Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

12 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Awesome new article!

http://gametyrant.com/news/why-i-am-more-excited-about-the-intellivision-amico-than-the-ps5-or-xbox-series-x

 

this is what many people like me think

32 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

 

Totally!  I'm glad you brought this up.  Yes, the "concerns" from our friends on the other side seemed to focus that the hiring of J is useless because it's too late, etc.  This of course coming from geniuses who've never built hardware or software.  As you rightfully pointed out... this is the BEST time as the foundations have been built.   Myself, J & David Perry along with other key members of our team... including (drum roll from @Michael Garvey please) John Alvardo... have been hammering away at the best way to present things... and all the things on our "list" that we can strip down. 

We had a huge conversation this week about our PAUSE menu's and what it displays exactly.  Just yesterday we decided to NOT have adjustable volume for sfx or music in the Audio section of the menu.  MUSIC ON/OFF is all that's needed.  No reason for anyone to want to turn down the underwater ambience in Shark! Shark!

 

J's timing was perfect.  People who know nothing about creating hardware in the game industry would tell you differently.

 

 

There are two sides of the coin though.  Yes, for some % of consumers, this is a perfect approach.  For others, customizability is important as well. Is there any detriment to include 2 profiles, simplistic and more tailorable with a question early in the set up asking the user to choose?  Something like “Johny, Do you want your Amico configured for simplicity or would you prefer to have the ability to increase your customization?”

1 hour ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

We had a huge conversation this week about our PAUSE menu's and what it displays exactly.  Just yesterday we decided to NOT have adjustable volume for sfx or music in the Audio section of the menu.  MUSIC ON/OFF is all that's needed. 

 

 

NOW you speak about useful stuff!

games today are full of neverending and nevercare options that make me upset when I need to remember what submenu I have to go for a very simple setup (see the pro evolution soccer menu! awful! but it was not like that in the beginning)
the actual games are becoming cinematic experiences based mainly on violence.. they are moving from the concept of game to experience and service... but me and hopefully millions of other players want GAMES

Speaking about the Wii U and about game testing:

- I have the feeling that many major console manufacturers have, at least once, committed the mistake of introducing one particular gimmick in a controller that clearly wasn't working just for the sake of being innovative and "moving to the next generation of control systems".

- The Wii U, the Switch joycons, the analog buttons on PS2 and the numeric pad on the Jaguar come to mind. Yes, the PS2 and the Switch were a huge success, but not because of those gimmicks.

- @Tommy Tallarico Do you think these mistakes could have been avoided by good testing or do you think those companies didn't really care and only wanted to have something special?

47 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Speaking of XBL and the above discussion (talking to customers)... this was a HILARIOUS video that Microsoft played at E3 one year.

J was featured in it.

If responding, please remember the AA rules to keep politics out of the forum. 

 

Oh... and by the way... was this Microsoft making fun of Sony publicly?  Absolutely. 

The Sony folks all had the same first names as the real people and even kind of looked like them... but it wasn't really them.

 

But wait a sec?  Haven't a few folks been condemning me because I dared to bring up the differences Amico has with other systems.  They say how unprofessional that is.

 

Hmmmm????

 

 

 

Yeah we just live a time where people are hyper sensitive. Cant take a joke. Cant understand how marketing works. Lack knowledge on how healthy comparisons of things helps the market. 

Heres an example.  I was heavily involved in the Jeep community. Managed a technical support group, 4 other groups I was a moderator for. Anytime a new jeep came out that wasnt a wrangler all of these haters would come out bashing these new owners. They missed the mark. These nonwrangler jeeps were often the gateway jeeps cant tell you how many bought a compass or renegade then 2 years later bought the wrangler. How does this relate?  I see the Amico as the gateway to gaming . People that dont actually play video games might become a hardcore gamer down the road once they get use to a simple console like the Amico.  Then they could see themselves getting a ps5 later. But they might never get into it at all if all they get these people bashing on them because they want the Amico. So these hater are only hurting the other 3 companies by acting like children.  And they all know who they are. . 

