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GameCube Hits the Street
boozie writes: "Reports began surfacing yesterday afternoon concerning GameCube goods beginning to trickle into the hands of Japanese consumers...Today we received the first pictures of the finished unit and its associated packaging as sold to a store employee in Tokyo."
Nintendo Site: http://www.nintendo.com/systems/gcn/gcn_overview.j sp
= Disassembled+Gamecube&inc=gcopen.inc
Disassembled GameCube: http://www.lik-sang.com/catalog/master.php?navbar
Info on GameCube Console from GameCube Central: http://tomoeslab.virtualave.net/consoleinfo.html
The official launch date is 14.september.2k1
It was recently shown on Spaceworld, Miyamoto demonstreted a Kirby game, where the GBA is used as a TV extension. Kirby would jump out of the TV screen and appear on you GBA screen! No screenshots unfortunately, but it seems like it features many hidden mini-games only accessable using the GBA.
Please Note: You do not need a GBA game! Just hook up the link between GBA and GameCube!!
Wow, I cant wait for this!
Does it go on forever?
Why can they release it in Japan before they can release it here (by several months apparently)... I'm assuming the hardware is the same (?) so why did they have to push back their NA release date?
If God gave us curiosity
Here's some release dates for GC
Luigi's Mansion and Wave Race: Blue Storm: Sept. 14 along with the release of the system.
Pikmin is going to be released on Oct. 26
SSBM is going ot be released in November 2001...
Does it go on forever?
Hmm, well, if you won't play a good game because it's "kiddy" ala Banjo-Tooie, Rayman, and even Pokemon Puzzle League, then you'd better not be calling yourself a hardcore gamer bud. While I myself enjoy a good, mature game like Metal Gear Solid or Dino Crisis, it's not a crime to play something like Mario or even Pokemon. For me, I play a game if I like it, screw the fact if I'm "Too old" or it's "Immature." Besides, even if you don't like those games anyway, as I said, Nintendo is MUCH more open to Mature games nowadays, with Silicon Knights onboard, Capcom developing Resident Evil 0, and the such. So basically, there SHOULD be something for everyone.
So basically, all I can say is that people should hold their judgement untill they actually see the games in action. With the PS2 already out, you can truly make a real comparison. So wait and see, and give Nintendo, Sony, and even -shudder- Microsoft a chance......you may be surprised.
Does it go on forever?
I like the fact the called the graphics chip flipper - reference back to the Dolphin code name.
It takes me back to Sid and Fat Angus, and of course the rock lobster motherboard of Commodore days...
"Get a Life? Where do I FTP one from?"
Panasonic will also be releasing a DVD player that plays Gamecube games for around $300 in Japan. Not sure if it is supposed to come to the US or not.
http://formen.ign.com/news/35095.html
It will be $199.95 upon release in the US. That includes the main unit and one controller. I may have read that it also comes with a memory card, but I'm not sure about that.
http://cube.ign.com/news/35091.html
Nintendo didn't invent cel-shaded rendering. Its been used in various games already including Jet Grind Radio.
However, the new Zelda game does look very cool.
There's some video of it (and the new Mario game) here.
Seriously, I always thought the N64 controller was *the* masterpiece of ergonomic controller design. Not only did it fit most hands perfectly, but it was versatile, offering three distinct gripping areas, the middle one feeling nicely like a gun for those shooter games.
Now they go and throw it away for a DualShock PSX rip-off? Bah.
I also have to say that a box isn't sexy. It isn't even cute. The design just strikes me as being a boxy and plain Model T type styling. No, looks aren't terribly important in a gaming console--but the PS2 is both simple and sexy. I wish Nintendo had kept their controller along N64 lines and made the console design more sleek. A purple box is just going to look out of place sitting atop my DVD player or VCR, whereas the PS2 looks right at home.
Not that I'm going to buy one. I gave up on consoles. Playstation, N64, Saturn, Dreamcast, PS2, GameCube, X-Box--that's 7 machines in recent times. That's just too many. I want games that I can still play 5 years from now without having to have 7 weird boxes daisy-chained across my entertainment center. That's why I've pledged to go PC-only. I may not get the newest Zelda or Mario or FF games, but I get a lot of cool others--and all the rest will eventually be emulated well enough in time. Let's see, ~3000 arcade games both classic and contemporary, hundreds of old "abandonware" PC games, dozens of my NES and SNES and Genesis favorites, a dozen of my favorite old Mac shareware games courtesy of the open-source Basilisk II emulator, all pulled off the Net for free, plus Bleem! and VGS to play some used PS discs bought for a song, plus whatever cool new PC games I ant to buy like the Quakes and all those mods and customizations which can never all make it to the console ports, the Unreals, lots of Star Trek some of which is actually good like Elite Force and Dominion Wars, Alice, Tomb Raider 37: More of Lara's Tits, etc. etc. etc.
