Brazilian company TecToy won the hearts of many gamers in the 90s when it brought SEGA consoles to Brazil, but ended up slipping with the launch of the Zeebo in 2009. The failure of the Brazilian console project, however, served as a learning experience for the company, which is launching the Zeenix portable PC line in the country.
According to Pedro Caxa, head of marketing and games at TecToy, company learned from past mistakes and is using all the knowledge gained over the last decades to transform Zeenix Lite and Zeenix Pro into successful products in Brazil.
A console with many games
In an interview with Voxel, TecToy’s spokesperson said that the company is bringing to the market a modern product designed for the Brazilian public. For starters, the Zeebo’s lack of games problem won’t be repeated in the Zeenix line.
Both devices run Windows 11 and will feature support for stores like Steam, Epic Store and Xbox Game Pass, which will not leave the console without new games. Furthermore, during Gamescom Latam, the company set up a stand with several national titles which will be optimized for the Zeenix line and will receive investment from the company, which is also becoming a publisher.
“If you look at our booth, of the 11 games available, nine of them are Brazilian,” says Pedro Caxa. “We are giving great importance to the national industry. We have also become a publisher, so this year we will publish two games.”
Also in 2024, the company will launch the game as a publisher Master Lemonwhich Pedro described as “a beautiful pixel art Adventure with a very exciting story”. The other title that will be published by TecToy is Damned 2an asymmetrical multiplayer horror game made in Unreal Engine 5.
In the future, TecToy also intends to return to developing gamesas it has done in the past. However, the company said it cannot yet reveal details about its in-house developed titles.
Launch designed for the Brazilian market
In addition to supporting multiple game stores and investing in national titles, Zeenix will also have a cautious launch by TecToy, according to Pedro Caxa. The company stressed that it has learned from past mistakes and has not forgotten its legacy.
“We learned a lot from Zeebo’s mistakes,” said Pedro, emphasizing that the project was a “courageous” bet and that TecToy is proud of it. “The name Zeenix is a tribute to Zeebo, it comes from the idea of continuity of what we did in the past.”
TecToy’s spokesperson emphasizes that the company was bold with the Zeebo by developing and manufacturing the entire project in Brazil, which eventually made it unsustainable. In the case of the Zeenix line, the company partnered with the Chinese company Ayn to create the console, which will have its first batches imported and will later be manufactured in Brazil.
Pedro Caxa also highlighted that the company is keeping an eye on the Brazilian market to price portable PCs and promises that The Zeenix Lite will be the cheapest model in Brazil in this product category. The company also emphasizes that the devices will have a warranty and technical assistance in the country.
“We understand that the Brazilian public is afraid of spending R$3,500, R$5,000 on a product, which is the range you find the Steam Deck in, without a warranty, without assistance, without anything. “We are aware of this,” concludes the TecToy representative.
According to TecToy, more details about the price and launch of the Zeenix line will be revealed “in the coming weeks”. Check out our hands-on with the console to learn more details about the product!
Source: https://www.tecmundo.com.br/voxel/286479-aprendemos-erros-zeebo-diz-tectoy-zeenix-lite-pro.htm
