What if....the Amiga 500 had been a console?

Antiriad · 09 September 2003, 00:55

Yes folks, how might it have changed things if the big C= had taken this route instead? Might it have brought success in the US or A for instance or would it have made no difference at all?

Would it have even made it less successful in general than it was?

Speculate and debate...

Dizzy · 09 September 2003, 01:11

I think they would have failed... Back then the console market was either Nintendo (for kid) or Sega. I think Sega Mega drive ruled the consolmarket back then, while the computermarket was more open, and Atari where no big threat to the Amiga...

Dastardly · 09 September 2003, 01:11

HEY! I 'do' the 'What if' threads around here!

Dizzy · 09 September 2003, 01:14

What if... Anti and Das played a match of life and death on Atari 2800 playing PONG...

fisken uno · 09 September 2003, 01:17

Quote:

Originally posted by Dizzy
What if... Anti and Das played a match of life and death on Atari 2800 playing PONG...

I know I'd join the Dastardly supporters: GO DASTARDLY!

"I just know what I've been told: Antiriad's chances are mighty cold"

(free interpretation of Full Metal Jackets)

Djay · 09 September 2003, 01:55

Megadrive has speed on its side and SNES had mode 7....

.... the Amiga has homegrown programmers ....

Amiga did go into the console market (CD32), they should have stayed in the computer market and made a computer with built-in CD-ROM support

if you talk to alot of PS2/PC coders (well ones in england) they'll tell you they started out on the Amiga... and still have much respect for the Amiga... and ask them if they would of perfered an Amiga computer with 8mb ram and CD-ROM support or CD32, they'll choose the computer option everytime!!!

Unknown_K · 09 September 2003, 05:22

If your going to take a computer remove the keyboard and stuff it into a smaller box to make a console why not just keep it as a full functioning computer? What was more expensive the a500 or the cdtv, the a1200 or the cd32? How many games that are popular for the amiga cant be played on a console version with just a joystick? Think about it.

gary · 09 September 2003, 05:46

Quote:

why not just keep it as a full functioning computer?

I think marketing has a lot to do with it. Consoles were (back in 1987 when the A500 was released) aimed at kids which would probably be put off by keyboards and floppy disks which make the system more compicated to use. The concept of a powerful buisness computer that could also play nice console-style games was still new back then.

I think even if the A500 was released as a console in 1987 it would still fail despite being ahead hardware wise of its competition because of bad commodore marketing and no 'big-name' game releases. Lets face it - there were not many good games for the A500 back in 1987 compared to the established consoles (Nintendo/Sega master system).

Personally I wouldn't have bought an Amiga if it was just another console. The higher models (A2000) were way out of my reach back then

Being able to play good games is a lower priority for me than being able to do something creative with the machine and enjoy free public domain games/utilities/apps/demos which made (for me) the Amiga the most appealing PC by far.

Dizzy · 09 September 2003, 05:50

I agree with you Gary.

I think another factor was that an amiga you could get games from your mate. The consol had a much better copyprotection, I know you can get piratgame for the console, but you don't swap sms games with your mate back then..

Amiga1992 · 09 September 2003, 06:03

I haven;t seen the piracy helping the Amiga like it helped the consoles. The Amiga dieda spectacular dead thanks to mismanagement by Commodore (someoen here said this recently, who was it?)

\also, you could buy a console backup unit back then and swap genesis and snes games no problem (you think SMD and SFC files were created for emus? PAH!)

An Amiga console would have rocked. Actually the original design had a slot for cartridge software. I am sad that it was canned! MSX computers had gams both on disk and carts and they were great.

Unknown_K · 09 September 2003, 06:09

Quote:

Originally posted by Akira
I haven;t seen the piracy helping the Amiga like it helped the consoles. The Amiga dieda spectacular dead thanks to mismanagement by Commodore (someoen here said this recently, who was it?)

