GamingFreedom

I've been thinking a lot lately about gaming and how most gamers buy nintendo/sony/microsoft consoles and play proprietary games on them. I am a participant of this as I am big fan of Nintendo and have a N64, Gamecube, and Wii. I generally see it as a matter of art versus software and since I look at it from an art point of view, it doesn't usually bother me that it's non-free, since I wouldn't want to modify The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time or Super Mario 64. But now I'm starting to see where freedom could be useful, not only in studying the source to learn from it, but for sharing with others and making mods. Many game communities are built on the ability to modify the game in some way. The problem is that these benefits apply to computer games but for a console, you are locked out.

In my experience, there are many great games, including some of my favorites, that are only available on a game console. What do others think about this? Do you play Nintendo Wii or Microsoft XBox or Sony Playstation (n)?

The other thing I thought of is that all a game console is really is a cheap, portable computer that has proper Audio/Video ports to plug into a TV. If this existed to support free software and a free game-console operating system or even a stripped down version of GNU/Linux, then this could be a huge success for free software. But hardware would be the only gain. I can't see a good reason for people to buy the games if they would exist online to burn to cd. Personally, I would pay for a nice case, a nice printed cd, and a nice manual. If all that existed for a free game console, I would be very happy. What do you think of this apparent lack? Do you think it doesn't matter because games run on computers and supporters of free software will primarily use the computer instead of a console?

To be frank this is something I'm having a lot of problems with myself ideologically. I am a video game fan first, movie fan second, and a computer fan third. That makes me a Nintendo fan first and a Free Software fan third.

As such, I still continue to love and enjoy Nintendo and Mario. However, in many ways, I do think this makes me a hypocrite. I like the idea of Free Software for computers, but not for consoles.

As a matter of history, the Atari used to be a free platform to the extent that if one knew how to program for it one could make games for it. With no restrictions on quantity, content, or quality; Atari and the video game market became synonymous with over saturated and shady games.

Video games companies churned out any piece of crap they thought someone would buy. They would be used to advertise movies. And, yes, even for digi-sex.

This lead to video games being seen as less and less a work of art. They were seen as shoddy, shiftless, and desperate works of unrestricted marketing.

This all culminated in the Video Game Crash of 1983. Wherein the video game market died due to too much freedom to market whatever fall of poo anyone wanted to.

Video Games might have remained a dead art, or at least remained dormant for a decade or so, had it not been for Nintendo. Nintendo used various policy and marketing ideas to appropriately restrict video games in a responsible manner.

1: Nintendo created content guidelines so that possibly offensive material such as drugs, sex, and violence could not be market on their consoles. This helped to clean up how the public viewed video games.

2: Nintendo restricted video games companies to being able to only release five video games a year on their system. This made it so that the market wouldn't be over saturated.

3: Another reason for the restriction of five games a year is to promote quality. When one company can only release five titles a year, if the company hopes to survive, they better be well made.

4: Also, Nintendo did require the video games to have a decent amount of coding and graphic quality. It had to be shown that there was an honest effort in making a good game, not just a quick marketing gag. As such, Nintendo created the Official Nintendo Seal of Quality to assure customers that Nintendo verified that the game in question is of Nintendo's high standards.

Understanding this one quickly learns that the reason we have video games is because of Nintendo. Video games might have rebounded on their own, but would likely have crashed again without restriction. The control Nintendo enforces built the marketing foundation on how a video game company could not only exist, but also thrive.

Because of these reasons, I do not want a video game console platform that is free. It would be filled with marketing ploys, porn games, and games with crappy graphics and crappy code.

In many ways I would love it if there was a line somehow drawn between video game consoles and computers. I believe Free Software has proven itself. I believe Free Software is good for computers. However, I believe if the policies were put into the video game market they would kill it. We had a free platform before, it was Atari and it killed Video Games.

Now, I do think it might be useful if the engines were allowed to be Free Software. Actually, I.D. Software is well known for releasing their engines as Free Software. To be frank, I doubt we would have any Free Software First Person Shooters at all had it not been for I.D. Software's generosities.

Freedoom is based off the Doom Engine. And most of the other First Person Shooters I look at that or Free Software are almost always based off of one of the Quake Engines.

