I'm sure on paper this whole thing sounded pretty sweet when they started. Access to thousands of games, low distribution costs, great anti-piracy/hacking measures. But I think they bit off more than they could chew. Like the article says, they obviously don't know squat about games or gamers. It's almost as if they keep going because they have no choice. I bet they're frustrated that NOTHING is working out the way they wanted it to, but they want to use (read: pocket) all the investment money. Hell, maybe that was their plan all along. A great scam. Again, like the article says, the model could have just been a box with a light bulb in it. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if it was.
To nail something that really erks me is that whole "we're keeping the price at $50/game, even though we don't have to pay for packaging or shelf space." Why? Simply because we're "used to it?" That's asinine. You're giving me LESS of a product, why the hell would I pay the same/more for it? Screw you, this has greed written all over it. Even the RIAA is begining to understand this. People don't have to pay the same price for a CDs songs when they d/l them because they aren't paying for the packaging. I don't think these online music sources like iTunes would be nearly as successful if everything cost the same. Not exactly the same model, since you're only likely buying part of a CD (ie: one, two songs), but still, you get the idea.
The Phantom, if indeed a real, honest-to-God "console," is a joke. No one in their right mind is going to sacrifice everything they know about console gaming for this insanely twisted, illogical, and confusing scheme Infinum Labs has cooked up.
). "Indie" developers will have to pay a fee if they ever want to see their games listed as anything other than "indie_game 883390.exe".