Over the past few weeks, Ouya has managed to clinch a number of potentially lucrative deals with various industry heavyweights, including OnLive and Square Enix Japan.
Today, Ouya inked a deal with VEVO to provide high definition music video programming on its nascent Android-powered console.
“This means entertainment beyond gaming,” explained Ouya CEO Julie Uhrman. “[Now you can] browse through the most-viewed music videos on the web, explore full video catalogs of top-selling artists, or venture into the realm of new staff picks, live concerts and original music programming.”
In addition to the above-mentioned VEVO deal, Uhrman announced a special limited edition Ouya console and controller that will (only) be available during the company’s last week on Kickstarter.
“[Ouya designer] Yves Behar personally selected the color for this special console and controller, and it will only be available NOW, through the end of Kickstarter campaign,” said Uhrman. “So to collect one of these rare drops, stretch your donation to $140 – the additional cost will cover the small production run. Also note, the buttons now officially read O-U-Y-A!”
Despite lingering concerns about its long-term viability, a number of industry bigwigs have expressed support for Ouya, including former Call of Duty exec Robert Bowling.
As expected, the console has also attracted more than its fair share of inevitable detractors who question whether the platform will have what it takes to compete with next-gen systems from Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft.
Indeed, gaming God John Romero recently said he was less than optimistic about the chances of success for Ouya.
“[Yes], I think it’s cool that they’re making a platform, but it’s not really the answer that’s coming from Apple about the next generation of consoles. [Essentially], there are two platforms: [iOS] makes money [and] is still very programmable, like the Apple II,” he opined.
“The other is Android, which is a piracy platform, and you’re not doing anything new with it – you’re making a bigger phone that connects to your TV… [Plus], with all Ouya games being free to play you have to basically make a micro-transaction game to make any money on it.”
