Wii news

[Payne]

I'll hold judgment until I get to try it out...it seems like one of those Virtual reality helmet things that used to be everywhere when you turned your helmet, so would the screen etc;

It looks different which is the idea, it's eye-catching and something refreshing. On the surface it just looks like a remote control which is confusing, but like I said I'll hold judgment.

If Nintendo was smart, they'd have an option where you wouldn't need to use those 3D capabilities and turn them off and just use analog for the old-school gamer. At least I'd hope they would...

[Zephyr]

I couldn't find it in writing anywhere, but watching G4TV the other day, they were talking Revolution with someone, and it was mentioned that the price might be $99-$149. Can anyone confirm this?

[Chops]

I posted this before the forums went down, so I'll repost it:

ZD media and EGM are reporting that developers who were given hands on time with the revolution are reporting that they are dissapointed with the graphics, saying they are barely better than what the Ganecube currently produces.

[Skyre]

That may be true. However, Nintendo has been heading in the direction of innovation instead of trying to compete for the best graphics(which they've never been good at to begin with). Graphics don't neccesarily make a good game and Nintendo knows this.

[Chops]

Oh, I agree, I hate gamers who tout nothing but graphics, or how good a game looks while the gameplay is shit. However, the day and age were in a graphical leap from one generation to the next is needed to capture an audience and draw them into looking at your games closer. With Nintendo already under fire from alot of developers for their, in my opinion, horrendous controller, and then to have a system that is going to be the weakest one and also the last one to reach market doesn't bode well.

Graphics can be used as a great hype machine, look at the PS3, it stole alot of press from the 360 release because of how amazing some things were that were being shown, even to the point were Mircosoft admitted that yes the PS3 is more powerful than the 360.

But, with Nintendo's reluctance, it seems, to grow up, and with Nintendo losing ground in thier own country, I would just hate to see them go the way of Sega.

[Payne]

I love Nintendo and I'd hate to see them fade off in the distance like Sega. I'm your regular Nintendo fanboy and I can honestly say that the only thing that might intrigue me is the price. I can't shill out 400 dollars for a system right off the bat. So if I'm in a gaming fix and Nintendo is the cheaper buy and has a few reliable titles then that's the way to go for me. I used to be the guy that would buy the systems the day they came out (Dreamcast anyone? 9/9/99) but now with more bills it's impossible. I guess I can play the wait and see game (which I have been doing for a PSP, 250 seems like a lot, maybe if it dropped down to 150, but that won't be awhile) of which consoles will drop their prices first to be competitive.

Also, I don't have the broadband internet so internet gameply isn't that important to me either, nor do I have an HDTV. So I don't need all those fancy accessories that come with the system, and if that's what the system is all about which is the feeling I kind of get from an XBox 360.

[JackFetch]

About the price, remember this is Nintendo. They sell the game boy micro for $100.00, which is really close to the DS. They knew that only the hardcore fans would buy the micro for that price, and it would steer casual gamers to buy the DS for only $30.00 more. So the Revolution, which should cost $150.00 will more than likely cost 199.99 or 249.99. It inflates the price for a quick profit before they have to drop the price 2 years down the road, and keeps it cheaper than both PS3 and the XBox360. The price has to be considerably higher than the DS to not only sell more DS's, but to show how much more powerful it is than the DS. By the time the price drop comes, the money coming in won't be from the system anymore, but the library of games(from the NES and up) people are buying and playing on their Revolutions.

Inflate the price first, then make the money from software. All while you are still getting people to buy DS's. Those darn shifty asians and their math and business skills.

[Missy]

From IGN:

GDC 06: Revolution Goes Retro

TG-16 and Genesis games due out for Nintendo's new console.

by Nix

March 23, 2006 - In a press release simultaneously with an announcement made during Nintendo's keynote speech at GDC 2006 this morning, Nintendo announced that Sega and Hudson have signed on as partners for the Revolution's Virtual Console service. With this, the emulators will be best games from the two companies for the TurboGraphix-16 (or PC-Engine, as it was called in Japan) and Sega Genesis will be downloadable and playable for the Revolution.

Curiously, only Sega Genesis games were mentioned as planned for the Virtual Console system in the deal with Sega (um, hello? Master System? Saturn? Game Gear? 32X?!?), but the partnership promises that many of the best out of the Genesis' 1,000+ gaming library will be available for the Revolution. Individual deals will have to be worked out with publishers for titles to be released on the Revolution, but with a growing interest in classic gaming, publishers and license owners will hopefully be fast to get on-board with Genesis support. And considering that most of the TurboGraphix-16's games released were published and/or developed by Hudson and NEC, it seems that the vast majority of games for the system will automatically fall into that partnership without much more licensing work from the company.

With NES, SNES, N64, and now Genesis and TG-16 on-board, the Revolution has got years of gaming already ready to play as soon as it launches later this year. Look for more news on supported systems and licensed games for the Nintendo Virtual Console as things develop.

[Shinmaru]

I hope that Saturn games will eventually be thrown into the plans as well. It would be nice to not have to sell my soul to be able to play Panzer Dragoon Saga.

