New Console Developer? Ian Bell Announces 'Mad Box'

[Paul Jeffrey]

Slightly Mad Studios Ian Bell has confirmed on Twitter that the developers behind Project CARS are working on a new and super powerful console.

Intending to pitch right into the fight for console supremacy with the likes of Microsoft and Sony, Bell has confirmed that SMS are working on the provisionally titled 'Mad Box' device, with plans to significantly move the console marketplace forward with what has been described as "the most powerful console ever built...".

Although plans are in the infancy at this moment in time, Bell has stated that the new Mad Box console should be VR compatible from the off, with a proposed 90fps per eye, 180 FPS internally expected at the point of the consoles release - expected to be two or three years away at this stage.

Although much of the internal spec is still under consideration by Slightly Mad Studios, the overall design of the console has surfaced earlier today, as can be evidenced by the screenshots in this article, and Bell has been in very bullish mood during much of initial reveal discussions on social media - coming straight out of the blocks with some very impressive statements about the consoles capabilities once launched - easily putting the new Mad Box in the frame as a potential Xbox and PlayStation 4 beating piece of hardware.

Of course it is still early days in the development of the new Mad Box, but if the initial plans for the console do come to fruition this will be a very impressive piece of kit indeed. One of the key features mentioned briefly by Ian is the desire to open up the game engine to developers, presumably allowing game developers to access the engine platform in which to develop new games. Furthermore, Bell has stated that this will be a free facility for developers, which should be a powerful incentive for game studios to create content that works well with the new console.

All in all this is certainly a surprise move from SMS, and one very interesting topic to keep an eye on in the coming months..

 

 

[apex11]

Come on guys i think we are being bit harsh here...
Its not like SMS crowd funded for a 'community' game to be made that would be on going development and added to organically, so pay into that and you have a game supported and evolving.....
And then simply announced PCars 2 not too long after.......
Its not like they ever did that is it.....?
Totally legit team to get behind IMO........

Mod Edit: Please avoid personal insults

 

[Caton XII]

Seriously... Ian Bell !?
You woke up in a certain morning with an uncertain way of mind and suddenly you got the flash for something will be terrific that all of us dreamt or expected for !?

Please, let us alone kindly. ;-)
Our money will be spent in some consistant things for satisfy our gaming passion, we don't need to escape our mind in some alternative dimensions as yours ! ^^

 

[Jonny Austin]

He does realise that the only people to challange Nintendo/Sega in the console market is Microsoft and Sony, and they aren't small hitters by any strech of the imagination. His heart maybe in the right place, but going against those giants......

I would imagine that they are not trying to compete with those giants.The idea would be this market is X we could take 2% of X and develop a good product & make a lot of money for investors.

 

[Andy_J]

This whole thing has got to be a joke. Surely. That man who loves to talk down his customers just couldn't pull it off anyway.
It's INSANE. Perhaps is rich investor mate MICAS is helping him. (along with some of his brainwashed paid expert beta testers otherwise know as "not investors")

 

[RichardHessels]

Would love to see this working out... but... what whould it cost to get such top-end hardware for a reasonable price? MS & Sony can only sell for that (low) price because of the quantities they produce. You get the machine for cost price, and the make revenue with the (added price) on games. Hence the price difference between PC and console games.

 

[mr_belowski]

The obvious interpretation of this nonsense is that SMS are short of cash flow and will use the money from the backers to resolve this cash flow issue and then profusely apologize in 3 years and refund the backers, once they've been able to complete the project they're *actually* working on. Pcars 3 perhaps.

The renderings are silly, Microsoft won't allow them to call it a 'something-box' (or if they did they wouldn't licence windows for it, leaving it running linux), the hardware info is just empty "it'll be awesome to the max" fluff, and the rubbish about vr frame rates is embarrassing.

When the corporate backers fail to materialize, the project will be crowd funded, and backers will (probably) just get a refund instead of any actual hardware.

