Analysts Call Panasonic's Jungle a "Non-Starter"

[Tom Goldman]

Analysts Call Panasonic's Jungle a "Non-Starter"

Analysts agree: Panasonic's new MMO-focused handheld faces an uphill battle through the center of a volcano while wearing a tank-top.

If you didn't catch the announcement [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/104039-Panasonic-Reveals-New-Online-Gaming-Handheld] of Panasonic's new handheld videogame system called the Jungle, well, now you can catch up. Whether catching up will actually matter or not is the question, as multiple industry analysts have serious doubts that the system will have even a modicum of success.

Speaking to IndustryGamers, two analysts called the Jungle a "non-starter," while others questioned its potential. Billy Pidgeon of M2 Research says he sees the Jungle as a "highly specialized dedicated portable for a non-existent market." He added that "MMO players" might buy it if they want "more than a laptop," but said: "Frankly, this looks like a non-starter."

David Cole of DFC Intelligence noted that Panasonic has wanted to get back into the games business for years, after having a short go at it in the 1990s with the 3DO. His comments mirror Pidgeon's, with Cole saying: "My inclination would be to say a system like the Jungle is a non-starter right out of the gate." He points to companies like Sony and the tools that enable them to compete, and adds: "Until they can show me otherwise I just don't think Panasonic has the right pieces to compete in this space."

EEDAR's Jesse Divnich says the Jungle's success will "come down to software support," and without that the handheld will fail. Colin Sebastian of Lazard Capital Markets thinks it "would seem like an uphill challenge to launch a new portable gaming device unless there is some meaningful differentiation or access to proprietary content."

If it were one analyst questioning the Jungle, that'd be a different story, but these guys are lined up in a row bashing the Jungle in seemingly every possible way. Playing devil's advocate, the Jungle is a unique product, being a handheld made to run MMOs currently played on PCs, so maybe it's just something so new that industry analysts can't see any positives. They may also be jumping the gun, as key information needed to judge the Jungle, such as technical specifications and exact ability, hasn't been released yet. The easy route is to speak negatively about it, but you never know, the Jungle could surprise everyone. Maybe.

Source: IndustryGamers [http://www.industrygamers.com/news/panasonics-jungle-a-non-starter-right-out-of-the-gate-say-analysts/]

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[Hashime]

Never going to work. Firstly how would the user get online cheaply. Secondly, why not just use a laptop?

 

[Something Amyss]

"Non-Started seems accurate. Especially if the cost is high. Mobile MMO gaming might be pretty appealing, but an MMO focused handheld? Not sure it'll work.

And beyond that, it looks like most of the cheap crap that's been put out to rival Nintendo's handhelds (and the occasional longer term competitor).

 

[SelectivelyEvil13]

Your last paragraph is a great point as it is hard to judge any electronic device without knowing what's under the hood (so to speak).

I don't play MMOs, so I don't know exactly how dedicated MMO players are to want a handheld device catering to them specifically. Regardless, if one was that interested, I would imagine that one would also only buy a few games and focus on those alone. The "Jungle" will be fighting in the jungle to survive such a niche market if it doesn't offer any kicker.

On a side note, for some reason the name has an odd 90's ring to me. Even the design seems so angular, clunky, and dated. Between the two, it does not give me the impression of a sleek, high-tech device by any stretch.

 

[StoryMode]

Its for the WoW junkies who actually have jobs: They can play on their breaks without lugging around their PC.

Check your mules/vendor characters on the go =P

 

[luvd1]

Analysts are like football pundits and astologists. They do like to talk bollox without backing it up. That's the fun about "predicting" stuff, It's like closing your eyes and throwing a dart at a dart board.

 

[Manicotti]

It's true. I hate to bash on hardware innovation, but I can't see the market for a handheld device that specializes in MMOs, which pretty much need to be time sinks to be successful; time sinks in themselves are not generally enjoyed on machines whose best selling point is their mobility. The only exception I can think of this would be as an aid for long car trips or flights.

