@why@kirby Any attempt at making a new pocket friendly console will end up chafing against "The Smartphone Problem". Which is to say, why would I carry an extra device in my pockets to play games that's weaker than the one I'm already carrying?
There's a lot of devices that I enjoy using more than a smartphone. Recently I got out of storage an old Palm Pilot and put in some effort to get it to sync with modern computers and services. It's enjoyable to use, it's well designed. I would even call it delightful. I also feel fucking stupid when I pull it out instead of my smartphone. It doesn't have online capability, it only syncs at my computer. The screen is dim. As pleasant and tactile the writing system on it is, it's still slower than my phone's touch keyboard.
I wish I could carry a PDA, a DS/Gameboy, a Minidisc player/recorder. They spark joy. But I feel like a dumb poser hipster when I do. Sure, controls do matter for games, but do they matter 300$ + another big bulging device in my pockets? If they mattered that much I could just carry a small bluetooth controller.
@why@kirby You can, but only at the cut rates that Chinese emulation consoles can achieve with repurposed overstock hardware, open source emulators and not giving a fuck about IP. Or if you're marketing to a niche like the Analogue Pocket or Playdate.
@sun I understand what they were going for, the idea being "we took all that and we put it in your hands" but I don't understand how focus group testing didn't immediately tell them there was an equally obvious but much bleaker message to be read there.
@Mitsu@kaia A very cheesy haul. Just saying we got cheese doesn't explain it all.
Like, we got 2 different types of ricotta, 1 french cream cheese, 1 local semi-firm farmer made thermised milk local cheese, one pack of grated cheddar.