3 hours ago, RetroAdvisoryBoard said:

Death by player ineptitude.

Erm, let's go with player unfamiliarity...

It's the problem with these games where you have to use one of the four back buttons once every 15 minutes. Or any ambiguous button once every 15 minutes. 

1 hour ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

 

J tells a great story about Xbox Live.  XBL was his baby.  Designed it from the ground up.  But as it was getting closer to launch the Xbox he said he had to make one of the toughest decisions of his career to put XBL on hold.  The machine needed to be a great as possible, and he didn't want anything to feel rushed or to have corners cut.  But the BEST part of that decision was that once the Xbox was out, he now had hundreds of thousands of "test cases" to see what it was they wanted from an online experience and who they were.  A year after Xbox came out, Xbox Live was launched... and to great success.

 

We still have no idea who will be buying Amico's.  We have a great idea of who we are targeting.  But who will be the ones playing it the most?  And will those people want multiplayer online?  And if so... which kinds of games?  Knowing that data will be crucial to making it successful for the majority of folks who want that kind of experience.  But at this point... we really don't know who and how many that will be.

But enhancing the UX and adding different layers or options down the road (year 1, year 2, year 3, etc.) is a smart move to ensure the success of the launch.  The other thing to keep in mind is that we won't be hitting the top of our "sales bell curve" til year 3 of the console!  That's when we have the potential to sell tens of millions of units at $199 MSRP.  So as long as we have the amazing (and simple) things in by then... it won't really matter for the overwhelming future success.  But having too many options, too many things to do, too many ways to do things... could cause some confusion to the general public.N

I'll give you another great example.  Folks have heard me talk about have parental rewards for Amico.  So you can limit your kids time and give them positive reinforcement (i.e. additional Amico time) when they do chores around the house or get good grades in school, etc.  Does the ability to do that matter for the first 100,000 or so machines to hit the market?  Is that something we can focus on more once the machine is shipped and we can actually ask our customers if this is something they want and how they would like to see it incorporated (through the Amico Club app?, through a special RFID parent key?).  Until people have purchased it and used it, doing a focus group for something like this doesn't give us the true data we need.  So we decided to put that feature on hold til after the machine comes out, and can then incorporate it sometime in 2021.

 

Now of course the silly little haters who read my every word here will take this all to mean.  "OMG!!  HE'S LYING AGAIN AND THEY ARE ALREADY SCALING BACK THE ENTIRE MACHINE!!"

But hey... what are ya gonna do about folks that have seemed to have lost all ability to use cognitive skills to look at something unbiased.

 

 

 

 

I am actually excited you mentioned this feature, and I am okay with it being held back in order to get it right. We use ClassDojo for my kid because they require it as part of his school work but they have a nice interface where you can set up goals or rewards for at home. So we set 3-5 goals for him each week (chores, schoolwork, etc.) and it awards "DojoPoints" for him. I really like it and I think I would use it. But I totally agree that I would need to have the Amico for awhile to decide whether or not it would really work for us. Very cool to hear though!

2 hours ago, Intellivision Master said:

Amico should have a slogan like this.  "Amico, the only console you'll ever need or want".

yeah, umm no.  I bet a good percentage of Amico owners will have Amico plus a  Xbox of PS5 etc.  I'm personally like the whole idea of Amico, but I also like the idea of playing cutting edge experiences as well. VR is the future of gaming, looking forward to this next iteration of it.

1 hour ago, Starpaddler said:

There are two sides of the coin though.  Yes, for some % of consumers, this is a perfect approach.  For others, customizability is important as well. Is there any detriment to include 2 profiles, simplistic and more tailorable with a question early in the set up asking the user to choose?  Something like “Johny, Do you want your Amico configured for simplicity or would you prefer to have the ability to increase your customization?”

Offering tailorable profiles is just another layer of complexity that deters our initial core audience.

The types of games we're focused on really don't call for that much customization.   And if you think about it... neither did the majority of every game made before 1990.

How great was it to be able to turn on a system and just start playing within a few seconds.  Yet another reason mobile has become so convenient and console gaming has fallen way behind and only to a certain core demographic.

