Nintendo announces new home console
Confirms 2012 launch.
Nintendo has announced its plan to launch a Wii successor system next year.
In a note published today alongside its 2011 financial statement, the company confirmed the console, currently codenamed Project Cafe, will launch in 2012.
It also confirmed plans to show a playable model of the new system, and announce further details, at the E3 game show in June.
Nintendo's next home console is said to have high definition visuals and graphical power on a similar level to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
Its controller is rumoured to feature a 6.2 inch touch-screen that enables the streaming of games played on the console.
About Wesley Yin-Poole
Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.
Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.
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Comments (127) Latest comment 1 year ago
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Should be fun.
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facepalm. hope it's not what i think it is.
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Project Cafe?
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2014 for me for Sony and MS with 2013 announcements
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Good news about the new Ninty console, should turn the heat up on PS360, (esp 360 if Blu-ray is confirmed at E3). Its time that wind of change blew through again.
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I would like this console to have it's own name and identity, but the branding of 'Wii' is so strong with non-traditional gamers that it makes me wonder if the name will be incorporated in some capacity. I hope not.
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The Wii successor will be hugely innovative but rather behind the curve. At best it'll probably be a bit better than the current, competing machines, and we all know how interested Nintendo is in stealing away the hardcore markets >.>
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I wonder if each controller has a touch screen, rather than being for streaming, I wonder if it's more like a DS touch screen ... low res and input mechanism with feedback, so might display your inventory in Zelda or suchlike.
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Oh, and I reckon Ninty could pull off a real curveball by calling it something along the lines of SNES2...
*fully acknowledges that chances of said are less than zero*
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- appeal to a market in a way that intersts hardcore gamers
- sort out their online offering
What they need o say is "we are partneting with Valve" and adopting Steamworks... that would make the fan boys stand up and take notice.
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Maybe you can tape two controllers to your head and see games in 3D without (technically) needing glasses
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I am honestly puzzled!
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- Capable hardware (1080p should be in reach)
- Good online service
- A controller that has a button layout compatible to the PS360 controller
- Achievements (hate me for it, for me they add value and challenge to already great games)
- Backward capability and native high-def-rendering for the most important Wii games (developers must make some sourcecode changes for that to work, so we will probably not see all Wii games in "proper" HD)
Pretty conservative, pretty "core" I think...
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If so count me in.
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If it works,not buying handheld devices anymore(except phones).I always play them at home anyway.
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I'm excited, as always, about a new console. But I'd still hope it is more powerful than the last 4 years have been.
And I can't see the touch screen controller being true :-/
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Right now I'd place NGP first, New Wii second and Microsoft way back in third place.
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I definitely don't expect Sony to announce a new console this year as they'll want to concentrate on launching the NGP. I don't expect the Xbox 360 successor at E3 this year either as Microsoft will want to get mileage out of Kinect. I still think there's a good chance of it launching next year though, with the PS4 in 2013.
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hang on a minute... are we not what, 7 years down the line now? surely they should be boasting hardware much more powerful than 7 year old tech?
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a better online component is a must, i love the easyness of it on 360
maybe a bluray player? lol would love it but I doubt it really
but yes, very very surprised to hear this, just wasnt expecting it what with Sony and MS touting 10year life cycle... will be interesting to see their response, but will agree I wouldnt think it will affect them much
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"surely they should be boasting hardware much more powerful than 7 year old tech? "
are you suggesting that Nintendo would try to refrain from asking 500$ for a seven-year-old hardware?
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Doesn't sound groundbreaking to me, to be honest. Sony was a bit late already with the PS3 and disappointed with not outperforming the one-year-old X360. 2012 the X360 will be six years old, and I think at that point a new console should have noticeably better graphics performance, even more so as this will compete with PS4 and X361 a few years later.
