Ouya's New Controversial Ad (graphic)

[Tupin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0ha6Mb5_YQ

Making fun of your audience? Treating yourself like you're the next big thing in gaming when in actuality you're not even a contender? Being obnoxious in advertisements and refusing to own up to it? Sounds like the Ouya is the new Game.com. They claim that this isn't an official ad, but they posted it on their official Youtube before its removal...

Sad, because they actually could carve out a pretty good niche for themselves. They need to stop advertising this thing like it can be anything other than a companion console. I have one and am excited that XMBC is out for it now. But with Tegra 4 coming, I don't know...

[JSoup]

The part that got me was "All free to try."

[The Adventurer]

That almost looks like it was animated by the Superjail guy.

[JakeM]

Good god some people shouldnt be allowed within a mile of a PR firm. Fuck them, I wont buy it, and they dont deserve anyone who plays video games money if they think "that guy" represents video game players. This is the worst video game ad Ive seen. Completely made me forget anything else Id think was bad.

[JSoup]

That almost looks like it was animated by the Superjail guy.

There was a topic about it on the AdultSwim forums the other day, apparently Titmouse Inc. handled the animation direction for this commercial but didn't actually produce or animate it.

[The 1 2 P]

I saw this earlier today and official or not it is absolutely one of the worst video game ads ever. On the one minor plus side, it will actually get people to start talking about Ouya...just not in the way they intended.

[Tanooki]

Kind of sad some people are hating on this so much, taking it personal in some direct or indirect way I guess. Crude and foul sure, but it raises an excellent point I see gamers bitch about plenty. Overpriced short games rehashing the same copy cat shit yearly and fearing to take chances much anymore and the suckers who keep falling for it and buying into it until they realize they've been had. Mocking call of duty on the game box cover made that clear.

[Griking]

Geez, some people need to lighten up.

[Bojay1997]

Kind of sad some people are hating on this so much, taking it personal in some direct or indirect way I guess. Crude and foul sure, but it raises an excellent point I see gamers bitch about plenty. Overpriced short games rehashing the same copy cat shit yearly and fearing to take chances much anymore and the suckers who keep falling for it and buying into it until they realize they've been had. Mocking call of duty on the game box cover made that clear.

As opposed to "suckers" who fall for a supposedly open console where every game requires a customized Ouya version, where previous Google store purchases can't be transferred and where you must buy the games through their customized store. I mean I can understand why people may be buying this for emulation or other uses, but the whole commercial business model of Ouya has nothing to do with openness and is all about just setting up another Apple or Google style self-contained paywall to content on fairly mediocre hardware.

[JakeM]

Crude and foul sure, but it raises an excellent point I see gamers bitch about plenty. Overpriced short games rehashing the same copy cat shit yearly and fearing to take chances much anymore and the suckers who keep falling for it and buying into it until they realize they've been had. Mocking call of duty on the game box cover made that clear.

Thats good and all, and I wasnt even offended by him pulling out his spine and beating his brains out. Its just really efing stupid to have the guy there alone not wearing pants and his house be a mess. Why would a video game company want to show a video game player looking like that? Its just freaking stupid. I think we should have more respect for video game playing and try to hold our selves up a little more than who ever the hell made this and approved for it to be shown to the world.

[buzz_n64]

I don't see it targeted to all gamers. I see it as commentary on the Call of Duty addicts, and that there is more out there then just generic FPS games. Sure, if you're a COD fan, this might be offensive to you, but it's just a mediocre commercial.

[T2KFreeker]

You know what's funny? You that are offended would have hated the 16 bit and 32 Bit era. These kinds of commercials were all over the place. My system is better than yours, why would you buy that crappy machine when you could have this one? And sometimes the "Gamers" in said commercials were pushed to look like losers or just stereotypical, so this is nothing new. It might seem new to some of you because it's not a tactic that has been used in a very long time, but this is a throwback to those days and is meant to be funny, kind of like a caricature to make a point. If you are offended by the ad, then perhaps you need to have your feelings checked because it's not like it's anything too serious and is meant to be dumb fun. Too sensitive.

[Tupin]

Unless it's direct comparison of features, I've always disliked ads that mock the competition. It makes me think that they're hiding something, like they know that their product isn't good enough so they have to jab at their competitor.

[T2KFreeker]

Unless it's direct comparison of features, I've always disliked ads that mock the competition. It makes me think that they're hiding something, like they know that their product isn't good enough so they have to jab at their competitor.
That may be a true conclusion to come to, but I'm just saying, you made it sound like Ouya is the first company to do this and how dare they. Just saying it's a tactic that even the mighty SONY has used in the past is all.

