SharkAttackU

@therealgamer I'd love to see some sources for that...

Mario Sunshine HD on Wii U? Where? When? Pikmin 4? Mario Golf? I don't remember ANY of these announced in any capacity.

I view this as a portable console first, home console second.

How is this not a very powerful portable that can interface with a TV? The core concept is that you can take this anywhere... just like a portable. The Vita and PSP could connect to a TV, but that didn't make them home consoles. The difference is power.

I will eat my shirt if the Switch is more powerful than an Xbox One. We've heard rumors all over the place regarding power, but I think the initial rumors about it being slightly less powerful were accurate especially if the Switch will be competitively priced.

@cleveland124 My thoughts exactly

@Al_Godoy I doubt Nintendo and Sony will ever work together. There's a better chance of Nintendo putting games on Xbox than PS.

@SteamedSquid That's the old "Current Year" fallacy that bandied about around a lot of these frame rate and resolution debates. The obvious oversight is that the PS2 was cutting edge in it's day. The N64 was cutting edge in it's day. Devs have to make compromises to either make game more beautiful and expansive or perform better at a high resolution. They had to 20 years ago and they have to today. I'm sure BotW could run at 120 fps on Wii U if it had OoT graphics and physics. I don't think anyone wants that.

Of course the frame rate shown in the latest video wasn't ideal, it was a far cry from OoT or Goldeneye levels and looked quite playable to me. What we saw at E3 was quite smooth and if what we saw at TGA is as bad as it gets, I'm fine with that. I'm getting this on Wii U so I just hope that Nintendo can do something to make it better in the final build.

Have we ever seen this much footage of any Zelda before release? Maybe they would have looked as "bad"?

@Wolfgabe That is noticeably worse than the Nintendo YouTube footage

Here's the link to the good footage.

https://youtu.be/Na1cIOmfBlU

Nintendo's YouTube channel just uploaded the captured footage. It's beautiful with only the occasional and quick frame dip below 30. It recovers very quickly. I'm guessing 22-25? Combat and the important moments are smooth. Still looks extremely playable and worth owning for Wii U.

@WiltonRoots Big budgets and good power certainly don't HURT games. They're not inherently bad things.

I love my Wii U, but it did deserve a much better effort from Nintendo. The fact that it didn't get their best effort shows that Nintendo had some serious doubts about the system before it was released.

I see a lot of the same hubris with the Switch.

@cleveland124 Why, oh why, wasn't there Battalion Wars U?

WHY DO YOU HATE MONEY< NINTENDO?!?!?!?!?/?!1/1

I love my Wii U, but it won't be remembered as fondly as the Dreamcast. I owned a Dreamcast and it had a much more expansive and eclectic library of games than the Wii U, all with only 3 years of official support. The DC, for the most part, made good on it's potential. You can't say that about the Wii U.

I owned the GCN (with Metroid Prime and a few other games) for about a month before I went over to my friend's house and played Halo. I sold it and bought an Xbox. I still don't regret it. Before that, I hadn't owned a Nintendo home console since the NES, but got my fix a friend's houses.

The Wii U has some great games (like Pikmin 3, MK8 and SM3DW) and has let me reconnect to past Nintendo games I didn't get a chance to truly experience. I never played Wind Waker. I played Wind Waker HD and loved it. I never played TP, but can't wait to play TPHD. I have it, I just haven't had the time.

The VC lets me play games like Metroid Prime Trilogy, Pikmin 1 and LttP. The Wii U having a Wii inside also lets me experience all the Wii games I didn't get to play. In that respect, I think the Wii U was appropriately named.

Nintendo just never seemed 100% behind the Wii U or interested in fully realizing it's potential, like at all. It seems like they knew what was in store for it before any of us did. It's a shame.

That said, I think the Wii U is a perfect point for Nintendo the turn the page and stop living in the past. They need to "Switch" to being a more forward thinking company that creates new, unique game experiences. Nostalgia is nice and has a place for Nintendo, but they need to focus on the present and future.

So much for all of the talk of "merging handheld and home console divisions" that we've been hearing about. Nintendo also hinted they are working on a 3DS successor. Here we go again.

I like the Karen at the party bit, but it would have been funnier if she had just pulled the blinds and stayed in to play Mario.

@MrGuinea That is, of course, if you believe what they're saying is true. We found out with the Wii U that they weren't working on anything.

@gatorboi352 Everyone seems to forget this little fact.

The Wii U version still looks awesome. I don't think I'll be cancelling my preorder for it on Wii U. I'll wait till Fall 2017 or later for Switch to build up 3-5 killer games in addition to BotW before I make the "switch". That said, if Pikmin 4 drops on Switch, it's ON.

@Manjushri No, it's just that the Switch version is portable by virtue of the fact that it's on Switch. You still have to pay for the game unless it's bundled with the system. It's not free.

@Manjushri Free? Where?

I'm glad it isn't backwards compatible. It gives me all the more reason to keep my Wii U and 2DS around. BC is a nice feature if it makes sense, but at the end of the day people don't buy new systems to play old games. I think they sacrificed too much for both the Wii U and 3DS to be fully BC and it hurt them. Nintendo needs to turn the page on the Wii and DS line. This is what Iwata meant by "from zero".