\also, you could buy a console backup unit back then and swap genesis and snes games no problem (you think SMD and SFC files were created for emus? PAH!)

An Amiga console would have rocked. Actually the original design had a slot for cartridge software. I am sad that it was canned! MSX computers had gams both on disk and carts and they were great.

I think carts that would hold 1-4MB (typical uncompressed game ??) were probably alot more expensive then disks at that time the A500 was released.

Dizzy · 09 September 2003, 06:10

I know you could swap console games, but here it was not that ordinary, might have been in Argentina (don't know), but not in Dk, but amiga-games where swap in every school....

Codetapper · 09 September 2003, 06:37

If the Amiga had been a console I simply would not have bought one - I would have stuck with my C64 for a lot longer. I always intended to do a bit of programming and printing which eliminated consoles as a viable choice.

Also in NZ a lot of C64 and Amiga software was pirated and that is another reason it did so well here! Very few people had Sega Master Systems or Nintendos, but almost everyone had a C64 or Amiga (a few people had Amstrads but nobody I knew owned a Spectrum). A lot of people would only buy a machine they knew they could get copied games for.

I also think that the majority of backroom coders that made demos and games would not have bought an Amiga if they couldn't program it.

yadster · 09 September 2003, 08:37

If the Miggy had been released as a console I doubt many of us would still be using them now. There would be no PD, demos, diskmags, great games like Worms (bedroom coded) and Monkey Island (too big for a cart), those oh so sweet utilities that get released and slideshows of semi-naked ladies

At the time the Miggy peed all over the PC from a great height but for whatever reason it was never capitilised on. Most kids were bought a computer because they "promised" to do school work on it, gaming wasn't as cool then and frowned upon by a lot of parents. Plus little Johhny could always swap games of the Jolly Roger type with his mates. Given the choice of playing Sonic, Mario or Zool I'm afraid an Amiga console would have come last.

manicx · 09 September 2003, 10:04

I think the question should have been:

What if the A500 was a big box Amiga?

Nobody cared about consoles anyway!

killergorilla · 09 September 2003, 10:36

I for one (in theory) would have probably still got one to be honest. I was (and still am) a very big console fan and as long as it still had decent software support (in the form of games obviously) I probably would have bought one.

There are a lot of flaws to that statement though...

When it comes to being able to afford it, I was only young at the time. It was my uncle was the one who bought the A500 and he bought it not because of it's games but because of it's other uses. So I doubt I would have actually ever got around to playing on the A500 console.

I'd also been woo'ed too much by sonic and there was no way that a megadrive wouldn't have been on my christmas list.

And as a lot of you have already said, you wouldn't have bought one so it probably would have died on it's arse anyway.

I'm pretty glad how it's worked out! (Apart from Amiga fudging up and going bust, Sega fudging up and going software only, and the lack of original software in today's market!)

Dastardly · 09 September 2003, 11:39

If the A500 had been a console then I wouldnt have bought one.
I was a C64 user at the time and I was looking for another computer. The Amiga just seemed like the perfectly natural choice. I probably would have ended up buying an ST :shudder

I didnt actually buy my first console until the CD32 and with the support that received its amazing I ever bought a console again.

Amiga1992 · 09 September 2003, 17:24

Quote:

Originally posted by Dizzy
I know you could swap console games, but here it was not that ordinary, might have been in Argentina (don't know), but not in Dk, but amiga-games where swap in every school....

no, not here. They sold Super Magicom units for a while but swapping was not a-plenty.

It happened in Europe, check out lots of Amiga cracktros where the crackers say (contact us for smd/snes copiers and *****)

Hmm I think what I actually meant with my post is that I would have liked the Amiga to have cartridge software. Yes, it is more expensive, but it could have been a factor good enough to compete with the consoles. Perhaps a console shouldn't have been as good, or perhaps launching two versions (like the Atari XE Game System)

Overdoc · 09 September 2003, 21:18

I agree with Codetapper.
If the Amiga had been a console I would never ever have bought one because I didn't have enough money to buy games and so I wanted to have a machine you could copy games on

I had a C64 already and I knew the benefits of copying

And at least 90% of all A-500 owners here bought the machine just for playing games and because they had seen Amigagames at friends and knew they could be copied.
The more serious users here didn't buy an A-500 anyway, but bought an A-2000 insted.