AND the target audience is not one renowned for its tendency to get out a lot unless absolutely necessary, and at that point making their MMOs portable is just asking for trouble in the form of traffic accidents, hiking accidents, more addiction-fueled marital problems/divorces, and anything else caused by taking our generation's most compelling addiction and then making it handheld.

 

[Blind Sight]

This just screams Virtual Boy to me, it'll be interesting to see how it turns out.

by taking our generation's most compelling addiction and then making it handheld.

What, they've made cocaine handheld now haha? Count me in!

 

[Olrod]

Hmm... I can't help but be reminded of the Lynx and the Jaguar when I hear about the Jungle.

 

[Kermi]

I don't really see it taking off either. I think the market it's catering to is far, far too niche. yes, there's a lot of MMO fans out there, but how many of them are both hardcore enough to need to play on the move but casual enough that they don't care about only playing for short spans of time (such as while commuting) or being prone to constant interruptions?

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

I forsee this going the way of the Game Gear and the Saturn. Picked up by a few people, ignored by the market as a whole.

 

[mjc0961]

Analysts agree: Panasonic's new MMO-focused handheld faces an uphill battle through the center of a volcano while wearing a tank-top.

I would have thought it'd be wearing some kind of full winter outfit. Nice thick coat, boots, snow pants, hat, gloves, etc... You know, so it falls over due to heat exhaustion and dies quicker.

Anyway I think it's too soon to tell. What do we know about this thing? Not a whole lot. Almost nothing.

I say we give some of that "way too damn much" credit the iPhone gets as a gaming device when it clearly isn't to the Jungle. Because really, if people aren't willing to write off an overpriced phone that only runs stuff you can find on Newgrounds for free and/or shovelware, they shouldn't be willing to write off anything.

 

[RUINER ACTUAL]

And people thought the PSP was set to fail.

 

[Crimsane]

I never would've even heard about this device if I didn't read this site's News section. Ten seconds from now, I will have forgotten it exists.

 

[Reaganomics]

So their market is mmo fans who leave the house... well good luck with that.

 

[Baldr]

I have a some what "high-end" netbook, it can barely run World of Warcraft. Problem is, there are really no "gaming" graphics cards made for small portable devises, and if there were: $$$$$
it would be to expensive to be worth it. I may have to agree with the critics on this one.

 

[Unrulyhandbag]

Your last paragraph is a great point as it is hard to judge any electronic device without knowing what's under the hood (so to speak).

It may be hard to judge performance but it is easy to judge. It's nineties throwback ugly, it has a just as bad name and it's being marketed to a market that may not even exist.
The features they have named don't fit the games they are supporting, who want to play an MMO with a touch pad and tiny cramped looking keys?

The only way it could work is to be something special inside it nasty looking box and have really good software support. However you'd think news of a new console would have leaked by now if any developers had their hands on one, hell, phone makers can't even get close to announcement dates with minor remodels without us knowing half the spec's much less something as major as a whole new platform sneaking past the press.

I judge it's going to struggle and disappear. I'd like mobile gaming to have more systems but...

 

[Baldr]

I forsee this going the way of the Game Gear and the Saturn. Picked up by a few people, ignored by the market as a whole.

Both the Game Gear and Saturn were profitable systems for Sega selling 11 million(Game Gear) and 9.5 million units(Saturn)

 

[Vanguard_Ex]

Hmm... I can't help but be reminded of the Lynx and the Jaguar when I hear about the Jungle.

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I don't see how this is the choice if players want 'more than a laptop'. There is no way on Science's Earth that that thing has more to offer than a laptop T_T

 

[Soviet Steve]

Oh wow! It's a netbook! Only it's limited to playing a single appaling game. What more could gamers want for their money?

Well, I suppose a lot more but you're not going to get it from Panasonic.