But all this seems a little too obvious and makes me wonder if there's something else happening here

 

[motoliser]

yeah defenitelly puffing with Musk too much...

 

[NDG]

Shut up all of you! This thread is giving them idea to cancel that project after realizing no one will buy them. Someone needs to delete this thread then start a new mad box praise thread! Let them release this thing. I wanna see how hard this one falls.

 

[Caton XII]

By the way, these times of "over" everything are really boring and sad !
It’s not only SMS and these guy Ian Bell, It’s always the overtelling, over promises, so blah blah blah.
Guys who are head managers, just lets us wait and see, It makes sense... correct !?
We are mature even if we Love to drive virtually cars or something else which seems impossible to get in real.

 

[Jeremy Ford]

So basically it's a Steam box rip off, and going to be using PC parts and a custom Linux distro. And the MADNESS engine they've been using for years have now developed an SDK for third-parties. Which is free for developers. 'Free' until they publish a commercial title. Like Unity and Unreal.

Don't get over excited, literally, there's nothing new or unique here, it just been spun with cryptic fluff from Ian Bell.

 

[thepharcyde]

Seriously... Ian Bell !?
You woke up in a certain morning with an uncertain way of mind and suddenly you got the flash for something will be terrific that all of us dreamt or expected for !?

Please, let us alone kindly. ;-)
Our money will be spent in some consistant things for satisfy our gaming passion, we don't need to escape our mind in some alternative dimensions as yours ! ^^

I had one of these, I actually thought it was ace for my commute to and from London playing Tony Hawk skateboarding

 

[whip]

one of Ian bells twitter photo's, dunno what the hell is going on with the sites insert picture but it's not working

https://imgur.com/xuUacwm

 

[Jeremy Ford]

one of Ian bells twitter photo's, god i hate this man so much

Mod Edit: Please avoid personal insults.

 

[Mascot]

This has to be an elaborate hoax, or a publicity stunt, or... what?

I can't believe for one second that this is a serious project that will be seen through to completion, but for the life of me I cannot fathom what's really going on.

I mean, the whole '60fps VR' comment, the neon cowboy hat design with side-mounted burrito shelves... he got to be having a New Year chuckle, hasn't he? Does anyone actually believe this is a genuine product actually in development, or just a way to raise the profile of the SMS name prior to crowd-funding pCARS 3: Shift?

I'm genuinely befuddled. It's all good fun though.

 

[MinDer_K.]

Let them release this thing. I wanna see how hard this one falls.

Can you imagine a "OUYA" Pro? Same story, I guess...

 

[whip]

 

[mr_belowski]

wtf?

 

[delpinsky]

I don't see the problem here.
Ian Bell wants to create a new console? He's free to do it, if he got the money.
Is this just a joke? Simply forget about it until the release date.
Will it be a success or will it be an epic fail?
Personally I'd love to see something new in the console market.

 

[Cote Dazur]

Next thing we will hear from him, on twitter no less, is that he his building a wall the most protective ever.

 

[Paul Murphy]

Uh, ok.
So a couple things to note:
If it's open to developers, then it's basically a PC.
If that's the case, then this will be a gaming console in general and not a SIM racing simulation machine thing at all.
To further note a couple things.
He is going up against the likes of Sony and Microsoft. Both which are companies worth billions of dollars. Both of which will be launching new consoles within the next couple years and squash him like a bug.
He is going to run into a great chasm, the size of which he will not be able to cross.
This will be because no one will license him the necessary codecs etc that will allow him to run certain software.
I have a high end gaming PC. I own a PS4. I own an XBOX 1S. When the PS5 comes out, I will buy one. When the next gen XBOX comes out I will buy one. I will also continue to update my PC. Why on earth would I buy a Madbox?

I guess you would because, as a rule, you buy everything on the market. In time, many early adopters might very well, including this one, as along as the quality is on par with Sony and Xbox.