Nintendo Wii

[SirPoonga]

Giving you guys a heads up.
The Revolution is now the Wii.
http://revolution.nintendo.com/

[versapak]

I had to double check my calendar when I first saw this news, so as to make sure I didn't accidentally go back in time to April Fool's Day.


What in the F to the U to the DGE was Nintendo thinking?



This is EASILY the worst console name in the history of consoles. "Hey man... You wanna come over and play with my Wii?"



I guess they did this for all the people that didn't realise they lost touch with reality during the Cube era. There can be no denying it now.

[odysseyroc]

 

[GGKoul]

WIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!

[pointdablame]

This is such a bad name for a game system.  Think of it

"hey mom, I wanna Wii"

"hey guys, wanna come over later and play some Wii"

"let wii"


God.... its just too easy.  Why would they do that.. they finally had a good name for a system with the Revolution.

[SOAPboy]

meh i like it.. Revolution was, kinda lame as well..

[versapak]

meh i like it.. Revolution was, kinda lame as well..

Well...

What can ya do? Some people just like playing with their Wii. I don't think anyone ever doubted that you were one of em.



I kid. I kid.


Maybe.



Revolution was the best name of any of the next gen consoles. Wii is as stupid a name as anyone could ever come up with for a console.

[GoPodular.com]

Nintendo hasn't had much creativity with names anyhow.

[clanggedin]

They can call it whatever they want. I'll still be there launch day to pick one up.

[mmmPeanutButter]

Nintendo hasn't had much creativity with names anyhow.

I'll definately agree with that. 

So, with that, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that I really don't mind the name.

In fact, I may actually like it. 

[Hoagie_one]

I'm apathetic to the name change.  I'm all about, "Show me the money, the proof is in the pudding"

[JONTHEBOMB]

I like the name its short, sweet and simple.
And it's the sound you make when your cruising on a rollercoaster.
I think it's better to come up with a new name instead of increasing your name by one number.

[NIVO]

next is the portable version....Pii Wii

[GoPodular.com]

Does it play with itself?   

Sorry.  I couldn't resist.

[Havok]

Wii is the US name. In Japan, it's called the PUD.

[JonnyBoy]

I bet it's just a marketing gimmick to get us all to talk about the new system?

Excuse me while I look at some wii.

[Stingray]

Personally I thought Revolution was stupid. I also think that X-Box 360 and Playstation 3 are equally stupid. They can call it the Strokemaster 6000 if they want to. If the games are good, I'm there.

Wii is pretty damn awful though, this coming from a dedicated Nintendo fanatic.

-S

[mmmPeanutButter]

Wii will rock you

[shmokes]

I thought it was pretty lame until I read this:

Wedbush Morgan Securities' Michael Pachter was more mixed in his assessment. "My initial reaction, of course, is that the name is dumb," he bluntly stated. "However, upon reflection, I thought that the name Game Boy was dumb, REALLY thought that the name Xbox was dumb, and can't even recall my reaction to PlayStation. Let's face it, devices with cool names like Dreamcast and Gizmondo fail, and the lame names seem to do well."

He has a point.  I remember the first time I heard Xbox I was like, "WHAT THE ---fudgesicle---?"  And I'd add to that list of success stories with really really lame names: iPod, Operation Enduring Freedom, caulk (pronounced "Kok").  Wii will not sound stupid if it's successful.  It'll just sound normal, like coke or pepsi or honda or kawasaki or WiFi or any other household name.  Seriously, Playstation sounds like a Fisher-Price infant toy.  Except it doesn't, cos it's a household name now.

[nullb0y]

Personally I thought Revolution was stupid. I also think that X-Box 360 and Playstation 3 are equally stupid. They can call it the Strokemaster 6000 if they want to. If the games are good, I'm there.

Wii is pretty damn awful though, this coming from a dedicated Nintendo fanatic.

-S

you should send nintendo an e-mail sugesting Strokemaster 6000  as their replacemnt for the name wii

[delta88]

 

I thought it was pretty lame until I read this:

Wedbush Morgan Securities' Michael Pachter was more mixed in his assessment. "My initial reaction, of course, is that the name is dumb," he bluntly stated. "However, upon reflection, I thought that the name Game Boy was dumb, REALLY thought that the name Xbox was dumb, and can't even recall my reaction to PlayStation. Let's face it, devices with cool names like Dreamcast and Gizmondo fail, and the lame names seem to do well."

He has a point.  I remember the first time I heard Xbox I was like, "WHAT THE ---auto-censored---?"  And I'd add to that list of success stories with really really lame names: iPod, Operation Enduring Freedom, caulk (pronounced "Kok").  Wii will not sound stupid if it's successful.  It'll just sound normal, like coke or pepsi or honda or kawasaki or WiFi or any other household name.  Seriously, Playstation sounds like a Fisher-Price infant toy.  Except it doesn't, cos it's a household name now.