[Bojay1997]

You know what's funny? You that are offended would have hated the 16 bit and 32 Bit era. These kinds of commercials were all over the place. My system is better than yours, why would you buy that crappy machine when you could have this one? And sometimes the "Gamers" in said commercials were pushed to look like losers or just stereotypical, so this is nothing new. It might seem new to some of you because it's not a tactic that has been used in a very long time, but this is a throwback to those days and is meant to be funny, kind of like a caricature to make a point. If you are offended by the ad, then perhaps you need to have your feelings checked because it's not like it's anything too serious and is meant to be dumb fun. Too sensitive.

How exactly would you "have your feelings checked"? I'm sorry, but I have yet to find anyone that thinks this commercial is funny or interesting or effective. Just because you're too insensitive to think something is a problem doesn't mean that other people are too sensitive. Personally, I just think the commercial was poorly done and a waste of money and just more evidence that Ouya is an amateurish product headed for failure.

[T2KFreeker]

How exactly would you "have your feelings checked"? I'm sorry, but I have yet to find anyone that thinks this commercial is funny or interesting or effective. Just because you're too insensitive to think something is a problem doesn't mean that other people are too sensitive. Personally, I just think the commercial was poorly done and a waste of money and just more evidence that Ouya is an amateurish product headed for failure.
Cool man. You know what? I live in a world where garbage like Southpark and American Dad and Family Guy is "Funny" even though it's just disturbing and crude and gross. So, this thirty second commercial is supposed to be worse than that? It's okay to watch the dude from The Family Guy have dreams about porking his Daughter and find it hilarious, but a guy in his undies throwing up isn't funny and is disrespectful? It's okay for Mr. Hinkey, a Turd as a character isn't offensive, but yeah, this is gross? Yeah, I'm insensitive? Okay then. So, if you watch any of the three shows above listed and find them humorous, that's okay to be blasphemous and Incest is funny because it's a cartoon and everyone else likes them, but Damn Ouya for their portrayal of Gamers because Ouya is a crappy game console making company? Okay then, I guess I'm insensitive because I'd rather find that funny than the other garbage I just listed. I'm just saying that maybe this commercial is being taken a little too seriously?

[Tupin]

If you think South Park is just poop jokes and crudeness, you're missing the point of it.

South Park can do it because there's more to it than just crudeness. They have a message beneath it.

[T2KFreeker]

If you think South Park is just poop jokes and crudeness, you're missing the point of it.

South Park can do it because there's more to it than just crudeness. They have a message beneath it.

It's all good man. Everyone is entitled to their opinions. It's cool. You don't like the commercial and I thought it was funny. Does that make either of us wrong? Hell No. It's just an opinion Brother. It's all good.

[Bojay1997]

It's all good man. Everyone is entitled to their opinions. It's cool. You don't like the commercial and I thought it was funny. Does that make either of us wrong? Hell No. It's just an opinion Brother. It's all good.

That's not what you were arguing just a few posts back. You were arguing that people were being too sensitive and needed to have their "feelings checked". That's not tolerant in any way and completely inconsistent with what you are now saying.

[T2KFreeker]

That's not what you were arguing just a few posts back. You were arguing that people were being too sensitive and needed to have their "feelings checked". That's not tolerant in any way and completely inconsistent with what you are now saying.

Perhaps I could have worded it a bit better. Sorry if I offended anyone. Wasn't the intention.

[RCM]

Small companies with smaller marketing budgets usually resort to shit like this. They knew it was going to be divisive, but we're talking about Ouya, right? Even if this ad was universally praised it wouldn't change the perception that it's an extremely flawed product. I applaud them for trying, but the Ouya train is going to stop sooner rather than later.

[Griking]

How exactly would you "have your feelings checked"? I'm sorry, but I have yet to find anyone that thinks this commercial is funny or interesting or effective. Just because you're too insensitive to think something is a problem doesn't mean that other people are too sensitive. Personally, I just think the commercial was poorly done and a waste of money and just more evidence that Ouya is an amateurish product headed for failure.

I don't think that it's a particularly great commercial but it doesn't upset me like it seems to upset you.

If anything it seems to get its point out pretty well. A lot of people are burnt out of paying $50-$60 every year to get essentially the same games that they had the year before. If you don't agree with this then obviously it's not for you.

[Buyatari]

I found it funny.

No more offensive then the Sony anti-saturn ads which referenced planet Uranus.

[Bojay1997]

I don't think that it's a particularly great commercial but it doesn't upset me like it seems to upset you.

If anything it seems to get its point out pretty well. A lot of people are burnt out of paying $50-$60 every year to get essentially the same games that they had the year before. If you don't agree with this then obviously it's not for you.

If I don't agree with what? I have a PC, tablets, smartphones, and every current console and handheld out there. Even if I had only a fraction of those things, I would still have massive libraries of creative and original games available to me. Just because some games get sequels every year doesn't mean that there aren't plenty of other games including lots of smaller, creative games available on the most popular platforms. The Ouya is a product that lacks a real market. Even many of the developers who launched games on it have pretty quickly moved to release their stuff on PCs and other platforms. There is nothing creative or original about the Ouya and the idea that it is an open platform was destroyed the second they built their own store that works identically to the ones Apple and Google already operate. If Ouya was really looking to shake things up, they could have made it a truly open platform and allowed every developer and publisher to sell games directly without resorting to a store where they would take their cut.