As you say, mod communities are very successful and help the longevity of the games.

I think it might be a good idea to encourage companies to fallow I.D. Software example. However, I'm not going to stop playing games until that happens. Because, likely, it won't happen any time within the next three to four decades.

Free Software is more concerned right now with battling Microsoft and Mac. Even though, I think most people's hearts lie with Nintendo, Sony, and Halo.

As such, right or wrong, I do draw a line for myself between my love for Video Games and Nintendo, and my support for Free Software on Computers.

Can anyone come up with an ideology where I can keep this line, love both, and not be a hypocrite?

Thank you.

Personally, I would love if there were some standard for producing video games that worked as LiveCDs like the LiveCD operating systems.

linux-gamers.net http://live.linux-gamers.net/ shows that this is possible. If there was a build system like the GNU autotools for producing LiveCD video games, cover art, instruction manuals, and CD art, then these could be produced with relative ease. I have to say that if I saw wormux, supertux, supertuxkart, lincity-ng, Neverball, Powermanga, etc. available in a nice game case with a professional-looking manual and printed CD I would purchase it without even thinking about it. This would pave the way for a "game console" which would be a light-weight computer with A/V ports advertised for free gaming. I don't expect this to happen, but I'm wondering what others think of this scheme. It seems that a couple of others have tried but ended up being vaporware in the end.

Again, to act as a counter point and to deliver my view, I am for a clear line of distinction between the two worlds.

First off, I really don't think people will spend money on something they could download for free. Or, if they do, they would be extrodinairly ticked off when they find this out.

Second, and expressed in detail in my first post, I do not think this would be benificial for video games. I think it would open the can of worms up for the kind of problems that Atiri caused.

I like the idea of Free Software on computers, phones, and music players. I think it's a great idea for these types of things. However, I don't really think it would bring anything positive to the video game table. And, to be frank, could well destroy it.

I've played Supertux and Wormux and they are, as of now, lackluster imitations of games that are more than a decade old. While I enjoy Supertux, it is by no means close to the level of Super Mario Brothers. And, while I do think Wormux might someday eclipse the Worms 2 series, which as a point of fact is one of my favorite computer games, I do not see things happening for at least another three to five years.

Free Software games just develop too slowly to easily catch up with non-free games. While, in theory, they may somday surpass non-free; it's hard to sell theory to people in buisness suits. And when you look at the praticality of the games Free Software has produced. About half or more are less iconic, less nestalgic, half-done imitations of decade old games that slowly get closer to a bar of greatness that is already out of date.

It's like the reason Richard Stallman chose to make GNU portable. So it wouldn't be absolite before it is finished.

Where are the Free Software games that are on level with Super Smash Brothers Brawl and Super Mario Galaxey? There are none, for two reasons.

First, 3D is still in its infancy stages on these systems. You pretty much have to run 3D Free Software games on Windows. It's like we've set up a moon base, and a launch pad, but didn't make a rocket.

We have Free Software 3D games, Free Software Systems, and almost no Free Software 3D Drivers at all. I've been asking for months how to get 3D to work and each time I ask I get a new reason why it doesn't. Unless you have a specific chipset by intel, that I think it built into the motherboard, don't hold your breathe for 3D games on gNewSense in the near future. At least, that's the jist of what's been told to me in not so many words.

The second is it's hard to develop 3D games when Free Softare is still trying to get YouTube to work. Almost everything Free Software does is about a decade behind non-free because it's being created from scratch.

Think about what your computer could do in 1998, that's what a Free Software system can almost do now... almost. My computer had 3D in 95... so, we might have it by 2020.

The only reason there are any Free Software 3D games at all worth mentioning is the generosity of I.D. Software marking thier engines Free Software after they get old.

