Moonpod games on consoles survey

[Fost]

There's been some incredibly extensive threads on console conversions of Starscape, and lot's of enquiries regarding Mr. Robot's chances of turning up on consoles. What I'd really like to do though, is collate everyone's thought's here. That way, when we do talk to console manufacturers and publishers, we can point them at this thread and they can get a good picture of the audience that exists for our games.

One of the barriers we have always come accross, is that it's assumed, because the games were developed on PC, that they aren't suitable for consoles. Coming from a background of console development ourselves, we naturally believe the opposite - in fact, Starscape was originally designed with the idea of a console port in mind.
Another issue is that Starscape isn't part of the traditional casual gameplay crowd - I hope everyone would agree, that there's a lot more to it, but it's also designed to be accessible. Whilst I can completely understand that someone who hasn't played the games might think that way without playing the game, I think that the next gen console download service should also be pushing more variety. That's where Starscape and Mr. Robot come in.

So, please feel free to post your opinions (positive or negative) here as the definitive list of thoughts on the subject.

[Doom III]

i vote yes but only want you to REMEMBER 1 issue::

ONLY if it doesnt delay your next games


if theres a choice i want xbox 360 too cause i have one

live arcade is cool but nothing there cool as starscape xcept mabe geometry wars and mutant storm> lots of other games are cool but no depth more like fun for 5 minutes like joust

starscape is more like geometry wars++ so dont know why they wouldnt want it

you should ask microsoft cause they must be desperate for starscape and mr robot

i hear PSIII is gonna have this too so mabe they will want some games like starscape to show it off

honestly you should just talk to them I know thed want the games
fingers crossed for 360!!!

[Japlish]

Doom III said it best. As long as you do not stop making new games. I would like Starscape and Robot on console but I would preference more new Moonpod games.

I have Nintendo ds, and gamecube and might buy revolution so I would like Nintendo support. Some people I force to play starscape when I can (I am your biggest PR!) and they have Xbox so they want on there.

[Anticheese]

I support a port to consoles for the moonpod games.

I do not think that War Angels or Battlescape are the best games for the job, But seeing as I managed to play an entire game of starscape with nothing more than a joystick, Console play would work just as well.

However, Also see porting, say, Starscape as an oppertunity to give it a bit of an overhaul, Y'know, The little features..

I am talking about such things as being able to throttle according to how far your thumbstick is going towards the "up" position, Stuff like being able to rotate modules, And perhaps a bit more in the way of technologies, enemy's or zones...

Also, I would most like to see Starscape on the Xbox 1, Or PSP.

Yes, The fact that I own the former has a bit of influence, But not everyone will have a 360 and I dont think that Starscape should be shunted into XLM (As a side note, When my Starscape CD arrived it was in an Xbox lime green case..Joked to myself for a moment what would it be like if it were an Xbox game. And I know why it was in green: You guys at Moonpod got a great deal on green cases.)

Also, Even though the '360 has some compatibility issues, It would be possible to have it working on both X-Brick platforms.

As for the PSP? Starscape IMHO would just work well on it, Its tidy, Well presented and has great gameplay that would not be hard to port to the PSP..

The PS2 as well would be a good option as well, But I would reccomend hitting multiple platforms at once.

[Magnulus]

As an "ambigamer", I have to say that Starscape, for one, always stood out in my mind as a console game. I'd be playing it and thinking "Hot dog, this game would rock on a 32" screen and with a proper controller in my mitts." There is the odd game that you play that you just think would be a whole lot more fun on another platform. While Starscape certainly was fun on PC, I get the gibblies thinking about how it would be on my PS2.

Another thing that should be taken into consideration is that games like Starscape, games that emphasise gameplay rather than astoundingly advanced graphic technology, need to be on the console market. Not only as Xbox Live arcade downloads, but in the stores, where people see them. Games like Starscape and Alien Hominid. I have no idea how well Hominid sold on the console market, but just the fact that it's out there ON the console market is doing a great deal of good for gamers.

It proves that a game doesn't need Pixel Shader generation Fifty and normal mapping and voluminous fog to be a good game and to be a game that people in general will want to play. It proves that gameplay in and of itself CAN be enough to sell a game, even in these technologically advanced days where teams of fifty work for years to complete a single game.

