To me, he's hit the nail on the head - very eloquently too. I've always thought of the Wii U as more of an intuitive contribution to the industry, more so than it is innovative - it somehow expands in many different directions all at once, yet it has some sort of... interesting fluidity to it. This is what has defined it as a proper next-generation console for me; it's a true ingenuity for gaming, way beyond what photo-realistic visuals or whatever else may be able to do for us (aside from being effectively vomit-inducing in some games).
It leaves developers with many different experimental possibilities (which is something Nintendo Land demonstrates exceedingly well, alongside games like Chasing Aurora and Spin The Bottle) - it's pushing them to be more thoughtful and resourceful, which seems to be the direction we need to be headed with all that's going on. Another big plus is that the console is very affiable to developers, from what we've heard: easier to develop for, more accessible (especially towards indie and third-party developers), cost-efficient development etc. So, the doors are essentially being flung wide open.
However, the question with the Wii U is whether or not developers (and gamers) are ready to appreciate that. That may very well be what determines the console's success - or otherwise.
The Wii U has an uphill battle as since the CPU is slower it means that developers will have to spend extra time maximizing the GPU and extra ram.
Is everybody completely oblivious of the fact that the GPGPU exists in the Wii U, and is somewhat more effective in handling the CPU's tasks? Combine that with a stronger GPU, more expansive RAM and a notable amount of fast eDRAM to boot. It's in plain sight.
@Damo: Alright, I can understand that. I just felt the way it was phrased was a little mocking, but your point is indeed true.
By saying he didn't understand the Wii U, I didn't at all mean he had no clue what it was about - I know better than that, seeing how seasoned a man he must be in this industry. What I meant was I don't think he quite sees what diplomacy the Wii U presents to the industry in this dire time of need (moderated innovation, amiability towards developers, cost-efficiency etc.), all of which point to it having quite a lot of successful potential. That's why I see his comment as a little less than insightful - the console has proposed a few long-term benefits towards its likely success.
One thing that's particularly baffling here is the fact that he barely elaborated on his perspective, apart from saying that it's "the end of an era". Yes, Mr. Bushnell, the era of the Atari ended long since.
In all seriousness, I get the slight inkling that he doesn't understand the console very well, or isn't particularly informed on it. I don't believe it's because he's just a relentless old man set in his time, but his statements don't seem to hold much insight. The Wii U has posed some notable developments and favours towards the market and industry as a whole, if you look at it.
Otherwise, I don't think it's fair to judge this man's opinions on his past judgements, however inaccurate they may have proved. If he thinks the Wii U won't prove very successful, that's his prerogative. There are quite a few facts that point the other way for the console, but his thoughts are his and I find it a bit derogatory to bring up his past fallacies in relation to this.
@seronja: Way to kill innovation. That perspective is arguably narrow-minded.
The reason the Wii saw itself shameful third-party support was because it was seen as uncompromising, especially compared to the other rival systems (motion controls were a big hindrance, even if effectively utilised). Conversely, with the GamePad, the Wii U has notably given developers a lot more flexibility for their usage of the Wii U's proficiencies - there's still a standard control method embedded into it. The rest can optionally be adapted to with ease.
Another advantage of the Wii U is its ease of accessibility. Development is cost-efficient in line with today's standards (mid-tier development will benefit hugely from this), and it provides a modern development environment from what I've heard that's much easier in comparison to current-gen consoles. It's a big plus. The main obstacle now is for developers to learn to efficiently utilise and manouver around the console's abilities and hardware (for example, the GPGPU in place of the CPU), and we'll most likely see the Wii U to be a very fine choice for developers on all ends of the spectrum.
Gotta say, I like how Nintendo has backed both Sony and Microsoft into a corner here. Making yet more powerful consoles this time won't be a successful venture (especially for the consumer market with retail pricing, gaming expenses etc.) - expensive development will be a hindrance to practically all developers, as the current model isn't even that sustainable as it is. The Wii U has also adapted to the perceived image of "standard" games consoles in many respects, and they've stepped up considerably in many aspects (online, eShop etc.) The other two will have to rely on resourcefulness as opposed to resources to have a chance of potentially appealing as much to the majority of the industry, as the Wii U currently has the massive potential to do.