[T2KFreeker]

If I don't agree with what? I have a PC, tablets, smartphones, and every current console and handheld out there. Even if I had only a fraction of those things, I would still have massive libraries of creative and original games available to me. Just because some games get sequels every year doesn't mean that there aren't plenty of other games including lots of smaller, creative games available on the most popular platforms. The Ouya is a product that lacks a real market. Even many of the developers who launched games on it have pretty quickly moved to release their stuff on PCs and other platforms. There is nothing creative or original about the Ouya and the idea that it is an open platform was destroyed the second they built their own store that works identically to the ones Apple and Google already operate. If Ouya was really looking to shake things up, they could have made it a truly open platform and allowed every developer and publisher to sell games directly without resorting to a store where they would take their cut.


Not trying to be rude here man, so please, don't take it that way, but it seems to me that your problem isn't the commercial itself, it's that you have an issue with Ouya in general. Which in itself, is fine and all that, but yeah, like it or not, they are going to advertise the thing one way or the other. Does it really make sense for Ouya to come out with a commercial that states "Hey, we have a lame store front and are just like Apple and Google, so please buy our machine because we have nothing original to bring to the table."? Nope, not at all, so they took the slinging mud approach. It is what it is man. I don't think that the advertisement was aimed at you, or really, anyone else personally other than the developers that make the same game over and over again. After going back and rereading my post and the above posts, I re-stand by the original claim, you just might be taking this whole thing too seriously (NOT saying to get your feelings checked, this that I just said is what I meant to say in the first place). It's just a commercial, nothing more. Like one of the above, it's no different than the Uranus ads that Sony ran in the 90's about Sega, or the Atari Jaguar commercials slamming the 3DO. Or even a bit back further, the Sega Anti Nintendo ads or the Turbografx Anti Nintendo AND Sega Genesis Ads. Even Game.com had those ads where they were ripping on the Gameboy, it's just part of the business. Might not be the most fair part, but it is what it is.

[turboswimbz]

Commercial is dumb. I find many ads dumb. Either way your talking about the Ouya. Sounds like the ad did what it was suppose to do.

[YoshiM]

If we're looking to compare similar advertising campaigns, I would think that the Game Gear commercial portraying Game Boy players as mindless hicks getting excited watching a bug zapper would be considered worse than the Ouya commercial.

[Gameguy]

I wasn't offended by it, it's not great but still decent.

[Robocop2]

Johnny Turbo will come by and take care of it all.

[Flashback2012]

Johnny Turbo will come by and take care of it all.

Those FEKA goons won't know what hit 'em!

[bb_hood]

This is the first that I heard of this new console, so I went to the OUYA homepage and the first thing I see is "A NEW KIND OF GAME CONSOLE" with a picture of the controller underneath. The controller looks just like a XBOX360 controller with wider grips.
I then clicked on the games link to see what the games look like, and they all look like downloadable games available on the playstation, xbox and nintendo online stores. Some games they have are currently available on the psn. Many if not all games on the psn network are free to try as well. I really dont see anything new about this console. Paying 99$ to have access to an online store that only offers cheap downloadable games seems like a waste of money.

[YoshiM]

I "got" the video. I wasn't offended since it was a caricature of a stereotype that's been played out over the past decade or so. Very reminiscent of Ren & Stimpy (as I can't think of a more modern animation comparison).

Thing is, this commercial doesn't do much to sell the system or games to the audience they are pushing this towards, New consumers need to be SHOWN why they should buy an Ouya.

As for the openness: you can still hack it software and physical wise. They just have their marketplace and why should they be scorned for it? Google is essentially a competitor so why should they let them in on their turf? You can side load apps if you want to. If you want something more open, get a Raspberry Pi or multi-boot a PC with different OS's. Going to the illogical extreme: it'd be like raising a stink that you won't be able to load PSN on your Xbone as the hardware is similar.

Give the cube a year to prove itself before you (generalization-not singling out..[disclaimer]) kick its door down and piss on its corn flakes while squatting over its bagel.

[Bojay1997]

I "got" the video. I wasn't offended since it was a caricature of a stereotype that's been played out over the past decade or so. Very reminiscent of Ren & Stimpy (as I can't think of a more modern animation comparison).

Thing is, this commercial doesn't do much to sell the system or games to the audience they are pushing this towards, New consumers need to be SHOWN why they should buy an Ouya.