I feel I have to discuss a side topic for a moment. You talk about how far behind free software is. Well, actually, it's no much further behind than it used to be and now it's gaining. Gnash is coming along very nicely and the reason it took so long isn't that it just takes that long. It took a long time to get started because there were other priorities that got in the way of free software in a bigger way. Yes, we're "still trying to get YouTube to work" but we haven't been working on that seriously for very long really. What's now on the list of important projects that stand between proprietary systems and free systems? 3D Drivers, Wireless drivers, flash, if you still count it. We can even start to explore the ability of having a free BIOS, now that there are so few important gaps. There may be a lot more that I just can't think of right now but the list of gaps has been shrinking rapidly since the start of the GNU Project and I see 3D drivers coming into bigger importance soon. In the next couple of years, 3D drivers could work just fine on free systems. Maybe, maybe not. You say maybe we'll have it by 2020. Even if it did take that long for it to be reliable, I bet there would be a smaller gap between what a proprietary system can do and what free systems can do.

Either way, that is besides my real point. By now I am used to the idea that if something isn't free then I'll just have to look for a free alternative. I'm not really concerned with looks of games anyway. As far as supertux and wormux go, I'm happy with them, and if they start to provide real innovation then that makes up for lack of modern graphics for me. I guess your argument is that most people would disagree with that and would find modern graphics to be a must. I'm really interested in a quick, easy livecd that works. I've tried the live.linux-gamers.net Custom mastering environment and I took a quick look at the Builder scripts for gNewSense. If there were an easy way to take one package and automatically, by script, make a LiveCD with the proper libraries installed that runs a stripped down GNU system and starts that program, shutting down when the program is quit, then they could be made for every prominent free software game and could be marketed and sold on the FSFs store.

I guess the difference is that I'm comparing Free Software to the people, not to the Free Software people.

When I was at college I tried to get people interested in Free Software video games and video game tournaments. Time, and time, and time again I was asked the same question.

Why should they play 2D games anymore when their X-Box 360 and PS3s can do things two to three decades ahead of anything Free Software can do?

What does Stratagus have that Starcraft doesn't have better?

What does Wormux have that Worms Armageddon, Worms World Party, Wormd 3D doesn't have better?

What does Aliens Wars have that Halo 3 doesn't have better?

What does Supertux have that Super Mario Galexy doesn't have better?

Well, I've never played Alien Wars because 3D doesn't work on gNewSense yet for anyone who doesn't have one specific IMB imbeded chipset.

When thinking about the 2D games, I had to consider. Well, the non-free games have more options, more features, better graphics, larger online comunities, and people actually know what the titles are.

When I ask, "Do you want to play Tremulous?" People look at me like I'm stupid.

If I ask them if they want to play Halo, they understand.

When I try to show them Tremulous, they keep comparing it to Halo and asking why should they bother playing something that doesn't have as many features.

The only thing I can think to tell them is, "With Free Software you get freedom!"

Then they say, they are not programers, and that they don't care about Freedom they care about great graphics, more features, and playing a game other people know about and also play.

I feel like I'm a Jewish person at a Christmas party. I'm partaking in a lifestyle the rest of the people don't know about, don't practice, don't want to know about, and don't want to practice; and try to convert me back to what they play because, well, no one else plays what I play. No one else I know in person anyway. But everyone plays Mario and Halo.

Do you see my point? You can't really consider yourself a video game lover and play only Free Software video games. You're about a decade behind, nobody knows what you play or what you're talking about. And you feel like you're alone, outcast, and nobody understands it. And, to be honest, I look at it and don't see the advantage of banishing myself from everyone for some freedom that I, and nobody I know in person, knows how to use.

Free Software is great for computers. The it is getting somewhat close to matching non-free computer abilities. However, Free Software and gaming does not mix; especially on a Free Software System.

I feel like I'm a Jewish kid, sitting at a Christmas dinner, looking at all the presents and lights, and food; having to explain why I can't eat ham to people who don't understand and just feel sorry for me not being able to eat ham. Then trying to explain my way of life to people who don't know, don't care, because theirs is better known and better celebrated.

That's how I feel with Free Software and gaming. So, I do jump ship when it bennifits me.

