Slashdot Mirror
Nintendo Announces Gamecube Launch Numbers
cbirdsong64 writes: "Planet Gamecube has a story about the Gamecube launch quantities for the U.S. and Japan. Apparently, the Japanese launch will consist of 500,000 Gamecubes, all purple. Nearly 900,000 Gamecubes will be shipped this year in Japan. The North American launch will have 1.1 million (!!) units availiable, with no colors announced. The Big N plans to ship a total of four million Gamecubes worldwide by March 2002. They're doing a whole lot better than Sony did last Christmas." Maybe when the much-anticipated Gamecube ships, I can pick up a discounted PS2 and GT3 :)
You mean like they did with N64 in '96?
Vermifax
Vermifax
Logout
That DVDs are proprietary. 'That word, I don't think it means what you think it means'
Vermifax
Vermifax
Logout
Like they did with the N64 in '96?
Or maybe uf they weren't such 'fuck ups' they would have had a better selling console in the last generation.
Don't get me wrong, I own a N64, but they are a business just like Sony, prone to mistakes and really only out for one thing, your and my cash.
Vermifax
Vermifax
Logout
Realistically bits don't matter that much. Look at the Xbox, it is a 32bit machine and in can out perform the DC and the Jaguar (both 64 bit)
Vermifax
Vermifax
Logout
--
The super mario 2 you bought was not the super mario 2 released in Japan. The super mario 2 released in Japan is much closer to Super Mario 3 in the US/Canada.
That's what he was talking about.
a) It's proprietary to Nintendo and Matsushita (probably based on DVD technology), and can hold about 1.5 Gigs.
b) Sometime next spring, a version will be released which can play DVDs.
That's exactly my point. One of the things that always pissed folks off about Nintendo was that they HAD to use proprietary formats. They didn't create the N64 as a CD platform for exatly that reason. They also ditched their SNES CD platform once again for that reason.
And yes, you are right--Panasonic (who deleloped the tech, which is based on DVD techonology), will be selling an all-in-one media system that will have GameCube hardware and DVD playback. It looks like a shinier vesion of the Cube with more buttons.
I don't see how purple is related to Pokemon, BTW. Could you please clarify?
Not necessarily the purple, although I'm sure that has some resemblence as well--but the Silver and Gold ones are DIRECTLY related to Pokemon, as they market the Gameboys the same way (get these NEW collectors Gameboys in Pokemon Gold & Silver!--spare me). I have no problem with a couple colors to have them as colors, but when the reason they exist is because of PokeCRAP then I'd say no thanks. I actually think the system in a brushed metal silver would look very nice--but not if it has some Character scrawled all over it as well.
-Julius X
-Julius X
remove "-whatkindofspamdoyoutakemefor-" from email to send
Gamespot also has an article about the Gamecube here...but the part where it mentions the Panasonic media unit I've shamelessly ripped:
So there you have it.
-Julius X
-Julius X
remove "-whatkindofspamdoyoutakemefor-" from email to send
Bleh. So many games that implement >2 players on consoles suck. There are a select few exceptions, and good games do bother to support the extra hardware. I'm sorry, but if you divide up the TV screen, it sucks. Gauntlet Dark Legacy and Cookie & Cream for the PS2 do a great job of multi player with a multitap. If you like the divide up the screen aproach, there are lots of those games available too. (Even with the need for a multi tap). Putting four ports on the front of the machine only makes the people who don't want >2 players (The majority if the number of >2 player games is any indication) pay for the extra ports either way. The future of multi player on consoles is network gaming anyway. As soon as broadband is widely available, you'll be plaing with hundreds of others with only one controler port. Post college you don't have a bunch of "lamely-nicknamed punks" around your house to "hand your ass to you" after work anyway, but you do have plenty of money to go out and buy games with.
And what's this crap about a PSX "vibe"? And this other crap about PC's not having good multi player? (Ever played Quake?)
This is an excellent question, and one I have wondered about myself.
There are two sides to this coin.
1) How many next-generation (PS2, Gamecube, XBox) consoles (NGCs) do we expect to be sold?
