Investigating Infinium Labs 257
the web writes "By now, the whole world has heard of Infinium Labs and their infamous Phantom Game Console, but what do we really know about what could be the next big gaming console or the people bringing it to market? At this point, we know little beyond what they've been willing to share. We haven't seen the console outside of a few 3D renderings, we haven't seen the facility where they claim beta units are being built, and we haven't seen the Infinium Labs base of operations." Our own Roblimo has found some reality to the Phantom console.
I'm a skeptic. (Score:5, Insightful)
from the link: "Infinium Labs is an industry-leading global entertainment and interactive game company."
How on earth can you be an industry leader when you haven't shown anything yet? Hell, I could claim "GrubCorp(tm) is an industry-leading global purveyor of anti-cancer drugs and massage oils." without having gotten off my lazy ass to do anything.
Don't be suprised to hear that they're planning to get more investors in the near future..
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:2, Funny)
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:3, Funny)
Slashdot?
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:2)
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:2, Funny)
BitBoys Glaze 3D (Score:4, Insightful)
Yeah thats what this is. BS
It pretty much the same thing "It's comming!" "It's better!" "It's faster" "It's revolutionary!" "It'll change the world!" "It's ALMOST DONE!"
In the end it's all BS.
Re:BitBoys Glaze 3D (Score:3, Informative)
From what I can tell the main problem was that these guys where mainly software people from the Demo scene with little experience at making actual silicon. They had demos' in FPGA form but these were not near the finished product because you can only do so much with an FPGA. So in the end alot of their claims where based on simulated/calculated performance.
I dont know if they actually did get to make
Re:BitBoys Glaze 3D (Score:3, Informative)
They did design the Pyramid3D - of which actual cards were produced and publicly demoed. The chip was manufactured by ST Microelectronics and had basic 'pixel shader' functionality - rather ahead of its time.
I remember reading about how it was to be demoed at Assembly one year (even offered as a prize?) and downloading a PDF about it from the manufacturer along with a demo video.
Re:BitBoys Glaze 3D (Score:2)
and iirc they have some patents/ip on the environment mapping used on gfx cards.
companys web site:
http://www.bitboys.fi/index.htm
as for hardware.. it takes a _lot_ of money to start producing stuff. and i don't think it would be very wise to enter the market even with so fierce competition if you can't start with HUGE marketing and manufacturing funds.
now they're a pure r&d company according to their website_ **
Re:BitBoys Glaze 3D (Score:3, Informative)
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:2)
Infiniium [amherst-systems.com]
(They just left out an i.
Would've had a better picture, but agilent's website seems to be down.
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:2)
The link you provided is just a partnership of Agilent's.
Also whats with the "Labs" thing?? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:5, Funny)
They same way the music and movie industry... (Score:2)
The same way every movie studio talks about their latest "blockbuster" movie, even though it hasn't been released yet. Or the music industry hyping someone's "latest hit single" that will be released next week.
If you haven't noticed it yet, just pay closer attention. It is really sad.
Re:They same way the music and movie industry... (Score:2)
All this stuff is market speak, ie: lying. I wonder why it isn't illegal.
Re:I'm a skeptic. (Score:2)
Step 1: Announce Game Console.
Step 2: Don't Show Up to E3.
Step 3: Don't Show Up to GDC.
Step 4: Announce Unveiling, but still don't show the console.
Step 5: Don't have an office, and don't have prduction facilities.
Step 6: ???
Step 7: Profit!
That's easy. (Score:5, Funny)
The statement, "Infinium Labs is an industry-leading global entertainment and interactive game company" simply states that they are both leading an industry, and that they are a global entertainment/interactive game company. It doesn't state that they are leading the global gaming industry, it could just be that they are leading *an* industry. Any industry. Pick one. Like elbow sharpening or lobster training. Oh, and they make games and have an employee in Namibia. :-)
Re:That's easy. (Score:2)
At any rate, what about lobster sharpening or elbow training? I've trained my elbows to almost never smack against doorframes painfully. Ocasionally though, they regress.
Re:That's easy. (Score:2)
Re:That's easy. (Score:2)
First launch title! (Score:2, Funny)
You're right (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:You're right (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:You're right (Score:5, Funny)
What is their symbol? which exchange?
SUCKR on Nasdaq.
Re:You're right (Score:2)
Re:You're right (Score:4, Funny)
In light of this, it wouldn't be a pump and dump, but a pump and pump and pump...
Re:You're right (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm impressed ... (Score:5, Insightful)
Read the HardOCP article first, then the NewsForge article. When Roblimo said, "He's renting high-end office space in Sarasota, Florida," soda nearly went shooting out of my nose. (I won't spoil it for you, read the articles.)
