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Nintendo To Launch New Machine Next Year?
EvilDonut writes "According to Bloomberg.com, Nintendo intends to launch a new machine in Japan next year, in order "to boost sales". There are no details as to wether the machine will be hand-held or not, but Bloomberg does describe it as a next-generation console. This is pretty odd, as Nintendo has previously stated that the GameCube successor wouldn't be out until 2005, and the GBA is doing so well that I can't imagine they'll replace it as early as next year. The article also mentions the Nintendo iQue, so it's pretty clear this is not just a mix-up regarding the new, China-only system." Update: 11/13 23:44 GMT by S : GameSpot has a very cryptic clarification from Nintendo, that "the new product will be a unique item that is different from any traditional machine", and will be "be [neither] a home console nor a portable machine."
2 Comments of the 3 were Intimating that the new console was the IQue. Not reading the article is something I have grown to expect, but not reading the blurb either?
Of course, the Pr states it's a nextgen console ! It's explicitely said it's there to boost sales, what do you believe ? That they'd call it "old technology, just rebadged console" ?
Recently I read an article about the Ique. Basicly it is an n64 integrated into one chip. They also sais that this chip doesn't consume much power. Because of this I think their next generation console is in fact a next generation gameboy based on the ique.
New console was not to be expected till 2005 ? ... So... If they release this thing december next year... Then what is all the fuzz about... 1 month ???
-Tom
Releasing a new game system would be a smart and bold move for Nintendo, but what about the games?
New systems mean new games, but of course it remains to be seen what this system is, and up until now they had simply been saying they'll make an announcement in 2004, not that they'd actually have a system in 2004 (though that could be the announcement). Of course, if the system comes out late in 2004 in Japan, it could be well into 2005 before it hits the US.
If this new system even "just" offers quality comparable to today's ATI videocards (which it would have to have if it were to go into production for next year), why bother?
More than likely, any video chipset used for a new console would be fairly comparable to video cards that come out around the same time as the console, or slightly afterwards, rather than today. Of course, that's just assuming that it would be anything like the XBox with nVidia's graphics chips.
Nintendo just needs to swallow their pride and just start making games for all of the systems. Sega did it and is no longer fighting bankruptcy. Let some other sucker pony up the money for builing the home systems.
The big difference, though, is that Nintendo is not fighting bankruptcy, while Sega was losing money left and right before they gave up.
Technology is getting to the point where it has actually overtaken the ancient NTSC television. I play my Xbox in 480p "HD" mode on my HDTV for the few games that support it and it's fucking great! It pains to play in the lower "t.v." resolution. Since most people have regular "crappy" t.v.s it really does not make any sense to upgrade to a more powerful game system unless the games are there.
None of this makes much sense when the Cube already does 480p. It's more like you're typing to hear the keys click.
Nintendo's strong arm tactics are finally nipping (no racist pun intended) it in it's ass. Don't get me wrong, I LIKE the gamecube and I have had a lot of fun with it, but it has what, a smattering of games at best?
Perhaps. Then again, with the smaller number of games and the high percentage of quality games, it's easier to pick a random game off the shelf and be satisfied with the purchase.
All in all, I doubt anyone will be able to stop Sony at this point. Sony has spent Billion(s) of Dollars on R and D for the PS3 and whereas Micro$oft could actually outspend Sony on R and D, you know they won't, or if they do, they will create something less than inspired, like the Xbox. Once again, I like my Xbox, but really, it's just an 800mhz p.c. with an aging Geforce card in it. Sigh....
No one thought Nintendo could be beat after they overtook the market from Sega back when they released the SNES (and before the Genesis took the market because the SNES came out so much later). As for the XBox, try looking at the system requirements for games some day, and consider the overhead of the OS itself, and try to figure out how many games actually require what the XBox has. The difference between a PC and an XBox doesn't come in the packaging, it comes in the developers' ability to know what the end-user has and build for it, rather than building for a lowest-common-denominator and testing 100s of combinations of hardware. Sony's had their 2 consoles, but the real question is whether or not developers will be as ready to move from them as they were to move to them if they see a better system. Additionally, I think it's rather sad that most of the PS2 ads I've seen lately have actually been for 2 or 3-platform titles, but don't mention that fact because they're Sony ads.
-PainKilleR-[CE]
...I hope they'll have taken a cue from what's been going on around them and adopt some of the features necessary to maintain a substantial presence in the marketplace.
I have heard Nintendo previously called the "Apple" of console gaming--that is, an entity that can eke out a continued niche market existence for as long as they please. The analogy isn't perfect; after all, one need not justify one's taste in games, so unless one is composed of an exceptionally weak or impressionable mind, there isn't a lot of pressure for incumbents to switch from the Cube.
However, technology will eventually take its toll. Online gaming is exploding, has already exploded. DVDs and DVD-like formats are the established standard. Third-party support has grown amazingly and is now vital for console survival. Top-end video and audio capability are no longer luxuries, but expected. Even Sony has realized the advantages of hard drives, media players, etc.
Should Nintendo wish to continue, their array of insane geniuses will need to begin to practice just a little conformity.
The coolest voice ever.
There are plenty of parents out there without enough money to get their kid a dvd player and a console.
There are plenty of things coins can't buy. For everything else, there's WarioCard.
Will I retire or break 10K?