I understand your feeling about using free software games. Honestly, I will probably continue to play Nintendo games and things like that too. I think I seem to differ with your mentality a little bit though. The way I see it, nothing's permanent or set in stone about the difference. The reason I talked about how free software has been catching up is because I will be rooting for a free platform and free games and if it happens, then I will favor it over proprietary games to support it. I'm not much of a serious gamer that plays all the time but there are a few games that I have really enjoyed playing. My favorites are Starcraft, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Chrono Trigger, Banjo-Kazooie, Super Mario 64 . . . there are probably more. But now I would like to try to build up a list of my favorite free software games as well. Richard Stallman has mentioned in interviews for years (I think) that he used Debian GNU/Linux even though he couldn't recommend it on www.gnu.org. I don't think I need to give up games I like but once there exists a free alternative, I'll slowly start to abandon proprietary systems to support and promote a free one. I just wish there was a project for this.

Programming games is the hardest thing on the planet. Interfaces, AI, UI, button icons, character development, music, audio, OpenGL/DirectSUX, etc.

Try Wesnoth - it's living proof that Free Software games are awesome. Seriously. Follow suit - get yourself a svn/git repository, start getting some volunteers.

Consoles are for whiny Halo/WoW crack monkeys. Don't become part of the problem. Gaming/console companies wouldn't think twice about you selling your sister for the next gen console.

I'm not sure what you're suggesting. I enjoy playing games on a console because I can sit comfortably in a big room with a TV at the end and use a controller that fits in my hand instead of sitting in front of a computer desk with a keyboard.

I will probably continue to buy consoles and console games simply for that reason. I'm suggesting that I would like a free alternative to the industry leaders. All it would take is a decent box with A/V ports, some USB ports for controllers, a convenient way to open and close the disc tray, and some nice packaging, and LiveCDs could function identically to proprietary console games. I'll continue thinking about this for a while and trying to make LiveCDs that act like this. It all sounds fun and I would be excited if it happened.

How your dream might go.

There are some advantages to your concept. The one real advantage to a Free Software gaming system would be standardization of hardware and software that is inherently lacking in the computer world.

When one buys a game for a Wii or PS3, they know their system can play it. When one buys a game for a PC, unless they read the requirements, they're mostly hoping it will.

What you're dreaming of would require, to be effective, standardization of both a hardware platform and an operating system.

There are three challenges that stand in the way of a Free Software Video Gaming Console. Which, in and of itself, is not a bad idea to be honest.

1: The first challenge is getting a group of people interested in designing and maintaining the hardware model and operating system. This endeavour will not be cheap. I honestly don't see it going big any time soon, nor do I expect it on my Wal*Mart shelf in ten years.

Dream, but dream realistically. A Free Software Video Game System would likely be made and sold on a small scale. At least at first. They would probably be made 500-1000 at a time, if that, and sold off. Judging the market, the manufacturers would they decide if there is a market to keep making them or not, and to what scale. Again, don't expect them on shelves any time soon.

Also, they will be quite expensive. They will likely not be as Un-Godly as the PS3. But they will likely cost more than a Wii. Maybe more than an X-Box 360.

Remember, when you are manufacturing to a limited market the costs that would usually be offset by video game sales and mass production are gone.

People will download games for it, so they won't make money from games. People will use computer controllers on it, so they won't make money on accessories.

As such, the only money that is being made is for the console itself. This money has to

Pay for the console parts. Again, mass production makes for assembly lines that makes things cost, in the long run, cheaper because they're being sold to more people. These will likely be costume made at first by some small to mid sized hardware company. As such, they will not be mass produced and they will be expensive.

B: Pay for the designers and lawyers to contract and design the system. Again, this is not a simple task. And sense there are so sales of games or accessories, this cost will be dealt to the consumer. The hardware may only cost $200, but the system may cost $400-$500 when all is said and done.

C: I don't believe it should rely on gNewSense, Blag, or any established Free Software Operating System. Perhaps it could utilize one as its base; but it should be developed and maintained as its own Operating System for the console. This would allow the developers to work with the software and the hardware and maximize its abilities. It should be a Free Software System, but it should be specialized. Think of how Dynbolic is specialized for Audio Visual Editing. The Free Software Operating System for a Free Software Video Game Console should be specialized for it. The money that pays for the console will also have to pay for developing and maintaining this operating system as well.

2: This leads to the next major challenge. Modern Video Gaming is mostly 3D and Free Software has zero to maybe 0.00000000000001 3D capability. It seems that more and more non-free code is being found in the mesa 3D system. It also appears there is none, or very, very, very, very, very few modern 3D Cards that offer 100% Free Software Drivers.