But this is a perfect example of what I was saying earlier.  If we launch and find that the majority of people want more customization... then it's something that can easily be added.
 

But making everything simple to begin with for everyone has a greater potential of success in our opinion.

1 hour ago, IntelliMission said:

Speaking about the Wii U and about game testing:

 

- I have the feeling that many major console manufacturers have, at least once, committed the mistake of introducing one particular gimmick in a controller that clearly wasn't working just for the sake of being innovative and "moving to the next generation of control systems".

 

- The Wii U, the Switch joycons, the analog buttons on PS2 and the numeric pad on the Jaguar come to mind. Yes, the PS2 and the Switch were a huge success, but not because of those gimmicks.

 

- @Tommy Tallarico Do you think these mistakes could have been avoided by good testing or do you think those companies didn't really care and only wanted to have something special?

No, I don't think they could be avoided... mostly because a lot of times you may have an idea... but if the developers don't incorporate it in the proper way (or at all), then the whole thing became a useless and expensive waste of time.

This is one of the big reasons we work so closely and endlessly with our developers... always giving ideas on how we could use the controller to its fullest potential and how we make games on Amico unique from every other platform out there.  It will be a little easier for us to control this because everything is curated by us.  Yet another cool thing that curated quality over quantity brings to the table.

If we were an open system and no one ever used the LED lights on the controller or if customers never used the RFID to go over friends houses to share games... then Amico controllers would also be considered to have some useless gimmicky stuff.  But I'll try my hardest to make sure those things don't happen because we've shown internally that when used properly... those things can be really cool and innovative for unique gameplay.

2 minutes ago, bigdaddygamestudio said:

yeah, umm no.  I bet a good percentage of Amico owners will have Amico plus a  Xbox of PS5 etc.  I'm personally like the whole idea of Amico, but I also like the idea of playing cutting edge experiences as well. VR is the future of gaming, looking forward to this next iteration of it.

It reminds me of the old Snapple campaign where they bragged "We're number 3!!"  Or the Wii360 idea where you'd have a Wii AND and XBOX 360.  It's definitely set up as an "also" console, as in you'd have an Amico and also a PS5.

5 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Offering tailorable profiles is just another layer of complexity that deters our initial core audience.

The types of games we're focused on really don't call for that much customization.   And if you think about it... neither did the majority of every game made before 1990.

 

How great was it to be able to turn on a system and just start playing within a few seconds.  Yet another reason mobile has become so convenient and console gaming has fallen way behind and only to a certain core demographic.

 

But this is a perfect example of what I was saying earlier.  If we launch and find that the majority of people want more customization... then it's something that can easily be added.
 

But making everything simple to begin with for everyone has a greater potential of success in our opinion.

 

 

 

I like the idea of less customization.  People who like to customize everything play on PC.  Consoles are nice because you don't have to worry about all of that.  Even in smart phones, if you want ultimate customization, you can buy an Android phone.  If you just don't want to deal with all of that, buy an iPhone. It's a choice, and as it turns out, a lot of people just don't want to be bothered with all of that.

17 minutes ago, vongruetz said:

It reminds me of the old Snapple campaign where they bragged "We're number 3!!"  Or the Wii360 idea where you'd have a Wii AND and XBOX 360.  It's definitely set up as an "also" console, as in you'd have an Amico and also a PS5.

 

I like the idea of less customization.  People who like to customize everything play on PC.  Consoles are nice because you don't have to worry about all of that.  Even in smart phones, if you want ultimate customization, you can buy an Android phone.  If you just don't want to deal with all of that, buy an iPhone. It's a choice, and as it turns out, a lot of people just don't want to be bothered with all of that.

I'm with you.

I get the customization thing... but for the average person... isn't the industry getting a little too carried away?  Is this stuff turning more NEW people on or off to playing their games? 

Playstation system menu

CIV VI menu setup

 Now there's a simple example of making a comparison as to what makes Amico different.

Is there going to be backlash and outrage from Playstation & PC owners now?  Or is it only when you do it with "certain" companies?