[versapak]

I never thought Xbox or playstation were lame names, or gameboy for that matter either, but seriously...

There is lame, and then there is lame to the point of being another freakin name for piss, or half of the name of a little willy.

Playin with your Wii is just NEVER going to be the cool thing.


It will have no bearing on the systems ability to play games, and really probably won't matter one way or the other as far as sales go, but I just don't see Wii being the name it sticks with.

How many people call their Xbox 360 an Xbox 360? I am guessing that very few do. Most people just call it a 360. Wii is __insert derogatory here___. <==PERIOD

Anyone thinking otherwise is seriously reachin just do to an over abundance of N love.

[nipsmg]

C H E E Z Y 

[Dave_K.]

Nintendo continues to win the underdog vote.  Everyone laughed at the DS when it first came out and drooled over the PSP...look who's laughing now.  Focusing on the creativity and advancement of games and not just the technology around it (graphics horsepower/UMD/BlueRay...) is what will win the next gen console war.

[Stingray]

Let's face it, devices with cool names like Dreamcast and Gizmondo fail, and the lame names seem to do well."

I don't see how either of those names are cooler than Playstation, X-Box or even Wii. Come to think of it, most of my toys have stupid names. Well, everything but my Strokemaster 6000.

-S

[shmokes]

I'm not at all sold on the idea of Nintendo regaining the number 1 position in the market.  I hope they do (cos I would love to see traditional gamepads go the way of the dinosaur), and I don't see it as impossible, but it still seems like a long shot to me. 

I think we're reaching a point of diminishing returns on the graphics in videogames.  There just doesn't seem to be the same kind of jump in graphics in the Xbox 360 that we saw from Atari 7800 to NES, NES to SNES, SNES to N64, N64/Playstation to Gamecube/PS2/Xbox. 

I've only played Xbox 360 at the Wal-Mart and Target kiosks, so I'm hardly qualified to make a sweeping comparison, but it seems like the games only look marginally better than Xbox games.  With the Wii being like twice as powerful as the Gamecube it makes it significantly more powerful than the original Xbox which hopefully means that the difference in graphics between the Xbox 360 and the Wii won't be that big, not because the Xbox 360 doesn't have a much more powerful processor, but because of the diminishing returns we are seing or that I am imagining that we are seeing.  Or maybe the real jump in the next generation will be in physics rather than graphics and that's the key piece of the puzze I'm missing...

Anyway, if the games look "good enough", the far lower price-point, the amazing controller, the considerably lower development costs (attracting third-party support), the general excitement among developers about the controller (also attracting third-parties), and the possibility of expanding the market beyond traditional gamers, all make the prospect of a reemergence of Nintendo as the market leader almost plausible.  I'm certainly not counting on it, and I really don't like the name (though the logo is actually quite cool, so long as you don't have to pronounce it), but I don't think it's impossible for them to best MS and Sony.

We'll see....less than two weeks to E3!

[freddykreuger666]

the only reason they called it wii cos their target audience is lets face it -
little kids, wii is a "kids" word and that just reflects how kinda babyish the games are. Heck i used to love the nintendo, till i got older and now its just crap. No new games all mario, mario or zelda. Make new characters plz
Wii is just a marketing gimmick to get ppl to talk about it, it got u talking about it so hey free publicity

[shmokes]

the only reason they called it wii cos their target audience is lets face it -
little kids, wii is a "kids" word and that just reflects how kinda babyish the games are. Heck i used to love the nintendo, till i got older and now its just crap. No new games all mario, mario or zelda. Make new characters plz
Wii is just a marketing gimmick to get ppl to talk about it, it got u talking about it so hey free publicity

That's half true and half utter nonsense.  Nintendo has an image problem that they've been trying to shake for some time.  Their problem isn't a lack of adult games, per se, it is a lack of third party support.  Nintendo, as a software company excels at making games that lean toward childish.  It's what they do.  The head of their software development is Miyamoto, the guy who created Mario, Donkey Kong, Zelda, Pikmin, Smash Bros., etc.  He's brilliant and what he does is fanciful child stuff.  Nintendo has made serious strides to filling adult oriented games with 2nd party developers (Retro, Angel Studios, Rare) and with exclusivity contracts (Resident Evil 4, Killer 7), but they can't fill every genre themselves.  Their problem has been a lack of 3rd party support which is almost exclusively the byproduct of the stupid business decision to stick with cartridges on the N64, though admittedly is not entirely unrelated to their image problem. 

But that's where things are looking up with Wii.  From a development standpoint the Wii is really attractive.  It'll be far less expensive to make a Wii game than a 360 or PS3 game.  Also, developers have embraced the new controller and are really excited to work with it.  Also, with the cost of the console being so much lower than the competitors people will be more likely to pick it up, even if it's initially as a 2nd console, just to try out the new controllers.  The more people who own a Wii, the more 3rd parties will flock to the system to develop games for it.  The more 3rd Party developed games, the more consumers will want to pick one up.  The cycle just keeps feeding itself.  With 3rd parties come adult games.  It's that simple.  If there's a market, publishers will fill it.