Antiriad · 09 September 2003, 21:29

Well, i have to admit that personally speaking I agree that it was better the A500 was a computer for many of the reasons listed above by other people here. I dont think i would have wanted it one if it had been a console.

Still, CDTV aside (which i dont see as a pure console par se) - Im suprised the big dumb C= didnt try it on at least in the US market. Perhaps it was the failure of the C64GS persuaded them otherwise in the short term before they commisioned the CD32 a few years later.

09 September 2003, 00:55	#1
Antiriad The Sacred Armour Of Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Sussex, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,141	What if....the Amiga 500 had been a console? Yes folks, how might it have changed things if the big C= had taken this route instead? Might it have brought success in the US or A for instance or would it have made no difference at all? Would it have even made it less successful in general than it was? Speculate and debate...

09 September 2003, 06:37	#13
Codetapper 2 contact me: email only! Join Date: May 2001 Location: Auckland / New Zealand Posts: 3,187	Amiga console in 1987 would have bombed in NZ! If the Amiga had been a console I simply would not have bought one - I would have stuck with my C64 for a lot longer. I always intended to do a bit of programming and printing which eliminated consoles as a viable choice. Also in NZ a lot of C64 and Amiga software was pirated and that is another reason it did so well here! Very few people had Sega Master Systems or Nintendos, but almost everyone had a C64 or Amiga (a few people had Amstrads but nobody I knew owned a Spectrum). A lot of people would only buy a machine they knew they could get copied games for. I also think that the majority of backroom coders that made demos and games would not have bought an Amiga if they couldn't program it.

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09 September 2003, 01:11	#2
Dizzy Pirate Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Denmark Posts: 3,395	I think they would have failed... Back then the console market was either Nintendo (for kid) or Sega. I think Sega Mega drive ruled the consolmarket back then, while the computermarket was more open, and Atari where no big threat to the Amiga...

09 September 2003, 01:11	#3
Dastardly Into the Wonderful Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: England Age: 49 Posts: 2,335	HEY! I 'do' the 'What if' threads around here!

09 September 2003, 01:14	#4
Dizzy Pirate Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Denmark Posts: 3,395	What if... Anti and Das played a match of life and death on Atari 2800 playing PONG...

09 September 2003, 01:55	#6
Djay 95th User Join Date: May 2001 Location: Brighton/UK Age: 48 Posts: 3,120	Megadrive has speed on its side and SNES had mode 7.... .... the Amiga has homegrown programmers .... Amiga did go into the console market (CD32), they should have stayed in the computer market and made a computer with built-in CD-ROM support if you talk to alot of PS2/PC coders (well ones in england) they'll tell you they started out on the Amiga... and still have much respect for the Amiga... and ask them if they would of perfered an Amiga computer with 8mb ram and CD-ROM support or CD32, they'll choose the computer option everytime!!!

09 September 2003, 05:22	#7
Unknown_K Registered User Join Date: May 2002 Location: Ohio/USA Age: 55 Posts: 1,380	If your going to take a computer remove the keyboard and stuff it into a smaller box to make a console why not just keep it as a full functioning computer? What was more expensive the a500 or the cdtv, the a1200 or the cd32? How many games that are popular for the amiga cant be played on a console version with just a joystick? Think about it.

09 September 2003, 05:50	#9
Dizzy Pirate Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Denmark Posts: 3,395	I agree with you Gary. I think another factor was that an amiga you could get games from your mate. The consol had a much better copyprotection, I know you can get piratgame for the console, but you don't swap sms games with your mate back then..