2) How many NGCs (obviously, only PS2 right now) have been sold already?
To answer these questions :
1) Roughly, this number should be at least the number of existing PS1 + DC consoles. This is not incorproating the significant increase in the overall market that we expect from first-time console owners who might be inclined to buy a console for its DVD playback ability (for instance).
I seem to find that roughly 15 - 20 million PS1 consoles were sold worldwide since its debut in 1995. And about 5 million DC consoles. This makes the total market size at least 20 - 25 million strong.
2) How many PS2 units have sold so far? I seem to find about 5 million have been shipped. It's more difficult to find out how many have been sold, but to be conservative, we can assume that all of the units shipped will sell by the Nintendo launch.
So... it seems that at most, 25% of the NGC market will have saturated by the time Nintendo enters the scene this fall. A million or two units is not going to change that number dramatically. It would appear there is a great deal more room left for growth.
HOWEVER, since one cannot overestimate the influence which a dominant technology has in the marketplace (think VHS vs. Betamax), Microsoft is going to have a very hard time taking the reins away from Sony and Nintendo this fall. I would certainly say that if they cannot make the crucial Christmas ship date, they are likely to find themselves killed before leaving the starting gate.
Bob
Science, like Nature, must also be tamed, with a view turned towards its preservation.
Thanks. Do you have a source? Most of the sources I found cited substantially lower numbers.
In any case, it would appear that the market is far from saturation.
Bob
Science, like Nature, must also be tamed, with a view turned towards its preservation.
If I remember correctly that's what Sony said last year. Remember what happened to them? They said they'd have 1MM+ units out there by Xmas and only ended up with ~600M.
PR Departments don't let out bad news until they are forced at gunpoint
Pete
The sole purpose of the Internet is to get porn and bomb making plans into the hands of children.
From the really big perspective, it makes existing human resources broader in scope by providing functionality where before there was none. Whether or not it will be used is another question, as is whether or not it'll be justified.
How long before there is a version of Linux for the Gamecube? Anyone have any hardware specs?
Geekizoid: The Small Shiny Things Network ©!
"Going to war without France is like going deer hunting without your accordion." - Jed Babbin
You know, we have it very good with Sony as the king of the hill nowadays. How many people here remember the nintendo-dominated 80s? Nintendo with a monopoly has to be scariest thing in the world. Here are some highlights on Nintendo in 80s:
1) The whole Zelda 2 x-mas diabocle. They didn't ship nearly as many units as demanded, hence this rose the price considerably. In fact, I remember 20/20s report, where they even found a warehouse of Zelda 2 cartridges that were just gathering dust, while mobs were trying to buy the game!
2) The fact that they COMPLETELY underestimate the intellects of the US market! How many RPGs were ported to the US? (As an example, look at the FF series and the Dragon Quest/Warrior series.) Whatever came to the US was either dumbed down or censored heavily. Nintendo never felt that US market was mature enough for some of their best games. Super Mario 2 is another example, where it wasn't ported to the US, because Nintendo thought it was too hard for americans.
3) The 2+ year lag between US and Japanese releases. Nintendo NEVER wanted to release US games anytime near their Japanese release dates. I don't even know why.
4) The awful, slave-like licensing agreements. Forget about Microsoft, the Big N didn't allow anyone to even buy blank cartridges without paying them a MAJOR licensing fee (and then they'd have the nerve to call their licensing fee the "Nintendo Seal of Quality.") Remember Tengen? They reverse-engineered the NES system, made their own black cartridges (including a superior Tetris) and were almost sued out existence by Nintendo! (Nintendo also made newer NES consoles not work with their system)
5)Then there's the Game Genie. Whereas other console makers (SEGA) embraced it, Nintendo took Galoob to court and kept the Game Genie in the court system for over a year. I remember having to order mine from Canada to get it.
6) Nintendo treats their 3rd party developers like shit and always has. That's why Square left, and why there are almost NO third party apps coming from Nintendo. (and that's true... come on, what NON-NINTENDO game do you want for the gamecube?)