Case in point, the only game we've seen so far for the Wii is Red Steel from Ubisoft.  Judging by the concept of the game I can hardly imagine that this will not be rated M.  It's a launch title.

Nintendo needs to stick to what it's good at.  Nintendogs, Animal Crossing, Zelda, Mario, Brain Age, Smash Brothers, Mario Tennis/Golf, Pikmin.......These are brilliant games.  These are what Nintendo is good at.  They need to attract other developer/publishers to the system to fill the void, rather than trying to half-ass it themselves.  So far it looks like they are playing the business end right on this one for the first time since the SNES.

[freddykreuger666]

nintendo used to be good at what they did
they just repeated the same games over and over again
i doubt 3rd parties will make games for it
cos well frankly the "wii" sucks
nintendo shud really put an age limit for who can buy/play their games
that should be under 12 years
to get customers to come to nintendo they need to vary their games and dont just try to keep their fanbase of the nes's/snes/cube/n64 etc to keep coming back for more mario and such.

[AtomSmasher]

nintendo used to be good at what they did
they just repeated the same games over and over again
i doubt 3rd parties will make games for it
cos well frankly the "wii" sucks
nintendo shud really put an age limit for who can buy/play their games
that should be under 12 years
to get customers to come to nintendo they need to vary their games and dont just try to keep their fanbase of the nes's/snes/cube/n64 etc to keep coming back for more mario and such.

I don't own a gamecube, but I don't think I could possibly disagree with this more.  Most of that was just your opinions, which I can't argue against, but as for doubting 3rd parties will make games for the Wii....well, that couldn't be more untrue.  Theres already around 30 3rd party developers that have plans for games on the Wii, and Nintendo is expecting to have around 20 launch titles with almost two-thirds of the launch titles from third party publishers.

I've never preordered a console system and pretty much always waited at least a year after they come out before buying one, but I plan on preordering the Wii and buying it on or around launch day.  I am definately not a nintendo fanatic, in fact I never played much or owned a SNES, N64, or Gamecube, but this is the first real innovation in home gaming in a long time, which is exciting.

[versapak]

I don't own a gamecube, but I don't think I could possibly disagree with this more.  Most of that was just your opinions, which I can't argue against, but as for doubting 3rd parties will make games for the Wii....well, that couldn't be more untrue.  Theres already around 30 3rd party developers that have plans for games on the Wii, and Nintendo is expecting to have around 20 launch titles with almost two-thirds of the launch titles from third party publishers.

I've never preordered a console system and pretty much always waited at least a year after they come out before buying one, but I plan on preordering the Wii and buying it on or around launch day.  I am definately not a nintendo fanatic, in fact I never played much or owned a SNES, N64, or Gamecube, but this is the first real innovation in home gaming in a long time, which is exciting.

The number of 3rd party developers in line BEFORE a console is even launched is hardly a sign of anything. The gamecube started with support also.


Nintendo isn't looking to cater to the same audiences as the other 2 main console developers. I applaud them for that, as they have done some really great stuff with the DS, but the drawback is that they limit their audience.

When a 3rd party developer is looking to make a title, and they want it to be multiconsole, the Wii(tarded) is going to be the one left out, because it is the odd one. It is going to be less powerful, and it is going to have a weird controller. The general idea is to get new and unique ideas flowing from devs, and to get games that are unique to what the console does offer, which will be great, but it will gurantee that the Wii(tarded) is going to secure a smaller audience than the competition.

Smaller audience = less 3rd party support.

If the console doesn't sell big, then the 3rd party support won't hang around, which is pretty much exactly what happened with the Gamecube.

The big N again decided to go with a gimped media, and they had an odd controller. Comparison after comparison was showing that the specialized controller was inferior for many games, and the sound and gfx sometimes suffered due to the smaller storage capabilities of the media. I'm sure a lot of people had purchased a GameCube as a second console, and when the choice for which console to buy that 3rd party game came around, they went with the other option. I am willing to bet the same thing is going to happen this time around.

Nintendo's gamble on the unique style of the Wii(tarded) won't be all that great, because it is their console, their Nintendo style, and that is just the direction they are planning to go, but other developers will be taking a big gamble making unique titles for it, and quite frankly... A lot of those 3rd party developers just don't have the kind of style or creativity that Nintendo has to make such things successful.

I will be buying the console, and I greatly look forward to the unique stuff that does come out for it, but I highly doubt it will ever be anything other than just the next consoles for playing Nintendo games.

[SlammedNiss]

something I found on google video...