With Nintendo, it's not graphics > gameplay, or gameplay > graphics. It's about them putting in a regulated amount of power with their consoles; enough graphical/hardware capability to compete with the attention of devs, but not so much that it is, for the most part, redundant and ineffective.
@blinder2: a) No, the GamePad is not independent of the Wii U. It shows no isolated function of its own with the consoles features, and off-TV gameplay is obviously being streamed.
b) The GamePad is not 720p, it's optimised 480p. Its resolution is 854 x 480.
@AlexSays: With PCs, you upgrade key components on an already-established technical infrastructure. With games consoles, you start development and manufacturing from scratch. Go figure.
Warning: Intense drama imminent in this comment section.
I'll just put in my oh-so-valuable two pennies:
I can only guess that Black Ops II is a CPU-intensive game, that area of hardware being one of the Wii U's detriments, thus resulting in a performance decrease.
Being very early days and considering this game is no more than a port, developers are clearly yet to learn how to efficiently adapt to and utilise the new GPGPU to help alleviate the burden of performance issues with the CPU. It was stuck in there for a reason.
Black Ops II is a port shared alongside current-gen consoles. The chances of us being able to accurately determine the Wii U's capability on a mere multi-platform port is as likely as bacon becoming universally hated.
A year from now, let's see some original games being developed from the ground up that actually take full advantage of the Wii U. Then we shall talk powah.
A while back, it was stated that Capcom was interested in developing an original Resident Evil game to take advantage of the Wii U. If they proved serious, this may have influenced this alleged decision of porting Revelations to PS3. Personally, I can see this game doing very well on PS3, especially given its reception on 3DS. It seems a good fit overall and I see it selling well (though, maybe not as well as on the 3DS, being a late port), so I think Capcom should definitely go for it.
I wouldn't say they've "pushed the genre forward" per sé, but Mario Kart could indeed take a few notes from this game. From what I've seen and heard, I can assure you that Sonic Racing is far from being the average Mario Kart clone. They both have their respective advantages and strong points over each other, but there's no harm in taking a small lesson from other competitors in the genre.
Remember, Mario Kart isn't the best wacky racing game out there; only the biggest.
@Nin-freak: The Apple name is quality; that's why it's grown to be such a recognisable name and their products fly off the shelves. They're fantastic devices, questionable pricing aside.
Seems to be getting pretty popular. Great advertising for the title with such a promotional novelty. Alongside Pokédex on iOS, it'd be great to see more Nintendo console/handheld games get these sort of "companion" apps. They're beneficial to both Nintendo and the developers.
I'll be surprised if Nintendo Life doesn't start a site competition with this.
Insightful review. This game has been the first and most important title on my Wii U eShop radar. It looks very beautiful and unique: its distinctive art-style gives it an individual yet enchanting look.
$14.99 is a surprisingly high price tag, but I think I'll find it worth it for the most part, whenever I buy a Wii U.
@goldbricks23: It was announced way back in time, but Nintendo undoubtedly has plans to bring Nintendo Network and Miiverse to the 3DS, as well as PCs and smartphones/tablets.
@Zombie_Barioth: Indeed, that's something I've repeated countless times. The current model of game development is clearly unsustainable as it is, and people want to worsen it? This time, the industry will certainly crash on us if it begins this way again.
@Zombie_Barioth: That's essentially what Nintendo have done for you with the Wii U, alongside its resourcefulness in design. Its RAM is around double (or more than double) that of the PS3/Xbox 360 (which is what makes Rayman Legends so alluring visually - better textures, shaders, draw distances etc.), it's an easily-accessible platform with a modern development environment from what I've heard developers (indies in particular) say to me, and it is indeed affordable, both developer- and consumer-wise.
@TysonQ7: No such thing as bad publicity in this industry. Even further, from the amount of attention it needlessly gathered (thanks to the outrage that was exhibited here), you could also say Microsoft were more than successful in their blatant marketing ploy.
This, on the other hand, is something entirely different; Tretton only offered an informal statement commending Nintendo on their efforts. It wasn't a formal addression of the competition, or anything. No idea why people are treating this like some sort of extravagant headline comparison.
