Topic: NX aparantly not as powerful as PS4 rumour. Discussion on good/bad things this could mean.

Im sure you've all heard this now, and if its true it obviously has some bad sides i.e 3rd party AAA game like fifa, and call of duty won't be back.
But there are good sides, like it will have lots of new indie games which will get better looking and bigger as tech moves on.
Does less power spell doom or is it a smart move?

This random tweet from some dude sure is getting a lot of traction.

I know but hes right about A LOT of his rumours. So let's just assume its right. Think hard about positives and negatives n lets try n get a good idea what NX IS

Lets say its true, where does that lead us?
First, nintendo is cheaping us out again - replacing specs with gimmicks that may or may not be useful. Lets say the nx was to be released next or year or 2017, technology gets cheaper so the gap between ps4 and the nx will be more striking.
Its a little like the new 3ds, slightly increased processing power, a couple of improved gimmicks and you have a new model - awesome... if they had quadruppled its specs it would have made more sense...

If it's true then it's just Nintendo repeating the same mistakes again. They need to have something equel in power to the PS4 and Xbox One otherwise third party companies won't take them seriously. This isn't like the days of the NES or SNES where Nintendo ruled the roost. The are more options for these third parties to go this day and age. Yeah Nintendo may act like it won't bother them but it will cause gamers want those third party games and if the NX won't deliver them well then gamers will have no other choice but to go elsewhere.

He said it isn't COMPETING with the power of a PS4, it could be competing with above the PS4, or below.

What I'm trying to say is that he didn't say the NX is going to be less powerful than a ps4.

Don’t we kind of know this already? Nintendo gave up the tech race because it’s a risky business and ends up being costly if you’re not a runaway hit on the software side. They are always a step behind (or normalized, if you will) because sony is always pushing the best technology and counting their losses to get the console out and increase its longevity. It’s their edge, while nintendo’s edge is / are its artistic choices and gameplay combined with innovation - or at least, newer and different experiences.

I never expect nintendo to compete on specs. I’m very glad sony is in the game, though, it keeps nintendo in check not to pull a pet rock. If nintendo can make a beautiful portable with the capabilities of a wiiU or slightly over, expect NX to be the hybrid hardware some are placing their bets on and ditch the “ps4 power” game altogether.

The only reason I could see it being less powerful than a PS4 is that they're going for a much lower price point. Which is fine, really. The 3DS is $200 and it's the best system Nintendo has released since the SNES, which, incidentally, was also $200.

The advantage won't be in the specs, but in the architecture. If it's extremely easy to develop for and very indie-friendly in its policies, it will get a lot of support just based on that. Nintendo actually has a very good relationship with Japanese 3rd parties right now and I'm sure all of them have already gotten a first look at the guts of the NX, at least on paper.

Another advantage will be the unified OS and development teams. This will help a lot in increasing Nintendo's 1st party software output and it will also entice 3rd parties by giving them access to a larger, more diverse audience.

Disadvantage: It's a Nintendo product and will thus never be an attractive platform for Guns'nSports.

I cant believe a whole boardroom of people working on NX all sat there and agreed this wont be as powerful as PS4.
The problem is now that a large amount of gamers have now grown up with playstaion or xbox and not Nintendo. Even if they made it more powerful, why would a gamer with no experience playing nintendo games buy the NX if there happy with what they have?

On its own this information isn't enough to tell us anything about the console.For example, if it does turn out that the NX is the long-rumoured hybrid console, then it probably isn't feasible to pack that much power into it.

Secondly, it depends on how Nintendo intends to position the NX. Is it, in their view, a new generation console intended to succeed the Wii U and/or 3DS, or a more user-friendly and home console version of the New 3DS with enough little extras to see them through the current generation?

Finally, more importantly than raw horsepower (which Nintendo have never been the best at), I would argue that system architecture is far more important. The Wii U is underpowered in comparison to the PS4 and XBox One, yes, but it also (from what I've read) has a very different architecture to these consoles, meaning that it isn't the easiest to programme for. If the NX is less powerful BUT has an architecture that would allow games to be easily scaled down to it, then we may be in with a shot.

That's my 10 cents anyway.

Just to line everything up for everyone. This is what "not competing with the PS4" means if it was to be the case. Basically they'd be releasing something on-par with what the Wii was for its time and even then it'd be reasonably competitive. And by competitive I mean you wouldn't really notice that it was less powerful except for on paper. If it's "average" or even only pushing it as far as the Wii U did? There's no way it's not as powerful as the PS4.

Needless to say.... I'm sceptical.

If the NX is a portable console it would actually make sense if it were less powerful than the PS4. With that said, I'm not believing this rumor.

I heard someone on neogaf say they thought the nx would be a mobile phone and it would come packed with a controller you slid your phone into that linked up with your tv. Now the more i think about that set up, It sounds right to me. Not right as in thats definitely what nintendo are doing, but right as in that could be the future of gaming. Especially with the power of modern day smartphones.
Maybe the NX is just a controller you slide a smart phone in? That's the easiest way to create a hybrid console and even a VR boy would work!
Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm....

Same graph as above just modified. That black rectangle covers the "area" between the Wii U's spec and the PS4's spec and the potential range of launches (2016-2018). Basically all of the possible ways that the NX could be more powerful than the Wii U but less capable than the PS4. I'd argue that most of that top part of that rectangle is "competitive" with the PS4 and that the bottom half isn't enough of an upgrade from the Wii U to be worth the effort.

The PS4 isn't a powerful console relatively speaking and the Wii U is underpowered but not particularly so. They're all pretty average. So a new home console that doesn't at the very least bring them in-line with the PS4? It's not a big upgrade. What would be the point?

@skywake: The point? The return of "waggle" gameplay. Watch the sales go up and our tears go down.

There is NOTHING good about the NX being weak spec wise. Nothing! A Nintendo platform that only has Indie games will fail!!! It's not enough!!!

@erv: Except that the 2016/17 equivalent of a Wii would be competitive with the PS4. That's my point. There's only so much that they would want to cut the spec. Diminishing returns, if they release a home-console in 2016/17 that's not competitive with the PS4 it wouldn't be that much cheaper than one that was. There would be other advantages, like being able to turn it into a portable system if they pushed it hard enough, but it wouldn't get that much cheaper.

At the end of the day its all about games i supose. Nintendo knows that one of the reasons the WII U failed was due to lack of day 1 software. If the NX launches with a great line up it will sell.
I also wander if they will support mobile and indie developers a lot more to improve the quality of their games. There are some ok FPS on i pad etc. With more power and easy framework maybe Nintendo will push these relatively small companies too get bigger and better. More competition for the future

Well sure it's about software. Which is why it seems strange that they'd, we assume, pull development from the Wii U in order to work on a brand new system that..... is basically another Wii U.

When they transitioned from GC to Wii it was a similar non-event in terms of spec-upgrade. But the GC was a "PS4" level console in its day and the Wii was pretty easy to transition to. They're in a different situation now. Maintaining a "Wii U" level spec will easily get them to the PS4 and probably a bit above. Going as low as the Wii will get them well within reach of the PS4 if not at the PS4 spec.

Nintendo would rather get some generic mobile game on the NX than actual talented developers like Square Enix?! That's not right!!!!