As for the openness: you can still hack it software and physical wise. They just have their marketplace and why should they be scorned for it? Google is essentially a competitor so why should they let them in on their turf? You can side load apps if you want to. If you want something more open, get a Raspberry Pi or multi-boot a PC with different OS's. Going to the illogical extreme: it'd be like raising a stink that you won't be able to load PSN on your Xbone as the hardware is similar.

Give the cube a year to prove itself before you (generalization-not singling out..[disclaimer]) kick its door down and piss on its corn flakes while squatting over its bagel.

As someone who backed the Kickstarter, I disagree with you about the openness. Their whole argument about why Ouya was different was based on an open console where developers could release games freely and many games would be free to play. That hasn't been the case at all. Developers still have to release through their store and I believe there is no option for someone to release a game for free through the store. If they're trying to compete with Google or Apple, they are never going to win, especially if the rumors of an Amazon or Google console are accurate. This is simply a product that doesn't have a real target market and while it sounded good in concept to many of us at the Kickstarter stage, in practicality, there are much better solutions to playing indie games on your TV that don't involve using fairly unexceptional hardware and a proprietary store.

[T2KFreeker]

I believe there is no option for someone to release a game for free through the store.

You are wrong because there are several free games that have been released through the store. Not free to try, but free to own, so yes, there must be an option to release games for free through the store. Furthermore, as an "Original Kickstarter Backer", I would think that you already know this. The list below are all the games that are free to own, no payment of any kind for them at all. No Paywalls and no DLC charges either, completely free and NONE of them are emulators, which most of those are free too. So quit spreading untruthful crap dude and get over it. Ouya may not be your cup of tea and all, but plenty of indie developers have released completely free games through the Ouya store, and the proof is right in front of your face. Go rant about something else man because what you just said got blown back in your face. It's like watching one of those annoying Youtbe videos where the person just blows smo0ke because he doesn't know what he's talking about. That's exactly what you are doing. You like Google and Amazon, cool, good for you, I'm happy for you and hope that you have fun with it, but yeah Ouya does have a way to present free games to the community through the store, and a kickstarter backer would know this.

Free Games On Ouya, not including the emulators:
4th and Goal Football
Abbigale and the Monster
A Bit of a Fist of Awesome
Acid Trip
Air Pressure
Amazing Frog
American Dream
AmpGear
Antichromatic
Astronaut Rescue
Autopilot
Bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonnerronnt uonnthunntrovarrhounawnskawntoohoohoordenenthurnuk (Yes, that's the title)
Badass VS Hipster
Barley Break
Bastinnade
Bionauts Online
Blue Board
BoomBoom
Bridge
Bubblr - Dummy in Trouble
Bullet Time
Bullfist
Chomper Deluxe
ChronoBlade Demo
Climbing Chaos
Clock
Counter Action
Critter Rollers
Curves
Dark Space Rings
Deadly Dungeons
Diversion
Don't Look Back
Dungeon Bandits
Enyo
Flipriders
Forsaken Planet
Fourkaraoke For Ouya
Game Catcher
Garnatron
Gauroden
Gem Crazy
Gun's N' Glory WW2
Helicopter-Escape the Cave
Hero's Adventure
Highway Rally
Just Rain
King of Booze
Memrrtiks, Saushem
Monocle man
No Brakes Valet
N.O.T.T.U.B.
Oiche Mhaith
One Tap Hero
Peaces in KaIsland
PiX Bros.
PiX Frogger
PiX Pang
Questria: Rise of the Robot Skull Faces
Ripolles Nightmare
Sci-Fighters
Sky Arena
Spaceroads
Spanish Gold
Stupid Zombies 2
Super Crate Box
Super Robot Space Fight!
Survival
SVEN
Vector
Vector 360 Breakout
Wilsons Adventure

[Bojay1997]

You are wrong because there are several free games that have been released through the store. Not free to try, but free to own, so yes, there must be an option to release games for free through the store. Furthermore, as an "Original Kickstarter Backer", I would think that you already know this. The list below are all the games that are free to own, no payment of any kind for them at all. No Paywalls and no DLC charges either, completely free and NONE of them are emulators, which most of those are free too. So quit spreading untruthful crap dude and get over it. Ouya may not be your cup of tea and all, but plenty of indie developers have released completely free games through the Ouya store, and the proof is right in front of your face. Go rant about something else man because what you just said got blown back in your face. It's like watching one of those annoying Youtbe videos where the person just blows smo0ke because he doesn't know what he's talking about. That's exactly what you are doing. You like Google and Amazon, cool, good for you, I'm happy for you and hope that you have fun with it, but yeah Ouya does have a way to present free games to the community through the store, and a kickstarter backer would know this.

