I remember reading on Nintendo's E3 website that the game discs would be "high-capacity" 25GB. HD-DVD is dead, so the only other alternative is Blu-ray (or a proprietary form of it).

If I recall correctly, the GameCube mini-discs could only hold about 1.5GB of data, far less than what DVDs used.

@tendoboy1984 the simple answer is we don't quite know, what Nintendo have said so far is "proprietary high-density optical discs" of around 25GB capacity. If they were to use a form of Blu-Ray then there would be some kind of license involved, so I'm not sure they would be interested in that.

I'm quite sure Nintendo want to use a proprietary format to keep piracy to a minimum, it'll mean having slightly higher production costs on games but if done correctly can limit pirates from using discs - time will tell on that.

Personally, I would of been happy with them using Blu-Ray, it's won the format war now and supports up to 50GB right (Dual Layer)?

Yes Blu-Ray supports up to 50GB, and the only game to fully use that amount (that I know of) is Metal Gear Solid 4.

Nintendo could still use a proprietary form of Blu-Ray, like how the Wii uses a proprietary form of DVD and the GameCube used a proprietary form of mini-discs.

Yeah, I'd assume it's blu-ray but written to the disk in a strange way. Like backwards or with CAV instead of CLV like they did with the Wii/GC. Still, if they're not wanting to have blu-ray playback then they can do whatever and it won't really matter.

They could bring back HD DVD and it wouldn't make much difference at all to the end user.

I don't know about 'fully using that amount', but yes, MGS4 is on a dual-layer Blu-ray Disc along with FFXIII and GoWIII.

^Also, L.A. Noire is on three DVDs for 360 and one Blu-Ray for PS3.

Aren't the Uncharted games dual-layer?

No.

Oh okay.

I still think that either the next generation of home consoles or the one after that will have a major player dumping optical media. If not for pure online stuff, which I think might be a bit longer off, then cartridges. It would be all sorts of hilarious irony to see maybe the PS4 selling the performance advantages of cartridges over the Wii U's optical disk in 2014..... but it could very well happen methinks.

If by cartridges you mean game cards, then that's already happened. The Vita uses game cards just like the DS, whereas the PSP used optical discs. Strange bit of irony, isn't it?

The PlayStation's use of discs was the main factor that caused many third-party developers to switch over from the N64, due to the format's large storage capacity. And now Sony is using game cards for their handhelds, copying the DS.

Well yeah, but handhelds strongly favor cartridges so it's hardly a surprise. One of it's main advantages over disks is it's low power usage and durability which is a HUGE issue for handhelds and virtually a non-issue for consoles. At the other side of things cartridges have a much, much higher cost per GB which is much less of an issue for handhelds given they have lower resolution screens (and therefore lower res textures and models) and generally smaller games.

.......... when I said "major player dumping optical media" in the Wii U thread I thought it was pretty clear I was talking about non-portable consoles

I kind of doubt the Wii U will use Blu-ray, if just because using it would mean paying their competition. 25 GB is pretty huge, even if not equal to a 50 GB blu-ray (and who's to say it won't later? The PS3 didn't launch with dual layer either). It IS about triple the 360's capacity after all, and it managed.

Personally, I hope Nintendo doesn't waste the space. The Gamecube had the best graphics of the generation (RE4, Metroid Prime, Starfox, Windwaker, etc.) despite having the smallest capacity even with 2 discs. Think about it. Metroid Prime 1 is one of the best-looking games of the entire generation, and it fit on 1.5 GBs and was a launch!

Most Likely Not. If anything I could see a propriety form of HD-DVD. It may be dead but it doesn't matter if your using it for game discs.

Sony doesn't own all of Blu-ray

What's your point? They own part of it, so Nintendo will have to pay licensing fees in part to Sony.

Well Sony pays Microsoft to use windows. Other Computer OEM's pay Sony to use blueray, Its how consumer Electronics work man.

Are you responding to me?

yep