Those are just some highlights off the top of my head. But let me tell you, if I had to choose between Nintendo or Sony, (or even nintendo vs MS), I will NEVER EVER CHOOSE Nintendo. With Sony, we have tons of GREAT RPGs coming over very quickly, fast translations, a company that has a VERY lax licensing policy, and most importantly, a company that doesn't think their market is a bunch of idiots.
I've saturated my Pants just thinking about it.
Has anyone heard about the Panasonic GameCube? Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) had an article that mentioned a special edition GameCube to be released by Panasonic that will play DVDs for an estimated cost of ($299). Tasty.
"The world only exists in your eyes. You can make it as big or as small as you want." - F Scott Fitzgerald
Not to be blasphemous, and I'm sure Gamecube will have a couple of smash hit games (Dreamcast had a few...)
First of all, graphics mean a lot in today's day and age, but it's really a game's total design - playability, difficulty, sound, graphics, plot, etc. - that really has to shine. Good graphics mean crap, because I still play some pretty good games that have very shitty graphics (Marble Madness anyone?)
Second, I wouldn't say it has much better games before it even comes out. We don't know if most of the games will be duds or not. Of course, comparing it with N64 and Playstation, perhaps there will be some good games that are only outmatched by the most popular PS2 titles, or perhaps MS has a real ace up their sleeve and we'll be talking about X-Box games as the console games to have this Christmas.
But enough negative talk. Right now, there's never been a better time to be a video game enthusiast. Now if only that damn GT3 steering wheel didn't cost me a month of food...
The article didn't say this, but along with the launch codes, they released the rest of the contents of the Gamecube Football, including the Gamecube 'playbook', to be used by Nintendo's CEO in case of a decision to deploy the 'Cube and a secure SATCOM radio handset.
In releasing the launch codes, Nintendo has given mankind a powerful and terrifying weapon in the war against boredom. Let us pray these launch numbers are never needed.
"They're doing a whole lot better than Sony did last Christmas."
Er, well, they haven't sold any yet!
I seem to remember Sony saying they were going to have loads available too.
Wouldn't it be wise to wait until Christmas before making a comment like that?
I don't know much, but most articles that I've read point to history and say that the market can contain two successful consoles at a time. Nintendo is certain to survive, given their showing at E3, low price, and profitability (they have the best business model), not to mention the GBA. I suspect that the PS2 will be the other survivor.
And, as for being a jerk in the past, IBM was the absolute worst for many years. They were the microsoft of the 60's-80's. I think they are now one of the absolute coolest companies. Competition does wonderful things to work ethics.
and, btw, one of the reasons cited for nintendo's resurgence is that they are starting to treat their developers well, while sony is now treating theirs like, well, you know.
Rogue Squadron (Rogue Commander? Something like that) is LucasArts and is the Reason I Will Buy The Game Cube. It received excellent reviews at E3.
Jack Valenti and the MPAA are to technology as the Boston strangler is to the woman home alone
Yeah, I always wonder that too ... they have a lot of smart people but have such horrible business practices :)
Jack Valenti and the MPAA are to technology as the Boston strangler is to the woman home alone
I've reserved the console and that exact game. can't wait... GT3 will tide me over till then though. :)
---
python -c "x='python -c %sx=%s; print x%%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))%s'; print x%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))"
Info:http://cube.ign.com/news/36765.html
It will be a year later than the regular gamecube.
---
python -c "x='python -c %sx=%s; print x%%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))%s'; print x%(chr(34),repr(x),chr(34))"
My fiancee's 10yr-old. Kids have a surprising amount of patience, if they enjoy what they're doing. Also, having finished a particular game giving them a bit of kid "status" with his peers really does help.
--
Hmm well I'm 21, and I still prefer Nintendo games over anything that's out on the PS2. If i want a really good storyline, I'll read a book. If I want to play a good game, I'll play Nintendo. Good games are open to all ages.
I wasn't too excited about it, but after seeing the info on Super Smash Brothers Melee, I am reserving one ASAP. No dorm's complete without one :)
;)
I haven't been this excited about a gaming machine in a long time.
And of course, the discounted prices on other consoles won't hurt
It's not just purple, it's atomic purple!