Re:I'm impressed ... (Score:4, Interesting)
But as far as I could see, the only thing *important* about Infinium was that they were trying to build an online, "on demand" game delivery/sales system. And, as I said in my article, I expect other entrepreneurs will soon figure out ways to provide that service better/faster/cheaper than Infinium.
I suppose, one day, I ought to go look at Infinium again and see what progress they've made, if any. Might even take my camera this time.
- Robin
Re:I'm impressed ... (Score:3, Insightful)
HardOCP also sent a photographer to the address of the company's alleged headquarters, and found a strip mall.
Sorry, man. I think you got taken.
[H]ardOCP (Score:2)
Honestly, I don't think that Rob's article does the situation justice; the write-up at [H]ardOCP really does some great investigative reporting, and I think they are right on the money.
Not to mention the economic side of things... so this 'company' has raised $25 million in cash. Who cares? Microsoft loses 10 times that amount on the Xbox every quarter. So, this console would be entering a market where there are already three big players [struggling] to hold on.
Entering t
Re:You're right (Score:2)
*COUGH*SCO*COUGH*
Spammers (Score:5, Informative)
Even if I was in the market for a game console, I definitely wouldn't buy from a spammer.
Re:Spammers (Score:2)
I just got my first spam ever to my
You hit the nail on the head. (Score:4, Insightful)
That's my prediction anyway.
Phantom gaming console (Score:5, Funny)
Comment removed (Score:4, Informative)
Re:REAL PICTURES OF THE MACHINE!! (Score:2)
Looking at Pricewatch, building a 2GHz-class PC with good graphics for $400 doesn't appear to be a problem. What's the Infinium added value?
As seen in my (rejected) submission... (Score:5, Interesting)
I guess it's not hard to figure out where some of that $25M in capital went...
For reference, Steve didn't note it in this article, but he and Kyle have run a previous "insight" into the mystery behind Infinium Labs, and when he called the Big Cheeze to ask him about the non-existent offices, the guy threatened to press charges against Kyle.
Re:As seen in my (rejected) submission... (Score:3, Interesting)
Important message for those that preordered! (Score:5, Funny)
hahaha (Score:3)
Gee, I'll sign right up.
I don't think that the Phantom will work (Score:5, Informative)
What i learned though, is that they are thinking about just selling them on Ebay, or other distrobution channel, since they don't have major support. The big thing though, is that they want to make the system available with different amounts of RAM or HD space. This is a huge no-no for consoles. Consoles should *not* become PC's, with regards to upgrading.
Re:I don't think that the Phantom will work (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:I don't think that the Phantom will work (Score:3, Interesting)
Donkey Kong 64 was the first game to require it, and due to it being Nintendo's big holiday title when it came out, came bundled with the memory upgrade for free.
Zelda: Majora's Mask required the memory pack. Perfect Dark also required it. Well, you could do a 2 player deathmatch with no bots without the memory upgrade, but not much else, so it effectively required it. Considering both of those games sold in the millions, I'
Penny Arcade... (Score:5, Funny)
Dude, Woah [penny-arcade.com]
I Hate The Stupid Phantom [penny-arcade.com]
Yay, another *yawn* MS gaming device (Score:5, Insightful)
Umm...Sounds odd to me (Score:5, Funny)
Features:
Up to 3.0 GHz processor with 256MB DDR RAM
- High-performance nVidia video card
- High-performance Intel motherboard
- Dolby Digital(TM) 7.1 Surround Sound
- 100+ Gigabyte internal storage device
- On-board RF wireless modules
- S-Video, RCA or component video and PAL
- 10/100 baseT Ethernet
- 1 wireless controller
- Wireless keyboard and mouse
- 2 USB ports
- 4 controller ports
Correct me if I'm wrong, but shouldn't a proprietary box that has all these features have a COMPAQ logo on it?
Nah... (Score:2)
next big thing ? (Score:2)
So could anything, and yet even XBox with all M$ wasn't the "the next big gaming console". I wouldn't hold my breath on this one.
Re:next big thing ? (Score:3, Insightful)
Quote specs and buzzwords till you're blue in the face. Only a handful of nerds and fanboys care.
The games have to be there. The games aren't there for xbox - MSFT has failed it.
I own all three consoles. Generally in the PS2 or NGC scenes, there's a new "big game" every month or so. One day people are all jazzed about GTA3, the next all jazzed about FFX, the next all jazzed about Devil May Cry. Same for NGC - today its Zelda, tomorrow Wario or Metroid, etc, etc..
Contrast with Xbox, whic
So what? (Score:5, Insightful)
So these guys think they can package PCs as consoles, and sell a subscription based service.
Good luck to them. They'll fail.
PC games and console games are practically a world apart. As a rule, console games don't play well on a PC, PC games dont play well on a console.
Not only do they have PS2/NGC and Xbox to compete with, they're doing so with an inferior product, and one that customers have shown repeatedly they DONT WANT.
