Yeah, I actually mean Renoise (or “Renoise Light”) for Nintendo 3DS. Weird idea? Maybe not:
As a matter of fact, there have been several music production apps for its predecessors, the Nintendo DS/ DSi. Downloadable apps like Rytmik by Czech developer Cinemax, and retail apps like Korg DS10 and Korg M01 by Korg and Japanese publisher AQI (now Marvelous AQL). And a few lesser apps by various companies. The 3DS is a much more capable platform, sporting a dual core 268MHz ARM11 CPU and a dedicated 134MHz audio DSP by CEVA, and even though the digital shop offers much better conditions and the development kits are significantly cheaper, there’s nothing music related - yet. Which also sets it apart from, say, iPhone. There are, however, other applications (as in “stuff that isn’t games”). Colors3D for example is a 3D painting app, complete with online community and everything, born from a homebrew DS app. So it’s pretty obvious Nintendo wouldn’t mind. And there is an audience (pro tip though: make sure the app gets released in Japan - lots of potential, dedicated fans (who’d also buy Renoise proper), and Arc System Works is probably interested).
Unlike previous Nintendo systems, the 3DS offers everything required for data exchange and online connectivity. You can load from and save to SD cards, have local network and online integration. In theory, it should be perfectly possible to create a “Renoise Light” for the platform, to lay some ideas down on the go, and import those in Renoise proper when you get home. Or use it as is for live performances. And not just that: Even on modern cartridge based systems, storage space is expensive, and music takes up lots and lots of space. The engine, once ported, could be licensed as middleware to other developers trying to get the memory footprint down while providing high quality soundtracks. So applying for a license and porting the engine is probably a good idea either way.
Here’s a gem from cnbc… http://www.cnbc.com/id/48473616 published on august 2nd 2012, about a 29% decline in sales, and 7 consecutive months of decline…
I’ve got nitrotracker installed on my DS light. It’s a lot of fun and there is an incredible amount of features, import your own samples or record on the fly with the built in mic. You should try it
Well, Renoise is never really going to be on something like this, but I could see TouchOSC being implemented on the 3DS… in addition to the on-screen controls, you also have the button inputs… hmmm…
Doesn’t really matter or apply. The industry as a whole is down, which is quite typical for that point in the cycle (upcoming generation shift).
This, however, does apply. Too bad. Care to elaborate a bit?
I mean, even assuming you’d just port the engine and not release an actual app, there certainly is a market for high quality audio engines on systems with limited/ expensive storage. And trackers are not only extremely memory efficient, they’re also perfect for interactive soundtracks.
I’m not sure if you fully appreciate the huge amount of work that would be required to make those four simple words into a reality, but trust me: this is never going to happen. Forget it. Renoise simply isn’t designed or optimised with this type of system in mind, nor will it ever be.
It’s absolutely true that the 3DS is a very nice little system with many interesting features, and there’s a great ‘homebrew’ community out there doing some very cool stuff (NitroTracker, for example), but let’s face the cold hard facts here: compared to any modern computer, the 3DS is a novelty system with incredibly limited power and resources. Essentially, it’s a toy.
So I think it’s pretty obvious that you’ll never see Renoise on a Nintendo 3DS. Not with such limited CPU, RAM, screen resolution, input/control system, etc. It would never work.
But what about just the player engine?
Well, we don’t even offer an XRNS player routine for other developers on the platforms that we do currently support (Windows/Mac/Linux). This simply isn’t our focus. Renoise songs are not really suitable for dynamic music in video game engines and things like that. Our XRNS songs are only intended to be played/edited within the Renoise environment itself, not through any external/third party software or players.
We’re only focused on creating a professional grade music production tool here, not a player engine/library that can be used by third party developers in the demo scene or video game industry. Really, we don’t give a shit about this; we only give a shit about Renoise
Thanks for the elaborate answer. No real surprises here (it was pretty obvious that the functionality would be heavily limited on such a platform), except for the “not suitable for dynamic music” bit. As well suited as the engine is for live performances, I believe it should be near perfect for that purpose? Anyway, you’re a small team and damn good at what you do, so it’s certainly better to stay focused.
