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Miyamoto Hints At Second Revolution Secret
Gamespot reports that despite new information on the Revolution, there is still much we don't know about the console. Shigeru Miyamoto hinted at the DIEC that there was yet more to reveal about the Revolution controller. From the article: "At the Digital Interactive Entertainment Conference held in Kyoto, Japan, Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo's chief game designer and creator of the Mario and Legend of Zelda franchises, gave the keynote speech. He talked about the history of controllers for Nintendo's various consoles, from the pre-NES systems to current consoles like the GameCube. He ended his lecture with words toward the future, specifically the Revolution, stating that there's more to its controller than what's already known. 'The [Revolution's] controller still has another secret,' stated Miyamoto. 'But it's something that we'll reveal next year.'"
I don't believe Nintendo could bank too much on the admittedly unique control interface of the Revolution. Playing the XBox 360 in my local GAME, I walked away disappointed for 3 reasons... graphics weren't exactly a dream away from the latest games for the XBox, it seemed rushed out and the overall launch of the system, shortages and technical issues, just made me think... wait for the Revolution... still, I love my Amiga, I've been through 4 generations of consoles and the last game to completely turn my world on my head was Mario 64 nearly 10 years ago. The Revolution should do the same...
...but the big secret, and the reason it's so cool, is that if you press the buttons in the right combination, a secret compartment opens to reveal an ounce of pure heroin. You heard it here first, and remember - it's on teh intarweb now, so it must be true.
ABSURDITY, n.: A statement or belief manifestly inconsistent with one's own opinion.
Like the analog stick nunchuck thing or maybe something built into the controller. I'd bet on an attachment, because the controller looks to small and simple to hide much.
I love Miyamoto, but this is a dirty way to generate buzz. Simply announcing your new feature is one press release. Announcing that you're going to announce your new feature is two! Genius!
Regardless of all that, however, I'm really looking forward to this. The Revolution is honestly the only console I'm even considering this time around. The xBox360 doesn't have a single game I care enough about to spend that much money. (Halo? Bah.. Counterstrike and Natural Selection are all I need.) As for the PS3, I think I'll opt for an uber cheap used PS2 and a pile of cheap used games.
The so-called "next gen" consoles may be nice, but they don't seem worth the cost. The xbox's super HD whatever video output is useless on my non-HD television, and I don't plan to upgrade anytime soon. The Revolution is going to have innovative new features, and yet will still be SUBSTANTIALLY cheaper.
The DS was far less powerful than the PSP, not to mention cheaper. Despite this, it completely dominated the market. Never underestimate Nintendo.
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My money's on the microphone.
The big secret is that it caters to the gamergrrl. It's ribbed for her pleasure.
It is strange timing on this announcement, shortly after the xbox 360 was released. With people having hands on experience with the revolution controller http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3143782 what could the secret possibly be? Perhaps there was an add-on that they didn't use because there were no games to showcase it? I'm also thinking that the somewhat mixed reactions have resulted in Nintendo revising the controller and realizing that there needed to be more to it. I do however agree on waiting till after the holiday season to release more details. They need all the momentum they can gather as they lead into their own systems release. Any groundbreaking press releases will be lost in the news among the reporters that Johnny has once again waited until Chrismas Eve before buying his presents.
According to this unbiased site the PSP is owning.
It is a crystal array and power cell attachment to turn the controller into a light saber.
How can you be so blind? =)
What if Nintendo's strategy was to make an announcement that they're hiding a Revolution feature that will change the gaming world, then go onto the intarweb, read peoples' speculation, pick the best ideas, and implement them?
Seriously, they've announced features, without actually announcing what they are, about three times now since the Revolution was first announced.
I'll buy it, since I'm a huge Nintendo fan. The casual gamer won't be so accomodating. Nintendo needs to build some hype around the system if they want to actually change the video game industry. Right now, even some hardcore Nintendo fans are skeptical. Nintendo - shooting ourselves in the foot since 1990...
A lot of the argument was based on the fact that the DS had graphical muscle roughly equivalent to the N64, while the PSP was more like a PS1.75 or something. All this kerfuffle took place before the touch screen was revealed.
(On a side note, people who claim the DS is gimmicky with its touch and dual screens seem to be missing an obvious point: Nintendo must have originally decided to use touch-sensitive control on its new handheld. At some point in the development process it would have become clear that the hand being used to hold the stylus will cover up some part of the screen. A second, non-touch screen is the obvious solution.)
