Posted By: wraggster
If we could live off goodwill alone, then Ouya would already be considered a success. With its dream of an open source console that everyone can afford and anyone can publish for, it tapped into something powerful.Over a long and often fractious console generation, gamers and developers alike have grown disillusioned with the way the industry works. Glossy sequels failed to transform their bloated budgets into fresh ideas. Publishers clutched at straws in the battle against used sales, poking innocent gamers in eye as they went. Surely there was a better way to do it? A way that both captured the "anything goes" ethos of the Good Old Days while making the best of the digital on-demand culture of today.Ouya, along with several other Android-powered micro-consoles, has undoubtedly released in the right place at the right time, but is it the right product?We've already taken a detailed look at the Ouya in Digital Foundry's review, but now that it's on sale to the general public in the UK - sitting alongside Xboxes, PlayStations and iPads on mainstream shopping sites - what is the average consumer going to expect when they click that "Add to basket" button? More to the point, will they be happy with what they get?This, after all, is the audience that Ouya has to win over. That impressive $8.5m Kickstarter haul will have smoothed the console's journey into production, but there's also the danger that it has front-loaded the launch; the indie game devotees, along with the hardcore hobbyists and tinkerers who will jump on any hackable piece of kit, have already spent their money. Now Ouya has to impress everyone else.First impressions are likely to be reasonably good. The console itself is compact but weighty, with a tasty brushed aluminium finish and an eye-catching design. While the price may be low, that's not reflected in the tactile qualities of the unit. It's easy to connect up as well. Power lead in, HDMI out, and it's ready to go.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...ouya-or-ou-nah