09 September 2003, 06:03	#10
Amiga1992 Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: ? Posts: 19,656	I haven;t seen the piracy helping the Amiga like it helped the consoles. The Amiga dieda spectacular dead thanks to mismanagement by Commodore (someoen here said this recently, who was it?) \also, you could buy a console backup unit back then and swap genesis and snes games no problem (you think SMD and SFC files were created for emus? PAH!) An Amiga console would have rocked. Actually the original design had a slot for cartridge software. I am sad that it was canned! MSX computers had gams both on disk and carts and they were great.

09 September 2003, 06:10	#12
Dizzy Pirate Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Denmark Posts: 3,395	I know you could swap console games, but here it was not that ordinary, might have been in Argentina (don't know), but not in Dk, but amiga-games where swap in every school....

09 September 2003, 08:37	#14
yadster Junior Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Yorkshire UK Age: 54 Posts: 160	If the Miggy had been released as a console I doubt many of us would still be using them now. There would be no PD, demos, diskmags, great games like Worms (bedroom coded) and Monkey Island (too big for a cart), those oh so sweet utilities that get released and slideshows of semi-naked ladies At the time the Miggy peed all over the PC from a great height but for whatever reason it was never capitilised on. Most kids were bought a computer because they "promised" to do school work on it, gaming wasn't as cool then and frowned upon by a lot of parents. Plus little Johhny could always swap games of the Jolly Roger type with his mates. Given the choice of playing Sonic, Mario or Zool I'm afraid an Amiga console would have come last.

09 September 2003, 10:04	#15
manicx Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Athens, Greece Posts: 991	I think the question should have been: What if the A500 was a big box Amiga? Nobody cared about consoles anyway!

09 September 2003, 10:36	#16
killergorilla Lesser Talent Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: UK Age: 42 Posts: 7,957	I for one (in theory) would have probably still got one to be honest. I was (and still am) a very big console fan and as long as it still had decent software support (in the form of games obviously) I probably would have bought one. There are a lot of flaws to that statement though... When it comes to being able to afford it, I was only young at the time. It was my uncle was the one who bought the A500 and he bought it not because of it's games but because of it's other uses. So I doubt I would have actually ever got around to playing on the A500 console. I'd also been woo'ed too much by sonic and there was no way that a megadrive wouldn't have been on my christmas list. And as a lot of you have already said, you wouldn't have bought one so it probably would have died on it's arse anyway. I'm pretty glad how it's worked out! (Apart from Amiga fudging up and going bust, Sega fudging up and going software only, and the lack of original software in today's market!)

09 September 2003, 11:39	#17
Dastardly Into the Wonderful Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: England Age: 49 Posts: 2,335	If the A500 had been a console then I wouldnt have bought one. I was a C64 user at the time and I was looking for another computer. The Amiga just seemed like the perfectly natural choice. I probably would have ended up buying an ST :shudder I didnt actually buy my first console until the CD32 and with the support that received its amazing I ever bought a console again.

09 September 2003, 21:18	#19
Overdoc Commodore Collector Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Austria Age: 53 Posts: 944	I agree with Codetapper. If the Amiga had been a console I would never ever have bought one because I didn't have enough money to buy games and so I wanted to have a machine you could copy games on I had a C64 already and I knew the benefits of copying And at least 90% of all A-500 owners here bought the machine just for playing games and because they had seen Amigagames at friends and knew they could be copied. The more serious users here didn't buy an A-500 anyway, but bought an A-2000 insted.

09 September 2003, 21:29	#20
Antiriad The Sacred Armour Of Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Sussex, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,141	Well, i have to admit that personally speaking I agree that it was better the A500 was a computer for many of the reasons listed above by other people here. I dont think i would have wanted it one if it had been a console. Still, CDTV aside (which i dont see as a pure console par se) - Im suprised the big dumb C= didnt try it on at least in the US market. Perhaps it was the failure of the C64GS persuaded them otherwise in the short term before they commisioned the CD32 a few years later.

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