[versapak]

something I found on google video...

lol


Just wasn't expecting that, and damn near sprayed my entire desk with coke.

[SOAPboy]

nintendo used to be good at what they did
they just repeated the same games over and over again
i doubt 3rd parties will make games for it
cos well frankly the "wii" sucks
nintendo shud really put an age limit for who can buy/play their games
that should be under 12 years
to get customers to come to nintendo they need to vary their games and dont just try to keep their fanbase of the nes's/snes/cube/n64 etc to keep coming back for more mario and such.

Think its time you picked up a cube, and mario strikers.. Kids game, sure! Fun as hell? Yup..

Oh, how about Eternal Darkness? Yep, one of the best survival horror games made..

Smash bros? Tons of fun with some friends and beer..


Actually own these devices before running off at the mouth about them..  Wii could flat out own and youll swallow your words later..

[Otraotaku]

wait for E3, then say what you wish... that is all!   

[ray_slup]

 time magazine article about the Wii          http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1191861-1,00.html

[AtomSmasher]

funny comic

[versapak]

Speaking of comic...


Never has there been a more appropriate time for that picture of Calvin taking a Wii.

[RayB]

I just watched a live webcast of Nintendo's E3 Press Conference... And now I don't give a sh!t about the name. This console is AWESOME!!!

[versapak]

[shmokes]

Yep, I just watched it too.  Honestly, I would have rathered pay $300 for a Wii with more competitive graphical horsepower than $200, but in the end it's by far the system I'm most excited by (followed by PS3 with X360 in a distant third).  I think it's hillarious that Nintendo is sticking so doggedly to the name.  When addressing the name for the first time in the conference Reggie Fils Aime said (speaking to the press) something like, "First I'd like to thank those of you who wrote good things about the name when it was first announced . . . both of you."  Zelda looks unbelievable.  Red Steel looks like it could be absolutely fantastic, but I was a little concerned about the control.  It looks like in order to turn you have to move the aiming reticule to the edge of the screen, rather than have something more akin to mouse-look on PC first-person shooters.  It seems like this was done to keep the screen steady for a shooting experience that was kind of a cross between a first-person shooter and a traditional light-gun game.  But it looked like it made navigating around corners and stuff a little sloppy.

Anyway, they showed a slew of other games, many of which looked fantastic.  There will be 27 games playable on the show floor tomorrow, with even more shown in video-only format.

FWIW, Sony unveiled their new controller which underwent a redesign after the one they showed a while back that looked like a boomerang was universally hated.  It now (surprise surprise) has a 6-axis motion sensor in it.  It also looks exactly like a dual shock controller (for the love of god Sony, please please please swap the D-Pad with the left analog stick.  This is no longer 1994.  95% of videogames are 3D!).  Oh...and it doesn't have rumbling anymore, thanks to a lawsuit.

Which reminds me, there are some more innovative details about the controller recently revealed.  Apparently Nintendo is unaffected by rumbling controller lawsuits (or is paying royalties) cos there's DOES have rumbling.  Also, both ends of the Wii controller have motion sensors (analog stick attachment AND the remote-looking thing).  And it has a built-in speaker, so when you are firing an arrow in Zelda, for example, you will hear your bow tighten and the release of the arrow and then you will hear the arrow embed itself in your enemy's chest on your speakers across the room.  Or when you're fishing you can hear the real coming from the controller, rather than your home theater speakers.  Pretty cool!

[Stingray]

I was very much on the fence about which next gen console to get first, but after Sony announced that the PS3 is going to be $500-$600, I'm not only off the fence, but the fence has been torn down. Guess I'll take a Wii.

-S

[Nannuu]

Just watched the Wii video.  I'm impressed.  It looks very cool.  Nintendo and Sega have always been the coolest companies for new stuff.

[lcddream]

looks awesome!

[Dizzle]

I was very much on the fence about which next gen console to get first, but after Sony announced that the PS3 is going to be $500-$600, I'm not only off the fence, but the fence has been torn down. Guess I'll take a Wii.

-S

You won't be the only one.  Sign me up too.

[brophog]

I'm not at all sold on the idea of Nintendo regaining the number 1 position in the market.

I'm not sure they're trying to. In actuality, based on total revenue, Nintendo's still been number 1 for some time due to the portables. Nintendo may not have the leverage that Microsoft or Sony has due to being able to take on a loss on gaming while being supported by other ventures, but I'd say Nintendo is doing alright.

 I think this is the first generation in gaming where hardware doesn't allow you to create new games and genres that the previous did not. Take someone's example of the Atari era and NES era. Did the NES look that much better than the Atari's? No, but it allowed us to make new types of games. The 16 bit era did the same, and of course the 32 bit and beyond brought in the idea of 3D gaming.