Seriously, though, you think the purple color is 'pansy-ish'? I dunno - I think it looks kinda cool. Something different from the standard fare beige/black routine.
But then, I'm not going to be buying it as a decorational item. I'll be buying it whether it matches my carpet or not cause I wanna play games on it!
Yes, I would say the market saturation is there. Every time a new console or highly anticipated game is released, people go rabid trying to get it. There's a reason preorders sell out so fast - there is a huge demand. If that's not market saturation, what is?
:)
People want the latest and greatest. Consoles are no exception.
Personally, I'm going to get a Cube for sure, probably a PS2, and possibly an X-Box. Just having one doesn't saturate me enough
Legend of Zelda
Metriod
SSB
THOSE are what's gonna sell the Cube. Kids can play Pokemon on their Gameboy color. There's not really much power needed for that type of game. Sure, you could get rid of the yellow rat's pointy edges, but do they care? No, they just wanna catch him. I don't think that the Pokemon franchise is based on graphics or gameplay - it's based on marketing.
Samus kicking Ridley's posterior - now that's a different matter. Link getting medieval on some moblin - now THAT's entertainment.
And if you do feel the need to blow up small electric rodents, there's always SSB.
Not all 1.1 million units are launch units. 800,000 are for the launch, while the other 300K are for the rest of the month. You can see those details at http://cube.ign.com/news/37001.html. It's nice to see that Nintendo learned from Sony's mistake last year.
"Chances of RHIC-induced Armageddon are exceedingly rare, but... you never know." - MIT Physicist Bob Jaffe
Even if they were 3.5" DVDs (which I've never heard of), they would still only be able to hold less than 1/2 of what an Xbox or PS2 can on a single disc. So much for nice large textures on the games....
Actually:
a) It's proprietary to Nintendo and Matsushita (probably based on DVD technology), and can hold about 1.5 Gigs.
b) Sometime next spring, a version will be released which can play DVDs.
And anyway... who the hell cares? I mean, do you buy PC games based on how much space they take up on your disk? Or how fun they are the play?
I really don't understand people who keep comparing these 3 consoles on the basis of fill rate/clock speed/memory speed/whatever. How does this detirmine:
a) Which one will have the best games. Obviously a subjective question, but fortunately I already know _my_ answer.
b) Which ones will look the nicest. X-Box has like... what, twice the "speed" of Gamecube? Then why was everyone so impressed with Gamecube at E3? This is one problem throwing hardware at is not going to help.
Not to mention the fact that the thing is gonna be in *cough* Pokemon colors.
You know... the Gamecube has always been shown in multiple colors (black, purple (which I happen to like), silver, and a couple of others). You can get N64 in four or five different colors and I imagine Nintendo will keep doing that (hey, it worked for the iMac).
I don't see how purple is related to Pokemon, BTW. Could you please clarify?
Even though the Dreamcast flopped, they essentially did the right thing by flooding the market with consoles last Christmas, precisely because they knew the PS2 was in short supply. More than a few parents looking for a PS2 decided to get their kids "the next best thing," I'm sure.
Also, I believe the competition has gotten so intense in the console biz that any company that doesn't sell through at least a million units in the holiday season is probably toast, anyway. Nintendo is quite confident in their in-house game franchises, and they still seem to have a very strong relationship with LucasArts. Also take into account that, if you have pre-teens in your home, Nintendo is really the only console maker that is targeting that market.
Mortal Kombat II was released on the Super Nintendo a year later, and had full blood and fatalities. Mortal Kombat III followed a year after that and, surprise surprise, had all the gore too.
The original Mortal Kombat was released, blood-free, on the Super Nintendo in 1993. Do you judge everything around the happenings of 1993? The majority of people I know would actually take into account the happenings of the last eight years.
If people were judging Sony on their 1993 game performance, all they'd be remembering is a bunch of really bad SNES movie license games, the SNES's sound chip, and some CD-thingy being made with Nintendo. A lot has changed since then, huh?
"Hello? Nintendo focuses on Family entertainment."
"Well, if you're still under 18, then that's fine, but I am sure the rest of us adults prefer something non-mickey-mouse."