People want to go to the store, buy the game, and own it. They don't want to "liscense" it. They dont want their libraries limited by how much space this thing's hard drive has.
This is DIVX for the game industry. It'll be stillborn.
What would be a killer plan, though, would be to revamp the "Sega channel" idea, but do it like this: sell an adaptor for xbox or ps2/ngc with hdd addon, broadcast playable demos on the channel 24/7. No monthly subscriptions - that will kill the idea, people HATE monthly fees. People would rather pay 500 bucks upfront than 10 bucks a month for a year. Think of the channel as a form of advertising. Have publishers pay to have their latest demo broadcast. Hell, you could piggyback the demos on G4 or TechTV or something, come up with a standard so that you could broadcast for different consoles and PCs...
Ah well, no point in getting all worked up about it. It'll be a long, long time before execs "get it". They're so horny over the idea of a constant, predictable revenue stream that subscriptions offer, they cant see straight. Xbox live is tanking, as will Phantom, as will the uber-mega-next-gen-only-5$-a-month-for blah blah scheme.
Re:So what? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:So what? (Score:2, Insightful)
I like my big TV, and sitting on the couch. I like the lower resolution, it makes images look more natural.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:So what? (Score:2)
Re:So what? (Score:2)
It's spelled, "S-t-e-a-m." =)
Re:So what? (Score:5, Informative)
You clearly don't know what you're talking about.
Xbox Live recently turned 1 year old. Its 500,000 subscribers put it on par with the height of EverQuest's popularity, and it is maintaining a growth path that is expected to double that figure in a year.
"Tanking". Heh.
Re:So what? (Score:3, Insightful)
And 500,000 subscribers is far shy of what they expected. Hell, even the box hype on the starter kit promises "millions". I'm sure a lot more people will start paying 7 bucks a month to play online when PS2 and PC offers the same thing for nothing.
So you bought xbox live, and you're a fan - good for you. I was a fan of Dreamcast, yet I can accept the fact that it was a failure.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:So what? (Score:2)
Selling something that is free. Thats what I call marketing.
let me get this straight (Score:2, Insightful)
Wow, it must be doing AWESOME. That sure teaches me.
Asshat.
Re:So what? (Score:2, Insightful)
Cable, telephone, power, broadband internet are all services. A video game is a product. Playing everquest requires the service you pay for. Would you pay 20 bucks a month to play a single player game like FFX?
Downloading Video Requires "Gigex Delivery Agent" (Score:4, Insightful)
JOhn
Re:Downloading Video Requires "Gigex Delivery Agen (Score:2)
I'm running Mozilla 1.4 on OS X and I get... A BLANK PAGE for the infiniumlabs.com splash page. Gotta love silly FrontPage 5.0 IE proprietary "features". With interoperability like that I don't even want to think about their crap product.
And fyi for super gamer geeks, never heard of the company before. I doubt the WHOLE WORLD has heard of it considering seemingly only your niche (and not even half at best of your niche) has heard of it. So give it a rest.
Why you haven't seen one... (Score:3, Funny)
Here skinny on the CEO (Score:2, Informative)
http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NTEy
Lots of bankrupcy and debt..
nVidia != nVidea (Score:3, Insightful)
JOhn
Re:nVidia != nVidea (Score:2, Funny)
Re:nVidia != nVidea (Score:2)
Not necessarily. Console gamers are the majority of gamers, and I doubt most of them would know much about video cards.
A virtual non-entity. (Score:2)
Oops. (Score:2)
Uncrackable... (Score:2)
Re:Uncrackable... (Score:2)
-Lucas
Why is Phantom news coverage so obtuse? (Score:3, Insightful)
Huge gaming sites are surprisingly tolerant of it.
So far, the only people who've flat out said "This thing is a joke, a lie to sucker stupid venture capitalists out of their money with flashy marketing for a product that doesn't exist" is Penny Arcade. I just don't see with so much evidence against them that people aren't flat out saying "We refuse to cover this. We're not stupid enough to give you what you want, the hype you can use to steal even more money". If all these huge sites collectively decided to stop covering this "company" and its "product" until they provide some *solid, concrete reason* to give them coverage, maybe they would finally just fade out of existence, like all the other companies this shmuck has been a part of.
* - These reasons would have to include a working prototype and an actual business plan rather than a business theory.
In latests news .. (Score:2, Interesting)
Very interesting read... (Score:3, Interesting)
Basically, save your money...you're probably better off investing in SCO than this company.
Sing it with me now! (Score:2)
It's a great idea, like extortion. (Score:5, Interesting)
There are no media drives (beyond the HDD) wher eyou could import software garner through a third party onto it (with the exception of USB drives, I seem to recall it having USB capability). Now, since the only way you can get games is through your dedicated broadband connection to their servers, they can really charge whatever they want for the software, heck they could even charge more than SRV if they wanted to, because you can't just go out to the store and buy Pong if you want to play it on your phantom, you have to buy it through them.