@grimbledoo: No, @Aviator's saying that 6ch6ris6 skipped the obvious existence of the DS in favour of the iPad, for the sake of claiming Nintendo innovative enough to introduce the prospect of touch-screen gaming - when in reality, the introduction of the Wii U and its controller is nothing new nor innovative. It's intuitive, at most.
It has been made indubitably clear here, folks. The PS4 will be sporting touch-screen controllers, possibly with huge colourful squares on top to boast superior gameplay accuracy to the GamePad.
@TysonQ7: You do realise that that "Wii owners, buy an Xbox" stunt was an obvious PR marketing statement on Microsoft's part that was clearly blown out of proportion? Good grief.
@rcmadiax: Did you not learn anything from the start of the current generation? A premature push of non-standardised, extensively-upgraded, costly technology is not good for the industry.
If you look at how pre-orders are doing at the moment, it is not an exaggeration to say that Wii U is sure to sell well in this holiday season, as many of you are probably thinking. But we realize the biggest challenge is to make sure that Wii U sells well even in the next year after the holiday season, and we are working on that too.
Nintendo tends to release too many titles at the launch of a hardware system and as a result suffers a drop in new games for quite some time after launch, and for the Wii U launch, we are being very careful not to let it happen. Fortunately, third-party publishers overseas are launching many titles for us this time, and we were able to push back the release of some of the titles that we had originally intended to release as launch titles until next year.
This sounds like the most resourceful and definitive New Super Mario Bros. to date. From reviews to consumer hands-on experiences, it really sounds like it's shaping up to be something better than initially thought. Looking forward to playing it.
Apparently, there'll be another shipment of console units around Christmas. Hopefully, Nintendo realises the dire need for sufficient stock in retailers.
Anyway, this is an ace start. Among those top pre-orders are a good mix of both first-party and third-party titles, so I feel this is a good sign for significantly well-rounded support on the Wii U from here on.
And they say physical retail has reached its end with these figures at hand!
@Banjogeek: Quite the opposite, actually. It's inconcspicuous promotional marketing for their own systems, as the Pokédex is a renowned novelty of an iconic Nintendo franchise. They're taking advantage of the exposure of the iOS platform to expand their current consumer market - it's basic advertising. Nothing more, nothing less.
Iwata himself has said that smartphones can be turned into allies with a little bit of devious thinking. This is simply his perspective in effect.
@Royspaceghost: Sonic CD, Bastion, Rayman Jungle Run, World of Goo, BIT.TRIP BEAT, God of Blades, The Room, Infinity Blade, Knights of Pen and Paper, Final Fantasy Dimensions, Carmaggedon and quite some more.
@Kagamine is pushing it by saying they're far better than most 3DS games, but they are certainly on a competitive scale together. They can offer as much genuine depth and challenge; you just need to dig.
It's good advertising for them. A Pokédex on iOS will essentially draw more interest in the Pokémon games for less mainstream-oriented gamers, as are aplenty on the iOS platform. Not to mention, it's much more handy and accessible having a Pokédex on your smartphone.
It's a promotional novelty, and it's very intricately designed. Nintendo's using the exposure of mobile platforms as an advantage without it being a detriment.
@snax007: Nope, not "retarded" at all. Adding an expansive internal HDD into the Wii U would only increase manufacturing costs, therefore significantly affecting retail prices - something some consumers are already whinging about.
Nintend only made an informed business decision; with external HDDs rapidly decreasing in price (much so than they were 5-6 years ago), why tax buyers an extra $50-100 for only a little more internal storage when they can find much more expansive external storage for so much cheaper? I can find an external 1TB HDD for an average of only £60 (rougly $80-85), and that's huge.
Essentially, they're giving you that flexibility with the Wii U; if you're not downloading anything, we're not costing you extra for storage you won't need. Nintendo is clearly only taking advantage of the market for the benefit of consumers. And let's not forget that internal HDDs slow down systems a lot as they are filled up, and are a lot more succeptible to hardware failures nowadays, as has been demonstrated by the PS3. Thinking, people.
Asides from that, I have no idea what gamer wouldn't be set on having an external HDD at hand if they were distinctly choosing to go digital retail only. You'll obviously need one anyway, regardless of internal storage capacity. It makes little difference.
It's impressive that the 3DS's lifetime sales figures are quickly closing in on the PS3's in Japan, and it's only been out almost two years. If only Nintendo can maintain this momentum throughout next year, we could easily see it pass the 12 million mark.