Nintendo stopped their 'mickey-mouse'ing a long while back, and there is stuff like Conker to show for that. True, many of Nintendo's first party games can be passed as 'Family entertainment', but, as +Newander+ pointed out so well, just because a game lacks gore doesn't make it a bad game. Someone truly mature would choose a good 'family' game over a bad violent 'mature' game.
But I doubt you can grasp the idea of Mario being mature, and that is why you are not.
Nintendo have shown one technical demo of a some Pokemon on the GameCube. They have yet to announce or show-off a Pokemon game. Sure, they'll probably make one, but it's hardly been a selling point thus far.
And besides, if you don't like Pokemon, don't buy the games. Simple. I have a Nintendo 64, and I have no Pokemon games, and I plan to have a GameCube with no Pokemon games.
Calling the GameCube 'PokeCube' is like calling x86 'Wintel'.
Are all Nintendo ROMS on the Internet Illegal?
They are saying that pirating THEIR software is illegal, which, well, it is.
And, yes, I'd prefer Yoshi to Pikachu anyday too :)
Nintendo has somewhat been forced into their anti-emulation stance with high quality emulators, such as UltraHLE, becoming available early in one of their products' (the Nintendo 64's) life cycles. However, what does their stance on emulation matter if they don't have the law behind them?
I do disagree with Nintendo's "emulators are illegal" stance, and I agree that people should be able to play the games they own on their computers. However, "playing already purchased games on a computer" doesn't justify the illegal ROM sites. Shouldn't people that own the software back it up themselves? Lack of access to the required hardware isn't exactly a fair defence; I'm not allowed to post an image of a DVD on the Internet because some guy doesn't own a DVD-ROM in his PC, so why should that be different for a cartridge?
On Nintendo's anti-commercial ROM stance, I can understand Nintendo wanting to protect their software; they are still re-releasing their older software updated on their new consoles (GBA's Super Mario Advance for example), and preventing software they own, old or not, is still within their rights.
And I don't think Nintendo held back on a non-cart console until the GameCube due to the DMCA; Nintendo are primarily a Japanese company, and (IMHO) would be more concerned with Japanese copyright laws. They just wanted to keep a tight grip on control (and would also claim they wanted quick load times).
(By the way, as well as the Game Genie ROM, a ROM of the NES game Elite was also released as freeware I believe, which is an example of a 'real' NES game going free.)
Just a point: Digimon is a clone and competition of Pokemon. Nintendo do not own it, nor do they have video games of it on their systems. Your view of Nintendo already seems clouded.
"Resident Evil, Twisted Metal, Metal Gear Solid"
The Nintendo 64 actully has Resident Evil, and there is a RE game in the works for the GameCube too.
Twisted Metal, well, there's always 4 player Mario Kart for real destructive racing fun, however the N64 also has Destruction Derby.
Metal Gear Solid, well, there's always Rare's Perfect Dark, and to a lesser extent Goldeneye.
Dragon Warrior has actully originated on the NES, and is avalable on Nintendo's Game Boy Color. I assume, however, you're refering to the 'modern' PlayStation version, and that has only been released in Japan thus far.
In fact, all the games you mentioned are third party games, and could potentially be ported to any console, including Nintendo's. The games of Nintendo's that you mention are first party. Better then Sony's first party efforts, such as Fantavision.
I'll be far more interested to hear the launch #'s in say, January 2002. :)
What's interesting is that as much as the popular press likes to talk about the X-Box being more powerful, most observers at E3 pegged GameCube as having better graphics (not to mention games, where there's no comparison).
It's $100 cheaper, has much better games, it's a lot smaller, has a better controller -- what more do you want?
Gamecube all the way...
--- egomaniac
ZFS: because love is never having to say fsck
They have announced that the GC will be released in only purple to start with in Japan (check http://cube.ign.com) and then will release more colors later. Most people assume they will release colors that match the Gameboy Advance...that is very important since I want my GC to match my GBA when they are hooked together!
Unstable Apps: Our Android Apps Don't Suck
X-Box is going to be the premier machine for multiplayer.
