Among all the rumors of upcoming products to be expected at WWDC, one we have heard on and off is that Apple is working on another console. Apple had a sad attempt at the gaming console market years ago with the release or co-release of the Pippin from Bandai. While they attempted to get into this saturated market back in the day when Sega Saturn and Playstations were all the rage, Apple never stood a chance with the lineup and partner.
We hardly hear of the rumor that Apple could be building another console, but would we even want one if they were. First of all I highly doubt they have the slightest want of getting into a market that is well endowed with 3 consoles to meet the need of the masses. Although Apple could get into the market, afford the losses associated with launching a console and endure the test of time, it seems out of their scope of product involvement. There is no doubt they could do this and absolutely no doubt that it would be the best looking console ever created, but why do this.
As much as I love Apple and what they have to offer, the last thing I want is for them to go so mainstream and limit the games I can play because they are not approved by the mothership. Imagine you have a beautiful console sitting proudly under or near your television. You awake the work of art, the pulsing light remains a steady vibrant white color and you are greeted with a beautiful intro video. You now have a beautiful, and very intuitive menu to select from and up to this point it is the most perfect console you could imagine. Now imagine that the next Grand Theft Auto was coming out, but instead of being available to your new Apple gaming system you could only get it for that competing Xbox or Playstation and the reason was not due to exclusivity. Instead, Apple closely monitors their every game and the content therein and decides what you can play. Now I personally do not play GTA due to the nature of the game, but that is in no way saying you should not enjoy the games you want to play regardless of what others think you should or should not due. If your game contains a word, phrase or music that is not approved from Apple, well then we are out of luck.
I love Apple just like the next fanboy, but when you look at the ridiculous rejections in dealing with the App Store and the sadness that is generated by the developer and consumer I think Apple should stay away. Yes I know this is a fairytale of a story, but those who say Apple is developing such a console should in my opinion, quickly shun Apple on said issue and un-shun when speaking of iPhone, Mac and the rest of the general goodness coming from our favorite computer makers.
Now if only we could get apple to release some sort of more precise control scheme for those portable games we all enjoy on the go from our iPhone and iPod Touch, then I would be in my happy place.
