Retro VGS Game Console

[Gentlegamer]

            RETRO VGS                        OUYA
CPU         1.6GHz Quad Core ARM Cortex-A9   1.7GHz Quad Core ARM Cortex-A9
RAM         1GB DDR3-800                     1GB DDR3-800
PROTOTYPE   Manufacturer's SoC eval board    Manufacturer's SoC eval board
OS          We won't have one (NetBSD?)      Android
CONTROLLER  Yes                              Yes
CARTRIDGE   Yes                              No
COST        $300                             $100

Hahahaha! The last line, it just... says it all, I guess. Somebody should put together a collection of the best roasting posts from elsewhere and here, I would be interested to see how much better of a job the public can roast this thing than us.

There's a 120+ page thread on Atari Age where you can find the genesis of most of these.

[SignOfZeta]

Well, the Ouya had the benefit of having a billion dollar free OS and of course Android evangelicals, who were at the loudest and most obnoxious during this time. For some reason they seem to have quieted down a lot in the last year...

[SuperGrafx]

Crikey.

That's not a very flattering picture of Kennedy.
He looks like an OLD drunken sot that you'd see at the local bar. 

[elmer]

There's a 120+ page thread on Atari Age where you can find the genesis of most of these.

Haha, 124+ pages now. Yep, I'm certainly one of those that's been guilty of cross-posting!

I'm totally addicted to watching this and seeing the hour-by-hour fluctuations in their IGG funding.

I've never seen 3 people who seem to have so little capability to actually run a business, go out there and ask total strangers for millions of dollars.

I'm also beginning to suspect that a couple of the "fans" are now actually cancelling earlier pledges and then re-pledging under new accounts just to make it look like new people are backing the campaign.   

He looks like an OLD drunken sot that you'd see at the local bar. 

The whole RETRO VGS project sounds just like something that a bunch of old, disillusioned, developers would come up with after spending a long day (or 2) in the bar at GDC/E3. 

[NightWolve]

I've never seen 3 people, who seem to have so little capability to actually run a business, go out there and ask total strangers for millions of dollars.

Quote/Sig-worthy.

[DarkKobold]

I've never seen 3 people who seem to have so little capability to actually run a business, go out there and ask total strangers for millions of dollars.

Mike Kennedy is an interesting piece of work. Game Gavel is a miserable failure. For example, there are SIX SNES games on the site right now, total. And all 6 are sports games. I've read somewhere (it might have been here) that RETRO magazine has delivered a total of 10 issues over two years, when it was supposed to be monthly.

The thing I'm curious about, is if he's super passionate about retro stuff, but just not that bright, or is he just trying to cash in on the retro fad, and not very good at it? Either he's a lovable loser, or an incompetent villain. I don't know which.

[MrBroadway]

I've never seen 3 people who seem to have so little capability to actually run a business, go out there and ask total strangers for millions of dollars.

Mike Kennedy is an interesting piece of work. Game Gavel is a miserable failure. For example, there are SIX SNES games on the site right now, total. And all 6 are sports games. I've read somewhere (it might have been here) that RETRO magazine has delivered a total of 10 issues over two years, when it was supposed to be monthly.

The thing I'm curious about, is if he's super passionate about retro stuff, but just not that bright, or is he just trying to cash in on the retro fad, and not very good at it? Either he's a lovable loser, or an incompetent villain. I don't know which.

There's really nothing lovable about him. I wouldn't call him a villain, but mix those things up and you get close to reality: an incompetent loser.

[_joshuaTurbo]

I've never seen 3 people who seem to have so little capability to actually run a business, go out there and ask total strangers for millions of dollars.

I've read somewhere (it might have been here) that RETRO magazine has delivered a total of 10 issues over two years, when it was supposed to be monthly.

I subscribe to RETRO, it's not a bad magazine.  It's 4-6 issues a year, I want to say every other month.  I don't think they ever said it would be every month though.

Also, Read Only Memories comes out NEXT WEEK on the Ouya!  I've played the demo twice and can't wait to play the whole game!  Really great game that everyone should check out!  Especially if you're a fan of the SNATCHER/King's Quest style point n' click adventure.

[elmer]

It's all over ... they just pulled the plug on the campaign and told everyone to claim their refunds.

Final total $63,546.

[Bloufo]

Only move they could make. Finally.

[Mathius]

Hey Everyone! It’s clear, in its current state the RETRO VGS Indiegogo campaign is dead in the water and thusly will be shut down early. Once the Indiegogo team explains to us how we can do this, the plug will be pulled and all of you who have contributed will receive a refund post haste. Or you can go in and request a refund from Indiegogo right now.

The good news is we aren’t giving up and have made some adjustments to our hardware team, which includes the involvement of... other hardware gurus who were part of our venture in the very beginning. We will also be lowering the price while maintaining most of the cool features you all want.

We will be back in the near future with a prototype RETRO VGS system, front-and-center playing our games on our cartridges and with our USB controller. Sit tight, be patient and RETRO VGS will return.

Thanks again for your support, patience and understanding while we regroup and prepare for the relaunch of a new crowdfunding campaign.

Mike Kennedy

Maybe they'll get their act together for the next run. Maybe Kevtris is back in the fold?

[NightWolve]

Maybe they'll get their act together for the next run. Maybe Kevtris is back in the fold?

Doubtful, on both points. With the bad blood that gets created with how Kevtris publicly joined in on the roasting, they wouldn't want him back on principle, and for Kevtris to have done what he did, he was probably already very sure the prospects for any kind of partnership was permanently over.

[KingDrool]

Maybe they'll get their act together for the next run. Maybe Kevtris is back in the fold?

Doubtful, on both points. With the bad blood that gets created with how Kevtris publicly joined in on the roasting, they wouldn't want him back on principle, and for Kevtris to have done what he did, he was probably already very sure the prospects for any kind of partnership was permanently over.

Agreed. I would imagine that these guys have burned through any goodwill they may have had. What sucks is they've probably made it harder for anyone who wants to take on a similar project in the future as well. I'd absolutely consider backing a $100-$150 cart-based console if it had a few killer exclusive games and, you know, some hint of a working prototype. These guys, though? Not a chance. My bullshit detector went on overdrive the moment I saw them speak.

[Black Tiger]

So they're now saying, "we can actually give you the more expensive product we originally promised, with all of the features we wound up cutting due to cost... but this time it's going to cost you less than the neutered system we wound up fundraising for".

It's nice to hear that they're become infinitely more qualified overnight and can suddenly do what they recently said was impossible.

I'm guessing that they're talking ahead of themselves again and their plan is to just get more non-celebreties to pretend to be involved and advertise their phantom ware as "who are you going to listen to, everyone in the world with common sense, or those of us insiders who are better than all of you?"

[SignOfZeta]

I'm pretty sure at least one of the three won't be around for any future attempts. Their hardware guy sounded pretty upset and out of the loop.