👀 

2 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

OMG that made me laugh, I may have pee'd a little....

19 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Now there's a simple example of making a comparison as to what makes Amico different.

 

Is there going to be backlash and outrage from Playstation & PC owners now?  Or is it only when you do it with "certain" companies?

We have had the exact same discussions for years about how customizable to make our software.  Govt workers are on all sorts of levels, from 100% noob to pretty freakin advanced.  So what we do, and have found to work just fine is this .. Toggles.  You simply keep the main part of your menus clean and simple, then you have an advanced toggle button. If you hit it then you are given all sorts of advanced customizable tools and options.  By doing it this way, you give everyone what they want.  Noobs never ever have to see or wade through and be overwhelmed by the advance setting options, but at the same time, those that have the skills and want the ability to customize, can.  This way you keep everyone happy.

Toggle it, its my pretty much go to answer when we are asked for some new options etc from clients. its worked out very well for us.

9 minutes ago, bigdaddygamestudio said:

We have had the exact same discussions for years about how customizable to make our software.  Govt workers are on all sorts of levels, from 100% noob to pretty freakin advanced.  So what we do, and have found to work just fine is this .. Toggles.  You simply keep the main part of your menus clean and simple, then you have an advanced toggle button. If you hit it then you are given all sorts of advanced customizable tools and options.  By doing it this way, you give everyone what they want.  Noobs never have to see or wade through and be overwhelmed by the advance setting options, but at the same time, those that have the skills and want the ability to customize, can.  This way you keep everyone happy.

 

Toggle it, its my pretty much go to answer when we are asked for some new options etc from clients. its worked out very well for us.

I think that is something Amico will look at down the road, but for right now they're talking about what do they need to have at first.  Will customization be available someday?  Sure.  Will it be ready for launch? No.  The idea of scaling back is to figure out what they need to focus on to get this thing ready for launch. If they go down the rabbit hole and try to add everything all at the beginning, it will take up time/resources that they just don't have. Plus, it might intimidate a lot of the audience that they're hoping to attract.  They're going after those people who would always set the toggle to "No" on advanced customizable tools. So why put the effort into that right now when it's not something that is important to market they're trying to attract?

4 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Speaking of XBL and the above discussion (talking to customers)... this was a HILARIOUS video that Microsoft played at E3 one year.

J was featured in it.

If responding, please remember the AA rules to keep politics out of the forum. 

 

Oh... and by the way... was this Microsoft making fun of Sony publicly?  Absolutely. 

The Sony folks all had the same first names as the real people and even kind of looked like them... but it wasn't really them.

 

But wait a sec?  Haven't a few folks been condemning me because I dared to bring up the differences Amico has with other systems.  They say how unprofessional that is.

 

Hmmmm????

 

 

 

I've also heard them say xbox and playstation haven't attacked each other since the Genesis/SNES days, but I remember the E3 in 2014 when Playstation commented on how they would support players ability to buy used games versus Xbox being online only.

6 hours ago, vongruetz said:

I can't tell you how many games I've played for a few hours, put down, and then can not go back to play because I've forgotten the controls, or have no idea what I'm supposed to do next.  I want to go back and finish Zelda The Wind Waker, but I have absolutely no idea anymore or where I am or where I'm supposed to go. My only solution is to start over from the beginning, and I don't want to do that.

 

Meanwhile, I can go years without playing Pac-Man, but if I start it today, I instantly know exactly what to do.  That's what really has me interested about Amico. I don't have hours upon hours to devote to these experiences.  Some gamers complain if a game is "only" 30 hours long, and meanwhile I look at 30 hours and wonder who has the time for that?  I own one of the Arcade1Up cabinets with Rampage/Joust, and that thing gets a ton of my time.  Mainly because my daughter really loves to play Rampage with me. 

I was once in a discussion where I commented about how I thought video games had more replayability than movies or TV shows and this guy answered that he usually only plays a video games once and never again while he's watch some movies 3 or 4 times. This made no sense to me, but now I realize he's just playing these modern movie-games where once you make it to the end of the story there is little point in replaying it versus most good games before 2010 you might replay 25-100 times or more.