Think about when you first saw a Genesis.....yeah, it looked way better than a NES, but you very soon found out that it could do things the NES never dreamed about. I remember the first time I played Madden on the PS2......far different experience than the same game on the PS1. It was night and day for me, and not just because it looked prettier.

That's why, I'm hopeful Nintendo is successful. I think their innovations are going to allow them to make games that are a next step up rather than just looking better. My concern is how hard is it to program for their new controller interface? I can see the possibility of a lot of really bad software out there simply due to the control scheme. Remember when 3D gaming began and analog began and how many games that would have otherwise been fun sucked because you either couldn't see due to poor camera or couldn't move due to poor analog implementation? 

[divemaster127]

I watched G4 last nite on E3, & I have issues with some of the new systems...ok last week I purchased a Xbox 360 & a 30" Hdef 16:9 monitor & it looks really good...but after purchasing the 399.99 unit another wireless unit & the wireless network there went $600.00

the playstation III from what G4 stated you need to purchase the $600.00 unit to get all of the goodies, boy that's tough to spend that much again.

The WII,(i prefer revolution), was supposed to sell for $149.00 G4 stated the price will be $249.00 to $299.00, this unit does not support HDef & I just do not care for the controller but being able to play the old games is cool...


opinions
dm

[SirPoonga]

I watched G4 last nite on E3, & I have issues with some of the new systems...ok last week I purchased a Xbox 360 & a 30" Hdef 16:9 monitor & it looks really good...but after purchasing the 399.99 unit another wireless unit & the wireless network there went $600.00

See, that's where microsoft is going to make their money back, on the accessories.  I only picked up an extra controller but $50 for a controller is crazy.

$60 fro a 360 game is crazy.  I've only bought one game for my 360 at full price.  Otherwise I used coupons or bought used.  Rumor has it PS3 games, being bluray, will be more expensive.

[Stingray]

Rumor has it PS3 games, being bluray, will be more expensive.

Of course. Sony has lost all touch with reality. Who is the PS3 for? Royalty? Oil Barons? Not Bill Gates, I'm pretty sure he's a 360 guy...

-S

[farmecologist]

I agree 100%.  The 'next gen' games are too expensive.  I refuse to pay more than $40 for a game.   Ok, I'm cheap.  However, I think the studios are digging themselves into a hole.   The 'spiraling production cost' bit will only work for so long.

[Nannuu]

The games prices don't bother me much since I can see how production costs have gone up given the complexity of games.  I remember paying $70 and $80 for SNES games long ago, so $60 is still cheap.

[brophog]

I'm not sure it's "cheap".....it's still a video game. But I remember paying 70 dollars for SNES games too.....and all I can come up with is I was insane.

[Hoagie_one]

The guy from Microsoft said for the price of the PS3 you could buy a 360 and the Wii, lol

[shmokes]

Yeah, you can tell that if nothing else MS is buying into Nintendo's claim of not wanting to compete directly with MS and Sony, cos not only did he recommend that consumers buy a Wii and a 360, but he raved a bit about how innovative and so on the Wii is. 

[Howard_Casto]

My thoughts are basically that sony stumbled into the market years ago due to some great luck... they remained in the market due to more great luck, they got full of their selves (even though neither of their previous consoles were all that good) and now they think people will buy a ps3 regardless of the price and the lack of the good games. 

600 bucks for a system?  A system that so far doesn't have ANY games that look significantly better than the 360 which has been out for a full year.  A system that doesn't have a harddrive?  A system that uses a disc format that nobody has agreed upon yet, won't be related to game content and quite possibly could become the next beta max?  They've completely lost it.  Also there's no base unit.  You can argue that the 360 is 600 bucks too after you buy all the stuff, but you've got to remember that you can buy the core system and add a little bit at a time.  With sony you are forced to buy 600 dollars worth of stuff, even if you don't use it. 

Personally I only had one controller for my gamecube for the longest time.  I still only have two.  Buying 4 would have been a waste as friends can bring their own controllers.  Same goes for my xbox, still have the two original controllers and that's it.  Buying more would have been a waste... also I didn't buy any memory cards because it has a frikkin harddrive! 

Anyway... moving on...

I can't say enough about the wii (except for the name, that is the gayest thing I've ever heard).  Nintendo "fixed" 3d gaming with the nintendo 64 and now they are going to fix it again with true 3d controllers.  A controller that makes me excited about first person shooters again is nothing short of a miracle!  Also it's a controller that is so versitle you won't have to buy crazy speciality controllers to play games anymore (steering wheels, light guns, ect).  Dated graphics won't hurt it at all as people will have so much fun from the controls nobody will notice.  Don't beleive me?  fire up a game of galaxy force and just try to enjoy it without the massive hydrolic arcade cab. 

In my opinion the wii is the must buy this season, and I'm a huge m$ fan.  You'll also want to eventually pick up a 360 as the wii's graphical capabilities are rather limited, and thus several of your great third-party games will never make it to the wii. 

