John Carmack: Mobile Phones Will Soon Outmuscle Consoles

[Kenjitsuka]

Washed up hack blabbering nonsense again, eh?
"It's unquestionable that within a very short time, we're going to have portable cell phones that are more powerful than the current-gen consoles"

I have a brand spanking new HTC Sensation with a dualcore 1.2 GHz processor and 768 MB RAM.
It's pretty much the pinnacle of right now. But that processor is NOT equal to an old 1.2 GHz Pentium desktop processor... Same with laptops; the processor number is the same, but the power consumption and speed are soooo much lower in the laptop one. It's just a marketing lie.

My quadcore laptop is a slow piece of junk compared to my dualcore desktop. The reason; costs, power consumption and inability to dump heat. The Sensation gets superhot when playing Final Fantasy 3 on SNES emulator and the power is gone after a few measily hours.

Someone asked in an earlier reply; how to connect them to a TV?
Perhaps stream via wireless to PS3. But for now; it has HDMI out capabilities with an expensive lousy non included cable.

 

[marioandsonic]

I honestly see this as more "no more computer/xbox/bluray player, simply a mobile phone that connects to the tv/controller/keyboard and mouse that is powerfull enough to run everything you need". rather than "we'll game more on phones"

I'm thinking this, too.

 

[Low Key]

So basically, he's saying phones will be video cards with the capability to call people in the future?

If someone can fit my Radeon 6970 into a cell phone form factor so that it works well and doesn't start my crotch on fire, I'd like to see them try. I'm sure it'll happen eventually, but when is the question.

 

[Alphakirby]

I wouldn't be surprised if he's the one to make this phone. And it can play anything, because fuck you he's John god damn Carmack, rocket-scientist.

But seriously, of course in time phones/handhelds will surpass consoles. Hell, they already surpass games from the PS1 era.

I had a Daikatana joke here,but this is the wrong John.
Honestly,I can't say that phones will outdo consoles because of the fact that phones will always be phones no matter how many advances in technology you duct tape to them.
Worst case scenario is Skynet but with phones.

 

[Rayne870]

but then there's the idea that the consoles will not be staying at the current generation and will be moving to the next one over the next 3 years or so.

 

[Arehexes]

Few problems with this idea

1. You don't own cell phones and they cost more then consoles if you don't get a plan with it
2. Battery Life sucks hard, I get more life out of my 4 year old DS lite then my new Droid X
3. Most phones use touch screens only and those do NOT work for games, I bought a 2D platformer for a dollar and it bugs me cause my fat hands are in the way
4. With a controller you can have more gameplay and most phones lack that, hell I bought Zenoia for my android hated it and I bought it for my DSi and love it because the dpad makes all the difference in tactile feed back.

So it's not graphics power it's just how it feels.

 

[gunner1905]

Mobile Phones *soon* out-muscling consoles?
Surely this is one of the most ridiculous statements made this week.

Well in 18 months
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2011/07/arm-chips-to-rival-ps3-xbox-360-in-18-months.ars

I do know that even though the chips will be as powerful, it won't be used in the same way as in consoles (less power draw for longer battery on phones, on consoles it would be designed for maximum performance). But phones are muscling in consoles casual market.

 

[Uber Evil]

So basically, he's saying phones will be video cards with the capability to call people in the future?

If someone can fit my Radeon 6970 into a cell phone form factor so that it works well and doesn't start my crotch on fire, I'd like to see them try. I'm sure it'll happen eventually, but when is the question.

Consoles. Computers advance nearly as fast as phones, so they can't really be outmatched.
OT: I could actually see this happening. I mean look at the Xperia Play. It looks like a handheld, and the technology is advancing extremely rapidly. Sure, the life of the phone would be short, but advances in battery tech will change that. It's not an impossibility by any stretch.
EDIT: Xperia Play [http://www.sonyericsson.com/cws/products/mobilephones/overview/xperia-play?cc=gb&lc=en]

 

[geizr]

The closed-mindedness is strong in this thread.

Just because some of you all don't like gaming on a mobile device doesn't mean there isn't a large population who do. For some, gaming on a mobile device has more benefits that completely outweigh the perceived drawbacks that you all are so keen to point out(drawbacks which only exist if you are adamant to cling to the old modes and thinking about gaming). Believe it or not, some people have absolutely no problem with playing on a touch-screen; they're actually able to adapt to new ways of doing things.

Further, Carmack is referencing the power and performance of mobile devices in the future compared to the power and performance of gaming consoles today. I'm not sure why it is such a stretch for people to imagine that future technology will be more powerful than what we have today. Technology advances. Sure, the future consoles will be radically more powerful than the future mobile devices, but that is not he was comparing.

