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Nintendo Revolution Controller Revealed

kakos writes "At the Tokyo Game Show, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has revealed what the Nintendo Revolution controller looks like. The new controller is a radical departure from traditional controller types. Has Nintendo struck gold with their new controller design? The reviewers seem to think so. It should be interesting to see how gamers react to Nintendo's new innovation."

17 of 1,210 comments (clear)

  1. I for one by Dance_Dance_Karnov · · Score: 5, Informative

    love it, just think about it for awhile, read some info don't just look at images. and check out IGN's movie of it in action here http://cube.ign.com/articles/651/651334p1.html the realization of how awesome it can be will flow over you.

  2. Stop! Think about it first! by ThyPiGuy · · Score: 3, Informative

    I'm no Nintendo Fanboy, and was at first extremely skeptical, but take some time to read reviews, watch the video, and imagine the possibilities.

    Engadget has some more information here and IGN has looked at some of the possibilities for each type of game here.. As some parent post said, a mass amount of instant unchecked emotion flaming is about to come, but before you post, take some time to think about the possibilities.

  3. Re:first impressions by Frodo+Crockett · · Score: 4, Informative

    but you access a push button and a directional pad with the same finger? does not seem very functional.

    RTFA. You don't use the d-pad for movement. You MOVE THE CONTROLLER.

    --
    "The newly born animals are then whisked off for a quick run through a giant baking oven." --heard on Food Network
  4. do NOT judge until you see the VIDEO by BTWR · · Score: 5, Informative
    Seriously, you MUST see the video first. The pictures made me skeptical at first (a remote?), but wow... the video, and thr true nintendo-innovation makes you think "wow... PS3 and XBox360 are so more-of-the-same-but-slightly-better-graphics."

    * Remote control design: constructed to appeal to a wide variety of potential players
    * 3D Pointing: Sensors understand up, down, left, right, forward and backward.
    * Tilt Sensitive: Controller can be rotated or rolled from side-to-side.
    * Buttons Included: Has a trigger on its backside, face buttons, and a D-Pad
    * Multifunctional: Has an expansion port which can be used with different types of controller peripherals. Analog stick with two trigger buttons planned for left hand.
    * Wireless: Totally wire-free. Currently there are no details on the max distance, source or power, or otherwise.
    * Rumble Built-in. Included standard in all the controllers.

  5. Re:First thought was: by Spaceman+Spiff+II · · Score: 5, Informative
    don't suck!

    it did. why would you do this nintendo?

    Now, before you get all up-in-arms about it, think of the possibilities! This article really makes you think of some of the extraordinary ways this device can be used! I know I'm looking forward to its release. Ah, finally some good RTSs on a console, or a shooter more akin to mouse+keyboard.

    Also, the people who've had a chance to use it have generally come away pretty excited.

    --
    I understand that life's not fair, just why is it never unfair in my favor?
  6. Re:This controller kills portability by Spaceman+Spiff+II · · Score: 5, Informative
    Actually it sounds like developers are impressed, or at least say they're on board.

    "Nintendo has long been a trailblazer, and this controller design reinforces that reputation," said Brian Farrell, president and CEO of THQ. "We enthusiastically support Nintendo's next console because we believe their approach of continual innovation is very much in line with our own strategy of creating unique and innovative games for the next generation of hardware."

    "What we're seeing from this controller is the same thing we saw with Nintendo DS," said Chuck Huebner, Head of Worldwide Studios, Activision.. "It's a system that's designed with an eye on enticing new players to the video game industry, and that's something we firmly support."

    "Game control is essential - it's the area where perhaps the most game-play improvement can be made," said John Schappert, Sr. Vice President and General Manager of Electronic Arts Canada. "While our portfolio represents a full array of titles across all genres, I think our sports titles might be the first to immediately take advantage of what this novel 'freehand' type of control has to offer."

    "We were among the first publishers to see the control design in action," said Serge Hascoet, Chief Creative Officer of Ubisoft. "We're excited about the new controller and are looking forward to taking advantage of its innovative aspects."

    Now at this point it's just talk (I haven't heard of any Revolution Controller-specific games being announced by these folks), but if Nintendo does manage to get some key 3rd party developers on board, well, games will change dramatically! Some of the new ways of playing can be fantastically fun -- think, running down the field in a new EA game, juking left and right, flipping the remote up to do a quick jump. At least some big developers are keeping their options open.

    --
    I understand that life's not fair, just why is it never unfair in my favor?
  7. Re:If it uses Infrared... by Frodo+Crockett · · Score: 4, Informative

    It's not IR. It's RF, same as the Gamecube's wireless controllers. (They work flawlessly and from a great distance, by the way.) Nintendo knows what they're doing.

