After revealing the design that they are going with for their Mad Box console, Slightly Mad Studios's CEO Ian Bell took to Twitter again to unveil the first early concept designs for their console.

Failed to fetch tweet https://twitter.com/bell_sms/status/1087298927022333953
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The controller appears to blend elements of controllers from current gen consoles, bearing an Xbox layout and a touchscreen, rather than a touch pad à la PS4 controller. It also has rear paddles somewhat akin to the Xbox One Elite and SCUF controllers. However, note that these are merely concept images and the final product might very well look totally different, and the company might even release some more possible designs in the future as it did with the console itself.

SOURCE

 

[pedro702]

looks like a wiiu pro controller to me with switch analogs lol, its even pointy and everything

 

[Der_Blockbuster]

Reminds me about the good old days...but for real...according to their twitter they are talking like its already being produced and they will not fail our exceptions...
Reminds me about this:

Concept art til finished product will take like 2023/24 I don't know.
Imo this is all dreaming but its ok. I'd love to be proven wrong. It's not like I have any clue.

 

[pedro702]

this will never see the light of day, thrust me this will be a steambox lookalike, no exclusives, its gonna be a pc basically and play steam games, just wait and see.

 

[weatMod]

must admit i like the concept of the OLED labeling the physical button and having the light ring around the button light up with the line pointing from the OLED to the physical button

 

[VashTS]

reminds of an nvidia shield controller, they are terrible to play with but functional OK overall.

 

[FAST6191]

Something actually with the potential to be interesting from this whole farce. This isn't particularly interesting but it had the potential at least, unlike a device with no specs and no games.

Not the worst concept controller I have ever seen, mainly as I still recall

https://www.gamepedia.com/images/feature-images/4127-e3-2005-ps3-controller_big

Still
Recessed sticks.
OK.
Dpad... why does nobody want to give me a sensible shape microswitch. That also looks like it will be filled with human slime before long.

Screen. If it has a decent API then I will pay attention. If it is going to be nothing interesting then count me out. Being a non standard feature for the PC (I am still dismissing the console) I doubt we will see anything particularly interesting a la the Dreamcast's VMU that some referenced. We can hope, and maybe it will be good for full screen no HUD play somewhere along the line.

 

[Noctosphere]

looks great
might get one

(/s)

 

[MikaDubbz]

I like what they're doing with the LEDs behind the buttons and the display on the controller, especially when used together like illustrating that hitting a certain button right now will use your available boost. This is cool.

I'm not crazy about the form factor, those controllers don't look particularly comfortable, and it appears that the d-pad and right analogue stick are pushed a little too far to the center, which looks like it may result in needing to stretch your thumbs a bit more than your used to. In practice this may not really be an issue at all, but it doesn't look right in this regard to my naked eye. Also, I question how much life these controllers will hold on a full charge.

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Something actually with the potential to be interesting from this whole farce. This isn't particularly interesting but it had the potential at least, unlike a device with no specs and no games.

Not the worst concept controller I have ever seen, mainly as I still recall

View attachment 155880
https://www.gamepedia.com/images/feature-images/4127-e3-2005-ps3-controller_big

I legit, not ironically, always wanted to play a PS3 game with that prototype controller. I know the boomerang looked nuts, but in practice it may have been satisfying, I'd like to get a good hold of it before I completely laugh the device away. Then again the fact that they didn't use it, is probably evidence enough that it wasn't a particularly great controller especially when you consider that by the time the PS3 launched, complaints about the Dualshock designed controllers had started to pile up over the years as Sony did little to change the design of the controller, and yet the PS3 still ended up being very similar to the Dualshock 2 before it.

 

[KingVamp]

Kind of reminds me of when people thought the NX wasn't going to have any buttons on the controller.

I don't have a problem with the touchscreen, but it is too literally edgy and it doesn't seem to give that much room for a grip.

That said, I wish they went the motion controller route.

 

[Hells Malice]

The shape is definitely abysmal. They're trying too hard for it to look unique rather than comfortable.
The face display is a cute idea but I doubt it'd see much realistic use and I imagine it'd jack up the price of the thing quite a bit.

