Kroko

Kroko

is Heropon! Very brave! PAW! PAW!

Comments 293

Re: Shigeru Miyamoto Sets Criteria to Turn Nintendo's Virtual Reality Research Into a Product

Kroko

If Nintendo is to market its own VR set, then it will simply have to be better than others. Otherwise, nobody will care about it. Possible functions I can think off are:

1. Making a wireless headset. The battery would probably be too heavy for your head, so you would need to attach it somewhere (to your belt?). The main difficulty would be to stream HQ audio and video at high framerate, this will probably be tricky.

The thing is that, the wire of existing headsets is extremely annoying. And dangerous. I'm actually surprised we haven't heard yet of anyone killing themselves by tripping on the wire and hitting their head on something. Over all, the wire is a real limitation. It gets in your way all the time and makes moving around more difficult. Exactly the opposite of what we want here.

2. The fact we are making VR headsets that do not allow for eye tracking is beyond me. Being able to tell where the player is looking would offers a lot of interaction options in games. NPC could know your are looking at them, for example. Seriously, even the DSi can do it, why isn't it included already?

3. This might sound silly, but I would like a headset that also allows for the use of another sense, smell. If we are talking about immersion, then I also want to be able to feel the environment around me, include its odors. The tech has been there for ages. It's now of never if we want to create a user base big enough to make the feature popular.

4. After experimenting with VR and having several different people test it in front of me (I'll be honest, I did play a few tricks while they were blind and defenseless ), it became obvious that there was a serious limitation to existing products. You cannot see your feet!

No wonder so many people have issues with balancing! You are portrayed in-game as a floating ghost, that's extremely disturbing! The first company to bring on the market a set with another pair of controllers meant to be strapped to your legs will win the game. As simple as that.

5. The MOST IMPORTANT ONE. It needs to be officially compatible with PCs. This would create a potential user-base of several millions people even before the NX launches. Either thatn or they have to support a 3rd party product like Vive. At this point, you would have to be crazy to purchase Sony's VR set, it barely has any games for it and Sony can kill it the moment they realize it isn't profitable.

If you expect Nintendo to create their own VR headset, then you need to hope for something different from what is already available. Otherwise, it is guaranteed to fail.

Re: Shigeru Miyamoto Sets Criteria to Turn Nintendo's Virtual Reality Research Into a Product

Kroko

VR is really a lot of bother for what it is, both for devs and for the user. Along all the drawbacks of modern VR sets already stated above, I would like to point out how cumbersome it is to set-up the Vive as an example.

If you want to use it while sitting down, you are kind of killing the main purpose of most VR experiences, freedom of movement and immersion. If you want to stand and move around, you'll need over 10m² of entirely empty space. That's a lot. And believe me, you will move a lot without even realizing it.

You will also need a place where to put the 2 beacons. They are extremely sensitive and won't allow any modification of the environment around them. For the price of the set, you would think they would include tripods and/or battery-powered beacons. Nope! Have fun with all the power strips and cable extensions if you don't happen to have the plugs in the right position in your room.

Then you have to recalibrate the head set and both controllers. If you thought it was boring to put the Wiimote down for 3s to recalibrate the gyro, you are not "VR ready"

This is way more work than required by any form of traditional gaming. I bet a lot of people who purchase VR headsets do not even know all this. And they will probably stop using it after the excitement of novelty has worn off.

Re: Tell Us What to Do in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Kroko

1- Try circling around the demo area. It's really big and I feel like we haven't seen everything yet.

2- If you can, show us everything you can actually do with the Wii U Gamepad. It seems to be underused (because of the NX version?) and I would like to know more.

3- Collect Ruppies !!

4- See if you can do anything else with the old man once you've advanced a bit more (new dialogue?...). In the worst case scenario, just throw apples at him. Totally worth it.

Re: Trademark Listing Adds Fuel to Talk of Nintendo NX Using Cartridges

Kroko

I'm tired of games running (walking, I should say) on loud, slow, loud, fragile and slow optical disks.