I know the lure of the console and all its exclusives is great. But it would be better for the gaming community in the long run to support only more open platforms, like the PC and Mac, not consoles. It's hard to resist, but when I realize that I don't want dozens of proprietary boxes most of which are outdated cluttering my space just to play games--and even more I don't want to throw away or give away my old games whenever new consoles come out--I don't feel right supporting the console industry. Fuck 'em. My PC is better any day, and will be able to emulate 'em all eventually.
Chasing Amy
(We all chase Amy...)
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws"-Tacitus
I've played around with the Game Cube dev kit a bit, and if the controllers I used were any indication people over ten years of age will have trouble holding these things. They're SO small and lacking in substance. I imagine this will be like the Game Boy Advance in that you MUST buy a peripheral (new controller) to really enjoy the thing. (With the GBA you basically have to buy some light dongle like Nyko's worm light.) If you want a mental picture of what they look like, imagine a rectangular purple bar about 3 inches thick molded like a play station controller gone horribly wrong. The analog stick just protrudes off at the oddest place on the left hand grip area. Of course, the xbox controller is worse since it deceptively looks useful and comfortable, but is exactly the opposite.
Check out ioquake3.org for a great, free, First-Person Shooter engine!
How many days before it's running a web server?
"Everything is adjustable, provided you have the right tools"
A friend of mine who went to Viet Nam suggested that we all discuss the potential of Draft tonight at SFAM (Anime Night). We're all, by and large, males in our early 20s to early 30s.
I think that affects a good chunk of the Slashdot population as well. Don't forget that you could be part of the war machine as well.
--
Evan
"$30 for the One True Ring. $10 each additional ring!" -- JRR "Bob" Tolkien
If you are in one of these countries: Belgium, Canada, Czech Rep, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, or the United States, then you're going to take part in this too. NATO voted that if this is external to the US (which is probably is), then each of these countries will take it as an attack upon *their* homeland, and commit themselves to a combined response.
So... where ya live, AC? Are you a filthy Spanish pig? A filthy British pig? A filthy German pig? Or are you just as scared as the rest of us because some fuckhead just declared war and took out the two biggest buildings and the center of the military in the US? Or do you think that the rest of the world hasn't been just as hurt year after year with this terrorist shite?
--
Evan
"$30 for the One True Ring. $10 each additional ring!" -- JRR "Bob" Tolkien
I would suggest the GameCube. Nintendo has always produced the best system, they always have the best game play, the most fun games, and the highest quality graphics. Don't get an Xbox... imagine playing your favorite football game when you get "system error, please reboot...."
~ now you know
The expansion device will become a hallmark of the true diehard videogame afficionado of the given era.
e.g.:
"Hey, do you remember the (Atari 2600 / Colecovision / Sega Master System / Gamecube)! That was so much fun!"
"Don't waste my time, Dude. I had the (Starpath Supercharger / ADAM / 32X / <Gamecube Expansion>)!"
"Woah. Hardcore."
According to Cube.IGN all three of the Japanese GameCube launch titles have received gaming publication Famitsu's "gold" rating. The games are Luigi's Mansion, Wave Race: Blue Storm and Super Monkey Ball.
The SNES wasn't as powerfull as the Genesis, but it still blew it out of the water. The 64 has some awsome games that I am still looking for in funco land and such.
I doubt that this company could ever lose its zeal for the gaming industry or for the gamer.
This sig isn't original enough, it's time to come up with something witty...
Nintendo's systems have always been 'drab'. They are the Volvos of gaming consoles .. less attention (money, effort) spent on designing a cool shell (think of the original NES compared to the Genesis .. the NES was just plain _boring_), but those who _know_, know that Nintendo makes kick-ass systems and games, in the same way that auto-fans knew that what is inside the Volvo more than makes up for its boxiness. (Although, the last few years, Volvo has made their cars considerably sexier, so the comparison may not be valid today as it was 10 years ago.)