Cute concept but concepts also don't really mean anything until they get it to be reality.

I'm really getting some violent flashbacks of the Ouya right now.

 

[Noctosphere]

The shape is definitely abysmal. They're trying too hard for it to look unique rather than comfortable.
The face display is a cute idea but I doubt it'd see much realistic use and I imagine it'd jack up the price of the thing quite a bit.

Cute concept but concepts also don't really mean anything until they get it to be reality.

I'm really getting some violent flashbacks of the Ouya right now.

i think you got the right word
they want too much to make it "unique"
which is what will make it unlikely liked

 

[guily6669]

Alright, I liked the console, but now I see this is just too much, how do they ever plan to sell the console at a similar price as Sony\M$, the controller is ugly but it screams $$€€ all over the place I'm guessing now this awesome machine will turn into almost a full PC price and maybe it could even be another steambox PC...

I'm loosing faith here, I don't think they will deliver better performance than Next Gen consoles with fancy screens on the console, full RGB and even a screen on the controller AND BE ABLE TO COMPETE WITH THE OTHERS AT PRICE....

No matter how cool it looks, if it's too expensive why wouldn't I then just make my own PC instead with a big Case with extra space 4 the future, huge cooling and OC the hell out of it and upgrade GPU a few years later and maybe don't buy another PC 4 the next decade like my current 2011 PC which is still kicking ass (maybe I will upgrade after PS5 comes out if it doesn't die on me with the huge OC...)...

 

[FAST6191]

I legit, not ironically, always wanted to play a PS3 game with that prototype controller. I know the boomerang looked nuts, but in practice it may have been satisfying, I'd like to get a good hold of it before I completely laugh the device away. Then again the fact that they didn't use it, is probably evidence enough that it wasn't a particularly great controller especially when you consider that by the time the PS3 launched, complaints about the Dualshock designed controllers had started to pile up over the years as Sony did little to change the design of the controller, and yet the PS3 still ended up being very similar to the Dualshock 2 before it.

I have had plenty of racing wheels over the years with button placement that would mimic a boomerang after a fashion. They were not great. I can't rule out some kind of greater than the sum of its parts goldilocks effect where it all comes together to be just right but it seems unlikely.

That said I am sort of tempted to go slap a CNC machine to see if it will make me one.

Alright, I liked the console

What was to like? There were no specs, no devs onboard, no particular niche it claimed to fill...

 

[Captain_N]

Id have to hold it to confirm its good or not. Id be using the switch pro controller as a comparison. If i can hold a switch controller playing a game for 8 hrs straight and not have hurt hands then id say its comfy.

 

[guily6669]

What was to like? There were no specs, no devs onboard, no particular niche it claimed to fill...

I mean the design shown, like I always said I just find it too exaggerated, but 4 me it works pretty well as a gaming console.

And the LEDS OFF feature is awesome because it means I can make the console just pure black without any led disturbing my gaming at night other than the screen, but that looks pretty good specially on a living room and specially for multimedia stuff even though I only care about gaming.

 

[Rabbid4240]

Looks like someone stretched out an xbox 360 controller

 

[KyleHyde]

This controller looks like a futuristic mini coffee table or an in-bed food tray stand. It looks extremely uncomfortable and while the UI/LEDs are kinda interesting, I doubt anyone who's completely focused on their TV screen while gaming would look at it at all.

 

[FAST6191]

And the LEDS OFF feature is awesome because it means I can make the console just pure black without any led disturbing my gaming at night other than the screen

Fair enough on the other parts -- I have probably said before a phrase I often have to say to clients is "call me to make something work, call literally anybody else to make it look pretty" and as such I tend to forget looks might matter to some.

As for the quoted part there is a certain amusement that it could be a praise of a company that they can turn off one of their pointless gimmicks.

 

[Dominator211]

In other words. let's make something really really bad again, see what people say then make it slightly less bad and call it a day?

 

[Veho]

As for the quoted part there is a certain amusement that it could be a praise of a company that they can turn off one of their pointless gimmicks.

Reminds me of a quote from a mobile phone review from a few (20) years ago: "We were delighted with the animated menu icons and screen transitions. We were even more delighted by the fact you can turn them off."