Storing data with "holes and bumps" on a spinning object is a method we create several centuries ago. Even Da Vinci used it. That's how old it is.

Optical discs and even magnetic discs are being abandoned progressively everywhere. The console market is the only one lagging behind. It is time we move on.

So... yay for cartridges!! o/

Re: Digital Foundry Assesses the Technology and Framerate in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Kroko

I beg you, whatever you do, DO NOT GO TO THE COMMENT SECTION!

Jokes aside, as usual, DF delivered a very good video with interesting information on their experience with the demo.

I would also like to point out that, like some others have said above, figures are only their as hints. They do not give any solid information on the game's visuals, and of course, no info on the overall quality of the game. What is important is the final result. And this game, just like MK8 and some others, looks amazing, despite the 1280*720 resolution.

I can tell you I've seen much worse, even on PC. I can remember playing Aion in the old days, when the new engine suddenly stopped supporting AA (it still doesn't to this day, as far as I know). Believe me, 1080p with no AA and no filter of any kind looks absolutely disgusting. Even worse than most 480p Wii games (I said "Wii", not "Wii U", it's not a typo).

So don't pull your hair out just for a couple jaggies here and there. No matter what the hatters say, the important is the final result. And so far, it looks extremely promising, and not just for the visuals.

Re: Nintendo Download: 23rd June (Europe)

Kroko

I find it annoying that the file size for the big releases is never included. It would be really useful to people with slow internet connections. Can we have this for future Nintendo Download articles please?

Tokyo Mirage is 12 Go in size apparently.

Re: Talking Point: 3DS Homebrew Development Causes Another Game Takedown as Nintendo Maintains Its Tight Grip

Kroko

The level of stupidity in this comment section is terrifying.

Anyway, I would like to add a couple of thoughts about the situation. If the 3DS becomes such a mess, it is possible that Nintendo will decide to replace it sooner than necessary. At this point, I am not convinced that the NX is a replacement for the 3DS. If it was not for community's lack of decency and support for the devs, the 3DS would be good for a couple more years of service. Arguably, it's the Wii U that needs to be replaced first. However, it might become necessary to replace the 3DS sooner because of this. Planned obsolescence is actually becoming a vital necessity because of piracy, how ironic.

I am also starting to fear that Nintendo will change its plans of making a hybrid console/line of consoles that shares the same OS because of this (if this was ever part of their plans, but it seems to be the case). The lack of compartmentalization in next gen would basically be "putting all their eggs in the same basket". We all have a lot to lose in this affair.

Finally, to the people who pretend they have the need to play around with hardware and make homebrews or whatever, there are several open source console-like devices on the market, and they are dirt cheap. That's where you're supposed to go if you're in need of more freedom.

Re: Talking Point: 3DS Homebrew Development Causes Another Game Takedown as Nintendo Maintains Its Tight Grip

Kroko

@Jin15 I'll come to your place and take your stuff. You should just relax.

Also, yes, other companies do force updates, and no you cannot do what you want with your console. Consoles were never meant to be general-purpose computers. They are made to run a specific selection of software, that's the whole point and it is also the reason why we still have consoles. Otherwise we would just be using PCs.

Re: Talking Point: Considering the Possibility of the Nintendo NX Having Virtual Reality Features

Kroko

I've seen several people talk here about low prices. Someone even said the VR headset could be as cheap as 99¤. I don't think you realize.

Among the many problems that we are facing here, price will be the biggest one.

If you really want the visuals, VR and all the rest, don't expect the console and the headset to be anywhere below 300¤ in the best case scenario. 300 EACH.

Re: Turns Out The History Of The Virtual Boy Is More Interesting Than The Console Itself

Kroko

@Gauchorino "Nintendo themselves should have done a better job of marketing and educating about the system (maybe even waiting until after the launch of the N64 to promote and release it?)."

