Japanese get GBA video vending machine
We can't even get a Chomp out of the one down our street without someone tagging our backsides with spray paint. Oily scamps.
While Nintendo of America prepares to flog a few cartoons on cartridges using Majesco's GBA Video technology, the Japanese are already a few steps ahead, judging by an intriguing report on the ever-illuminating Game Watch this week.
Using a vending machine model similar to the types that dispense character figures and the like in Japanese arcades, peripheral manufacturer AM3 is now preparing to allow Game Boy Advance owners to download TV episodes, comics, music and even maps onto custom GBA peripherals of its own making.
From today, for the equivalent of a few Euro, owners of AM3's Advance Movie will be able to saunter up to one of the new machines (pictured left), plug in a 32MB rewriteable Smart Media memory card (priced 1,980 yen - about €15), and download a full episode of one of their favourite TV shows. To begin with, AM3 is offering the first four episodes of Pokémon, with more due to be made available in September.
Although this week's launch is more of a demonstration than anything else, AM3 is confidently planning further rollout at the start of August, with more than 20 units set to appear in various retail locations. Assuming it takes off, the company hopes to begin nationwide distribution of the units by October, rolling as many as 10,000 off the production line by this time next year.
With TV shows already covered, AM3 is also now turning its attention to other mediums. Its already-announced Advance Comic peripheral will take care of comic books, naturally, and the company reportedly also has Advance Picture, Music and Navi (map) peripherals in development with similar plans in mind. More details should be forthcoming soon.
All in all, it's quite an intriguing idea, similar to the Nintendo iQue tactic of letting gamers download N64 era games to a controller-shaped storage device rather than giving them physical cartridges. And of course, the benefits of this sort of idea from a business perspective are enormous compared to existing vending machine models - maintenance is rarely a problem, restocking can be done remotely over the Internet, and there's no chance of some annoying brat sticking his arm inside to try and wriggle something out for free.
Oh, and judging by the design, it'll also double up as a prop for the next Dr Who series when it's eventually rendered obsolete. Exterm-achu!