"Old man yells at systemd"
Seriously, no different. This is just merchandising slapped on top of a game concept that has already been done. The graphics for the blocks are even the same. Go get a SNES.
I think the Genesis would've done well had Sega not released "Moonwalker."
People who quote Nostradamus need more than modding down. They need a good kicking to restore their grip on reality.
"Information wants to be paid"
Someone mentioned the resident evil/biohazard game series. I know I'm personally re-examining my and my kids involvement with even these types of harmless shooters. I've got this nagging conscience telling me we shouldn't be perpetuating aggression or killing of anything as a game.
Yes, I think evil zombies deserve the right to live too, and we shouldn't be making a game out
of slaughtering innocent undead.
Better not let your kids play FLight Simulator now, either.
C-X C-S
Okay, a lot of good points have been made. Specifically, production restraints on the consoles, but they also want to see which games flop and which do well (though i know that what does well in Japan doesn't always do well here).
Anyway, I know with most consoles in the past, the games and hardware are region-specific. that is, a Japanese game will not play in an American unit, and vice versa. Now, i'm pretty sure this is just an artificial limitation to stop export of the consoles, but it does mean that you can't just pick up 100,000 consoles from Japan and sell them here unless you know a 100,000 people that want Japanese-language games.
Then again, i wouldn't put that past some people...
ben.c
i love that logo...
I second that. It has to be the best logo design I have ever seen hands down.
This Wiki Feeds You TV and Anime - vidwiki.org
As another poster said, Nintendo has always been on top with their consoles' power except for in the handheld market. NES was more powerful then anything else when it was released, SNES was way more powerful then the genesis, and the N64 was way more powerful (90Mhz SGI MIPS) then the playstation (33Mhz) or saturn (dual 33Mhz). Time gave them the ability to lead in power and is not really the case here, but the gamecube will still be more powerful. Go to ign.com and look at the screenshots and videos of the games and you will see that the gamecube looks WAY better (with the exception of DOA3).
Of couse Nintendo will have better games, that is just a given. Look at their line up so far, it is incredible. Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Star Wars, Star Fox, Super Smash Bros., Waverace, and on and on, and that's just the franchises. Not to mention Sega is putting out lots of games specifically for the Gamecube and nintendo is going to come out with many new and original games as well (like Pikmin). Gamecube? Gamecube.
This Wiki Feeds You TV and Anime - vidwiki.org
It will come out in the US, I think it will be there at launch.
This Wiki Feeds You TV and Anime - vidwiki.org
Spoken like someone who has never HELD the GameCube controller for themselves. It's not a Playstation rip-off. The controller is outstanding, much easier to hold than the Dual Shock, and incredibly comfortable.
... and the digital click when fully depressed opens a whole new world of gameplay possibilities.
... remember, the box isn't being aimed at YOU. If the box looks out of place with all your home entertainment equipment, then you aren't Nintendo's market.
The only downside is the ill-conceived "Z-Button" that really needs a counter part of the opposite side, or should just be eliminated. However, they did make it easier to find, adding a little nub so you know when your finger is on the button.
The best part is the shoulder buttons. They move very smoothly, with great response
As for the rest of your comments about the GCN
By the way, there's a Black one as well. And will look just fine sitting next to my PS2, on top of my receiver.
There's more great information at Planet GameCube as well, including information on one of thier die-hard staff in Japan as we speak for the launch.
The official launch is 3PM PST TODAY. That is 7AM the 14th Japan time.
If you want a GAME system, get Nintendo's machine. Nintendo KNOWS games, it's their only business, and they do it better than anyone. Even thier "kiddie" games are better gameplay-wise than most everything else.
If you want a home entertainment console, go with a PS2 or X-Box.
i love that logo...
Kinda reminds me of the oldsk00l SGI logo...
Which, IMO, is the 31337est corporate logo ever.
C-X C-S
Staggered releases and segregated regions are a harmful tradition. Culture, software and hardware would be much better if they could travel freely across borders.
That's why piracy is so important. The established businesses won't sell their customers what they want, so we have to take what we want.
Their best selling point, no doubt, considering that the multifunctionality of the PS2 and XBox drive up their costs to $300 and $400-500, respectively. Nintendo is still making great games, but they're clearly targetting families with tighter budgets instead of hard-core gamers who spend all their disposable income on hardware.
Good for them. MS and Sony seem to be ignoring the "family" audience in favor of high-income gamers, and Nintendo stands to make a lot of money by continuing to focus on them.