From teh standpoint of a greedy corporate entity, this isn't a very hard thing to do, hire some cheap labor to screw in pieces. Get some technicians to 'help' people install their console and proceed to make a good deal of money thanks to their total control over what the product can do (by controlling what software you can put onto the product).
Of course the fact remains that the person who runs it, at least as described by Penny-Arcade, and every article that they've been linking to, is totally sketch. It also remains that their listed office is a PO box in Mailboxes Etc.
In all seriousness, if you want your company to be treated like an adult you have to have an least the veneer of legitimacy, because unles you've established yourself in the market you're after, you can't go around making big claims and then not back them up with some demos (which wouldn't be that hard to fix up throw a couple of units at some EBs, give them some top-shelf games and let the kiddies play till their brains explode). After all, they're just selling a computer.
Media... (Score:2)
Of course, they left out... (Score:2, Funny)
lol
Next... (Score:2)
It's not the size of the console... (Score:3, Insightful)
peace
Comment removed (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:REAL PICTURES OF THE PHANTOM BOX!! (Score:2)
Link Removed? (Score:2)
Infinium Labs is a bunch of spamming fuckwits (Score:2)
http://groups.google.com/groups?q=btfh.net+phan t om &ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&btnG=Google+Searc h
(be advised of the link munging, if you cant get it to pull up, go to groups.google.com and do a search for the terms btfh.net and phantom, and you'll find it.)
I promptly firewalled the
How long before it gets killed? (Score:2)
After all, they didn't hesitate to terminate the UK cellular telephone company who was making a WinCE based phone when they realised that they could get a better deal in Korea, if they stole Sendo's IP by bankrupting them.
They didn't hesitate to screw with Sharp's Windows license when they started to ship the Zaurus.
I don't expect this company to have a bright fut
Fictional reality (Score:3, Insightful)
huh? (Score:3, Funny)
This simply won't work for obvious ways.
Consumer: So, this box will cost me $400.
Retailer: Yes
Consumer: And basically all it is is a PC made with off the shelf parts.
Retailer: Yes
Consumer: And there's no CD drives or external way of transferring data
Retailer: You can through our service
Consumer: Can I open it up and put in my own hardware?
Retailer: No. If you do you will be in trouble.
Consumer: Well, I guess that's OK. It's just going to be a game box. It can play games right?
Retailer: Oh yes. Lots of them.
Consumer: And I can play all the games I want for $9.95 a month?
Retailer: Oh no, some games are included with the subscription price; others will cost you extra money.
Consumer: Which ones will cost me extra?
Retailer: The good ones.
Consumer: So for $9.95 I get to play all the crummy games I want, and the right to pay more for ones I'd actually want to play?
Retailer: You also get targeted commercial content.
Consumer: Ooo... that sounds interesting. What exactly is that?
Retailer: Ads.
Consumer: So for $400 and a $9.95 a month, I get a computer I can't touch, all the games I've never heard of, lots of ads and the privilege of paying for the good games, which I could do at any store with an X-box or Playstation while actually getting the physical media? Sign me up!
Retailer: Sounds great! While you're here, can I interest you in some volcano insurance?
proprietary encryption (Score:2, Interesting)
$5 says it will be broken a day after it ships. WHen I hear proprietary and encryption I think "security by obscurity" and we all know how well that works.
Re:I fully hope they succeed. (Score:3, Funny)
Ah yes, I can't wait for the next generation of vaporware consoles. The specs on those imaginary machines will be so impressive that the imaginary games created for it will be just like the Matrix. Man, those are going to be good times. You know what, maybe I'll get a jump on the Phantom and announce a new console from Acidic_Diarrhea labs. Let's see, it'll be a console with four parallel processors all running at 5 ghz, three
Re:I fully hope they succeed. (Score:3, Informative)
No one except for a small company called Yahoo [yahoo.com].
Re:I fully hope they succeed. (Score:2)
You know what... they really don't care. The cost of developing for you wouldn't be made up by the small number of linux users who would actually pay for their product.
Re:Infinium Labs (Score:2)
Base premise false; skip article
But post a new comment anyway, 'cause this is
--
Re:It will fail (Score:2)
1) Developers
2) An office
3) A game console
Re: In Other News... (Score:2)
I have this bridge that I'd like him to sell for me...
That said, it sounds like he's great with raising cash, just lousy with (a) coming out with a real product or (b) generating sales to individuals.
Looking at his plan to sell across ebay, I suspect it's (b), not (a).
But I am well aware of how hard it is to run a business; I'm looking at things, and thinking "broke" (though not bankrupt, with only $8k in debt and no investors
Re:And HardOCP has had this up for how long? (Score:2)