Several others have pointed out that most 4 player games suck anyway, because there just isn't enough screen space, and they're right.
A big TV, at least 27", takes care of the screen real estate. IMO. 'Course I might be spoiled with my 36" behemoth.
The X-Box is the only console I've seen that allows you to hook several consoles together on a LAN, to either fit more players on, or to give each player more screen space.
The PS had one-on-one console linking, not all that well utilized. And while I think making ad hoc LANs is pretty cool, one TV per person takes a lot of room, generates a lot of heat, and requires a lot of tv hauling.
One last thing: I think it will be quite hard to beat the x-box controller. The psx, ps2, and n64 controllers all sucked, but the xbox controller was actually large enough to fit my hands without feeling cramped, and the buttons and joysticks were all placed perfectly.
I would rather have the xbox controller over the gamecube controller (which looks like a bad version of the playstation controllers).
That's funny, most reviewers have said that the X-box controller is a bad (and oversized) version of the Dreamcast controller. Even the ones with big hands say it's too damn big. The gamecube controller is clearly an extension of the N64 controller, which was way ahead of its time, with very clever grouping of buttons (not like the PSX's 4 identical shoulder buttons, just waiting for you to screw up), a real D-pad, and the reintroduction of the analog stick to modern gaming (way ahead of the dual shock). I like my N64 controllers better than my dreamcast controllers (too bad the VMUs weren't better utilized) so I assume I'll prefer Gamecube's to X-box's.
--
SO YOU'RE GOING TO DIE: The Comic for Dealing with Death
Right now, Nintendo seems to be the only company that really gets how important multiplayer is.
Dreamcast started to get the right idea, with 4 ports, but I think they had more of a PSX vibe going on, with as many or more 2 player than 4 player games around. I think X-box might end up in a similar fashion even with 4 ports, since its PC heritage doesn't have a good multiplayer tradition either. And PS2, where you need a multitap for that? Feh. Few gamemakers are anxious to support anything but out of the box hardware.
Yes, online console gaming has a big future, but blasting 2 or 3 buddies to smithereens while talking trash, all on the couch will beat out getting your ass handed to you by faceless, lamely-nicknamed punks who spend way too many hours at this stuff.
--
SO YOU'RE GOING TO DIE: The Comic for Dealing with Death
That's the cube I want, and it should be out within a couple years. PS3 is nice. Game Cube is neat. But I'm willing to wait another two years for the hardware (and games) to look like they're straight out of Shrek or the FF movie.
The last console I bought was a SNES, and since my computer can do everything the new consoles can do and a whole freakin lot more I doubt that I'll ever buy another. But as long as people have money to burn I guess it'll never stop.
with no colors
And the colour of this box has exactly *what* bearing on its function?
When did we descend into this ridiculous consumer hell?
Thank god you haven't seen the X-Box.
In case anyone else is as clueless as I was -- and want to see what this thing looks like.... see here and a larger version .
peace
i'm considering the ps2 but i know for sure i'm getting a gamecube. nintendo has always been about quality while the ps was about quantity. it looks like the ps2 is working toward quality but the nintendo is definitely going to have several must-have games at launch.
and a warning to xbox fans, you're throwing away your money. it's going to flop.
Nosce te Ipsum
It's The Games Stupid! (derivative of KISS)
Right now I own a PS2 and the only reason I don't regret buying it is cuz of the promise of MGS2. The demo rocks btw
Nintendo as a software house makes games that kids under 12 absolutly love. They aren't always the most complicated but they are easy to play which is very important. It won't be specs that win the battle it'll be the fun-factor of the games they release and I think Nintendo still knows how to do that.
BOSTON SUCKS!
I don't know about $99 for an X-Box. That would barely pay for the hard drive, let alone the Pentium processor, SDRAM, and all the components...
Depends on how serious Bill G is about it. If he doesn't want it to fail, he may be willing to sell it way below cost, like with IE.
--- Will in Seattle - What are you doing to fight the War?
The North American launch will have 1.1 million (!!) units availiable, with no colors announced.
Wow! They're gonna release invisible GameCubes? Cool! Now my mom won't find out that I stole the one Johnny got for Christmas!