3 hours is fine for me. I would be shocked if there wasn't some portable charger. I'll rarely take it out of my home, though I LOVE playing my 2DS while laying on the couch or in bed.

@gatorboi352 Single player looks fine to me. I thought the gamepad was quite comfortable. It also looks comfortable if you stand it up and detach the "joy-cons" and play like a wiimote and nunchuck. That was incredibly comfortable.

The multiplayer one-joy-con-a-person thing does look carpel tunnel inducing though.

I would speculate that there may be a "mobile" bundle with just the tablet and joy-cons, and a "home" bundle that includes the docking station and joy-con grip.

Me before the reveal: "I'm still feeling burned about my Wii U. Screw you, Nintendo!"

Me after the trailer: "Yes, Amazon. Notify me when the Switch is available for preorder."

I would be cool if they told us when there would be more info on this thing.

BotW looked like it took a huge frame rate hit in the portable version.

@MysticX Yeah. I've got BotW preordered for the Wii U. That should keep me busy for a while. The Wii U graphics look pretty awesome to me, so I don't think I'll feel too bad if the NX version looks a bit better. Maybe Pikmin 4 would get me to bite, but there will have to be some real, sustained 3rd party support as well.

@Yorumi Pretty much this. I love my Wii U despite it's obvious flaws, but even if the NX is the greatest console ever made, I'll be in no hurry to buy it at all and maybe ever. At least Sony and Microsoft tried to make the best out of a bad situation with the PS3 and XB1. Nintendo's "fix" is for me to "please understand" and buy another console that they'll support this time? I'm beyond skeptical. Not a great message to send customers.

@Turbo857 Yet many of those same gamers are foaming at the mouth for "VR", blissfully ignorant that "VR" is only possible because of... motion controls.

"the dual screen motion controls dealt it all a killing blow."
It's not a well made sentence.

@Turbo857 Agreed. I guess I was just trying to be diplomatic, but the gyrowing would be completely unplayable. I loved the game and will be replaying it for years to come. Some people act as if the motion controls are broken. I thought they were dead-on accurate.

The the wait isn't the problem. The problem is that, after PMCS, there's nothing coming out on Wii U in the meantime. Maybe if Zelda were a split release and coming to Wii U this holiday, things wouldn't be so bleak. Nintendo has basically told all Wii U owners to "sit and spin" while offering a complete media blackout on anything regarding the NX. Considering how Nintendo has handled the the Wii U over the course of it's life, it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

One thing is for sure, I'm not even going to THINK about getting an NX (or whatever it's going to be called) for a good 2 years after launch.

I loved the controls. They were the best part of the game for me, and I used to despise motion controls. I've always been really good at flight sims and rail shooters, so maybe that has something to do with it. The mission to destroy the missle and Corneria 2 were highlights for me.

It's definitely not a perfect game. Some parts felt under developed (Venom, all the Gigarilla parts), I would have liked 2-3 more arwing rail levels, the gyrocopter Zoness mission should have included a supplementary arwing mission, the gyrowing could have used some boosters, maybe make the game playable without motion controls to appeal to everyone...

Personally, I don't care about multiplayer, local or online, but know a lot of people love that aspect of modern gaming, so I get it.

All in all, knowing what we got, SFZ should have been delayed to this Holiday to add things and really polish it.

The Shiekah Slate in the BotW footage is likely similar to the NX handheld. I have sources.

@IceClimbers I guess we'll never know.

The problem, once again, is that the latest 3rd party, AAA multiplats will skip Nintendo's console making it less appealing to someone with finite resources to spend on gaming, which is most of the gaming market. With more powerful machines and VR on the horizon, I fear most people will save their money for those. This can only lead to reduced sales for the NX.

@White_Rhino Thanks for the history lesson. That's all well and good, but that was over 30 years ago.

Don't get me wrong, I love my Wii U. This rumored concept is intriguing, but it won't reinvent the industry.

@BiasedSonyFan Good luck selling another underpowered console to the masses then. Why, other than Nintendo exclusive IPs, would someone who already owns a PS4 or XO want to buy this? Portability? It will do great in Japan, but no where else, just like the Vita.

Also, considering the Neo and Scorpio are just around the corner and are guaranteed to be a healthy upgrade, they wouldn't.

The problem with Nintendo focusing on the handheld aspect is that mobile gaming will continue to get stronger. The 3DS was clearly effected by mobile gaming, especially down the stretch. There's a reason that the Vita will likely be Sony's last handheld.

If the NX is only slightly more powerful than the Wii U and less powerful than the Xbox One, this won't go well for Nintendo. It Tegra X2 or bust.

@White_Rhino "a console that does to gaming what the NES did in '83."

There's already a console that does that. It's called the Playstation 4.

I love the core concept, but if it isn't even as powerful as the Wii U and uses Tegra X1, this thing isn't going to be long for the market I'm afraid.

I'm still hoping that the "near Xbox One levels of power" rumors are true...