Free Games On Ouya, not including the emulators:
4th and Goal Football
Abbigale and the Monster
A Bit of a Fist of Awesome
Acid Trip
Air Pressure
Amazing Frog
American Dream
AmpGear
Antichromatic
Astronaut Rescue
Autopilot
Bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonnerronnt uonnthunntrovarrhounawnskawntoohoohoordenenthurnuk (Yes, that's the title)
Badass VS Hipster
Barley Break
Bastinnade
Bionauts Online
Blue Board
BoomBoom
Bridge
Bubblr - Dummy in Trouble
Bullet Time
Bullfist
Chomper Deluxe
ChronoBlade Demo
Climbing Chaos
Clock
Counter Action
Critter Rollers
Curves
Dark Space Rings
Deadly Dungeons
Diversion
Don't Look Back
Dungeon Bandits
Enyo
Flipriders
Forsaken Planet
Fourkaraoke For Ouya
Game Catcher
Garnatron
Gauroden
Gem Crazy
Gun's N' Glory WW2
Helicopter-Escape the Cave
Hero's Adventure
Highway Rally
Just Rain
King of Booze
Memrrtiks, Saushem
Monocle man
No Brakes Valet
N.O.T.T.U.B.
Oiche Mhaith
One Tap Hero
Peaces in KaIsland
PiX Bros.
PiX Frogger
PiX Pang
Questria: Rise of the Robot Skull Faces
Ripolles Nightmare
Sci-Fighters
Sky Arena
Spaceroads
Spanish Gold
Stupid Zombies 2
Super Crate Box
Super Robot Space Fight!
Survival
SVEN
Vector
Vector 360 Breakout
Wilsons Adventure

You've got me there. I was not aware of the fact that apparently developers can now release games completely free through the Ouya store. According to the FAQ and an e-mail in response to an inquiry I sent to Ouya before launch, the only two options were to charge for the game or release it free and charge for in-app purchases. I suppose it's my fault for not being more aware of the changes in Ouya over time. So, I stand corrected.

Having said that, there is no way to even access the Ouya store without either entering a credit card number or buying an Ouya card from a retailer. Not exactly an open platform IMHO.

[fluid_matrix]

If they're trying to compete with Google or Apple, they are never going to win, especially if the rumors of an Amazon or Google console are accurate.

I've said this before in another thread... Just because Google might come out with a competing product of their own doesn't mean it will flourish. Google has many product failures under their belt. Google +, Google Video, & the Nexus Q are just to name a few.

[Bojay1997]

I've said this before in another thread... Just because Google might come out with a competing product of their own doesn't mean it will flourish. Google has many product failures under their belt. Google +, Google Video, & the Nexus Q are just to name a few.

Of course not, but it also doesn't mean that a flawed product like the Ouya will either and well-funded competition certainly won't help things for them. Google definitely doesn't have a flawless record, but if the Chromecast is any indication, I think they finally are starting to really understand consumer products on a whole new level.

[fluid_matrix]

Of course not, but it also doesn't mean that a flawed product like the Ouya will either and well-funded competition certainly won't help things for them. Google definitely doesn't have a flawless record, but if the Chromecast is any indication, I think they finally are starting to really understand consumer products on a whole new level.

That may be true, which is why I completely avoided even mentioning the Ouya in my comment. However, keep in mind, Ouya is an extremely young company and is bound to make mistakes here and there.

BTW, I'm still not sold on the Chromecast. Until I can stream all media formats, without limitations, it's worthless to me. My Tivo already does youtube and Netflix, but I still need something that will stream the other various formats. I know you can get around it with various apps, but I don't want to take the chance of Google blocking them (http://www.theverge.com/2013/8/25/4657202/google-blocks-chromecast-app-that-let-you-stream-own-videos) then have a $35 paper weight.

[Tanooki]

Unless it's direct comparison of features, I've always disliked ads that mock the competition. It makes me think that they're hiding something, like they know that their product isn't good enough so they have to jab at their competitor.

I agree with that. Sega's disgusting smear and lie campaign advertising against Nintendo back in the earlier 16bit era infuriated me enough I didn't play the thing for years even with it in the house (brother) and only bothered with Sega anything in the late 90s. It wasn't some pro-Nintendo thing though, sure it helped, but I've been that way with anyone who puts out scummy lie ads to slander another company or product to sell their own shit because I just see it as immature lies to cover up the failings of your own inferior garbage by using distraction and misdirection. I've done it with clothes, foods, and so on.


Griking said it well too, put the feelings in check and see what it is -- a stab at the full price rehash-o-rama in gaming we get of re-skinned me-too same garbage shoveled every year and getting tired of it. That's what the ad is even if it is done in a cheeseball crude way. If someone isn't sick of that type of gaming environment of course they'll get even more offended for having their precious Call of Duty/MOH/Halo/(insert rehash FPS) mocked for what it is.