I know, I know, it's not sheer power that made Wii and DS so successful. Nintendo will probably reinvent the wheel again in some other way, and of course it will have Mario and Zelda. But PS3/X360 will still have good arguments for potential buyers too, most notably a huge existing library of great games, many of which available for half price. That's one reason why the PS2 is still selling after ten years. Also, not everyone is fond of fancy new controls, quite a lot still prefer the pad.
Probably Nintendo will sell a lot, not least thanks to huge marketing campaigns convincing everyone of their new control scheme or whatever. Yet I'm disappointed to hear that it isn't going to be significantly better in an undoubtful, measurable way.
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no motion-centered gaming, high specs... I see MS and Sony getting stabbed all of a sudden.
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All I want is a return to the Nintendo of old, 2D Metroid, Donkey Kong, Pilotwings, Starfox, F-Zero, Super Tennis etc.
Make it so.
Also, Nintendo SNES 2 FTW
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All this hardcore vs casual chat is bollocks. I hate it. Games are just games. Surely getting all the stars on Mario Galaxy/unlocking and beating the temple levels on Donkey Kong Country Returns, is far more demanding than a 5 hour literally linear on the rails shooter campaign. Surely for all the 'daves' out there who just play Fifa and Cod, surely that is just as casual (although the amount of hours/days/months put into them may suggest otherwise) as some of the family orientated waggle ware offered by the wii.
Can we just get back to enjoying games?
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So their technology will be a generation behind the competition. Again.
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How does it 'scream gimmick all over'?
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I agree about 7 years old hardvare is history now. But you don't listen well, it's said the level on new Nintendo console is more powerfull than Xbox360 and PS3 hardvare !! Which is not same like Xbox360 and PS3 -_-
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I AM AMATEUR ANALYST, HEAR ME ROAR
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But, the size of the screen makes me think of the Atari Jaguar and it's huge beast of a controller... Looking forward to see what they have come up with. Will be interesting.
Although I have no intentions on buy another console until both MS and Sony have revealed what new hardware they have, whenever that will be. This generation really killed console gaming for me, so I will be owning one format only, with the PC being my main gaming platform.
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If Nintendo are trying to impliment what I think, it means I can play games whilst the missus watches her shite on the telly.
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Wii2 will feature current gen tech, it will be backwards compatible with Wii software and Wii peripherals, and probably have 3DS integration. There will be a typical Nintendo gimmick which seems light years ahead of the competition but is in actual fact an old idea, intelligently repackaged.
It will not sell nearly as well as the Wii, but Nintendo will be using dirt cheap tech at enough of a mark-up to easily recover their costs, and because the next MS/Sony generation is still a few years away, they will have at least a year where their games are technically competitive with the current gen.
And this is the real masterstroke.
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Good show.
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Microsoft, in particular, also have a lot of latitude in cutting prices. I would anticipate the 250 GB Xbox 360 bundle with Kinect to be priced below the new Nintendo console. I think that Microsoft have been anticipating this annoucement, that is why the first half of this year is pretty barren with exclusives. I think they will load up the exclusives (Kinect also) for the second half of 2011 and all of 2012 to take on this new threat. Sony will cut prices but probably not as much as Microsoft, especially the bundles. The E3 this June should be fascinating.
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Got to agree with you on the price cut thing. PS3 for less than 200Ł (250 ) could be announced some time after E3...
edit: typo
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Big problem for MS and Sony though, is that they can't really justify a new console yet. Developers are furious that they would even consider it since to produce a AAA title, your budgets are now in the mid $30-60 Million range just for 360 and PS3 and they reckon there is still a lot of life in both consoles. Café's mooted specs put it just above the PS3, But only just. But thats perfect for Developers as they don't have to change their structures and operations again just to compensate for a huge boost in the power and making the games have use of that. As well, Nintendo gets to launch it at a cheaper frame at launch and still make profit. People dont have $600 dollars for a new console anymore. $350 is manageable as its iPad money (Heck I wouldn't even be surprised if Nintendo says $300)
2012 will probably be the announcing time frame for new consoles by Sony and MS because they need a significant amount of time this gen. But I wouldn't even expect them till 2014-2015.