As such, this grand system of yours will have little more power and ability than a Super Nintendo; as console that has been outdated for more than ten years.

And, as I've lamented about here already, gNewSense can't even run Super Nintendo games anymore because of the new Freedom Updates.

Let's get out heads out of the clouds and think reasonably for a moment. How many people are REALLY going to buy a Free Software Video Game System that can't even play Super Nintendo games, let alone do ANYTHING 3D?

Almost no one, that's who.

This means Free Software will have to buckle down even harder than it already has been on getting 3D Drivers working. And mesa, which I still don't fully understand what it is and or does, will have to be heavily developed or even replaced.

Again, who's paying for that? That would be the people buying the console, that's who. And it's not going to be a pretty penny.

However, all is not gloom or doom. In fact, this is one of the key reasons, after thinking at length about it, I like your concept to this degree. Free Software needs 3D support. Also, it will never have the hearts of the people if it can't play games.

Again, more and more of the people I talk with cling to Windows because it plays games.

Richard Stallman worked off of the idea that if you build it they will come. If you build a Free Software System, people will make Free Software for it.

We would have to work off the same ideology. If we build a Free Software Video Game Console, people will buy it. If people buy it; we'll have more 2D and 3D Free Software Games.

I don't think the Free Software Foundation has yet realized how big a role video games truly play in the computer market. Or, to be honest, the market in general.

This system, if backed by the FSF, could finally see the cooperation between the FSF and a graphic card manufacture to produce a standardized graphic card for the system and realise the driver as 100% Free Software.

If mesa is cleaned up, or something is developed to replace it, not only will we then see a Free Software Video Game Console, we'd also see 3D in Free Software.

I think this would be an excellent political and tactical move for the FSF. Free Software needs to win the hearts of the people. Gnu and Tux need to be as recognizable and loved as Mario and Sonic. Until they are made all-star video game characters, this won't happen. You can't win the hearts of the people, your key supporters, if all your system can do is browse the Internet and run servers.

This move would bring these characters, and what the represent, to the people. And it would bring 3D to Free Software. And it would bring Free Software to the Video Gaming Market.

The Free Software Video Game Console could do for Free Software and the Video Game Market what Openmoko has done for Free Software and the Cell Phone Market.

Yes, we can turn out a few prototypes for probably $1000.00 dollars or so. But for this dream to become realized, even on the small scale, it would require the founding of a company; much like Openmoko. It's just too big of a plate for the FSF to handle on its own.

3: Next is the hardware. Key, more than anything else in its design, is the graphic card.

Again, and I can't stress this enough, the company and the FSF would have to contract with a graphic card manufacturer for the cards themselves and for the drivers. This won't be cheap.

Next is size and shape. While I don't want to rip off the Wii, I do think something along its lines would be best.

There shouldn't really be a huge plastic logo. There shouldn't really be a huge box. The bigger it is the more space it takes and the heavier it is. Thus, it's more expensive to make because it takes more material. Also, it's more expensive to ship. Also, the smaller it is the better because people like small and light weight.

As such, much like the Wii, though it should be distinct enough to avoid getting sued, the console should be only slightly larger than a CD-ROM Drive at best. Maybe a little larger, I do think it should fit a full-hard rive because the games will be stored on the system. So maybe twice the thickness of a Wii?

It would require a mini motherboard, that might need to be made custom. The case, do doubt, will need to be costume. Maybe a GNU could be engraved on the side?

Whether or not it should draw the disc in like the Wii or have a tray like the PS2 would likely be the matter of which one it cheaper. One almost has to ask why it would really even need discs at all.

I mean, to be honest, it should be able to connect to the Internet. Either through Ethernet Cable, Wi-Fi, or both. The Operating System should be pre-installed on it. I see no reason it would even need a CD or DVD drive; and that would cut costs. The only thing I can think of is to play DVDs. But that's already a touchy legal issue in the US. So, it's best avoided.

I see no reason console updates, and new games, could not simply be downloaded through the Internet.

It would likely require an external adapter like the Game-Cube. To be honest, thinking about it, that's about the size this thing is going to be. Maybe it would be built in. But there really are no power packs that I can think of, needs more research, that are small enough to make the console small and light weight.