The thing is, the ad is very effective. If it wasn't this topic and others like it elsewhere wouldn't exist either agreeing about it or bitching about it. An ad isn't as much meant to entertain but to cause awareness, and we're aware. Beyond that Ouya like it or hate it is delivering on what they said they would having free demos or outright free games for every title there, plus is also works as a superior form of what Roku and AppleTV currently do delivering all that streaming media format stuff they others do at the same price. But beyond that you get all the gaming goodies and you can since it's fairly open dump your own junk on there and use it as you like so it's not closed off like a big name console system. That's why I think it will last because it gives more choice even if it isn't the beefiest piece of hardware out there. They've taken a stab at the Roku market with this and its wannabes and does it better, so if you're needing a device even for that, this would be the logical choice since they all go for $99 and this does more.

[Bojay1997]

That may be true, which is why I completely avoided even mentioning the Ouya in my comment. However, keep in mind, Ouya is an extremely young company and is bound to make mistakes here and there.

BTW, I'm still not sold on the Chromecast. Until I can stream all media formats, without limitations, it's worthless to me. My Tivo already does youtube and Netflix, but I still need something that will stream the other various formats. I know you can get around it with various apps, but I don't want to take the chance of Google blocking them (http://www.theverge.com/2013/8/25/4657202/google-blocks-chromecast-app-that-let-you-stream-own-videos) then have a $35 paper weight.

I don't know, using the stream from Chrome feature has worked for just about everything I've wanted to do including regular Hulu, HBO Go and lots of other providers that supposedly aren't supported yet. While Google could start closing those loopholes under pressure from media providers, I'm just as certain that someone will immediately develop a hack to open it back up again.

[Bojay1997]

I agree with that. Sega's disgusting smear and lie campaign advertising against Nintendo back in the earlier 16bit era infuriated me enough I didn't play the thing for years even with it in the house (brother) and only bothered with Sega anything in the late 90s. It wasn't some pro-Nintendo thing though, sure it helped, but I've been that way with anyone who puts out scummy lie ads to slander another company or product to sell their own shit because I just see it as immature lies to cover up the failings of your own inferior garbage by using distraction and misdirection. I've done it with clothes, foods, and so on.


Griking said it well too, put the feelings in check and see what it is -- a stab at the full price rehash-o-rama in gaming we get of re-skinned me-too same garbage shoveled every year and getting tired of it. That's what the ad is even if it is done in a cheeseball crude way. If someone isn't sick of that type of gaming environment of course they'll get even more offended for having their precious Call of Duty/MOH/Halo/(insert rehash FPS) mocked for what it is.

The thing is, the ad is very effective. If it wasn't this topic and others like it elsewhere wouldn't exist either agreeing about it or bitching about it. An ad isn't as much meant to entertain but to cause awareness, and we're aware. Beyond that Ouya like it or hate it is delivering on what they said they would having free demos or outright free games for every title there, plus is also works as a superior form of what Roku and AppleTV currently do delivering all that streaming media format stuff they others do at the same price. But beyond that you get all the gaming goodies and you can since it's fairly open dump your own junk on there and use it as you like so it's not closed off like a big name console system. That's why I think it will last because it gives more choice even if it isn't the beefiest piece of hardware out there. They've taken a stab at the Roku market with this and its wannabes and does it better, so if you're needing a device even for that, this would be the logical choice since they all go for $99 and this does more.

Chromecast is $35, so this is not a logical choice if all you want is a streaming media adapter. While you're right that the gaming forums have been abuzz about this ad, most of the people on those forums are hyper aware of Ouya and every other niche device or console that is released. As such, this isn't a very effective ad, especially if those same people are offended.

Moreover, the message in the ad doesn't even make sense. This isn't some alternative to regular consoles or AAA games, it's a device that is designed to play smartphone and tablet style games on your TV. I doubt that gamers who are bored of the FPS sequels that come out like clockwork have been dreaming of a way to play smartphone and tablet style games on their TV. I suspect many of them, including myself, simply buy niche games on PS3 or Xbox 360 or PC or use XBL Arcade, Steam and PSN to fill the need for more obscure games. As such, I still have no idea who the Ouya is really targeted at as everyone I know who bought one just did it because it was cheap, messed around with it for a few hours and hasn't been back. Heck, Ouya's own data supports this as something like 73% of buyers haven't even purchased a single thing and only 8% of the people who download a free demo of a game end up buying it. That's pretty poor considering how cheap most of the games are to begin with.

[fluid_matrix]

I don't know, using the stream from Chrome feature has worked for just about everything I've wanted to do including regular Hulu, HBO Go and lots of other providers that supposedly aren't supported yet. While Google could start closing those loopholes under pressure from media providers, I'm just as certain that someone will immediately develop a hack to open it back up again.

Sorry, I guess I should have been more specific. I meant stream files that are either located on my pc/laptop or on my phone. You know, media files that I've acquired from "other sources".