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As much as the Wii may have from a success in financial and 'units sold' standpoint, it remains to be seen whether many of those buyers will continue to the next iteration.
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Can't wait to see what it's going to be like! (and how bloody expensive it's going to be..)
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You've made some very good points, developers are already struggling with the costs of developing for the current HD consoles. I suspect, however, that the next Xbox will retain much the same architechure as the current console but be much more powerful, maybe 6 core CPU, faster GPU (with embedded 200 mb e-dram) and 3 GB ram (shared with GPU). This would be a graphical powerhouse at relatively low cost as Microsoft own the CPU architechure. To display 1080P resolution at 60 FPS for all games should be a breeze for this configuration. This familar setup would please developers and help keep costs down. The next Xbox, therefore, could be relatively low cost, and following the Wii model, be profitable at launch. The next PS is a bit of a quandry, the cell arcitechure has proven mostly difficult to program and expensive to produce. I think Microsoft are in a nice position for the next generation with their strong on-line services and motion gaming in Kinect which I anticipate will be much more accurate (and lag free) for the next gen console.I think that Sony would be under most pressure to release later as they will want a longer period to recoup the development costs etc of the PS3.
But, I still think that the new Xbox and PS will be released in late 2013, maybe 2014 if the new Nintendo console is not that popular. I would prefer their release later rather than sooner personally, but I don't think that they will want to give the Nintendo console much of a head start. Thats why the Xbox 360 launched ahead of the PS3, the late release of the Xbox killed it against the dominent PS2.
I still think the new Nintendo console will be up against it, taking on the Xbox and PS on their turf has failed before (eg Gamecube). And by the time it is released the Move and Kinect will be mature with presumably a large number of very playable games that take full advantage of their sensor/movement capabilities. Also, the current HD consoles are now very expensive considering their age, I think there will be drastic price cuts over the next few years which will drive sales volumes and specifically target the new entrant. Wii owners likely won't automatically migrate to such a different Nintendo console either (with such a different feature set), the Kinect and Move bundles are now strong competition for the 'casuals' as a possible replacement purchase.
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Microsoft however do have a big problem; they don't have the luxury of a low spec 360 machine (like the Wii) to differentiate a new 360+(Gamecube HD) with, and they can't afford to release hardware matching an 8-16x Cell PS4 even as late as 2014, never mind in 2012-13.
The Cell in the PS3 still has plenty of mileage left for multi-platform developers to lever more from it by improving their task scheduling and will still get better with more dedicated development; which is probably not going to be true of the 360 any more because it is being directly eclipsed by the Gamecube HD, and will likely just get a cut down version for all multi-platform games as a result of heavy reliance on the Unreal engine.
Nintendo calling time on the Wii this earlier isn't a problem for them, as they've probably already made their money in spades, and can now price it even lower as the kid's my first console like the gameboy/DS were.
But it will have signalled to publishers that the new market leader this generation is now Playstation 3; given it has a good attachment rate, the largest working install base, connection ratio and still hasn't got close to reaching the mass market price of the Wii or 360 arcade, which it will be hitting before or shortly after Christmas to start moving towards PS1/PS2 sales in the next 3years.
If Gamecube HD also goes with Blu-ray, which it really has to avoid the Dreamcast's fate in 2014 (of having CD storage in a DVD world) I'm really struggling to see a safe strategy for Microsoft to stay in the market as a console platform holder, bar Kinect doing the next Wii phenomenon, given the limited options for a non-electronics manufacturer to sell a Ł200 console better than a Gamecube HD at this time.
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and
they (msoft) don't have the luxury of a low spec 360 machine (like the Wii) to differentiate a new 360+(vizzini)
This. Totally. Theses two things has been missed by most when saying, sigh, PS3/720 is just going to blow the Wii2 out of the water in two years time. I honestly don't think they can afford to go on that next generation leap. Studios/developers are already under strain from current dev costs , to the extent where some even have closed down, or near too.
