Slightly Mad Studios, the London-based studio behind Project CARS, apparently wants to be a direct competitor in the home console market. After teasing about the Mad Box on Twitter, the company's founder and CEO, Ian Bell, gave more information about this upcoming console, touting it as "the most powerful console ever built".

Failed to fetch tweet https://twitter.com/bell_sms/status/1080468977019584512​

In an exclusive interview with Variety, Bell further detailed that “it will support most major VR headsets and those upcoming and the specs will be equivalent to a ‘very fast PC 2 years from now’. We’re in early talks with manufacturers of components so we can’t say much more right now other than we have the designs specced out in detail.”

“We plan to allow games from all developers, old and new. The ’new’ possibly being many of those that benefit from our completely free development engine,” Bell said. “It will be a stand alone console.”

“We think the industry is a little too much of a monopoly or a micro oligopoly,” he further added. “We think competition is healthy and we have the required hardware contacts to be able to bring something epic to fruition based on our designs.”

According to the Variety interview, Slightly Mad Studios will release images of early design builds in four to six weeks time and the console will ship in around three years time.

So what do you think? Is there a space for a fourth competitor in the home console market? Will you consider getting the Mad Box? Or will you wait for what Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo have in store for their next console before deciding?

SOURCE

 

[yusuo]

Another suitor for the princess

 

[chrisrlink]

well at least i doubt they'll make the same mistake as Souja boy and make their own games wonder what IP's they'll make

 

[SuperNintendho]

This idea is slightly mad

 

[TunaKetchup]

So its a PC?

and it will most likely cost just as much

 

[Prans]

So its a PC?

and it will most likely cost just as much

I thought the same from the description...

 

[Sonic Angel Knight]

Never heard of this company

 

[tech3475]

They’re coming to take them away haha!

 

[Justinde75]

man nintendo, sony and microsoft will be *slightly mad* about this, but only slightly

 

[KiiWii]

Interesting concept.... how versatile is the engine they’re touting?

 

[smileyhead]

the specs will be equivalent to a ‘very fast PC 2 years from now’

Inb4 this fucking thing costs $10 000

 

[KingVamp]

I thought VR was going to be included, when I read the tweet here. A console build from the ground up for its VR. Shame.

Well, three years from now a 2 year later PC wouldn't be as expensive.

Coming around when new consoles will probably be coming out soon, if not out by then. ... Well, good luck.

So its a PC?

and it will most likely cost just as much

Don't people say this about all new consoles in general?

 

[Chary]

Cool concept. But that’s only a small part of the whole package. You can say whatever you want to tease it, but judgements are reserved until more info is available.

Totally mad plan tho.

 

[NumberXIIIEdwin]

"It's the most powerful console ever built... " Hmm where have I heard that line before? *glares at Xbox One X*

Also, what's this "VR at 60FPS business"? Doesn't VR require at least 90FPS as it stands?

 

[Prans]

"It's the most powerful console ever built... " Hmm where have I heard that line before? *glares at Xbox One X*

Also, what's this "VR at 60FPS business"? Doesn't VR require at least 90FPS as it stands?

According to the interview, Bell clarified that the Mad Box will be 120 FPS, he meant that it's 60FPS “per eye.”

 

[Godofcheese]

" you want VR at 60FPS? "
Well no I don't.
90fps is the standard for VR to avoid motion sickness.

*saw the post above me now :>...*

 

[hamohamo]

Inb4 they sell it for 1500 bucks and it turns out to be a gameless system that won't run the only two games it got at 25fps at 4k only to flop bigtime.

 

[jt_1258]

Why is the text so small for the subtitle? You can't read the word pipedream below the console name.

 

[haxan]

i'm always excited when i hear news about a new console. my only doubts are that the console will never see the light of day and that if they do release it, it'll flop due to it being a new system, people will be skeptical about buying a new console (a pricey one from the specs as well). This has happened before where someone announces a new "state of the art/life changing" system, just for it to have these things happen to it.
I do hope it gets released

 

[AT-LOWDeSu]

I'm laughing, but at the same time hoping. I don't think it'll work.. but to be fair, project cars is a wonderfully crafted and highly technical game.. if anyone can do it, it's them.