If you are completely insaine or REAAAAAAAAALLLLLLY like Metal Gear you could get a ps3 instead.  I honestly can't think of a single good thing to say about the ps3.  The whole blue-ray thing is dumb, the strange co-processor architecture is dumb, so far all the exclusive games look pretty dumb  and the price is REALLLY dumb.  The ps2 has some cool games coming out though, but I guess that doesn't really count does it?

[Stingray]

If you are completely insaine or REAAAAAAAAALLLLLLY like Metal Gear you could get a ps3 instead. 

I'd rather beat myself to death with a live fruitbat than endure another insipid Metal Gear game.

-S

[RayB]

Dated graphics won't hurt it at all as people will have so much fun from the controls nobody will notice.  Don't beleive me?  fire up a game of galaxy force and just try to enjoy it without the massive hydrolic arcade cab.

I don't even think it's fair to call the graphics "dated". The system is DOUBLE the power of the GameCube. Anyone who has seen Resident Evil 5 for the GC knowns how much better it looks than any PS2 game, so if the Wii is gonna give me graphics that look twice as good as that?! --I'm gonna be more than happy.

[shmokes]

Well, maybe it's just the law of diminishing returns (is that a law?), but judging by the games shown at E3, double the power doesn't equal twice as good graphics, or anything like that.  The graphics of Red Steel or Metroid don't even begin to approach those of Assassin's Creed, Gears of War, Metal Gear, etc.  In fact, what we've seen so far looks pretty much the same as what can already be done on the Gamecube.

Considering the level of graphics in PS3 and 360 games, which are direct competitors to the Wii, nomatter what Nintendo would have you believe, I think one really doesn't have much of a choice but to describe the graphics as "dated".

Then you come to terms with it and buy a Wii anyway because it looks like more fun in spite of clearly inferior graphics.

[brophog]

Let's look at this with a bit of motivation.

Why wouldn't MS want Sony gone? If you have two competitors and one of them flat gives you a share of the market while the other is competing directly against you with similiar financial resources........it's really a no brainer.

For the games MS wants to produce, it's only real competitior is Sony. If they can use Nintendo to help knock Sony out, of course they're going to do it.

[RayB]

Well, maybe it's just the law of diminishing returns (is that a law?), but judging by the games shown at E3, double the power doesn't equal twice as good graphics, or anything like that.  The graphics of Red Steel or Metroid don't even begin to approach those of Assassin's Creed, Gears of War, Metal Gear, etc.  In fact, what we've seen so far looks pretty much the same as what can already be done on the Gamecube.

That's true, but the reason for that is that the games WERE developed on GC hardware. Wii dev kits weren't even available until a couple months ago. I would HOPE developers will be revamping all their textures between now and their release dates.

Knowing this, I have pretty high hopes for the Wii.

[versapak]

That's true, but the reason for that is that the games WERE developed on GC hardware. Wii dev kits weren't even available until a couple months ago. I would HOPE developers will be revamping all their textures between now and their release dates.

Knowing this, I have pretty high hopes for the Wii.

Even if the graphics aren't improved on these early titles, it shouldn't matter. I think the novelty of the new controller will be able to get us by until the 2nd gen of titles that were developed with all the final Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii stuff. Then we will get some nicer visuals to go with those nifty controls.

The DS has definitely been a great reminder that graphics aren't everything.

[SirPoonga]

The Wii is still using dated graphics.  The xbox1 is slightly more powerful.

I think alot of people are going to get the Wii.  The question is will good games come out.  I have a feeling this controller is going to be like cell shading.  There are some games where cel shading makes sense but there are alot more that use it for the sake of using it.  I  have a feeling we are going to see some crappy games on the Wii just because some developer wants to use the controller when a normal controller would have been fine.

[shmokes]

 

The xbox1 is slightly more powerful.

Bah!  That's nonsense.  The Xbox1 has a slightly higher clock speed, but they are utterly different architectures.  The Wii's processor, if I understand correctly, has basically the same architecture as the Gamecube with a doubled clockspeed.  but surely you don't think that Xbox1 is twice as powerful as the Gamecube.  Between the three current gen systems (360 excluded, of course), Gamecube is only second to Xbox, but is more powerful than PS2.  If the Wii truly is twice as powerful as the Gamecube, or even 1.5 times as powerful, it is significantly more capable than Xbox1.

[DaveMMR]

Meh - graphics!  I'm numb to it all now.  I went to a friend's house and played around with his 360.  I never remember feeling 'awestruck' by the graphics.  By the way, some of my most favorite games of the just past generation of consoles weren't exactly pushing the graphical envelope (e.g. Katamari Damacy, Warriors, Viewtiful Joe, Rez - though some of those choices had a 'style' that lent itself to simpler graphics).