Again, if it's as big as a computer it has failed as a Video Game Console because it is neither light weight or very portable. People like to take these things from room to room and house to house.

It would require a built in converter to the Audio Video Out as well. That shouldn't be too hard.

The CPU would also need to be small is size and large in power.

Nintendo and Sony have entire teams created to design their consoles. So, our first batch will likely be over sized compared to what we'll have someday in the distant future for like of customized parts.

It should be the size of a Game-Cube. It will likely end up somewhere between Game-Cube and X-Box for lack of affordability of costume parts.

As such, we'll have to settle for things designed for Mini-T Mother Boards and Cases.

There should be four USB Ports for four PC controllers. Free Software already works well with PC Controllers both wireless and wired. As well as, I assume, Joysticks. Why not just let the player use the controllers they already have and make that part of the sells pitch?

I mean, after all, the standard PC controller now days is a PS2 knock off that should have no trouble playing 3D games.

There should also be maybe 2 more USB ports for added gadgets like USB sticks to be attached. That way if the player wants to move software or add something else like a printer or what have you, they could. Though, this is not a need to have.

Though, I do stress four USB for multilayer. Two controllers are never really enough. The N64 through Mario Party and Super Smash Brothers introduced the concept of party gaming which has opened up a whole new market.

The system should be wireless and wired, but might end up being one or the other because of cost effectiveness.

Also, memory needs to be considered. The console should be able to be opened, so that people can change the hardware if they so choose. Though, there should be a standardized amount of hard drive, CPU power, and memory. It'll get too confusing if there are too many options or if there is too much customizability allowed in the ordering process. At that point it's no different from a computer and the standardization and optimization that consoles bring will be lost.

That standardization, actually, is why I prefer consoles over computers.

In summary, there is a lot to be done to have a Free Software Video Game System. It will require founding a company. It would require priority support by the FSF. And it would require intense negotiations between the FSF and the company with a hardware and graphic cards manufacturer to create and maintain a Video Game Console capable of all of this and producing it for a specialized market. Truly this would be a grand undertaking is financial endeavoring.

The largest challenge will be getting 3D to work and keeping the affordability of the console while realizing that it is targeted to a specialized market.

The advantages will come from one key word; standardization. From this we will get a working 3D graphic card, a working 3D, public awareness of the power of Free Software, public awareness of Free Software Characters and what they represent, and a Free Software Video Game System. Also, we'll get more Free Software Video Games because if you build it they will come. Which, this will do for Free Software and Video games what Openmoko is doing for Free Software and Cell Phones. This might change video games as we know it, in the long run. If nothing else, it will inspire more games and and get us 3D.

The selling points are Free Video Games; free as in freedom and price. Compatibility with PC game pads and joysticks wireless and wired. And the ability to function as a computer as well as a video game console. The Operating System will come pre-installed, and will be updated and maintained by the company that built it. Communities will develop to help the company advance the platform. With one standardized hardware, the company and community can work on optimizing the system. New models could be created every four to six years or so, like other consoles. Video games can be downloaded and played online. As such, there really us no need for a CD Drive because it can keep the Operating Systems and games on its hard drive and download more via the Internet.

All in all, it is a big project. But if done right there is no reason it could not be done. And it would brine new praise and new options to Free Software and Video Games.

Here, this might be a good case for it.

http://www.logicsupply.com/products/5677

Here is a Motherboard that could go with it.

http://store.mp3car.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=MTB-053

About 75 for case and 75 for moherboard.

$150.00 material cost so far. I think the CPU comes on the Motherboard.

There is still $60-100 or so in Memory, plus a sound, network, and graphic card...

This looks like it has a graphic chipset. How hard would it be to get 3D working on this, it is an Intel...

It isn't true that 3D can't work well on a free system. It's just that there aren't many chipsets that will work at their full potential yet. Browsing the DRI project shows that there are some radeon cards that can use pretty much all its features the same as proprietary drivers.

Also, I don't think it would require special graphics cards. They could be bought from ATI.

The other problem you mention in terms of 3D is the freedom issue. This, I'm sure will be solved soon enough. Once this is solved, we will be back to where we were.