[Bojay1997]

Interesting thread on NeoGaf about some shadiness in the whole Free the Games funding drive sponsored by Ouya.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=662865&page=2

Looks like Joystiq has picked up on it also.

http://www.joystiq.com/2013/08/27/first-two-ouya-free-the-games-projects-meet-funding-goals/

[YoshiM]

Interesting thread on NeoGaf about some shadiness in the whole Free the Games funding drive sponsored by Ouya.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=662865&page=2

Looks like Joystiq has picked up on it also.

http://www.joystiq.com/2013/08/27/first-two-ouya-free-the-games-projects-meet-funding-goals/

It looks like the two developers are the ones that make things look a bit "shady" to take advantage of the promotion. I can't see anything that points to the Ouya group as being the ne'er do wells. And if that's true, that's pretty sad.

Bojay: I gotta ask-are you on some sort of crusade against the Ouya or what? It seems like you (amongst others) are out to just take this system across the coals like its some false prophet spreading console heresy.

You asked who this is targeted at and the obvious answer is "any gamer who wants to play something different on their TVs and don't want to drop a ton of coin on the softs". The biggest banner of hate I see the most is "it plays stuff you get on your phone". So what? Many of the titles I've seen or played that are smartphone games I didn't know their origins. Why? Because I don't play games on my phone. What few I tried were either conducive to a touch screen (ala Angry Birds) or a quick try to see if the action was comfortably controllable on a touchscreen (like Wolfenstein 3D). I don't really do handheld but I like the concept of playing those games on a larger screen without having to pay a couple or more Benjamin's for a quality tablet that can connect to my TV and allow me to use controllers I may or may not have to go out and buy. $99 and games for free to try or play-sounds good to me. True I have a PC where I can do the same things and have the power to play modern AAA titles but I use that machine for work-type stuff. It's also upstairs in an office setting that I'm usually in 8-9 hours every week day-I'd rather sit on my couch.

I'm interested to see where Ouya goes and I remain realistically optimistic. I'm not drinking the Kool-Aide nor am I digging in the mud ready to sling. If the cheers and jeers were even it wouldn't be a big deal but there is so much negativity from those who never tried it (but that IS the law of teh Intarwebs these days) that it could kill a project before it really takes off and all that's left would be disappointed customers who got shafted by the damage of the digital hate tsunami and those loud protesters doing fist bumps as they get to say "I told you so".

[Bojay1997]

It looks like the two developers are the ones that make things look a bit "shady" to take advantage of the promotion. I can't see anything that points to the Ouya group as being the ne'er do wells. And if that's true, that's pretty sad.

Bojay: I gotta ask-are you on some sort of crusade against the Ouya or what? It seems like you (amongst others) are out to just take this system across the coals like its some false prophet spreading console heresy.

You asked who this is targeted at and the obvious answer is "any gamer who wants to play something different on their TVs and don't want to drop a ton of coin on the softs". The biggest banner of hate I see the most is "it plays stuff you get on your phone". So what? Many of the titles I've seen or played that are smartphone games I didn't know their origins. Why? Because I don't play games on my phone. What few I tried were either conducive to a touch screen (ala Angry Birds) or a quick try to see if the action was comfortably controllable on a touchscreen (like Wolfenstein 3D). I don't really do handheld but I like the concept of playing those games on a larger screen without having to pay a couple or more Benjamin's for a quality tablet that can connect to my TV and allow me to use controllers I may or may not have to go out and buy. $99 and games for free to try or play-sounds good to me. True I have a PC where I can do the same things and have the power to play modern AAA titles but I use that machine for work-type stuff. It's also upstairs in an office setting that I'm usually in 8-9 hours every week day-I'd rather sit on my couch.

I'm interested to see where Ouya goes and I remain realistically optimistic. I'm not drinking the Kool-Aide nor am I digging in the mud ready to sling. If the cheers and jeers were even it wouldn't be a big deal but there is so much negativity from those who never tried it (but that IS the law of teh Intarwebs these days) that it could kill a project before it really takes off and all that's left would be disappointed customers who got shafted by the damage of the digital hate tsunami and those loud protesters doing fist bumps as they get to say "I told you so".

I'm not on a crusade by any means. In fact, I backed the Kickstarter only a couple of days into it and received my unit pretty promptly after launch. Having said that, I don't think Ouya or any other product should get some kind of pass simply because the team behind it uses all the right buzz words.

I do own one and I have tried it. Lots of the people who aren't overly impressed have tried it. There are 50+ Ouya units for sale on Ebay and almost all of them have been used. There are many more available for sale on various forums and websites. That has been the case since shortly after launch. I'm sure there are some who haven't used it who are posting negative things just like there are probably some defending it who don't own one and never will.

My criticism of Ouya stems primarily from the fact that there is no substantive difference between Ouya's business model and every other company they are comparing themselves to. It just reminds me of the kid at school who goes around claiming to be cooler and edgier than everyone else but turns out to be just as dorky and insecure as the rest of us. They are essentially selling an inexpensive piece of hardware and hoping to make their money on a cut of software sales. They also plan to sell you a new device on a fairly regular basis. That's the Apple and Google and Sony and Microsoft model and there is nothing open and independent about that.