Personally, I was excited about the release of the PS3 until I saw the pricetag.  $600?!   Wii sounds more in my pricerange - especially when all I want to buy a console for is to play games, not watch some Blu-Ray DVD's without an HD display.

Finally, I often wonder why people get so hung up on Nintendo games being 'kiddee'.  Be that as it may, it should be noted that a lot of these games are excellent, despite their ESRB rating.  And, personally, I'm not the type to embrace a game just because it's rated "Mature".  Personally, I was sick to death of the whole "Grand Theft Auto" gameplay (I skipped San Andreas).  Fun is fun, that's it. 

I don't know - it looks pretty cool (name notwithstanding).  I may be picking one up.

 

[brophog]

I  have a feeling we are going to see some crappy games on the Wii just because some developer wants to use the controller when a normal controller would have been fine.

There is a normal controller for the Wii as well. It looks like a crossbreed for a dual scock  and a fat SNES controller.

[versapak]

 

The xbox1 is slightly more powerful.

Bah!  That's nonsense.  The Xbox1 has a slightly higher clock speed, but they are utterly different architectures.  The Wii's processor, if I understand correctly, has basically the same architecture as the Gamecube with a doubled clockspeed.  but surely you don't think that Xbox1 is twice as powerful as the Gamecube.  Between the three current gen systems (360 excluded, of course), Gamecube is only second to Xbox, but is more powerful than PS2.  If the Wii truly is twice as powerful as the Gamecube, or even 1.5 times as powerful, it is significantly more capable than Xbox1.

heh


He never said the Xbox was twice as powerful. :p


He said it was slightly more powerful.


I think the Wii is going to be great for the few games that really utilize it, but I doubt it will end up being the primary gaming system for many. Nintendo is basically releasing a whole new console just for a gamecube peripheral.

I guess it makes sense to do this, since it will get looked at less like a peripheral, and it won't have to be associated with the gamecube, which is widely thought of as a pretty dead console.

[AtomSmasher]

He never said the Xbox was twice as powerful. :p

He said it was slightly more powerful.

Right, he said the XBox was slightly more powerful then the Wii, but the Wii is twice as powerful as the Gamecube, so the XBox must be more then twice as powerful as the gamecube.  That simply isn't true, at the very worst the Wii's graphics should be slightly better then the XBox, but I'm guessing the third or fourth gen games will be better by a fair margin.

[SirPoonga]

I  have a feeling we are going to see some crappy games on the Wii just because some developer wants to use the controller when a normal controller would have been fine.

There is a normal controller for the Wii as well. It looks like a crossbreed for a dual scock  and a fat SNES controller.

Exactly.  You know people are going to make games that use the wand wen it doesn;t make sense.

[versapak]

He never said the Xbox was twice as powerful. :p

He said it was slightly more powerful.

Right, he said the XBox was slightly more powerful then the Wii, but the Wii is twice as powerful as the Gamecube, so the XBox must be more then twice as powerful as the gamecube.  That simply isn't true, at the very worst the Wii's graphics should be slightly better then the XBox, but I'm guessing the third or fourth gen games will be better by a fair margin.

Ahhhhhhh

Okay, I see where ya be comin from now.

[brophog]

I  have a feeling we are going to see some crappy games on the Wii just because some developer wants to use the controller when a normal controller would have been fine.

There is a normal controller for the Wii as well. It looks like a crossbreed for a dual scock  and a fat SNES controller.

Exactly.  You know people are going to make games that use the wand wen it doesn;t make sense.

Do you have an example? I can't imagine a fighting game working well, but I can't think of too many other genre's that wouldn't work.

You still have one analog stick and several buttons. I can see companies being almost "forced" to use the wand simply to show it off. This seemed to happen with the first generation of games on the Nintendo DS, but it seems that has ceased and common sense has prevailed.

[SirPoonga]

Of course I don't have examples, it isn't out yet.  Read my previous reply.  I see it is like cel shading.  Cool but will be over used and not used in appropiate situations.

[shmokes]

 I can't imagine a fighting game working well,

Au contraire!!!  Can you IMAGINE the next Fight Night?  For anybody who hasn't played the Fight Night series for current gen or 360, pick it up immediately.  The control system is incredibly intuitive -- simple, intuitive and deep simultaneously.  But the control system absolutely begs to be adapted to the Wii, especially since we find that both the Wiimote and the nunchuck have motion sensing capabilities. 


edit: I know that Fight Night isn't a "fighter" in the traditional sense of the word 

[versapak]

 I can't imagine a fighting game working well,

Au contraire!!!  Can you IMAGINE the next Fight Night?  For anybody who hasn't played the Fight Night series for current gen or 360, pick it up immediately.  The control system is incredibly intuitive -- simple, intuitive and deep simultaneously.  But the control system absolutely begs to be adapted to the Wii, especially since we find that both the Wiimote and the nunchuck have motion sensing capabilities. 


edit: I know that Fight Night isn't a "fighter" in the traditional sense of the word 

Maybe if the remote and puck weren't attatched to each other via cable, but seeing as they are, I don't really get much excitement from the idea.