However, they can't let this success overshadow the fact that they still need to address the system's sales in Europe and North America. But with the seemingly sturdy line-up of titles coming to us (especially high-profile titles like Animal Crossing and Luigi's Mansion), it could be somewhat likely to see something similar amount here, just maybe not as extensive.
It's interesting to see that, nowadays, more indie developers are becoming experimental with their games, especially socially. It's a lot like Molyneux's Curiosity; it's more of a social experiment/project than a game.
This isn't really my type of game, but I look forward to seeing what influences will amount from this title. It's a nice deviation, especially for such a mainstream platform.
@SkywardLink98: Well, first of all, this is an optional cost, so that's invalid. To answer your question, you can find 1TB HDDs on the market for about £60 nowadays (roughly $80-85, if I'm not mistaken) - and this is on any other day that isn't Black Friday [wink wink, nudge nudge]. Seeing as that could last you for essentially years, it's a good move if you're that determined to go solely digital retail.
Expected. Wasn't getting my hopes up for it to appear at launch, what with pretty much everything that's been integrated for the console. Still, it's good to hear we'll be seeing little updates like this in the future - Nintendo's done a pretty good job so far.
@Master_Ryno: It depends what parts of London you travel down to. Particularly places like Peckham, Pumstead and Tower Hamlets and others in East/South London tend to be like that, but you have spots like this all over the city.
@Xilef & @TheRealThanos: Are you sure? The GamePad's resolution is 854 x 480p, and I heard it had a higher ppi value than the older iPad. But I'll admit that I'm really not an expert on all this, so I could be wrong.
@snax007: Rayman Legends, Trine 2, Skylanders Giants, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Ninja Gaiden 3, Puddle and Toki Tori 2 have been said to be running at native 1080p on the Wii U, and quite a handful of those were also confirmed to be running at 60FPS. Plus, take note that these are launch titles.
Besides, the fact that the Wii U can run games in native 1080p at 60FPS while streaming a 720p image to the GamePad and simutaneously receiving input with only 1/60th of a second in latency? That sounds like a start to impressive hardware to me, and most importantly, it is still something that developers can afford to utilise efficiently - unlike another prematurely extensive upgrade in graphics and hardware (i.e. the situation with the PS3/Xbox 360 back in 2005/2006).
@Tsuchiya: Ouya is definitely not an "eighth generation console". It's an entirely different concept to mainstream consoles.
Comments 436
Re: Game Designer Says "Wii U Isn't Sure of Itself, and That's its Greatest Virtue"
To me, he's hit the nail on the head - very eloquently too. I've always thought of the Wii U as more of an intuitive contribution to the industry, more so than it is innovative - it somehow expands in many different directions all at once, yet it has some sort of... interesting fluidity to it. This is what has defined it as a proper next-generation console for me; it's a true ingenuity for gaming, way beyond what photo-realistic visuals or whatever else may be able to do for us (aside from being effectively vomit-inducing in some games).
It leaves developers with many different experimental possibilities (which is something Nintendo Land demonstrates exceedingly well, alongside games like Chasing Aurora and Spin The Bottle) - it's pushing them to be more thoughtful and resourceful, which seems to be the direction we need to be headed with all that's going on. Another big plus is that the console is very affiable to developers, from what we've heard: easier to develop for, more accessible (especially towards indie and third-party developers), cost-efficient development etc. So, the doors are essentially being flung wide open.
However, the question with the Wii U is whether or not developers (and gamers) are ready to appreciate that. That may very well be what determines the console's success - or otherwise.
Re: Wii Mini Is Official And Has No Online Connectivity
One word: Ouya. See where I'm going with this?
Re: Rumour: Wii Mini Console Outed By Retailer Release Schedule
Well, that de-escalated quickly...
Re: Reggie Fils-Aime: Wii U Is "Much More Graphically Intensive" Than Rival Systems
WhiteTrashGuy wrote:
Is everybody completely oblivious of the fact that the GPGPU exists in the Wii U, and is somewhat more effective in handling the CPU's tasks? Combine that with a stronger GPU, more expansive RAM and a notable amount of fast eDRAM to boot. It's in plain sight.