Going massive on the Next Gen is going to up production costs >game cost rise to say Ł60> Lose sales. Even if it the Wii 2 is PS3.5 standards it could be a very comfortable position to be in. Heck, it was only april last year that it was announced that the ps3 is making a profit... going next gen will just exacerbate that. I don't know much about graphic cards etc, but the leap in audio, graphics etc, will not be like ps1>2>3. There will not be that massive generation leap.
That has been recognised this generation- by the introduction off how we play our games. And whoever succesfully delves into that market first will be king. (And i think Msoft could be on to something if they can fully flesh out Kinect in 2.0 and use that has there next console)
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Seriously though, I'm more interested in some Donkey Kong and Super Mario in HD, as these are the franchises I grew up with (SNES and N64). And Nintendo will definitely do some interesting things with that touch screen.
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It's too early for Nintendo to play their hand, not knowing what Microsoft and Sony have up their sleeve, following on from the current gen of consoles.
I think this will be an interim console - a new strategy for Nintento, that they've proven to be 'successful' in the handheld market - with more enhancements coming later perhaps. All backwards compatible, of course.
No matter what though, it will be complete shiite!
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THAT'S what we should be looking forward to? Current gen level of detail for a horse?
What an age we live in.
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to be honest im rather disappointed by the tech announcement. Nintendo could easy make their next console considerably more powerful than the PS3 and 360 for the same price as the PS3 is currently, it sounds like Nintendo merely want to catch up. once again Nintendo plays it safe with its hardware sigh, if this is the case then i strongly doubt there gonna get people to jump ship from the other two consoles
it sounds like this is Nintendo's entry into the current generation rather than the next one
on a happier note i cant wait for xenoblade chronicles, gives me a chance to dust off my Wii .
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The PS3 is capable of more graphical grunt than the Xbox 360, if developers put the effort in. PS3 has had 5 years to leverage this extra power but during this time most multi-platform games released have been better graphically on the Xbox 360 than the PS3. The Eurogamer Digital Foundry face-offs illustrate this. This is slowly changing but will developers put the effort in on a consistent basis? I also think that the Xbox 360 has plenty of mileage left in it. After all, most games on the console are using a middleware engine (like Unreal 3) that is not specifically tailored to the Xbox 360. Games like Halo Reach and Forza 3 are starting to show its potential (when using a game engine specifically designed for it) and games like Forza 4 should show what it is capable of. The PS3 often uses unique game engines as middleware solutions like Unreal 3 have historically not been that effective on the Sony platform. The Call of Duty series also uses a heavily modified Quake engine that is better suited also to the Xbox 360 (Note, it will be interesting how the console versions of Battlefield 3 turn out using the new Frostbite 2 engine). It is obvious that the new Nintendo console won't be cutting edge graphically but I believe that it will quite easily eclipse both the Xbox360 and PS3, most likely through the use of a stronger GPU and much more Ram (the lack of Ram in the Xbox and PS3 is quite a bad bottleneck). The console with the best graphics has never prevailed in the whole history of video gaming anyway, as it is only one component (of many) in the desirability of a console to the consumer.
I think that Kinect is a potential big game changer, selling 10 million with only a handful of decent games is quite an achievement (even with a big marketing budget). And I think there will be lot of Kinect games released in the second half of this year (and 2012) that will start to effectively use Kinect to its full capability. I think that Move is not sufficiently differentiated from the Wii motion control; that is the advantage of Kinect which I think Microsoft will take advantage of (given the huge resources that they are putting into it). And regarding pricing, I think Microsoft could move the 4 GB model to $99 U.S. if they wanted to, they have much more headroom to move on pricing than Sony. The only issue to me for the next gen Xbox console is whether Microsoft will move to blu-ray for storage, I think that going downloadable only is probably some way off.
It will be a real dogfight over the next few years, will be very interesting.
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They could, but they also risk alienating publishers and developers extremely pissed at the rising costs in production. Less is becoming more, especially with Apple proving that you don't need brute force to make a cutting edge product and Nintendo are taking that mantra up as well.
