell plenty of their other games.

42 minutes ago, Swami said:

How freaking embarrassing. A bunch of people watching you exercise. What planet is this normal?

Why, Planet Fitness of course! What do you think all those windows are for?   🤣

 



 

8 minutes ago, Shaggy the Atarian said:

Given how they set up the tease, it's a new version of Wii Fit or Wii Sports. Something great for casuals (it might even be the "Quality of Life" thing that Nintendo kept talking about years ago). Either way, it's probably going to target the demographics that made the Wii a huge success and will shift more Switches, but they'll still sell plenty of their other games.

Yeah but I just don't see something like that selling for the Amico.  I don't think the Amico itself will be intended for a "Wii Fit" type of audience.  Now Wii Sports types of games, absolutely.  But to me it doesn't seem appealing to be flailing all over the place when playing games.  Some people might like that though.

Just now, IntyFanMatt said:

Yeah but I just don't see something like that selling for the Amico.  I don't think the Amico itself will be intended for a "Wii Fit" type of audience.  Now Wii Sports types of games, absolutely.  But to me it doesn't seem appealing to be flailing all over the place when playing games.  Some people might like that though.

It's not appealing to everyone, but it's made some companies an awful lot of money over the years

By everything I've gathered, the Amico is targetting a casual audience. They love stuff like Wii Sports, Wii Fit, Wii Party, Just Dance, etc. A lot of that stuff looks really dumb to hardcore gamers, but all of those games have sold to the tune of millions. I would be surprised if the Amico eventually doesn't have something along those lines (if not from INTV direct, then a 3rd party probably will)

1 minute ago, Shaggy the Atarian said:

By everything I've gathered, the Amico is targeting a casual audience. They love stuff like Wii Sports, Wii Fit, Wii Party, Just Dance, etc. A lot of that stuff looks really dumb to hardcore gamers, but all of those games have sold to the tune of millions. I would be surprised if the Amico eventually doesn't have something along those lines (if not from INTV direct, then a 3rd party probably will)

I agree, I do think something along those lines will be created for the Amico.  I was only saying the "Wii Fit" audience may be left out.  The rest...like Wii Sports, Wii Party, Just Dance....they will definitely be represented somehow!

1 hour ago, IntyFanMatt said:

I agree, I do think something along those lines will be created for the Amico.  I was only saying the "Wii Fit" audience may be left out.  The rest...like Wii Sports, Wii Party, Just Dance....they will definitely be represented somehow!

Is there a Wii Fit audience? Really? 

I remember half my middle aged, mimosa drinking friends buying Wiis and Wii fits and never saw them use it. Instead they did "Drinking Around the World", the pub crawl at EPCOT, religiously every year.

On 9/4/2019 at 5:28 PM, Swami said:

I don’t think Pat looked at the webpage until he was told he had made errors. It says right on the webpage the price is under $200 and he was saying one reason it wouldn’t sell is it was $250 to $300. So, I find this kind of amusing. Some of the other stuff they got wrong was not on there, like the likelihood of physical media. I do think the webpage could use a link to a more exhaustive information page. BTW, people keep saying “might have physical media”. Is it “might” or “will”?

It WILL have physical games pricing has not been officially announced but early estimates were around $30 a game and the type of physical media has not been announced as those are due out next year, but Intellivision has said it n every interview that their will be physical media 

11 minutes ago, Blarneo said:

Is there a Wii Fit audience? Really? 

I remember half my middle aged, mimosa drinking friends buying Wiis and Wii fits and never saw them use it.

That's because they bought them for their kids and grandchildren, in the hopes that they'd visit more often.

3 hours ago, save2600 said:

Looks like another silly forgettable and disposable Nintendo gimmicky toy to me. Exactly what I'm *not* looking for in a game system. Besides, looks like too much work. Today's modern gaming is tedious and exhausting enough!  🤣

 

You want to flail about, run in place or pretend you're doing Pilates or whatever? Go outside or join a gym. Play catch with a frisbee or ball. OUTSIDE. That especially goes for apartment dwellers who live on upper floors.  

It isn’t the console for people who like to have casual fun on occasion so if that is you - then yes it is a pass.

As far as “just go outside” then you obviously don’t understand that some people, especially frail or older ones, are told not to go outside on hot, cold days or bad air quality days. Also some people prefer the privacy of say an interactive yoga class instead of the cost/embarrassment of attending a class. Some people live in rural regions and maybe never get a chance to go bowling or so yoga or some other interactive game.

Empathy is a wonderful thing to try sometime.

On 9/4/2019 at 8:18 PM, Papy said:

That argument makes no sense. The vast majority of people don't buy a product because it is at a good price point, they buy it because that product can fulfill one of their needs and they can afford it. I certainly agree a product has to adapt to competition too, but the reality is Amico doesn't have any real competition. Amico will be mainly about pleasure through oxytocin, not mainly about pleasure through dopamine, serotonin and endorphins like other consoles.

 

In my mind, the closest competition to Amico is not the Switch as many people believe, but board games, as both are about social gaming.

 

The need is socialization (and the oxytocin that it produces). Would people be willing to pay $200 for their dose of oxytocin? Oh, yes!

Anyway, the main difficulty Intellivision will have to face will not be competition from other consoles, but people's past experiences. Intellivision will have to pretty much reeducate people about what video games can be.

 

When I was a kid, there was a store near where I lived called Compucentre (in a big mall called Les Galleries d'Anjou). This store was like a kiosk in the middle of one of the mall's alley. The owner always had several consoles on display, so anyone walking in the mall could see them. I remember there was an Intellivision, an Atari, an Odyssey 2, and a Bally Astrocade.

 

Instead of just having a static display, the owner allowed kids like me to stay there and play with the consoles all day long (the Intellivision was the most played by far, and Sea Battle was the most popular game). The only rule was that we had to immediately give up our place to any potential customer, even if we were in the middle of a game. So not only people could see kids actually having fun playing those consoles, but they could try them for themselves... and we would even encourage them!

 

It was a time when very few people knew what video games were, so being able to see kids having fun and even trying the games for themselves helped a lot more than some ads on TV or in a newspaper.

 

People now know what video games are, but they won't be able to understand in what way Amico games are different. They will have to see them and try them for that. They will have to experience the release of oxytocin when playing the games.

 

I don't know if it's possible, but I believe Intellivision should try everything they can to convince Wal-Mart and other big chains all around the world to have prominent kiosks in their stores, each with a good animator allowing people in and out of multiplayer games (the animator is crucial). If they can do that, then the success of the console will be enormous.

I believe that reason you were talking about getting people to see what the games are like and how they are different as well as letting people try the new controllers are why Intellivision is planning a mall/store tour for people to try the console before release