Re: The Godfather of Video Games Is Baffled By The Wii U
@Damo: Alright, I can understand that. I just felt the way it was phrased was a little mocking, but your point is indeed true.
By saying he didn't understand the Wii U, I didn't at all mean he had no clue what it was about - I know better than that, seeing how seasoned a man he must be in this industry. What I meant was I don't think he quite sees what diplomacy the Wii U presents to the industry in this dire time of need (moderated innovation, amiability towards developers, cost-efficiency etc.), all of which point to it having quite a lot of successful potential. That's why I see his comment as a little less than insightful - the console has proposed a few long-term benefits towards its likely success.
Re: The Godfather of Video Games Is Baffled By The Wii U
One thing that's particularly baffling here is the fact that he barely elaborated on his perspective, apart from saying that it's "the end of an era". Yes, Mr. Bushnell, the era of the Atari ended long since.
In all seriousness, I get the slight inkling that he doesn't understand the console very well, or isn't particularly informed on it. I don't believe it's because he's just a relentless old man set in his time, but his statements don't seem to hold much insight. The Wii U has posed some notable developments and favours towards the market and industry as a whole, if you look at it.
Otherwise, I don't think it's fair to judge this man's opinions on his past judgements, however inaccurate they may have proved. If he thinks the Wii U won't prove very successful, that's his prerogative. There are quite a few facts that point the other way for the console, but his thoughts are his and I find it a bit derogatory to bring up his past fallacies in relation to this.
Re: Talking Point: Nintendo And The Third-Party Challenge
@seronja: Way to kill innovation. That perspective is arguably narrow-minded.
The reason the Wii saw itself shameful third-party support was because it was seen as uncompromising, especially compared to the other rival systems (motion controls were a big hindrance, even if effectively utilised). Conversely, with the GamePad, the Wii U has notably given developers a lot more flexibility for their usage of the Wii U's proficiencies - there's still a standard control method embedded into it. The rest can optionally be adapted to with ease.
Another advantage of the Wii U is its ease of accessibility. Development is cost-efficient in line with today's standards (mid-tier development will benefit hugely from this), and it provides a modern development environment from what I've heard that's much easier in comparison to current-gen consoles. It's a big plus. The main obstacle now is for developers to learn to efficiently utilise and manouver around the console's abilities and hardware (for example, the GPGPU in place of the CPU), and we'll most likely see the Wii U to be a very fine choice for developers on all ends of the spectrum.
Gotta say, I like how Nintendo has backed both Sony and Microsoft into a corner here. Making yet more powerful consoles this time won't be a successful venture (especially for the consumer market with retail pricing, gaming expenses etc.) - expensive development will be a hindrance to practically all developers, as the current model isn't even that sustainable as it is. The Wii U has also adapted to the perceived image of "standard" games consoles in many respects, and they've stepped up considerably in many aspects (online, eShop etc.) The other two will have to rely on resourcefulness as opposed to resources to have a chance of potentially appealing as much to the majority of the industry, as the Wii U currently has the massive potential to do.
With Nintendo, it's not graphics > gameplay, or gameplay > graphics. It's about them putting in a regulated amount of power with their consoles; enough graphical/hardware capability to compete with the attention of devs, but not so much that it is, for the most part, redundant and ineffective.
Re: Call of Duty Black Ops II Suffers From Reduced Frame Rate On Wii U
@blinder2: a) No, the GamePad is not independent of the Wii U. It shows no isolated function of its own with the consoles features, and off-TV gameplay is obviously being streamed.
b) The GamePad is not 720p, it's optimised 480p. Its resolution is 854 x 480.
Re: Call of Duty Black Ops II Suffers From Reduced Frame Rate On Wii U
@AlexSays: With PCs, you upgrade key components on an already-established technical infrastructure. With games consoles, you start development and manufacturing from scratch. Go figure.
Re: Call of Duty Black Ops II Suffers From Reduced Frame Rate On Wii U
@Randomname19: The difference has been tested to be 8 frames in comparison to the Xbox 360 version. It's there.
Re: Call of Duty Black Ops II Suffers From Reduced Frame Rate On Wii U
@Geonjaha: My my, is that so?
Re: Call of Duty Black Ops II Suffers From Reduced Frame Rate On Wii U
Warning: Intense drama imminent in this comment section.
