2018-12-13 14:42:14

Hi Guys,

So for a while now I keep popping up to tell you about the audio game console I am working on and then disappearing for a while. This is because the development is so painfully slow and consumes a lot of my resources which doesnt leave me much time for interaction with you all.

I have recently been in a meeting regarding shedding some of this work load and finding someone who could mutaually benefit from taking on some of this work. As I continue with these discussions with various contacts I thought it would be best to once again collect opinions about the product before it comes out of its prototype stage.

So, to recap. The Sonus is a protable hand held audio gaming console with its own game development enviroment that is free to download. The idea is to create high quality games that can give the player a sense of adventure but any type of game can be made depending on the developers choice.
There are a few videos on youtube if you search Sonus Interactive and of course the website for a few more details.

Does this idea still appeal to you all? And if so perhaps you could visit the website and leave some details in the "GetOne" page form. No field is mandetory, you can leave anything blank you dont want to answer, but this does help portray a certain confidence in the projects success which can be useful while dealing with external parties.

Also what can the Sonus do to ensure the best gaming experience for you? How do you imagine it will compare to mobile phone games or PC games? I want to make sure we get the product as clsoe to perfect as it can be, although some software developments may have to take place after release in the form of updates.

2018-12-13 21:08:57

Hi, as always, I am still interested in such a thing.
What is the stage now?
I mean, did you decide for chartriges or micro sd? Stuff like that.
I can not talk about games because I will play what is released for this device, because the idea itself is so awesome.
I can say for most of us, a some what long lasting battery, wify capability, trough an adapter if needed, the device beying confortable to hold, with easy to reach controls, it can become a really good gaming device for the blind.
And, your engine is simple, I like that, it is the first thing I can code in.
smile Howp you can get it done.
Best regards.

I am myself and noone is ever gonna change me, I am the trolling master!

2018-12-13 21:16:27

Hi again Angel,

I currently have a very neat working prototype that cost me a pretty penny to get made. However some PCB issues regarding the battery management exist. But I've come to realise the PCB side is taking far too much of my time and I'm exploring some avenues to out source that side of things.

The Console now uses normal memory sticks to hold the games. Each sonus will have a serial number and you will use that number to download games from a play store, or perhaps order them. This is obviosuy to prevent piracy.

I'm glad you like the G D E. Hopefully I will get more time to focus on it soon.

Also, if you dont mind me asking. Have you seen the demo I posted showing off the demo game for the console, and how do youthink it compares to current audio games quality? the link to the video is here if you are interested:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmLDamnwrGQ&t=139s

2018-12-14 05:30:33

Is there an expected release date? Will the console be available here in the United States?

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2018-12-14 08:26:58

good job you are doing, but what good is a console without games?

2018-12-14 09:12:55

@5: that's part of the reason the development environment was released before the console itself. smile

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2018-12-14 09:50:02

I really feel like this thing should use a rechargeavle battery. We are long past the age of having to buy a pack of aa vatteries for the gameboy every month. Having to do that can be real expensive if one is a heavy player of the console.

2018-12-14 10:41:00

I plan on growing the project to an international scale. So yes, it should definitly be available in the US at some point.
The G D E needs more support from me but unfortunatly I havent had that time spare, hopefully that will chance and we will start growing a developer community before the Sonus release.

And as for batteries,  I completely agree. It was easier to use standard AA batteries during prototyping but shifting to Lithium Ion for the final unit is definitly something I want to push for.

But what I really want to know, is your expectations. My vision is high quality, in-depth games with surround audio. What do you think the Sonus can offer you that you dont already have with PC or mobile games? And i can try to focus on those advantages

2018-12-14 11:40:42

Hi, i created that test program just a few minutes ago. i could not do it the first time, i don't know what i did wrong, but it worked when i did it again when i saw this topic.
now tyhat i got the game working, i want to say i can't wait to see this consol. i will be more than happy to make or should i say try and make games for the consoll. it seems quite easy and fun.
i love this GDE! and good luck with the consol creation

best regards
never give up on what ever you are doing.

2018-12-14 13:45:57

How will the controls work? If it uses buttons, then thereisn’t much of a difference with a PC. How does the interface work? Is it speech based?.

2018-12-14 15:57:41

Thank you ashley. Im always glad to hear a bit of feedback on the G D E.

