02-11-2008, 02:17 AM
Remember this ill-fated little gadget?
Launched when the handheld wars were still raging fiercely, the Gizmondo looks just like your regular game industry screwup. But who knew that behind such an innocent looking object lurked a story that's almost detective-show caliber?
Let's start with the immediate effects. Just a few measly months after its glizty launch, Gizmondo Europe reported huge losses. No shit, Sherlock. Going up against the DS and the then-new PSP with one crappy machine was stupid indeed. What did they expect, really?
A few months after that, Gizmondo Europe folds. Liquidated. Packed up. Bye-bye. So long. Hit the road, Jack.
Why, that's exactly what they did. In their expensive Ferraris and Mercedes-Benzes. Sounds fishy? Well, it was. It just took one car crash to reveal it all.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the Gizmondo story you didn't know, and probably never cared about. But it was interesting enough for me to lose around 2 hours of sleep over, so some of you might think the same.
Oh yeah, think it's over?
Think again.
Launched when the handheld wars were still raging fiercely, the Gizmondo looks just like your regular game industry screwup. But who knew that behind such an innocent looking object lurked a story that's almost detective-show caliber?
Let's start with the immediate effects. Just a few measly months after its glizty launch, Gizmondo Europe reported huge losses. No shit, Sherlock. Going up against the DS and the then-new PSP with one crappy machine was stupid indeed. What did they expect, really?
A few months after that, Gizmondo Europe folds. Liquidated. Packed up. Bye-bye. So long. Hit the road, Jack.
Why, that's exactly what they did. In their expensive Ferraris and Mercedes-Benzes. Sounds fishy? Well, it was. It just took one car crash to reveal it all.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the Gizmondo story you didn't know, and probably never cared about. But it was interesting enough for me to lose around 2 hours of sleep over, so some of you might think the same.
Oh yeah, think it's over?
Think again.
"Let's fight... like gentlemen." - Dudley, SF3