    --
    "The newly born animals are then whisked off for a quick run through a giant baking oven." --heard on Food Network
  8. Re:Two Words.... Light Saber by KnowledgeFreak · · Score: 5, Informative

    The link for that ign video referenced by the parent:
    http://media.cube.ign.com/articles/651/651334/vids _1.html

    For all of you too lazy to read the article, this is definitely worth the watch. For this, I think i'll finally have to break down and become an early adopter.

  9. Re:I love the power glove... by some+guy+on+slashdot · · Score: 5, Informative

    Actually, it would appear that it has both. An external sensor for detecting position and an internal one for determining orientation. (1UP.com referred to it as a "chip", but I can't imagine what it could be other than an gyroscope.) Also, IGN confirmed that you can turn the controller over along it's axis as an input method. Can't do that with anything but a gyro.

  10. Re:I love the power glove... by Emil+Brink · · Score: 4, Informative
    1UP.com referred to it as a "chip", but I can't imagine what it could be other than an gyroscope.
    Do those have to be mutually exclusive? I don't think so, and people like Analog Devices seem to agree. I quote the linked-to page, one of several such products:
    The ADXRS150 is a 150 deg./sec. angular rate sensor (gyroscope) on a single chip, complete with all of the required electronics.
    Perhaps that is what Nintendo stuck in there? It probably contains one ore more accelerometers, too. I guess we won't know until Lik Sang or someone with similiar low respect for newly released hardware and high competence in the application of screwdrivers get their hands on it, though. :)
    --
    main(O){10<putchar(4^--O?77-(15&5128 >>4*O):10)&&main(2+O);}
  11. The Revolution has Gamecube Controller Ports. by _KiTA_ · · Score: 4, Informative

    No real text here. Just that there's a flip top cover on the top / right side that conceals 4 upside down Gamecube Ports. Don't like the modular supercontroller? Plug in a GCN controller and awaaaaay you go.

  12. Re:Two Words.... Light Saber by GFLPraxis · · Score: 4, Informative

    I believe you can control by tilting the controller in place, rather than lifting your whole arm up. They talk about it in the 1UP article.

  13. Re:Smash TV: 2 controllers per player by mario64 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Star Wars Racer on N64, had a code to enter to enable 2 controllers. One for each jostick on a podracer, as in the movie.

  14. Re:How about accelerometers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative
    The force of gravity is constant while user input is not. If you are clever with your accelerometer data and take into account the types of accelerations typical human motions produce you should be able to figure out which way is down with pretty good accuracy. Of course there will be drift but you need an external reference anyway.

    once you have these, accelerometers become redundant, so why include them at all ?

    Because the accelerometers can detect quick, small movements with high accuracy. That way your external position reference can be updated inaccurately only once in a while but you can still have very smooth and accurate data about the millisecond-to-millisecond position of your accelerometers. That should work pretty well with the small quick movements that games are likely to require.

  15. Re:DVD Playback by Psykechan · · Score: 5, Informative
    From an interview:
    On the same note, Iwata said Nintendo had no desire to make people pay extra out of the box for the Revolution's DVD functionality, since most people already own one or more DVD players. He also reiterated that the DVD player will be built-in and not an external attachment. At E3 2005, the company confirmed that an additionally purchased dongle would activate the built-in DVD functionality.


    Basically it will ship with a DVD player but need a dongle like the Xbox so Nintendo doesn't have to pay royalties on every system sold.

    On a side note, I think that if any console deserved a port of Irritating Stick it would be the Revolution. Yeah, laugh now but when it actually happens...
  16. Re:Radical Departures by rtechie · · Score: 5, Informative

    Which is why I think that this new design will work - and stay around for a long, long time. Simply put, Nintendo has never ever faltered in their controller design. Their consoles, perhaps - but not their controllers.

    Simply put, this is wrong. Remember Virtual Boy, Power Glove, the giant bazooka thing, the stupid little robot, etc.? Some of those were successes (the light gun), some failures (Power Glove), and some the jury is still out (Gamecube controller, DS).

    What Nintendo has show is a real willingness to experiment with new controller designs, and opposed to the relatively conservative approach of it's primary competitors. For example, the PS2 uses a controller identical to the PS1 Dual Shock, and the PSP has a layout identical to the original PS1 controller except the analog "nub". The PS3 controller is very likely to look a lot like the Dual Shock.

    OTOH, I see this controller as a DIRECT snub to third-party developers, abandoning multiplatform releases almost entirely. Of course, the GameCube was already mostly there anyway.