I'll just put in my oh-so-valuable two pennies:
A year from now, let's see some original games being developed from the ground up that actually take full advantage of the Wii U. Then we shall talk powah.
Re: Resident Evil Revelations Jumping Ship To PS3?
A while back, it was stated that Capcom was interested in developing an original Resident Evil game to take advantage of the Wii U. If they proved serious, this may have influenced this alleged decision of porting Revelations to PS3. Personally, I can see this game doing very well on PS3, especially given its reception on 3DS. It seems a good fit overall and I see it selling well (though, maybe not as well as on the 3DS, being a late port), so I think Capcom should definitely go for it.
Re: Sumo Digital: Mario Kart Could Learn From Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed
I wouldn't say they've "pushed the genre forward" per sé, but Mario Kart could indeed take a few notes from this game. From what I've seen and heard, I can assure you that Sonic Racing is far from being the average Mario Kart clone. They both have their respective advantages and strong points over each other, but there's no harm in taking a small lesson from other competitors in the genre.
Remember, Mario Kart isn't the best wacky racing game out there; only the biggest.
Re: Wii U on Plenty of U.S. Christmas Lists
@Nin-freak: The Apple name is quality; that's why it's grown to be such a recognisable name and their products fly off the shelves. They're fantastic devices, questionable pricing aside.
Re: Wii U on Plenty of U.S. Christmas Lists
@Void: Pretty sure that's the iPad 4 now.
Re: Dangerously Infectious ZombiU App Now Available On iOS
Seems to be getting pretty popular. Great advertising for the title with such a promotional novelty. Alongside Pokédex on iOS, it'd be great to see more Nintendo console/handheld games get these sort of "companion" apps. They're beneficial to both Nintendo and the developers.
I'll be surprised if Nintendo Life doesn't start a site competition with this.
Re: Review: Chasing Aurora (Wii U eShop)
Insightful review. This game has been the first and most important title on my Wii U eShop radar. It looks very beautiful and unique: its distinctive art-style gives it an individual yet enchanting look.
$14.99 is a surprisingly high price tag, but I think I'll find it worth it for the most part, whenever I buy a Wii U.
Re: Wii U Version Of Grand Theft Auto V "Up For Consideration"
I'd like this. I'd like it very, very much.
Re: Nintendo Network IDs Are Tied To A Single Wii U Console, For Now
@goldbricks23: It was announced way back in time, but Nintendo undoubtedly has plans to bring Nintendo Network and Miiverse to the 3DS, as well as PCs and smartphones/tablets.
Re: Iwata Reveals How Nintendo Developed The Early Prototype For Wii U
@Zombie_Barioth: Indeed, that's something I've repeated countless times. The current model of game development is clearly unsustainable as it is, and people want to worsen it? This time, the industry will certainly crash on us if it begins this way again.
Re: Iwata Reveals How Nintendo Developed The Early Prototype For Wii U
@Zombie_Barioth: That's essentially what Nintendo have done for you with the Wii U, alongside its resourcefulness in design. Its RAM is around double (or more than double) that of the PS3/Xbox 360 (which is what makes Rayman Legends so alluring visually - better textures, shaders, draw distances etc.), it's an easily-accessible platform with a modern development environment from what I've heard developers (indies in particular) say to me, and it is indeed affordable, both developer- and consumer-wise.
Re: Jack Tretton Wishes Nintendo Every Success With Wii U
@TysonQ7: That much we can agree on.
Re: Jack Tretton Wishes Nintendo Every Success With Wii U
@TysonQ7: No such thing as bad publicity in this industry. Even further, from the amount of attention it needlessly gathered (thanks to the outrage that was exhibited here), you could also say Microsoft were more than successful in their blatant marketing ploy.
This, on the other hand, is something entirely different; Tretton only offered an informal statement commending Nintendo on their efforts. It wasn't a formal addression of the competition, or anything. No idea why people are treating this like some sort of extravagant headline comparison.
Re: Iwata Reveals How Nintendo Developed The Early Prototype For Wii U
@grimbledoo: No, @Aviator's saying that 6ch6ris6 skipped the obvious existence of the DS in favour of the iPad, for the sake of claiming Nintendo innovative enough to introduce the prospect of touch-screen gaming - when in reality, the introduction of the Wii U and its controller is nothing new nor innovative. It's intuitive, at most.