Yes the console does use buttons jacerbt. The impression I get from most audio gamers is that they seem to always be fairly computer literate. Where as some may prefer a more custom purpose built system that simply turns on and starts playing. And hopefully we can make the G D E easy enough to use that we get a bigger range of games. And hopefully more focused on audio since the programming is made easy.
Or so you feel PC would still be better? Id lpve to hear what you think

2018-12-14 17:10:13

When you have a portable console and not using your ios, or android in my case to play favorite games, you want the games to be a hibrid, I mean be big, like on pc, and not only focused on combat, as I saw most of android games do, but with easy controls like on mobile to be played on a small device, that will be amazing.
And btw, the video was great, I do not know if it was stereo or anithing because I lost today my headphones in school and I am using a damaged samsung headset, so, I can hear only with a single ear, but it sounded really good.

I am myself and noone is ever gonna change me, I am the trolling master!

2018-12-14 17:47:51

Yes the video is stereo and offers a surround sound experience with headphones.
I agree with making games big. Large free roaming worlds and in depth stories will be my personal goal with the games I develop.

Perhaps we could talk more about what we feel audio games are missing. And how we can fill those gaps. What would be the most ideal game you would like to play and what features would the game have that you feel games dont seem to have at the moment. And I can ensure we take our focus in that direction

2018-12-14 19:31:48

Turn based strategy games are what I miss playing personally. I'm not talking about something like battleship, but something more alont the lines of final fantasy tactics or fire emblem series where you position your units on a grid and have them interact with stuff all the while presenting the player with a ritch and meaningful story, and providing slight rpg elements like stat improvements through levelups and better gear. I can't think of many accessible games that can provide this kind of single player content, and the few I can think of are in the mainstream.

2018-12-15 09:50:50

Aaronlp, how are we going to navigate this device? doesn't it have like a speech based menu to tell you what you are focused on?

best regards
never give up on what ever you are doing.

2018-12-15 10:55:02

I personally like the final fantasy series Kenshira, it always has great soundtracks to immerse you into the game and the stories are very in-depth.

I'd love to hear more about what people want, what their ideal game would be and the features it would have.

to answer Ashley. This is down to the developers choice. Once the Sonus loads it will load whatever game is plugged in via memory stick, which will be a game that was made using the G D E.

2018-12-15 13:00:08

Oh. sorry, i thought that it is going to have a menu from whitch you load the game. just a question: can you make use of arrays in this GDE? the reason why i am asking this is because i would kind of like to make a menu for a game. or should we make the user press 1 to start, 2 to load the game, 3 to rase the volume and 4 to lower the volume and so on?

best regards
never give up on what ever you are doing.

2018-12-15 13:01:08

Oh, and one last question for now: how are we going to release updates to our games? or will we have to keep purchasing the game from a site? or will you have to download the file from a website and put it on the memory stick?

best regards
never give up on what ever you are doing.

2018-12-15 13:10:51

Feel free to ask as many questions as you like Ashley. I have made menus that are scrollable without a problem, normally with a counter that counts up or down with button presses and then on button release looks at what the counter value is and says a menu option, such as 1 being new game, 2 being load game etc.
Arrays as such arnt included but loops are, I  suggest looking into the tutorial about loops, I havent needed to use an array yet but for more experienced programmers there will be the option to run your own python scipts in the future. Its been on the feature list for quite some time but will probably be made an actualy feature after release. Updates to games will need redownloading, updates to the console itself however will be done whenever it is connected to the internet via ethernet cable. I plan on creating our own play store, where once you own a game it is registered to your account and any furtehr downloads or updates will of course be free.

2018-12-15 13:49:20

Do you know if you are going to have to create a developer account like on google play and the appstore and pay for that account?
I think this is going to be the first platform that i am going to be able to develop for.

best regards
never give up on what ever you are doing.

2018-12-15 13:55:17

The intention is to create as few limitations as possible for developers, so an account may be needed to publish your games but it most certainly will not cost anything, if anything the focus is to make some money.

2018-12-15 15:58:25

We need more turn-based and action RPGS. Particularly in the fantasy genre. And large, original,open worlds and in-depth storytelling seem to be few and far between in audiogames these days. So by all means make the games large--this, after all, a dedicated gaming device.

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2018-12-15 16:01:41

I want pinball and bowling games.

2018-12-15 16:29:24

Wait a minute, you're using ethernet cables to connect this thing to the internet? how about wifi? that's what everyone's using today. And I'd like to see some more simulation games like empire builders that work in real time. Day night cycles, weather conditions Etc. Hope this helps.

2018-12-15 17:25:05

The ethernet was included just as a way for the sonus to access updates. However there does seem to be a demand for wifi, there is no multiplayer capabilities built into the system natively but that doesnt mean we won't look into that further down the road. Plus we are going to allow developers to run their own python script which would make multiplayer possible without the need for it natively.

As i mentioned before the Circuitry side will hopefully be passed on to a 3rd party. And this is actually on my list of concerns to raise to them. But progress on this side of things probably wont take off until after christmas