Look where we are now: killer titles released regularly on DS, with the system outselling PSP worldwide. Despite its relative lack of power and absolute lack of built-in media convergence features, the DS has, for now, won the next-gen handheld war.
And now we find ourselves in this situation: XBox 360 and PS3 have or will have graphical power far and above that of current generation consoles, the 360 can manage all your media, etc. And the Revolution will be "only" several times more powerful than the GameCube. Sound familiar? But, bearing in mind Nintendo's announcement that they will not be making public the exact specifications of the Revolution, remember what Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said:
"Tech specs don't matter. The time when horsepower alone made an important difference is over, and from this time forward we must create unprecedented experiences."
You know, I think he may just be on to something.
1. It doubles as a Universal Remote with automatic setup.
2. You can (easily) interchange the functions of the buttons. ie. A becomes B, ect.
3. Interchangable faceplates
4. Revolution's going fully 4D and all games with be constant, even when your not there. The controller will light up when your missing something good.
I can see it now, your out on the town when your Revolution controller begins flashing the bat signal. You excuse yourself saying: "I must go, the Joker is at it again."
Demented But Determined.
I'll betcha it's some sort of biofeedback, so that games can monitor a player's levels of agitation and excitement. Imagine: you have a nice little 'Survival Horror' game where your own heartbeat thumps out of the speakers; if you get too excited, the hellhounds will be able to hear you. Or, you know, something like that.
OR...
Maybe it will recognise a given player by their pre-recorded bio-profile - skin conductivity, etc - and tailor the gaming experience for them.
How hard would it be to incorporate something along those likes? Not a vast technological hurdle, anyway. Folks are thinking feedback, feedback, feedback - but I'll bet my eye-teeth (they're fantastic for seeing what you're eating while otherwise blind!) that the big gimmick will be an additional dimension of control.
However the PSP also can display movies(if you don't mind that the lcd is not exactly super responsive), and do such things as play music.
But more important the games are totally different. Lots of action racers for the PSP with exactly 1 puzzle game (in dutch stores) while the DS has mostly "cute" games with relative slow pace. Personally the moment Animal Crossing hits the stores here I will be a gadget whore with a PSP, video iPod and DS.
Don't discount nintendo, right ehm but don't discount sony either. Nintendo did on the console market and paid for it big time when sony came from nowhere with the PS1 and stole Nintendo's thunder and then repeated it with the PS2. So far it is 2 - 0 and an undecided (PSP vs DS) in the Sony vs Nintendo competion with the outsider MS lurking in the shadows.
As for the revolution. Well I am perhaps a bit too old but I realize that I am still using the same old interfaces for my gaming that I used 10+ yrs ago. Still find it sad that one of the best games I played, System Shock, had a whole bit in the readme.txt about virtual reality helmets being supported. Not that I ever actually ever seen one in real live.
I seen control gloves, I seen special keyboards, voice control all being touted as being the next big thing and it has come to naught. There was even a special joystick that could be wielded like a sword.
From Doom to Doom3 I still use the same exact key layout. Mouse+wasd+1-10 keys still hasn't been beat.
Consoles is about games. More importantly it is about getting those "must have" titles that sell your console. Once your console is bought selling b-class titles is easier but getting people to cough up the initial console cost + game title that is the big challenge. Why do you think consoles are so often bundled?
The 360 verdict so far is that sure it has the prettiest pictures of the consoles although compared to a PC (yeah a top of the line pc costing x times more but don't forget, the 360 will have to compete for a number of years unable to improve while pc's will be undergoing some mayor upgrades in the form of dual cores and 64 bit computing) but that the games are a severe case of meh.
Personally my money is on the PS3, why? Because Nintendo tried the casual gamer with the gamecube and bombed. Yeah it was cheap, yeah it was a lot more "friendly" looking, yeah it had the "inovative" capabitly to hook up your gba for extra gameplay and yeah it didn't sell. So why are they again going for the same strategy And why do you think this time it will work?
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You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
According to a recent IGN article where they talked to developers about the hardware specs, it looks like the price might actually be a lot less than $200:
"Every developer was in agreement that Revolution should launch with a price tag of $149 or lower. Some speculated that based on the tech, a $99 price point would not be out of the question."
This might be a little optimistic, but I don't think there's any way it will sell for more than $200. It looks like Nintendo has decided to put very little focus on the graphics in order to have an insanely low price comprared to Xbox 360 and PS3. I was at first disappointed when I heard that the Revolution wouldn't be much more powerful than this generation's consoles, but with such a low price, I could certainly see it becoming a huge success.
Worker bees can leave
Even drones can fly away
The queen is their slave