Don't expect huge graphical enhancements in the next few years while development is still catching up.
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thats true hmm i didn't think about that, production costs are through the roof at the moment and developers most likely dont want to have yet more hardware to get their heads around. anyway i must admit im quite intrigued as to what Nintendo will do in the next 12 to 18 months. who knows it could turn out to be a very good kit!!
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Microsoft don't own the PPC architecture that comes from IBM's PPC 970 server CPU range (iirc) they own the customizations that make the bespoke Xenon. If they want a 6 core version they willlikely need to pay IBM all over again or find a way to use 2x Xenons with external fsb interconnects.
Bretman2008: PS3 has had 5 years to leverage this extra power but during this time most multi-platform games released have been better graphically on the Xbox 360 than the PS3. The Eurogamer Digital Foundry face-offs illustrate this.
Or they are the opinion of a journalist who isn't a graphics programmer; and the articles wouldn't standing up under scientific scrutiny at GDC.
Look at the Half-life 2 footage in the portal 2 face off; why isn't a universal pad adaptor used to send identical inputs to both consoles simultaneously to compare identical footage frame rates? How's about why he didn't mention the use of the linear-piece-wise sRGB curve of the 360 in HL2 at the time, caused by using a GPU optimised for non-hdmi use, until I pulled him up on it? DF Face-offs are rarely credible enough to justify a point from, just ask Square.
On price, Microsoft have near saturated their US/EU 360 market at 360 arcade price point and have even sold multiple units per person in many cases(excluding defective units); whereas the PS3 is still to go mass market in the US/EU at $150/Ł100 price point, even though it has outsold the 360 worldwide at the high price, and has fewer people that have bought both a fat & slim model, if internet threads are anything to go by.
The PS3 imo is on safe ground by being a 3D blu-ray player, exclusive IPs, price cutting and room for optimization by developers from a new Nintendo console.
Whereas the 360 starts to struggle talking about new IPs or exclusives, has been largely optimized and will be directly eclipsed by the Nintendo hardware. Their best hope is diversity with Kinect, going with blu-ray post-E3 and hoping Nintendo don't, and ramping up the free media features to silver live customers to make a free-er Live a new selling point.
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Now you are just getting fanboyish. 3D and Blu-Ray are still out of reach of a lot of consumers (Were in an austerity period here y'know). The machine is too expensive to produce and cut the price even further and developers are still annoyed with the API. Since the GC, Nintendo has been far better at tailoring their API for developers (Though they keep some of the best tricks for themselves and their friends like EA and Sega) and Microsoft took the smartest route in just making it a Direct X platform.
Sony are nowhere near the top at the minute and Nintendo releasing a new console that undercuts them could really hurt them as well. Don't count your chickens.
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From an industry standard, cross platform graphics API perspective, there's nothing good about a non-standard, slower performing OOP proprietary graphics API like direct3D or directdraw.
My other comment was also about console lifespan by features against a new Nintendo console; an austerity period isn't a specific problem with 3D blu-ray, especially when the PS3 hits mass market price.
It is just a bonus to have a hdmi 1.3b player in the same box, so if buying a replacement HD tv(with 3D as standard) you've already got the ability to play 3D blu-rays.
No different to the convenience that being able to rip CDs to mp3, ATRAC, AAC music to the PS3 and transfer without restriction to any mobile phone/mp3 player/SAT nav supporting mass storage connections(except iPhone/iPod). It is another obvious feature that the 360/Wii don't have and probably missing from the next Nintendo console that helps the PS3 lifespan as I original said.
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But you have to consider that Joe Public does not give a shit. If anything, if they wanted a 3D Blu-Ray player with their shiny new TV (If they could afford one). They would just go for whatever one Curry's bundles in along with the TV and Stereoscopic glasses. Not the PS3. Even reducing the price wouldn't help.