[Mr. Keith]

If I can ever get around to going online with the Revolution, then this would be some awesome news for me.

Good for Nintendo.

[Missy]

Well, let's discuss the new name.

[Pablo Molinero]

Lets not. In fact, lets forget that it ever happened.

Honestly, I thought Revolution was great, but I guess it was dumb of me to think that they'd stick with the code-name for the console. Wii... I dunno, I just don't like the sound of it (apart from all the obvious puns and jokes that are going to be made out of it). Sure, after they explain it, the name seems clever, but my initial thought was: That's really dumb.

[Chops]

Ugh, a bad name, a bad controller, and their moajor selling point is playing games that most people have emulators on their computers for. And Nintendo wonders why a foriegn comapny, X-box, is beating them in their own homeland of Japan.

[James D.]

The fuck? Is this a joke? How is it pronounced? Wee-ee?

[Missy]

We.

[James D.]

We.

.................

I got nuthin'. Not even my vast database of humorous pictures can summon up the words.

[Zephyr]

You have to consider what they didn't choose.

But seriously, the name won't matter much in the long run. The people who are against the controller aren't going to care what the name is, and if you still want to get one after seeing the controller, will the name change your mind?

But I still think it's a stupid name.

[Missy]

Quoting myself from the 'Tory:

I like the name. Yes, Revolution sounded cooler and is stuck in our brains, but Wii has the potential to become one of those words which becomes larger than the product itself (RE: iPod, TiVo). And that's a good thing, because it gets people talking about video games.

[Mr. Keith]

And Nintendo wonders why a foriegn comapny, X-box, is beating them in their own homeland of Japan.

?

You're the second person I've heard something like this from, but everytime I hear about sales figures in Japan, Nintendo is always way ahead of Microsoft. So will somebody explain how Microsoft has, in anyway, gone ahead of Nintendo in Japan, cause I just don't understand how they've even come close. Unless were talking 360(Which I honestly, know nothing about), GC has always been way ahead of the X-Box in sales.

As for the new name, I absolutely love it right now. But by the time the system is finally released, I'm almost certain I'll be sick of it from all the jokes that can come of it.

[JackFetch]

Revolution was a great name. Wii sounds french, and you know republicans won't buy anything that sounds french.

Seriously though. Does anyone realize that the cheap price is only temporary? If you want to play all those old games you have to buy more memory for it(there is no hard drive).

From Wikipedia:

"According to a Japanese press release, "all downloaded games will be stored on the 512 [MB] flash memory built into the system, also any USB based storage device might be able to be used."

Can you imagine how fast you will fill up that 512MB? You will either have to buy a crapload of memory cards, a usb hard drive, or more flash memory from Nintendo. By the time you buy that(and pay for all those old games), you will spend the same amount, or more than you would have for a 360.

[Missy]

Whoa. That's news to me.

[Chops]

And Nintendo wonders why a foriegn comapny, X-box, is beating them in their own homeland of Japan.

?

You're the second person I've heard something like this from, but everytime I hear about sales figures in Japan, Nintendo is always way ahead of Microsoft. So will somebody explain how Microsoft has, in anyway, gone ahead of Nintendo in Japan, cause I just don't understand how they've even come close. Unless were talking 360(Which I honestly, know nothing about), GC has always been way ahead of the X-Box in sales.

It might have changed, but the last time I read EGM, which truthfully has been awhile, in the news section they showed sales figures that more X-boxes were being sold than Gamecubes. Nintendo might be making more on sells of games and such, but I think there is something to be seen by a swing of userbase in Japan for a foriegn company.

[Zephyr]

Seriously though. Does anyone realize that the cheap price is only temporary? If you want to play all those old games you have to buy more memory for it(there is no hard drive).

From Wikipedia:

"According to a Japanese press release, "all downloaded games will be stored on the 512 [MB] flash memory built into the system, also any USB based storage device might be able to be used."

Can you imagine how fast you will fill up that 512MB? You will either have to buy a crapload of memory cards, a usb hard drive, or more flash memory from Nintendo. By the time you buy that(and pay for all those old games), you will spend the same amount, or more than you would have for a 360.

If that's the case, we can only hope that they allow any old USB flash drive to be used. That would mean that you could use your iPod to store some games. I would donate a couple of gig to store some games.

[slothian]

I'm disappointed.

Personally, I thought there'd be a lot more urine-based punnery going on.

[J Marv]

I don't know Jack, it depends on the games you buy. If you buy only say NES, SNES and Genesis games, it should hold well over 100 before you need to look for external storage. That's enough, I'd think. Only the hardest of hardcore will want more, and they won't really have problems paying for more memory cards. Yeah, it'd be nice to have more, but solid state memory still isn't all that cheap, and it's probably a cost decision more than anything at this point. If the average consumer isn't going to fill up 512MB, why raise the cost for them to add features they won't use?

And cvskin, could at least find a source that backs you up on that XBox thing?

Not that Nintendo really gives a fuck right now (even if it were true). They can't make enough DSLites and DS's to satisfy JAPAN's demand, much less America's once we get the DSLite. And I remember when people said the PSP was going to trounce the DS.