There is another thing, which is the "good enough" threshold. We have long since passed this threshold with most gaming platforms, and mobile devices are quickly approaching this threshold, if they have not already passed it. Once the "good enough" threshold has been reached, any further advance is almost unnoticeable(just like how beyond 85 fps, the human visual system can't see a difference in further increases in fps). Once this threshold is reached by all platforms and devices, there is no longer any point arguing superiority; there is only choosing what fits your preferences and constraints. Any such arguments at that point would just be self-serving conceit.

Finally, game companies have to expand their markets beyond the traditional "hardcore" crowd. The "hardcore" market just is no longer sufficient to single-handedly sustain the larger gaming industry, and people just need to learn to get over themselves regarding this fact. Game companies have to diversify to other platforms and reach other markets and demographics in order to survive and thrive. To constantly think game developers should only ever serve a single particular group's interests, and those interests alone, is extreme insular, ego-centric conceit.

Look forward to the future, rather than waste time clinging to the past, just getting old. Gaming will never advance as long as we constantly have this short-sighted thinking to keep things the same, playing the same old games the same old way, forever.

 

[Low Key]

So basically, he's saying phones will be video cards with the capability to call people in the future?

If someone can fit my Radeon 6970 into a cell phone form factor so that it works well and doesn't start my crotch on fire, I'd like to see them try. I'm sure it'll happen eventually, but when is the question.

Consoles. Computers advance nearly as fast as phones, so they can't really be outmatched.
OT: I could actually see this happening. I mean look at the Xperia Play. It looks like a handheld, and the technology is advancing extremely rapidly. Sure, the life of the phone would be short, but advances in battery tech will change that. It's not an impossibility by any stretch.
EDIT: Xperia Play [http://www.sonyericsson.com/cws/products/mobilephones/overview/xperia-play?cc=gb&lc=en]

I'm reply to you using an Xperia x10a. If the Play is anything like it, I would advise people to stay away. But I think you missed the point of my post. Carmack is saying consoles won't be needed. We'll just plug our phones into our 1080p TVs and play our games that way. I forsee it happening eventually, but my 6970 is a beast. It's as big as my forearm. If they fit one of those into a phone by next console generation, I will eat my shoes.

 

[NLS]

Are they going to allow you to plug into a T.V.?

<< Not a fan of hand held gaming.

Also, how are they not going to overheat?

Mobile devices use ARM processors. They're not as powerful as your typical x86 running your main computer, but they emmit much less heat and are more energy efficient. Also, certain higher end phones rigght now are coming out with HDMI output.

 

[Pegghead]

I'd be wary to take the advice of anyone who claims that Fallout: Pandora edition is going to be a completely different experience that shall be the second coming of gaming...sorry.

But in all seriousness, while it's undoubtable that phone capabilities are going to get much bigger and better, phones and theirplace in the world certainly aren't going to change. We're at a comfortable position here, you've got your cute little asides and minigames for smartphones (I myself being an addict of paper-toss for a phone I recently got on a plan...pretty mindblowing after years of an old flip-phone with a screen too broken to show anything) and your bigger games with narratives and mind-blowing production values on consoles and pc. Even if they could run it, noone would want to play through...Skyrim on an iphone, and very few people are celebrating the fact that soon you'll be able to get Angry Birds on the xbox-live marketplace.

 

[gyroscopeboy]

I don't think so, unless can get a 60 inch phone with 7.1 surround sound.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

in terms of sales? duh.

In terms of quality.... eh doubt that.

 

[FalloutJack]

Nah nah, see there's a fallacy here.

You have to take it in baby steps. First, your multi-purpose phone has to outstep handheld game devices, and by that I mean better than games you could find on Newgrounds, Armor Games, and so on.

THEN, before it can be considered any threat to consoles, it has to out-pace the Wii. The Nintendo Wii is essentially a very streamlined sort of console holding its own as a major player, though it isn't as big an engine as anything out of Sony and Microsoft.

I can understand how people might think about the sentiment, but it's a bit of a falsey. Your laptop doesn't always do better than a PC, does it? How hard is it to build those parts? Doesn't it overheat alot? I think phone technology these days is brilliant, but it's not a game console.

 

[Mylinkay Asdara]

But the screens are so fricken small! I already have to wear glasses from too much reading, computer, and video game time on the rather larger television screen - do these people want us all to go blind?!

/sigh

 

[Mallefunction]

Are they going to allow you to plug into a T.V.?

<< Not a fan of hand held gaming.

Also, how are they not going to overheat?

Pretty much this. I have a DS (only have Pokemon on it) and I still don't play it in public. Too much noise and distractions that make playing just a chore.

 

[MrStab]

And the PC will continue to reign supreme.