I wondered at some point, what would have happened if the VB had not been released as a console, but as a peripheral to the N64?

It might have solved several of the limitations of the VB (and made the N64 look more ahead of the PS1). It would have benefited from the immensely superior computing resources of the N64 and from its better controller (notably the analog stick). Since it would just have been a display system with two speakers, it would have been even cheaper to produce; the money saved there could have been used for better displays, etc... The couple more years the VB would have spent in R&D would surely have helped too.

Modern gaming would probably be really different now. Who knows? Maybe the GC, Wii and Wii U would all have been released with their own headset. First, simple 3D headsets like the VB, but by the time we reached the Wii U era, it would probably have been released with an actual VR headset and better Wiimotes instead of the gamepad.

Even to this day, I am curious to see what VB games would look like if they had simply been able to display them with sets of LEDs of 2 different colors. Or if they had had access to better LCDs faster. I'm sure the VB did not miss much to become a successful product.

Re: Turns Out The History Of The Virtual Boy Is More Interesting Than The Console Itself

Kroko

@Ichi "I remember in the '90s, a handful of friends got sick when playing the SNES even. Maybe people were not used to staring at a screen that long?"

Well, back then, 3D was still something new. No one was prepared to be exposed to stereoscopic 3D visuals for the first time in history.

It would not be surprising if some people, accustomed to 2D games, were made uncomfortable at their first contact with a 3D virtual environment. The early days of 3D video games sure were a big change over the simple 2D visuals that don't have the slightest chance of tricking our brain and senses. But the subject has not been treated well back then, we might never know.

Re: Study Suggests Rising Smartphone Ownership Among Kids Is Hitting Nintendo Hard

Kroko

@Minotaurgamer "Nintendo handhelds had games that adjusted to the gamers' lives. Could be played in minutes or short bursts, The 3DS feels more like a portable home console that had games that require more time. It is also expensive and has unnecessary things like the 3D that nobody cares."

Talk for yourself. What are you? A 2D-nazi?
Looking back at "current-gen", glasses-free 3D appears to be the only noticeable innovation of this generation. We can't afford to give up on it, it would be a major step-back.

However, I agree that modern handhelds are more like portable home consoles. But this seems to be what a lot of people are asking for. Better visuals, more complex gameplay and story, more content... I would love to see more focus on games that can be played on the go and in environments where concentration is not possible, but sadly, this is precisely what people are expecting from smart devices, not from handheld consoles. Maybe we just need a better balance between the two? Because both style are available on 3DS, maybe just not enough of the "bite-size" style.

Re: Rumour: Sources Go to Battle Again Over Nintendo NX Power

Kroko

@IceClimbers
Agreed. And I've also been thinking about an ARM based system for the WiiU 's successor. However, it seems ARM system struggle to catch up with home consoles, I don't know if they will go very far in term of performance if they decide to go this way. Hopefully, it would make parallel development for the next handheld easier.

But I don't know if people will accept this, as many probably associate ARM with smart devices.

Re: ​Disney Infinity Has Been Cancelled

Kroko

I'm not too worried about Avalanche. They used to be independent, hopefully, a new company will be born from the remains of the existing one. It might be a good opportunity to move to something a bit different.

Re: A Wii U Homebrew Channel Opens Up New Possibilities for Some Cheeky Gamers

Kroko

Wasn't there a "no piracy on current-gen" rule or something? What happened?

People gladly spend gigantic amounts of money on drugs and alcohol, but prefer to steal even the cheapest pieces of software, no matter the quality. What hope is there for newcomers in this industry if 2 years of work can be stolen in 2 minutes of effort?

Re: Rumour: ROM Chip Maker Macronix Drops Hint Nintendo Could Be Abandoning Optical Storage For NX

Kroko

Oh! And while we are at it, why not have both carts and optical discs? Imagine a console that runs games from its HDD/SSD, from carts and from discs all three at once.