I understand that the Ouya fills a need you have. I just don't think that many gamers have that same need. There is just so much great independent and creative content on even the largest consoles like the PS3, Xbox 360 and WiiU, that I just can't see many gamers wanting to play essentially smartphone and tablet games on their TV when there are so many other richer and more satisfying choices on the other platforms.

At the end of the day, I would rather that people have an open and honest dialogue about products like Ouya instead of constantly being timid and worrying that others will think they are somehow anti-independent gaming if they point out the fact that the Ouya falls well short of being some new and open business model.

[Niku-Sama]

how the fuck is that supposed to sell consoles?
and is that how a woman tried to get the main gaming demographic to take notice?

fucking stupid, even more reason to not buy it, no more crappy commercials

[Jack_Burton_BYOAC]

Well, that ad pretty much guaranteed I'll never buy the system.

[goob47]

That looked like a freaking MAD skit. ROFL

Who knows, maybe the OUYA will succeed, and the console wars will be back in action?

:evil laugh:

[M.Buster2184]

Meh. The ad didn't bother me. We regularly hear people complaining about new games they buy/games that come out, plus I like the animation.

[Dr. BaconStein]

Honestly? I would have been fine with it if it wasn't for the excessive vomit and gore. That's a perfect example of how not to market a product.

I think they knew this would go viral, though. Probably "any press is good press" for team Ouya.

[Atarileaf]

Its just really efing stupid to have the guy there alone not wearing pants and his house be a mess. Why would a video game company want to show a video game player looking like that?

I think Kinect could bear that out as viable market research.

[eskobar]

I think the ad is good.

The Ouya creators know they can reach a very small niche market despite their intentions to reach the mass market, so mocking the Call of Duty Gamer stereotype is actually a pretty nice idea, because the target market (that I believe they intend to reach to) for the Ouya already mocks the CoD guys and they think that those consumers "damage the industry" ...

The CoD Gamer is very happy to spend 60 usd every year + xbox live gold only to play this game with his/her friends; they usually pre-order the game and buy the "elite" membership and all the crap that comes out ... so there is no harm in "damaging your audience" with the ad, a CoD Gamer will not find the console interesting.

It was fun ... :roll:

[Bojay1997]

I think the ad is good.

The Ouya creators know they can reach a very small niche market despite their intentions to reach the mass market, so mocking the Call of Duty Gamer stereotype is actually a pretty nice idea, because the target market (that I believe they intend to reach to) for the Ouya already mocks the CoD guys and they think that those consumers "damage the industry" ...

The CoD Gamer is very happy to spend 60 usd every year + xbox live gold only to play this game with his/her friends; they usually pre-order the game and buy the "elite" membership and all the crap that comes out ... so there is no harm in "damaging your audience" with the ad, a CoD Gamer will not find the console interesting.

It was fun ... :roll:

I think you grossly misunderstand the audience for FPS games. I have plenty of friends who love FPS games and buy every new iteration that comes out, but also love smaller independent games and tablet and smartphone games and all sorts of games including classic games. While there may be some small sliver of the gamers out there that fit this stereotype, I don't really believe that gamers are so uncomplicated for the most part. I think it's very possible for a die hard FPS fan to also enjoy simpler independent games and Ouya is not in any position to only focus on a very specific and possibly non-existent audience given its relatively poor software sales to date.

[bb_hood]

While there may be some small sliver of the gamers out there that fit this stereotype, I don't really believe that gamers are so uncomplicated for the most part.

Well put. It seems like the Ouya ad is implying that people who like and play video games will just eat up anything that is 'video games'. The way they imply that all games are 60$ is stupid, and how people that buy video games all pay 60$ is stupid. This whole 'free to try' deal is nothing new at all, games in the playstation store all have free demos to download. The prices of these ouya games do not seem to be cheaper than downloadable games on other system's online stores. They want to make you think that its a good deal by offering a system with a 99$ price point. You can get a used ps3 or xbox360 off craigslist for about the same price.

[eskobar]

I think you grossly misunderstand the audience for FPS games. I have plenty of friends who love FPS games and buy every new iteration that comes out, but also love smaller independent games and tablet and smartphone games and all sorts of games including classic games. While there may be some small sliver of the gamers out there that fit this stereotype, I don't really believe that gamers are so uncomplicated for the most part. I think it's very possible for a die hard FPS fan to also enjoy simpler independent games and Ouya is not in any position to only focus on a very specific and possibly non-existent audience given its relatively poor software sales to date.

My comment about the Cod Gamer was only about how cool they are with spending $60 bucks and the available membership costs every year with no complaints . Many of those gamers are very social and they obviously enjoy many genres and the variety of games, and they have no problem spending money on indie games and they don't always need to "try" something that catches their attention. (I think) They are not the OUYA audience.