Re: Jack Tretton Wishes Nintendo Every Success With Wii U
It has been made indubitably clear here, folks. The PS4 will be sporting touch-screen controllers, possibly with huge colourful squares on top to boast superior gameplay accuracy to the GamePad.
@TysonQ7: You do realise that that "Wii owners, buy an Xbox" stunt was an obvious PR marketing statement on Microsoft's part that was clearly blown out of proportion? Good grief.
Re: Iwata Reveals How Nintendo Developed The Early Prototype For Wii U
@rcmadiax: Did you not learn anything from the start of the current generation? A premature push of non-standardised, extensively-upgraded, costly technology is not good for the industry.
Re: Reggie Surprises Nintendo World Store Campers 24 Hours Before Wii U Launch
The madness shall ensue.
Re: TVii Application Won't Be Available On Wii U Launch
@brooks83: That's funny, considering pre-order figures are extending significantly higher beyond the Wii's.
Re: Analysts Believe Wii U Will Be Put To The Test Come Summertime
Remember this?
Satoru Iwata wrote:
Re: WayForward Would Like To Make A Metroid Game
I think it's a little too ambitious for them at the moment too, but you never know. To change.org!
Re: Nintendo's Recommended Range For GamePad Use Is Conservative
Maybe I should consider relocating to my wooden garden shed.
Re: Rayman Legends Demo Available In Wii U eShop On Launch
This... this is just... fabulous!
Also heard that there'd be HD video features as well as demos on the eShop. Sounds good.
Re: Iwata Asks Reveals New Super Mario Bros. U Took Three Years To Develop
This sounds like the most resourceful and definitive New Super Mario Bros. to date. From reviews to consumer hands-on experiences, it really sounds like it's shaping up to be something better than initially thought. Looking forward to playing it.
Re: New Super Mario Bros. U To Jump Into DLC
This alone sounds promising.
Re: GameStop Wii U Software Pre-Orders Surpass One Million
Apparently, there'll be another shipment of console units around Christmas. Hopefully, Nintendo realises the dire need for sufficient stock in retailers.
Anyway, this is an ace start. Among those top pre-orders are a good mix of both first-party and third-party titles, so I feel this is a good sign for significantly well-rounded support on the Wii U from here on.
And they say physical retail has reached its end with these figures at hand!
Re: Pokémon Pokédex Is Coming To iOS Devices In Japan
@Banjogeek: Quite the opposite, actually. It's inconcspicuous promotional marketing for their own systems, as the Pokédex is a renowned novelty of an iconic Nintendo franchise. They're taking advantage of the exposure of the iOS platform to expand their current consumer market - it's basic advertising. Nothing more, nothing less.
Iwata himself has said that smartphones can be turned into allies with a little bit of devious thinking. This is simply his perspective in effect.
Re: Pokémon Pokédex Is Coming To iOS Devices In Japan
@Royspaceghost: Sonic CD, Bastion, Rayman Jungle Run, World of Goo, BIT.TRIP BEAT, God of Blades, The Room, Infinity Blade, Knights of Pen and Paper, Final Fantasy Dimensions, Carmaggedon and quite some more.
@Kagamine is pushing it by saying they're far better than most 3DS games, but they are certainly on a competitive scale together. They can offer as much genuine depth and challenge; you just need to dig.
Re: Pokémon Pokédex Is Coming To iOS Devices In Japan
It's good advertising for them. A Pokédex on iOS will essentially draw more interest in the Pokémon games for less mainstream-oriented gamers, as are aplenty on the iOS platform. Not to mention, it's much more handy and accessible having a Pokédex on your smartphone.
It's a promotional novelty, and it's very intricately designed. Nintendo's using the exposure of mobile platforms as an advantage without it being a detriment.
Re: Wii U Basic Can Only Store 3GB Of Downloaded Software
@snax007: Nope, not "retarded" at all. Adding an expansive internal HDD into the Wii U would only increase manufacturing costs, therefore significantly affecting retail prices - something some consumers are already whinging about.
Nintend only made an informed business decision; with external HDDs rapidly decreasing in price (much so than they were 5-6 years ago), why tax buyers an extra $50-100 for only a little more internal storage when they can find much more expansive external storage for so much cheaper? I can find an external 1TB HDD for an average of only £60 (rougly $80-85), and that's huge.