Also, the article states that Nintendo "recommends" a 32GB cart. I would hope that there is the ability to use 64GB carts if devs desired.

@Faruko Not too mind blowing. The Vita was capable of output near, though clearly below, 360/PS3 level graphics in 2011.

I think we're talking Tegra X2 here, folks.

Hold onto your butts.

News of NX delay in 3,2....

Wii U version cancelled in 3,2,1....

@VanillaLake There's always Paper Mario: Color Splash!

Can we all take a moment to revel in the fact that a simple, anecdotal article about high returns of SFZ has turned out over 450 comments rehashing Nintendo's past, present and future?

@Dr_Lugae I think this is what irks Wii U owners the most. Where did all the money go? Certainly not into the Wii U OR 3DS launch or software. It didn't go into the hardware. Nintendo was, and still might be, flush with cash. It looks like they just put it all in their pocket, patted each other on the back, and went out to lunch and still haven't come back.

@Yorumi Again, I don't think SFZ is perfect or even a great game. In fact, it's deeply flawed in many areas. This game could have done a million things differently or better or had more content, but that's the case with a lot of games both good and bad.

However, just because the industry is doing X, doesn't mean every game has to do X to be considered a good game. For example, just because every game is adding crafting elements doesn't mean Star Fox or Mario should add crafting and if they don't they are somehow inferior games because "that's what the rest of the industry is doing". I simply don't agree with that.

I do agree with every word of #408. I certainly won't be buying an NX on launch day, no matter how epic the line-up. I fear that the NX will be too little, too late unless it blows away the PS4 NEO and XBOX Scorpion. The PS3 example was exactly what they should have done with the Wii U. They should have dug in their heels and kept releasing games for it, working out whatever development kinks they are having while keeping their core fans (12 million Wii U owners) happy.

@Yorumi I know Nintendo doesn't exist in a vacuum, but I do disagree that a game must check the "online multiplayer" box or "leveling system" box or the "whatever" box in order to be considered a good game. I like the game and you don't, that's fine. I'm not really trying to defend Nintendo very hard, but i do think a lot of people made up their mind about the Wii U and SFZ before either were released and there is some confirmation bias going on with that.

Sure, there are shmups for $10 on steam, some are good and some are not. Raiden 4 for the 360 is $30 used cib on amazon. It's basically a prettier version of Raiden 3. Is it worth it? I don't know. Raiden 4 brand new is $75. I know its not worth that. Dodonpachi Ressurection is $80. I happened to get SFZ with Guard for $48 with Amazon Prime. Honestly, I think I would have been a bit more disappointed had I payed the full $60. Then again, I rarely pay $60 for any game. I waited for Splatoon and XCX to go down to $50 before picked them up. I waited for the $20 Selects price for Pikmin 3 and DKCTF. I still don't have NSMBU because it's still $60(!) here in the US.

I also think the "controversy" about the gamepad is ridiculous. It doesn't need to be utilized in every game. Even the DS didn't utilize the second screen every for every game. Mini maps, options on the fly, other thing to enhance playability etc.. is a perfectly acceptable use for the second screen.

@Yorumi The Dreamcast is one of the best gaming systems ever made. It's definitely Sega's best system. It has a huge, varied library of games. For a system that was dead and buried after 2 years, it's amazing and a stark contrast to the Wii U.

What's truly remarkable is how Nintendo let this happen. How does Nintendo, coming off the resounding success of the Wii, selling over 100 million systems and untold numbers of high markup peripherals, fail so hard to support their next console? It's really baffling. Did everyone at Nintendo take a vacation from 2009 to 2011?

It's a shame that Zero will always be remembered this way.

While it's not 100% the game I would have liked to see, the core game is there. The gameplay is fun and rewarding. I see what they were going for and appreciate it. The motion aiming, imo, works incredibly well and much better than Splatoon, and I love Splatoon.

It's an unapologetic, arcade style shmup/flight sim in a world where MMOs, open worlds and crafting sandboxes rule the gaming landscape. Strike 1.

That's what gamers have become accustomed to and expect from every game. Every game MUST have an online multiplayer component. Every game MUST be 12-20 hours long to complete AT A MINIMUM. Every game MUST have some sort of crafting and/or leveling system. Star Fox Zero does none of it. I don't particularly care about those sorts of things, but obviously most gamers do. Strike 2, 3 and 4.

I'll still enjoy the game. If some gamers don't want to take this game for what it is, whatever. Their loss.

@Vandy Exactly. And I'm no Nintendo apologist. In fact, the Wii U is the first Nintendo home console i've owned since the NES. I owned a Gamecube for about a month before I played Halo at a friends house and heard that Panzer Dragoon was coming to Xbox and sold it...

I can't think of a gaming company that gets as much crap as Nintendo. I don't think there was this much of an uproar about Halo 5 taking away split-screen. Horizon Zero Dawn and No Man's Sky were delayed, but you wouldn't even know it because were given a free pass. Zelda was delayed again and everyone loses their minds. Don't get me wrong, Nintendo has made a lot of poor decisions lately and acts like a company that just doesn't give a darn anymore, but they also can't win for losing.