Thing is, what the PS3 does is being outsniped by everyone else, even those not even in the console market. If anything, they are as in much danger from Samsung than Nintendo at the minute. There is no way the PS3 will be the market leader any time soon. MS Has its consumers focused on the games and online experience. Nintendo has the brand recognition with the public. Wii and 360 will continue to sell (Till Café at least for the Wii). PS3 will still have to compete in the market and they won't get to market leader any time soon.
As well, Microsoft doesn't give a toss about cross platform. If studios can get their games up and running on their dev kits quicker than Sony's. That is Sony's problem.
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25/04/11 @ 10:19
I've never owned a Nintendo piece of hardware as they're primarily designed for kiddies
/ultimate double facepalm
The poor, stupid bastard has missed out on decades of arguably the very best games ever created.
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This is going to be more Nintendo bilge once again. A half baked system, that has less fingers than the competition. Same old Nintendo crap, different day.
MS are in a very safe happy medium, until their 720 or whatever comes out. The likes of Kinect and Live with its awesome community, will see that MS stay in the game, despite Nintendo's upcoming efforts. Live itself has been the standard for online console play, and even Sony are yet to trump it. At E3, I can see Dance Central 2 also rearing its head, which will have many Kinect owners casual and hardcore excited.
The problems are stacked high for Nintendo. Decent online service, IP that will appeal to hardcore gamers (some of us need more than old IP rehashes, thanks), demos. No way are all of these going to just fixed, after years of Nintendo dropping the ball. A controller with a possible 6''touch screen? WTF? Why would gamers need a touch screen, when many of us enjoy cool HDtvs? They should be worrying more about implimenting voice chat.
As for Sony, I think their exclusives are strong enough to hold them out, where Move might be lacking. On top of that, now Sony have seen sense in a paid service and game trophies, they are mighty steps ahead of Nintendo, and should be sitting pretty for a while, if not their planned 10 years. I think devs will still favour both MS and Sony for some time to come, because Nintendo are insane. 3DS is another sign of that.
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I think exclusives are mostly a dying breed. I think Microsoft has analysed its own exclusives, and Sony's, and realised that most exclusives just don't sell in big enough volumes to justify the risk and expense. And, there is generally not a big enough bump in Console sales from the exclusives to support it. Look at the first quarter of this year, plenty of PS3 exclusives (Killzone 3, Little Big Planet 2 etc) and virtually none from Microsoft. But I don't see a sizable lift in PS3 sales to justify the exclusives. Microsoft will be mostly focussing on third party games with its first party games mostly consisting of Halo, Fable and Forza etc, established high profile games that sell very well. Fable and Forza sell 4 million plus and Halo is a juggernaught sales wise, Reach is now past 8 million sold. Kinect will also mostly be third party games also. And with the likes of Bungie and Insomniac going multi-platform the first party exclusives will diminish over time as more developers do the same.
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@Captain Iron,- Nintendo have not said anything yet, they have not said its going to be more powerful than a ps3. The only official thing they have announced is that project cafe exists and will be shown in playable form at E3. Rest is just rumour and speculation i'm afraid.
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You can add to this a need to reconnect with third party developers. First party games have generally sold brilliantly on the Wii, the third party games have generally sold abysmally. Also, if a new Xbox or PS was to come out soon, I can guarantee the new console would be familiar to current Xbox 360 or PS3 owners with a similar interface and feature set, an evolution of the current Xbox Live and PSN. However, it looks like the new Nintendo console will be somewhat different to the Wii, in many ways. If it has a new controller, new interface, new design and new name why would current Wii owners 'upgrade' to the new console? Most of the families I know who have a Wii are not gamers, it is the first time they have owned a game console. They were attracted by the simple game controls (and slick marketing campaign). I don't think they will upgrade to a console that is much more similar to the Xbox and Playstation consoles that they had no interest in before. The massive install base of the Wii won't mean much if the current owners don't upgrade.
