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My dad was a marketing exec at Philips back in the ‘90s, so I had a couple of CD-I units at home, and a ton of games. I even had an infrared gun controller and
by BonesJustice 8y ago
My dad was a marketing exec at Philips back in the ‘90s, so I had a couple of CD-I units at home, and a ton of games. I even had an infrared gun controller and a really, really low-quality VR headset driven by dark little CRTs (I think?). Most of my discs had simple white labels, and I’m pretty sure many of them were never actually released. I wish I still had them.
At the time, my dad had told me the CD-I’s primary market was commercial, e.g., interactive training, demo kiosks, media stations in libraries, etc. I don’t know whether that was the original vision or a pivot based on lousy sales. It was probably a smart move, though, considering the only other person I knew with a CD-I at home was the daughter of the VP overseeing that division.
I used to have a CD-I infomercial on VHS featuring a giant, talking screen called “The Wall”. I wonder if I can track that down on the interwebs.
Fun aside: a CD-I video disc of Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan was my first exposure to Trek. Other fond memories include The Wacky World of Miniature Golf (sooo much fun), Escape from Cyber City, Mad Dog McCree, and Laser Lords (never did make much progress in that game).
- bsenftner 8y agoAfter the consumer market failed, it was re-purposed for the industrial media / trainer market. The production system I wrote for Philips to make slide show media was licensed to 3rd party developers, and I remember answering different developer's questions about the development for at least a decade after I left Philips. (I left Philips to be an OS developer for the 3DO, and left them to be an OS developer for the PlayStation. Ah, those were the daze.)
- w0utert 8y ago>> I left Philips to be an OS developer for the 3DO, and left them to be an OS developer for the PlayStation. Ah, those were the daze Third time’s a charm ;-P
- roryisok 8y agoAs a kid I desperately wanted a CDi, and then an Amiga CD32 and then a 3DO. I never got any of them. Having saved enough to finally buy a 3DO I was derailed at the last minute by my dad who didn't want me spending so much on a games machine. He made a deal that if I didn't buy it he'd splash out for a new PC. That was the PC I learned to code on and the decision that led me to this career, and I'm glad he talked me out of it. It's so strange to be sharing a chat forum decades later with one of the engineers who built the OS for it. I'm sorry I never got to admire your handiwork, but I'm also not sorry :)
- jfouchard 8y agoThat infomercial made me want a CD-I so bad! https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=9dV9nAx0TOo https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=9dV9nAx0TOo