5 hours ago, Starpaddler said:

There are two sides of the coin though.  Yes, for some % of consumers, this is a perfect approach.  For others, customizability is important as well. Is there any detriment to include 2 profiles, simplistic and more tailorable with a question early in the set up asking the user to choose?  Something like “Johny, Do you want your Amico configured for simplicity or would you prefer to have the ability to increase your customization?”

I used to assume the same-let the user make these choices, what's the negative?

Unfortunately, as I get older, it's become obvious that 'decision fatigue' is a very large factor in my late-day entertainment choices.  I spend all day making decisions, either about how to fix something, what should be fixed first, or if I'm even in good enough physical condition to fix it today.   By 9:30 PM, I'm sick of choices, even if they seem simple and allow me greater customization.  It's why a billion Netflix options won't get me away from over-the-air MeTV and Twilight Zone reruns at 11:30.  Yes, there is cool new stuff on Netflix, sadly I'm just too tired to pick something, or even choose a 'recommended' title. 

2 hours ago, vongruetz said:

If they go down the rabbit hole and try to add everything all at the beginning, it will take up time/resources that they just don't have. Plus, it might intimidate a lot of the audience that they're hoping to attract.  They're going after those people who would always set the toggle to "No" on advanced customizable tools

we will see likely this thing will not be out in 2020 so they actually will have MORE time on their side to do things they thought they didnt have time for.  Plus I still think their demo will turn out to be US, as in the people here, the grandparents and original gaming OGs.  This system is perfect for gaming grandparents and to be honest more is always better as long as you dont force it. Its better to have it and not need it, then to need it and not have it. 

1 hour ago, bigdaddygamestudio said:

we will see likely this thing will not be out in 2020 so they actually will have MORE time on their side to do things they thought they didnt have time for.  Plus I still think their demo will turn out to be US, as in the people here, the grandparents and original gaming OGs.  This system is perfect for gaming grandparents and to be honest more is always better as long as you dont force it. Its better to have it and not need it, then to need it and not have it. 

I really like the last sentence,those are words to live by. Well said!👍

The rest of it was good and all true too.

4 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

 

I'm with you.

 

I get the customization thing... but for the average person... isn't the industry getting a little too carried away?  Is this stuff turning more NEW people on or off to playing their games? 

Playstation system menu

 

 

 

 

 

CIV VI menu setup

 

 

 

 

 

 Now there's a simple example of making a comparison as to what makes Amico different.

 

Is there going to be backlash and outrage from Playstation & PC owners now?  Or is it only when you do it with "certain" companies?

 

👀 

I agree, I miss the days of turning the system on, playing a game and having fun. Really glad you guys at IE take time to think of a simpler UI and just having an “ON/OFF” for some sound options. 

6 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

 

I'm with you.

 

I get the customization thing... but for the average person... isn't the industry getting a little too carried away?  Is this stuff turning more NEW people on or off to playing their games? 

Playstation system menu

 

 

 

 

 

CIV VI menu setup

 

 

 

 

 

 Now there's a simple example of making a comparison as to what makes Amico different.

 

Is there going to be backlash and outrage from Playstation & PC owners now?  Or is it only when you do it with "certain" companies?

 

👀 

Certain companies I believe.  Nintendo boys are nuts lol never say anything negative about it. And the 2nd worst fan boys or equally crazy arw some of the Ataribox box kiddos.  Those fanboys are on the Amico videos more than anyone.  

6 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

That reminded me of an oldie but a goodie:

5 hours ago, Swami said:

I've also heard them say xbox and playstation haven't attacked each other since the Genesis/SNES days, but I remember the E3 in 2014 when Playstation commented on how they would support players ability to buy used games versus Xbox being online only.

Or how about when sony announced their price at that press conference right after sega announced their more expensive saturn. I believe it was sony rep walked up said $200 then walk off the stage. That was a hugh death blow to sega. So they whiny babies must have been born to gaming yesterday lol