Having an OD drive would make sense for large games and for retro with Wii U (and Wii? (and Gamecube??)) games.
Carts would be perfect for games less than 16 GB in size.

And let's go crazy and imagine a cart format similar to the one of the 3DS. This would allow the new home console to play DS and 3DS games (emulation could be easy depending on the hardware of the console, and if it's not possible, integrating the hardware of the 3DS directly would not be that expansive, GBPlayer-style), which would give even more sense to that rumor about a new touchscreen controller.

Even without the "crazy" part, having both carts and OD still opens a lot of new options. It would make it possible to have a fast and quiet system again, and it would also offer OD for people who want to stay in the past

Re: Rumour: ROM Chip Maker Macronix Drops Hint Nintendo Could Be Abandoning Optical Storage For NX

Kroko

chip storage >>> magnetic storage > optical storage

I also would like every people who fear the size limitation to realize that nearly all of the Wii U library could fit on 16 GB carts, and most of it on 8 GB carts. This is comparable to the size made available on our good old 3DS. Don't get fooled by the d1ck-contest currently happening on PS4 and One, not every game needs to be 30+ GB. Actually, even on PC, most publishers know they need to keep the size down, otherwise, people won't bother downloading the games.

Things would be even easier if everyone could work like Shinen Media and their very impressive Fast Racing Neo, weighing about 700MB

Re: Talking Point: Retro-Focused, Innovative and Inexpensive Portables Should Be Part of Nintendo's Future

Kroko

@Captain_Gonru I know it's unlikely to happen, because it would represent a huge investment. But if there is room for things like the Retron5, I still like to think it's not out of question. Also, supporting the GB line should be easier than supporting a mix of old Sega and Nintendo home consoles, all of them being incompatible with each other in the first place. And the GB library is gigantic.

But even without GB cartridge support, it would still be nice to have a cheap and basic handheld again. I just like the idea, I don't know if we'll ever see something like this.

Re: Talking Point: Retro-Focused, Innovative and Inexpensive Portables Should Be Part of Nintendo's Future

Kroko

I've been thinking lately that it might be time for Nintendo to try to split the handheld offering in two again. The main reason being that people have extremely different expectations for handhelds, more than before, I believe. Some want handheld to be tiny home consoles, some others want them to be cheap, small and simple in design and in use.

I imagined the successor to the 3DS to be somewhat like an improved 3DS for the "hardcore gamers". ARMv8 CPU, beefy GPU with support for the latest APIs, 2 touchscreens (preferably the top one with 3D, but that's my opinion), dual analog and 4 shoulder buttons, etc... This console would naturally be relatively expansive and bulky, but would deliver the high performance so many people seem to expect from handhelds nowadays.

The lower end of the market would be occupied by a cheaper, smaller and more basic console. Maybe comparable to a single-screen 2DS, with updated (but cheap) hardware, so it would not lag too far behind its big sister. This console would probably focus on download games, since it would not allow to play (3)DS games because of the lack of dual screen. Why not even add in support for actual GB(A) cartridges? If you want to play GB games with a decent display nowadays, the only interesting option is an emulator on a smartphone. But there are millions of working cartridges available. It would be amazing to have a small handheld capable of running legitimate GB games in addition to new games for download.

If by any chance, these two handhelds and the new home console were to run different versions of the same OS, maybe developing games for all of them at once (or at least for both handhelds) would be easier than ever. Think of the Windows family of products, that ranges from smartphones to desktop PCs.

I've been thinking about this for a while since the talk about NX started, but I had to keep it short here. Also, it's 1:30 in the morning and the day has been long, sorry if I sound crazy :3

Re: Callie and Marie Join a New Splatoon amiibo Range on 8th July

Kroko

Complaining the amiibos "do nothing"?
So you are actually asking Nintendo to lock major content behind paywalls more often? Or to start a pay2win model instead? Seriously?

The Squid Sisters amiibo look great. It feels like they made more effort in building these, they look more detailed, but maybe that's just me.