Topic: One generation back again?

MS just published some new data about the next XBoX planned for 2013. Six times the power of current 360, GPU similar to Radeon HD 6670 with DirectX 11 support, multiscreen output and native 3D support. Next to move will be Sony, but it seems the "Wii situation" will repeat again. With these specs MS is quickly closing the gap between current gaming PCs and consoles, something that devs will see as a big advantage to standarize games, but then again nothing created for these systems will be able to run on WiiU.

Any proof of this? Or are you just trying to start debates?

Probably the latter.

@Mandoble
Yeah, we get the point, you think the WiiU sucks.

In Spanish:
http://www.abc.es/20120126/tecnologia/abci-proxima-xbox-sera-...

and IGN source:
http://uk.ign.com/articles/2012/01/24/xbox-720-will-be-six-ti...

Well if you read the RUMOR then you could see that they said it would only be 20% more powerful than the Wii U and even then that's not for sure until we find out the final specs. Plus it's impossible to catch up to PC since every few months they get upgraded. Dude learn to read and on top of that it's just a RUMOR!!!!!

I got proof just in case you want it

It doesn't matter how powerful the future XBox (although I still want it) or the PS4 will be, as long as Sony and Microsoft prefer souping up their systems as opposed to innovating, Nintendo will always be on top. Many developers are already saying that the possibilities of the Wii U are still being thought of. The Wii had many possibilities, but was still limited by hardware, now the Wii U, much more powerful and supports dual screens, touch controls, on top of everything the Wii was capable of opens up far more opportunities for game developers than they could've imagined.

@abHS4L, many devs said the very same with the Wii possibilities. BTW, they are stating that the CPU power will be 6 times that of fhe current XBoX and that the GPU would be 20% faster than the one expected to fit WiiU. Of course that could not match 2013 gaming PCs, but it would catch the today's average ones, anyway the standarization would come with the compatibility with DX11, not just with the raw power.

Since I disagree that the Wii is "generation behind" to begin with, this is all moot. I haven't seen anything spectacular on the other platforms that couldn't have been done on the Wii, and I played all platforms. In fact, the fact that stuff like Call of Duty came on the Wii and perfectly was playable with all the content is proof it's all a myth. It's not just the Wii. PES played on the PS3 and the PS2 is the same except for the better graphics. The same could have been said about the RE4 about the Gamecube and the PS2. The same game was possible on both. When Wii doesn't try to do facial features, it showed some great graphics, and even when it did, it sometimes looked just fine (Goldeneye).

Remember what Iwata said about the Wii when it first came out?

"It is not next generation - it's new generation"

The same applies to Wii U. It should be blindingly obvious that Nintendo isn't into the 'moar power' competition that is held by Sony and Microsoft - and I'm thankful for that.

@stromboli

call of duty on wii is way different than the he systems.

ghat and stuff like uncharted,ffxiii,reach couldn't happen on the wii.

also this was a rumor and is very shakey.

Bottom line is that this mysterious "20%" is conjecture. Also, 20% isn't that much, and - as I've said before - the raw power of a system is a wonky term to begin with. You can eke more out of a system with clever programming. The fact that the Wii U is as powerful as has been stated by multiple developers says to me that it will be a comparable system to the next XBox and PS4, in terms of hardware capabilities.

If not, then what everyone has stated here applies - Wii was innovative and had tons of great titles. It's not about horsepower, but gameplay. I have the XBox 360, PS3 and Wii and Wii was by far my favourite system of the 7th gen.

Considering the Wii was successful despite the "one generation behind" mindset everyone had for it, I'm not that worried about Wii U. Keep in mind that throughout video game history, the most successful system has never been the most powerful one.

everyone may not agree with me, but i'mgoinv to say nintendo got lucky as hell with the wii taking off. it was perfect storm of price and a cool new gimmick.

it would be foolish to cite the wii as an example when evidence is showing the woo u dropping in to an even playing field launching next to really cheap consoles with the same relative power levels and known install base.

Based on the card you listed; Microsoft is not closing the cap between PC gaming and consoles.
Keep in mind this console won't be around for a year or two. And will stick around for many more years if things go well.

Considering that the TV set fix resolution in 1080p and frames at 60/second, I don't believe most developers will do an effort that can make those 20% a difference. Most users will not see any significant difference in graphics between console versions of next gen multiplatform games.

A. Microsoft didn't publish this. It's based on "rumors and unconfirmed reports" given to IGN.

B. You forgot the part where it's only 20% more powerful than a Wii U, which translates to around 5x the power of a 360. That's hardly a generation back.

Next topic?

I made a point on my blog saying that we cannot know for sure, and I'll repeat it here: until we know the full technical specs for both consoles it's pointless trying to pin down exactly how powerful the next Xbox will be compared to the Wii U because these "rumours and speculation" often contradict one another. Something has to give, but we don't know yet.

Can I also just say that the Wii's lack of third party support is more down to the failure of many gamers to pay it heed. If it were popular among gamers, third parties would bend over backwards to support it, but didn't.

capcom had resident evil 5 running on the 3DS. the 3DS is hardly a more powerful system than the wii, but it supports more modern programming that allows it to run engines that the wii couldn't. it wasn't raw power that was holding the wii back, but its outdated gpu and lack of programmable graphics. the wii u doesn't have that problem; it will probably support directx11 too. even if it's just as weak compared to the new xbox as the wii was to the 360 in terms of horsepower, developers will still be able to port their games over because of that.

second point- who cares?

20% more powerful is one generation ahead? Mandoble, this really makes me wonder if the mindset you take towards gaming is a sensible one.
_{Power has never ensured the immediate success of a console anyway.}