Ideal Future For Gp2x

[Playdough]

Intereting stuff, Starpause. It would be really great to here all the atypical things people are doing with their GP2X's. Emulation is an easy one, and probably the main reason people buy the console. It would be really good to see exactly how verstile people are making it (BTW are there many Qtopia users here?).

Because of the PSP Blasphemy thread that is active right now, I do kinda wonder what the long term future is for the GP2X if the PSP becomes easier and easier to use as a homebrew device. Yes, the PSP has some downsides, but so does the GP2X. Ultimately will Sony send out the assassins to shutdown people like DAX, or will the PSP homebrew scene continue to thrive and push this scene into a much more obscure position?

My reasoning is that if both handhelds are eventually great for homebrew, will the few reasons to choose a GP2X outweigh the greater variety of options the PSP offers (homebrew + a slew of commercial games + more coders)?

Back when PSP homebrew was limited to a much smaller number of PSP's the choice was much easier.

 

[Parkydr]

I didn't buy a GP2X for emulators, it was to have a low priced portable Linux computer which is easy to develop for.

The openness of the GP2X (hardware and software) is something the PSP will never have, there's no saying what Sony will do, there aim is to peddle their overpriced games and movies, there's no money for them in homebrew.

The function I use most is the e-book reader on my 7 minute journey to/from work.

 

[gaterooze]

Besides, the PSP2 will be out by the end of the year (the DAX situation is pushing that timetable forward). Who knows what the landscape will be like then?

For me, the GP2X is far more suited to what I want from a handheld, and I prefer using it more than a PSP. The screen and controls are better suited for emulating anything older than the PS1, and the open Linux ethos is better suited for homebrew and applications. Add SD, AA, TV-Out, BOB, ergonomics, weight, etc and you'll see the two remain distinctly different options.

 

[krosfyah]

Intereting stuff, Starpause. It would be really great to here all the atypical things people are doing with their GP2X's. Emulation is an easy one, and probably the main reason people buy the console. It would be really good to see exactly how verstile people are making it (BTW are there many Qtopia users here?).

Because of the PSP Blasphemy thread that is active right now, I do kinda wonder what the long term future is for the GP2X if the PSP becomes easier and easier to use as a homebrew device. Yes, the PSP has some downsides, but so does the GP2X. Ultimately will Sony send out the assassins to shutdown people like DAX, or will the PSP homebrew scene continue to thrive and push this scene into a much more obscure position?

My reasoning is that if both handhelds are eventually great for homebrew, will the few reasons to choose a GP2X outweigh the greater variety of options the PSP offers (homebrew + a slew of commercial games + more coders)?

Back when PSP homebrew was limited to a much smaller number of PSP's the choice was much easier.

The interesting thing for me is that the openess was the main reason I was drawn to the GP2x. But I realised that's more of a feature a developer would want. I found myself getting a bit bored with how easy everything was. So when I got a PSP I loved the fact that everything takes effort to do. That you have to use exploits and hacks and emulating other firmware to do whatever blah blah. It makes it all a lot more interesting for me. I seem to spend more time hacking around and trying to get things to work or figuring out why they won't work than actually playing games. I imagine this is exactly the kind of satisfaction and enjoyment a developer gets on the GP2x (or any platform really). So yeah, in the end the openess has actually proved to be a negative thing for me. I guess I'm weird.

 

[Playdough]

Some very interesting points. Gunpei, the GP2X is indeed it's own thing, with distinct differences. The line just seems to get blurier as the PSP becomes more homebrew possible.

Subcon, funnily enough the "openess" also grabbed me with the GP2X even though I'm not a coder. For some reason I took it to mean that it would always be better than the PSP, in that it has no master as it isn't part of a greedy and lawsuit-happy commercial machine (Sony, something many people seem to also think), but most of all, and I may well have been wrong to think this, but I associated this great freedom with limitless possibility (atleast in terms of innovation if not technical achievment).

Then ofcourse, I read the great many things that can't be done on the system, and the initial childlike enthusiasm I had at the begining (which was huge) is somewhat diminished.
That's not to say I'm not happy with my GP2X. I still love it, theres just no narcotic-like, delusional cloud of haze around my head everytime I pick it up now.


Another big question I wanted to ask is,
Since it's an open system, do you think it will ever develope a strong commercial side in terms of software?
I imagine there isn't too much call for non-game software to be commercial, do you think there will be many more games on a similar production level as Payback?
It will be interesting to see if the non commercial games will vastly increase in quality.
I believe on Youtue I saw a game called Rapid Racoon. It would indeed be gret to see an increase in games of this kind of quality as time goes on.

Perhaps in the future there will be more colaboration with games being made by whole teams of enthusiats, somewhat similar to the FPS modding scene at the moment, having coders, modelers, texture artists, etc.
Right now it all seems too much on the shoulders of the coders. Multi talented teams would be a great evolution, I think.
In summary I wonder if there will be a time when emulation isn't the main lifeblood of the GP2X.

 

[Parkydr]

I can't see a strong commercial side developing. There isn't enough of a user base and GPH hasn't got the commercial clout that Sony and Nintendo have. I don't see why it should be any different to what happened with the GP32.

Non commercial games in general (with a few exceptions) don't match up to commercial games, just look at the Linux game scene. Commercial games take a lot of time and money to produce, thinks most amateur developers don't have.

There may well be more collaboration in the future, but I don't think many people will be buying the GP2X for new games - anyone wanting regular new commercial games should get a DS (or a PSP).

The GP2X is never going to be a PSP killer and it shouldn't try to be. The point is that it is an open system, what happens now depends on the community, which is the GP2X's strongest asset.

 

[Playdough]

This thread seems to have come to an end. Thanks to everyone who has contributed, you were all very helpful. At this point it definately seems that the GP2X community is not at it's best, be it because of people being unhappy with firmware updates, undelieverd promises from GPH, or a slow down of developement from within the community.
As can be seen by some recent threads, the community has definately seen better times. The threads were very interesting, and raise some good points on both sides of the arguments.

Needless to say, these aren't really the kind of things I wanted to put in the GP2X special issue of the show, but I do think these opinions can't just be ignored. I hope I will still make that issue, but perhaps I will do it at a time things improve a little. I was really hoping to make the show very community inspired to reflect the open source nature of the console, and it's reliance on community. Honestly right now I feel theres a drop in overall community moral (due to the migration of some key coders?).

Part of the reason why I can't help but compare the GP2X to the PSP, is because the GP2X is supposed to be the best thing that happened to handheld homebrew, and I believed it. As much as I love this console, I can't really say for sure that anymore. Maybe times are just changing :unsure: .

 

[moxie]

As can be seen by some recent threads, the community has definately seen better times. The threads were very interesting, and raise some good points on both sides of the arguments.

Ah, you know, like any marriage, this community has it's ups and downs

 

[Kagey]

It seems that, to get any mainstream acceptance, the console is going to have to promote itself and get mainstream commercial games working "in addition" to the homebrew community.

With my little insight into the machine, (two days of ownership and a month of research) it, unfortunately seems in the long-term that it may well be a victim of it's own niche market???

Maybe mainstream acceptance isn't a goal, as I say above, with my minimal exposure to the machine, I don't know.