[shmokes]

I don't know . . . I'm punching in the air right now, the way I imagine the game working and I can't imagine needing a longer cable unless you really plan on flailing about.  Who knows?  I guess we'll see, as EA is working on the system and it seems like they would be crazy not to do this.  In fact, I'll bet the Fight Night team is watering at the mouth to give it a go.

[Grasshopper]

I think that potentially these controllers could be very good indeed for fighters. Just imagine being able to punch, block etc with your arms. But I also find it a bit depressing that this development could represent yet another nail in the coffin of joystick and button games.

As they say, every silver lining has a cloud.

[RayB]

Fighting games?! Ugh. I got so tired of those by the time Tekken 3 came out.  Definitely not the Wii's audience anyways...

[SirPoonga]

Any game is for the Wii audience.  That's Nintendo's motto this time, everyone's a gamer

If you think fighting games are for Nintendo then I guess you also think Resident Evil isn't for Nintendo either?

[Howard_Casto]

Fighting games?! Ugh. I got so tired of those by the time Tekken 3 came out.  Definitely not the Wii's audience anyways...

Well the tekken series is a horrible, horrible series and not really a fighting game (it's a grappler, like wrestling)  so that might have had something to do with it. 


The reason everyone (inculding me) is sick of fighters is because while the graphics have finally moved to true 3d, you still play on a 2d plane.  Fighter developers, rather than trying to make a new style of fighter (like they did in my day) just add two new characters and 30 new types of useless combos to try to keep the fanboys happy.  When an entire genre hasn't evolved at all in over 10 years it does tend to get boring.   

The wii controller might be able to fix this because finally we can have true 3d gameplay to go with the 3d graphics.  Personally I'm waiting for punch-out 3d 

[RayB]

Personally I'm waiting for punch-out 3d 

YEAAHHH!!!!! 

[SirPoonga]

Apparently these are the launch titles.
http://wiinintendo.net/?p=193

Only three first party games.

[pointdablame]

Apparently these are the launch titles.
http://wiinintendo.net/?p=193

Only three first party games.

Man, I hadn't even considered how AWESOME a super monkey ball game could be with the Wiimote.  That could turn out to be a great game.

[Grasshopper]

I don't know . . . I'm punching in the air right now, the way I imagine the game working and I can't imagine needing a longer cable unless you really plan on flailing about.  Who knows?  I guess we'll see, as EA is working on the system and it seems like they would be crazy not to do this.  In fact, I'll bet the Fight Night team is watering at the mouth to give it a go.

The following article gives some useful insights into how effective the Wii's controllers are likely to be for fighting games and interestingly actually mentions Fight Night:

http://www.xgaming.com/newsletter/Wii%20Dupe.shtml

"While the IR tech can aim relatively well, it is not likely as accurate as a mouse. This means that FPS games will not likely be better played with the Wiimote than a mouse for accuracy, though being able to point and shoot at an enemy may still be better overall. And while the accelerometers can detect motion, it cannot tell exactly where the controller is in 3D space nor exactly how much you have moved it. This means you will not be able to control the next Fight Night on Wii by punching like a real boxer in real time. Alas, virtual realty has not arrived to this extent just yet."

Some other paragraphs from the same article that caught my eye:

"I am not saying that the Wii will not be awesome, I still believe that Nintendo will win this console war. But it seems clear to me that the Wiimote cannot 'detect its exact location and orientation in 3D space' with 'pixel-perfect accuracy' with the technology it was using at E3. Perhaps it still will. Gamers like me want to know what the Wii will and won't be able to do."

"The Wii hardware we exhibited at E3 2006 was made specifically for the E3 show and is not the final mass-production version. Some of this hardware was cased in Nintendo GameCube housing," - Nintendo

"Today we learned that the Wii at E3 was running in GameCube shells, perhaps the controller and the hardware are still being upgraded."

[Tahnok]

I haven't read the entire thread, but has anyone else noticed that the name is just a spin-off of the apple naming convention (iPod, iTunes, iEtc)? I mean really, they just switched the position of the i and doubled it. Maybe it's a bit of a stretch, but they must have been at least inspired by it.

[SirPoonga]

which is all a spin off of irobot.

[Stingray]

Apparently these are the launch titles.
http://wiinintendo.net/?p=193

Only three first party games.

Man, I hadn't even considered how AWESOME a super monkey ball game could be with the Wiimote.  That could turn out to be a great game.

Talk about a game that seems tailor made for a motion sensing controller. That's going to be a fun one, I'm thinking.

-S

[shmokes]

I can't imagine a game made by a tailor being very good.

[Stingray]

A suffusion of yellow.

-S