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Sorry to burst your bubble, but I'm no fanboy freakazoid. I go where the games are, and for ages that's been 360, and to a latter extent PS3. I opted out of Wii, because while Nintendo are getting rich off of Wii, (that's fine they are a business) the automatically make it hard for others to do so, through various measures, and I can understand developers not wanting to put up with their crap. Also with Wii, while it was innovative in some ways, it never had the legs of 360, PS3 and PC. We alll knew this.
I can have fun with Mario, as much as the next guy, but frankly, I need and deserve more than his mug running around on my tv, from Nintendo, and so do you all. Like I said ages before, while it may give some butt hurt, Nintendo have dropped the ball. I was always in the mindset that Wii should have catered to all, but once again, they gimped the console in Wii, they chose their audience and split the wishbone. It was clear to many, just by Wii's terrible spec, who was going to buy and develop for it, and that's few people, abr casuals. I welcome casual gamers ever since DS drew them in, but Wii-wise, not at the expense of hardcore gamers, that have been supporting this industry for years, are kicked in the teeth. Some hardcore gamers have long memories, and won't forget being shafted like that, putting their money elsewhere. Casuals might bite, but 3DS is more for them, if not this Wii successor.
@Brettman
Okay, perhaps exclusives aren't as prevalent as before, but they still play a part. Their priority one should be attracting 3rd parties, but that won't be easy, if their online service is crap, there's no decent sized hard drive or reasonable open plan to allow developers to develop their games unhindered by restrictions and draconian red tape bs. Friend codes need to go and voice chat needs to be applied, open and without fear of misuse (there'll always be those fools around, but by not doing it, you are letting them and the competition win, Nintendo). I really don't see them ticking all these magic boxes well all of a sudden (also look at 3DS, and how staggered its launch was, even the online store), after being underwhelmed by Wii and GC (it had its cool moments) before it.
As for that controller, if I don't see a normal controller with buttons and feedback, come E3, I'm done with Nintendo once again. Go on, prove me wrong, Nintendo.
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The Wii we knew wouldn't have the legs to last, and the third party support - whilst it HAS been there - has been considerably of poorer quality than we're used to. It encouraged laziness - but it also has some quality stuff. I said it elsewhere, I doubt we'll look back fondly on the Wii. But it made more money for Nintendo than most thought possible, and that's a good place to start building a new machine.
On Mario - come on. We get one or two major Mario games per generation. When compared to some other games, this is pretty decent all told - and major Mario games aren't shit either. The spinoffs and cameos I can live without, but that's just me. No need to hate on Mario - the overall challenges in Mario games are as hardcore as they've ever been.
In any case, we know nothing about the new Nintendo console - and won't until E3 I'd wager. Any specs, media suggestions, games coming etc are pure speculation. People need to relax - we don't know what this new console can or will do yet. That will come in a couple months time, and THEN we can debate if Nintendo are dropping the ball a bit.
I hope not. But we shall see. Let's not get too wound up over this - without any facts, we're all just arguing over hot air.
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Also, whilst i could do away with waggle ware, the actual control set up, barring the slightly undersized clicky d-pad are fantastic, they were comfortable, and the pointer controls actually where a true step forward. I wouldn't say that Nintendo dropped the ball, i would say it was like a stop gap. The 'hardcore' might not have like it, but they opened up the market, and got everyone talking about games, the next step is giving them something a bit more substantial, amongst admittedly copius amounts of shovel ware.
Someone had to do something different, the gamecube (and dreamcast) showed you could not have had 3 heavy weight consoles that done the same thing, fighting it out with each other, sharing a small market amongst a select few of the worlds population. Nintendo done that, and now they got and created a market, people will buy into there next product because they know nintendo. They trust them. Now is the time to give them what we all know nintendo for.
Im excited for it, but then i grew up with them, and would happily eat shit giving to me on a stick from them.
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Sadly, although I have a Wii, I rarely use it and only then to play my old Gamecube games and the retro titles you can get off their online store. I'm just not interested in playing any games that require me to wave my hands around like an idiot.