Of course, you can't de-evaluate the importance of great graphics. A game today needs to look good, no matter what. Alien Hominid looks good. It looks retro, but it looks retro in a modern fashion. Starscape looks, simply put, amazing. The visuals of Starscape make me instantly forget both that it's not 3D and that it's developed by a small team of three people (it was three, right?). It looks polished and by all means easily accessible by the general public.

In a game like Starscape, a game that isn't easy to pidgeon-hole, it's important to have something to reign you in until the gameplay value manages to catch you. Starscape manages really well. By the looks of it, so does Mr. Robot. I've made references to World of Warcraft when talking about the graphical style of Mr. Robot before, and I wouldn't hesitate to do this again. And again. etc.

Oh man, I'm just rambling again, aren't I?

My point is that Starscape HAS what it takes to reign in the "average console player" and to keep him/ her hooked. Since I haven't actually played Mr. Robot, I can't really say anything about the gameplay of it, but if you guys are to be trusted to keep your emphasis on gameplay, I'll say that I'm looking forward to play both games on my Playstation (or Xbox, if you're going to force me to buy one of those. 'Cause I will if you do.)

EDIT: Completely forgot about War Angels. Sorry about that, Hamish!
War Angels looks like it would be fantastic on a console from what I can see. Can you spell "dual shock controller"? In King Kong, you use both analogue sticks for moving around Jack Driscoll. This kind of movement could work on War Angels, too.

Another thing to be taken into consideration is this forum itself. There are active members here no older than 14 years of age. That's ten years younger than myself. And I'm sure there are some that are older than me as well. Broad appeal is important on consoles. I'd say we here in the forums are living proof of Moonpod's games' broad appeal.

[Anticheese]

Come to think of it, A War Angels port could work by having one thumbstick controlling movement and another controlling the crosshair...

[Hamish]

I don't know if War Angels would be ported to consoles, it's totally programmed in Blitz Basic. Unless porting involves completely reprogramming the game. How would it work for Starscape and Mr Robot?

[Anticheese]

I'm pretty sure that SS is done in C or similar..

There would be tons of ways to convert that..


But yeah, If WA is coded in BB, Then I think a complete recode would be needed...

[Rup]

[01d55]

I've been a solid nintendo partisan since the n64 - I've got the cube, GBA, and I will have revolution and DS in the near future. Personally, I'd love to see a Moonpod game developed for the Revolution's controller.

[Poo Bear]

[Sick-Boy]

I'd love to see Moonpod games on a console.

I find I hardly ever play PC games these days, they just seem to be too much effort. I can't be bothered with all the installing and configuring and then the realisation that unless I buy more RAM and a new graphics card my PC isn't going to be up to the job

I realise that's not so much of a problem for Moonpod but it has meant I've stopped using my PC for games.

I much prefer to be able to buy a console for the fraction of the price of a top end PC that I know is going to last me a good few years, any game I get should run well, there are no compatability issues, just put the disc in and turn it on, happy days!

[Magnulus]

Yeah, that's another thought. I'm moving to a Mac in the not-too-distant future, which means that I won't be able to play Starscape or Mr. Robot other than on my girlfriend's computer unless A: There's a mac port, or B: There's a console version.

[Fost]

[Flumpaphone]

I have always thought Starscape would be perfection on a console and wondered why you had not gone that route already?

I own an xbox (1), but I don't think the live arcade system works very easily on it and so for Xbox 1 it would be better on a DVD.

Perhaps it would be a better business plan to go straight for Xbox360. Dashboard integration of live arcade on the 360 makes it trivial to download and buy a game. Sometime we are all going to buy into the next generation of consoles. Currently the 360 is the only one out there, and has a great download system. Perhaps the only problem for Starscape would getting it to fit on a memory card. From reading your developer diaries, you seem to be the indie compression experts so I am sure you could figure it out

The Revolution and Playstation 3 both look like they will have download services, but we will all have to wait and see what becomes of them. so it looks like Xbox 360 could be the only console platform lucky enough to run Starscape for a while if you wanted to support consoles.