I also have to take issue with what you say about the games. Look at project Orange and project Peach by the Blender Foundation and see the movies they have made with Blender. People have preordered DVDs of this in order to fund it. Now they have a project ("Yo Frankie") to make an "open" game. This is not necessarily along the lines of freedom but the point is that their source is freely available, yet people still pay for it. If I knew I could get a nice case and manual and printed cd, I think I would pay for games. Yes, you could build from source or even get the .iso and burn it yourself but there are people who buy even operating system distributions on cd, even if it's not many (I don't know how many). If you look at the FSF hardware page you can see their suggested hardware contains all of this stuff, including a motherboard with onboard sound and ethernet.

I suppose.

But I don't think the system could depend on the income from games. People who run Free Software are somewhat clever; and don't like paying for things they don't have to.

I would suggest for best results the system be marketed as a decked out plug and play.

Nexuiz is what we should shoot for as far as ability. First Person Shooters are huge and we need something that can knock Halo off its block, or at least hold its own against it.

If our system can run Nexuiz it should be able to run other 3D Free Software (I think Nexuiz is Free Software) games.

I don't see why we couldn't pre-install the system with Nexuiz, then configure it from a keyboard to a Standard Game-Pad. To that extent it should play along the lines of Halo.

We could also pre-install 2D games such as Secret Maryo Chronicles, Super Tux, xGalaga, xEvil, Wormux, and whatever else we think people might like to play. xEvil rocks ;-)

As far as 3D games I know of Super Tux Kart and Nexuiz. There is also Freedoom.

What else does Free Software have as far as 3D games?

I've played, and love, Tremulous. Is Tremulous Free Software or Open Source?

I think if we can find a plastic case instead of metal, don't bother with the CD Drive, and stick to a small sized hard drive; I think we might be able to market this things, at first estimate, maybe $300.00?

I'll do some more research and pricing around in hardware to see what can be found. Again, the system should be as powerful as possible yet as cheap as possible.

Also, I think it is required that the system stay with the Baby AT Architecture. It should be the size for a Game-Cube when all is said and done for maximum carrying ability. This is something that should be able to be loaded into a car and taken over to a friends house without breaking your back. Believe me, carrying a full sized Desktop Tower is NOT fun.

I'm not too familiar with Baby AT and am not really sure if a regular graphics card could just be shoved into it. Won't we need to look for something alone the lines at what I linked to? A motherboard with this stuff already on-board as a chip set?

I'm just worried it might not have Free Software compatible drivers. Or, if it does, if an on-board chip set could really run something like Nexuiz.

Wikipedia had the fallowing to say about Tremulous.

"Tremulous is a free and open source team-based first-person shooter with real-time strategy elements."

"Tremulous is licensed under the GPL, although it includes code from other projects that was released under other GPL-compatible licenses. Most of the game media is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License."

As such, I don't see why we couldn't include both Nexuiz and Tremulous. I've played Tremulous on Windows and the game was great. It reminded me A LOT of a Alies VS Marine battle from Alines Versus Predator 2; which is one of my favorite computer games.

I think Freedoom should be included, as well as its Deathmatch levels, but I don't think people will buy the system just for, "Doom."

However, they might for Nexuiz and Tremulous.

We wouldn't even have to build in a Audio Video Out. That might be expensive, because that would almost have to be custome. There are adapters to convert from computer out to Audio Video. Why not just buy a cheap adapter and include it with the system? This way, people could plug it into their TVs and Computer Monitors. Also, some TVs now days come with computer Monitor Inputs too.

The TV at my old College had a computer monitor input in it, as did my roomates. If the Audio Visual Out is built it, it might block this versatiliy. However, I do think we should include a converter. Most TVs still don't have this input, and this is designed to be a console system, after all.

Keep the feed back coming, this might actually be doable.

"the video game market died due to too much freedom"

There's no such thing as too much freedom. To say that there is, is to imply that there is someone who is qualified to decide how much freedom you should have. I'm not aware of anyone with this qualification. This doesn't mean freedom doesn't bring risk, but that's where responsibility comes in.

"I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it." --Thomas Jefferson