The Abominable Snowman
Member
With both Nintendo and Sony bearing handhelds that have some phenomenal featuresm and Microsoft with the expansive set of technology that aids mobilization, will Sega's innovative idea of a VMU system (Combatting Nintendo's advantage of having a Game boy) find a way to resurface in the next generation? There are 3 companies certainly capable of creating such a system.
Sony and the PSP - With a Dpad-button setup similar to the Playstation 2 and pretty decent storage, both built-in and expandible, I'm most excited about the VMU potential the PSP holds. You could be able to save games onto the PSP's memory stick and play the game back as if it was built for retail. There's also obvious reasons why I'd choose the PSP over what else there is: Media options, native support, third party support of PSP, and more. I feel that if Sony opted for a VMU-like setup for the PSP, it would help both the PSP and the adjoining console. The third-parties would support the idea as well, as it gives them leeway into both markets.
Microsoft and the VMU - Microsoft has been developing portable technologies for ages. They have the new WinCE that has Portable Media Center, They have Wireless Gateway, Smart Personal Object Technology (Data over FM, can you imagine getting updates and games over FM? Basically getting some awesome infomation anywhere with or without hotspots via DirectBand and even digital radio), integrated interaction with other Windows-controlled devices and a strong infrastructure and backing. The only thing that is putting a question mark into my mind is that it'll be out-of-the-way for Microsoft, but it could serve to give people teetering on a Revolution or PS3 over Xbox Next a reason to want the Xbox Next a bit more. It will also utilize a lot of Microsoft's other services and will be a self-owned 'dream product' for them, especially if they give it appeal outside games and gaming.
Nintendo - I'm not so much excited about the possibilities here because they like single-use products. I doubt it'll be much different from GBA and connectivity, which is kind of against the whole VMU-thing. VMU is about giving users THAT MUCH more from a game they purchased, whether it's at the console or away. The DS nor GBA have expandibility, and I'm not so sure what writeability the DS or GBA have, but a blank-cart may work also. With a blank-cart solution, you could even play back the cart on the GC cart slot.
Sony and the PSP - With a Dpad-button setup similar to the Playstation 2 and pretty decent storage, both built-in and expandible, I'm most excited about the VMU potential the PSP holds. You could be able to save games onto the PSP's memory stick and play the game back as if it was built for retail. There's also obvious reasons why I'd choose the PSP over what else there is: Media options, native support, third party support of PSP, and more. I feel that if Sony opted for a VMU-like setup for the PSP, it would help both the PSP and the adjoining console. The third-parties would support the idea as well, as it gives them leeway into both markets.
Microsoft and the VMU - Microsoft has been developing portable technologies for ages. They have the new WinCE that has Portable Media Center, They have Wireless Gateway, Smart Personal Object Technology (Data over FM, can you imagine getting updates and games over FM? Basically getting some awesome infomation anywhere with or without hotspots via DirectBand and even digital radio), integrated interaction with other Windows-controlled devices and a strong infrastructure and backing. The only thing that is putting a question mark into my mind is that it'll be out-of-the-way for Microsoft, but it could serve to give people teetering on a Revolution or PS3 over Xbox Next a reason to want the Xbox Next a bit more. It will also utilize a lot of Microsoft's other services and will be a self-owned 'dream product' for them, especially if they give it appeal outside games and gaming.
Nintendo - I'm not so much excited about the possibilities here because they like single-use products. I doubt it'll be much different from GBA and connectivity, which is kind of against the whole VMU-thing. VMU is about giving users THAT MUCH more from a game they purchased, whether it's at the console or away. The DS nor GBA have expandibility, and I'm not so sure what writeability the DS or GBA have, but a blank-cart may work also. With a blank-cart solution, you could even play back the cart on the GC cart slot.
Otherwise, there's really no purpose. The VMU concept will just lead to more expensive memory cards and it would still be worthless for gaming. :| PEACE.