"Mod, mod, mod...and another troll bites the dust."
You are saying a lot of wrong information.
1st: Nintendo is the ONE who bring FF and Dragon Quest to US market. These games were originally made by Enix and Square.
2nd: Yes, the US market WAS DUMB at that time and younger than now. Games like Mortal Kombat are not a big success in Japan. Companies like Square like to make money. They are the one who decided to not port their games to US become they thought it was too immature. Also it's not a matter of underestimate the intellects in US, it's a matter of underestimates the number of intellects in US interested in these types of games.
3rd: Despite the lag between Japan and US release, which is far less than 2 years by the way, except for games made by third parties like Final Fantasy, we had few games released in US first, like Super Mario Bros. 2 (the american version). I'm sure some Japanese are still frustrated about that...
4th: It's not because Nintendo treats their 3rd parties like shit that Square left. I fact, Square was with Nintendo during Nintendo's monopoly. Square left because Nintnedo refuse to give a special treatment to them (Sony paid FFVII publicity) and because their platform was cartridge-oriented.
Few other facts you said were true, but you're obviously not objective... In opposition with Microsoft, who made his monopoly with buggy software, Nintendo made it with great games (IMHO).
(sorry for poor english)
They are slashdotted. Here is another article about their plans.
Just my $0.04 (adjusted for inflation)
8 bit: NES, SMS
16-bit: Genesis, SNES (TG-16 failed)
32-bit: PlayStation, Nintendo 64 (Saturn failed)
64-bit: PlayStation 2, ??? (DreamCast failed)
So there's really only room for one more: XBox or GameCube. Given:
I think that Nintendo is going to eat Microsoft's lunch.
--Bradley
--Bradley
However; my questions reguarding BIG N's Game Cube, are these...
1. Q: Will the BIG N allow for backwards compatablity, or will you be locked into yet another BIG N system that wont run older ROMs you spent all your money on? (i.e. NES, SNES and N64)
A: No. The Game Cube ROMs are 3 inch Discs containing 1.5GB Capacity
2. Q:Will the BIG N allow for Multi-player/system use, or are you stuck with four(4) players on a single television set?
A: Yes and No. Game Cube does not incoperate "Multi-Link" systems; However, there are two options for available... One being its four(4) player port and the other being a optional Modem that can be pershased (a 56k modem and a Broadband connector that appears to to be an 8pin 10 base-T adapter).
3. Q:Will the BIG N stick us with yet another set of "kiddie" games like they have in the past, or are they going to allow the developers free rein over their products?
A:Time will tell, but here is a list of BIG N's Current line up:
FIFA 2002 Road to FIFA World Cup (EA Square
SSX Tricky [working title] (EA Square
Bomberman Generation (Hudson
Super Smash Brothers Melee (Nintendo)
Luigi's Mansion (Nintendo)
Pikmin (Nintendo)
Wave Race Blue Storm (Nintendo)
Animal Forest Plus (Nintendo)
Star Fox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet (Nintendo)
Doubutsu Bancho (Nintendo)
Eternal Darkness (Nintendo)
Virtua Striker 3 ver.2002 [working title] (Sega)
Phantasy Star Online [working title] (Sega)
Super Monkey Ball (Sega)
Rune [working title] (company name withheld
-- Sure doesn't look like much. But then again... it kinda looks like the same game titles I've seen at the game store for N64. I have personally never really been too impressed with BIG N's "quality" of graphic's, I want to game play capablities and NEW ideas. Sure alot of the older games are fun to play but hey, Bomberman? How many times can they make the same game with different graphics? And Sega? whats with that, if it didn't sell your system why push yer product off on someone else?
-- I have a closet at home filled with boxes of old ROMs and consoles ranging from Atari 2600 to Intellivision and a Sega Master System to N64... the only thing I haven't stored there is my PS2 and games for it and PSX --
There is one thing that does peak my intrests about the Game Cube and it seems to be based on an Idea Sony work on for a while in Japan... and thats connecting the 32bit GBA to your Game Cube through the controller port. Portablity.