21st
Take Two in Apple Gaming…
After Apple failed miserably in the console market back in the mid-1990s with the Pippin, but let’s not forget that it wasn’t really an Apple product. Apple’s Pippin was licensed to Bandai, a company that was trying desperately to get into the gaming industry. Apple envisioned Pippin to be a product that it could market and go above and beyond just gaming.
Regardless, it failed. Miserably.
Fast-forward to today and the gaming landscape has changed.
The Motive
Apple has shown time and again that it wants to be the leader in every industry that controls the way you live your life. Computers? Check. Cell Phones? Yep. Set-top boxes? You bet. MP3 players? Of course. Gaming? Not yet.
Aside from that, the gaming industry is booming. Apple has always been dominant on industries that are growing and in desperate need of something fresh, and the video game industry looks like the perfect target. And as more people trust and enjoy Apple products in the home, the company could easily capitalize on its success elsewhere and create a gaming console that could do the same.
But perhaps most importantly, Apple can use its console as yet another tool of convergence. What if you could use an iPod Touch or iPhone as the controller? What if the company released a controller that would double as a portable media player? To me, the possibilities seem endless.
In terms of hardware, Apple would need to only provide something that appeals to gamer desire. There’s no reason to suggest it should develop a Wii-killer that attempts to compete on innovation. Instead, it should create a console that can compete on the same level graphically with the Xbox 360 and PS3, but also provides that same level of convergence that makes people want Apple products.
Take Two