Essentially, they're giving you that flexibility with the Wii U; if you're not downloading anything, we're not costing you extra for storage you won't need. Nintendo is clearly only taking advantage of the market for the benefit of consumers. And let's not forget that internal HDDs slow down systems a lot as they are filled up, and are a lot more succeptible to hardware failures nowadays, as has been demonstrated by the PS3. Thinking, people.
Asides from that, I have no idea what gamer wouldn't be set on having an external HDD at hand if they were distinctly choosing to go digital retail only. You'll obviously need one anyway, regardless of internal storage capacity. It makes little difference.
Re: 3DS Passes Eight Million Sales in Japan
It's impressive that the 3DS's lifetime sales figures are quickly closing in on the PS3's in Japan, and it's only been out almost two years. If only Nintendo can maintain this momentum throughout next year, we could easily see it pass the 12 million mark.
However, they can't let this success overshadow the fact that they still need to address the system's sales in Europe and North America. But with the seemingly sturdy line-up of titles coming to us (especially high-profile titles like Animal Crossing and Luigi's Mansion), it could be somewhat likely to see something similar amount here, just maybe not as extensive.
Re: Developer Interview: KnapNok On Spinning The Bottle For Wii U And Creating Innocent Social Games For Adults
It's interesting to see that, nowadays, more indie developers are becoming experimental with their games, especially socially. It's a lot like Molyneux's Curiosity; it's more of a social experiment/project than a game.
This isn't really my type of game, but I look forward to seeing what influences will amount from this title. It's a nice deviation, especially for such a mainstream platform.
Re: Spin The Bottle Is A Wii U Game That Doesn't Use Your TV
Well, this will be interesting...
Re: Wii U External Hard Drive Usage Outlined by Satoru Iwata
@SkywardLink98: Well, first of all, this is an optional cost, so that's invalid. To answer your question, you can find 1TB HDDs on the market for about £60 nowadays (roughly $80-85, if I'm not mistaken) - and this is on any other day that isn't Black Friday [wink wink, nudge nudge]. Seeing as that could last you for essentially years, it's a good move if you're that determined to go solely digital retail.
Re: Wii U GamePad Will Not Have Backward Compatibility
Expected. Wasn't getting my hopes up for it to appear at launch, what with pretty much everything that's been integrated for the console. Still, it's good to hear we'll be seeing little updates like this in the future - Nintendo's done a pretty good job so far.
Re: ZombiU Live Action Video Shows Multiplayer Battle
@Master_Ryno: It depends what parts of London you travel down to. Particularly places like Peckham, Pumstead and Tower Hamlets and others in East/South London tend to be like that, but you have spots like this all over the city.
Re: ZombiU Live Action Video Shows Multiplayer Battle
@TheChosen: Rather; "When did you die and become the f****** king of the zombies?"
Re: Wii U Has "Plenty Of Power" According To Team Ninja
@TheRealThanos: Ah, I see. Silly little me, thanks for the correction.
Re: Wii U Has "Plenty Of Power" According To Team Ninja
@Xilef & @TheRealThanos: Are you sure? The GamePad's resolution is 854 x 480p, and I heard it had a higher ppi value than the older iPad. But I'll admit that I'm really not an expert on all this, so I could be wrong.
Re: Wii U Has "Plenty Of Power" According To Team Ninja
@snax007: Rayman Legends, Trine 2, Skylanders Giants, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Ninja Gaiden 3, Puddle and Toki Tori 2 have been said to be running at native 1080p on the Wii U, and quite a handful of those were also confirmed to be running at 60FPS. Plus, take note that these are launch titles.
Besides, the fact that the Wii U can run games in native 1080p at 60FPS while streaming a 720p image to the GamePad and simutaneously receiving input with only 1/60th of a second in latency? That sounds like a start to impressive hardware to me, and most importantly, it is still something that developers can afford to utilise efficiently - unlike another prematurely extensive upgrade in graphics and hardware (i.e. the situation with the PS3/Xbox 360 back in 2005/2006).
@Tsuchiya: Ouya is definitely not an "eighth generation console". It's an entirely different concept to mainstream consoles.