Slashdot Mirror
Wii-mote In Action
Jack Lancer writes "Gameworld Network (which is either a network of gameworlds or a gameworld of networks) has
posted an epic collection of streaming E3 videos which clearly depicts each and every playable Wii game and how exactly one has to swing, wave, shake, point, wiggle and/or jostle the Wiimote in order to play." And once again this poses the question — is this the future of gaming UI? Sure seems like a great idea for a FPS.
This ol' first post, it ain't what it useta be, ain't what it useta be, ain't what it useta be...
I'm SOLD. I want this console! I want this console! I want this console! Check out the video for Red Steel. Finally a console where playing an FPS isn't stupid! Please excuse me, I have to go clean myself off.
posted an epic collection of streaming E3 videos
And someone jealous decided to destroy it all by posting it to slashdot. Bye bye bandwidth!
--
Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse
Write boring code, not shiny code!
Could someone, maybe, post a link to _downloadable_ movies? I, and everyone else, would highly appreaciate that.
First it was Bluetooth headsets that made it tough to decide if the person coming up behind you was on the phone or a schizophrenic. Now I'll be wondering if the kids on the underground are gamers or epileptics.
I expect the Wii to be a huge success, but even if it isn't, at least Nintendo is introducing some change into the stalling industry. Combine with the Virtual Console for an easy delivery system for Indie developers, and you have an interesting setup that separates itself from other gaming systems.
To make Jack Thompson happy, someone should make a fighting game where you hold the wii-mote and physically smack the other person. "Ah ha, see, video games do cause real-world violence". That's what I call force feedback!
A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.
Nintendo have done well this round.
They put together something different, marketed it well, kept up interest, got developers interested, got public interested, created news news news...
There overall plan is very well thought out with lots of subtle nooks and crannies. I really hope it all works out and people buy these things in droves. This kind of think deserves results.
I'm buying three at or near launch. (one for me, me bro and me mam) And at least 6 to 8 games between the homes.
Pablo
I think having to flick the mouse around is more than enough physical exertion for the average FPS gamer. What makes you think they'll take to this?
Someone has to ask... Why?
My Photography - http://ian-x.com
The Deathlings (comic) - http://thedeathlings.com
Does that mean I'm getting old? Now that I think about it, it sounds like my dad, who rocked the joystick back when we had an Atari XE, didn't really get newer controllers until he was actually playing a game (and usually got confused by the multiple things to control).
But yeah, wiggling and shaking demonstrates how it works, but given the fine control w/ the "Wii-mote," I still think it'll be until people have it in their hand that they really get it. Didn't people at E3 say that people started out gesticulating wildly, and then calmed down when it "clicked"? Luckily it seems like a very easy thing to pick up.
I've been seeing the DS/DS Lite make inroads with people I work with - especially when they see me playing "Brain Age" or "Big Brain Academy" - I had my DS Lite passed around the office for about an hour as people tried out the test from the latter game. At least one or two people - in their 40's, never played games before, but now are seriously thinking about picking up a DS for their kids and maybe the Brain Age for themselves.
So I wonder if Nintendo's "Blue Ocean" approach will work with the Wii. Iwata, as I understand it, has mentioned that he'd like for people to play the Wii every day - much like my wife and I play the DS (she digs the Brain Games and "Magnetica" - this from a women that for the last 12 years wouldn't touch a computer game unless it had the words "Tetris" or "Solitaire" on it).
Which is all they need - my wife plays Brain Age a little bit every day. I'm wondering if Nintendo can't leverage the Wii sports games with "Work out every day for 30 minutes - helps get you in shape!" Tie in some workouts, perhaps like the Brain Age games put in the competitive aspects (which has helped each of us play the DS every day to try and one-up each other - so far, I'm at a B+ in Academy.
Obviously we'll have to wait and see, but the other day a coworker asked me "Hey, that Nintendo thing coming out - that's the competor for the Xbox, isn't it?" I'm not sure which was more telling: that he knew that there was a Nintendo thing coming out - or that he thought that was the Xbox competitor, not the new Playstation.
Well, just another 4-5 months to go.
52 Weeks, 52 Religions with John Hummel
Hey that's really interesting.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
I can't wait for this system. Games are boring the hell out of me lately with the same thing churned out over and over again. If the E3 videos are any indication of how fun and new the Wii games are, it's going to be awesome. I'm looking forward to some sword fighting in Red Steel, Wii Sports for Tennis and Golf, the new Metriod and of course.. Smash Bros Brawl (even if it doesn't use the Wiimote like the other games, they did exactly what they needed to do to Smash Bros -- smooth out the gameplay, give it Internet capabilities and that's it.) This'll be the first system I'll buy on day 1 since my SNES.
why have these two things never been combined? Seems like a no brainer.
Well, basically because a WiiMote wouldn't work on my PS2
...which means my computer isn't powerful enough to play them. :-/ (Like I ever would get a computer.. eh..?)
Swedish plasma phys. PhD student; MSc EE; knows maths, programming, electronics; finance interest; seeks opportunities
Maybe the submitter also submitted this to nintendowiifanboy.com, but if not he just lifted the summary and made no reference to the source.
g e-of-every-wii-game-at-e3/
http://www.nintendowiifanboy.com/2006/06/20/foota
Am I the only one who immediately thought that waving an object wildly in front of your expensive HDTV might not be such a good idea, when the Wii remote was first announced?
I was lucky enough to get to try it out on Metroid Prime in NY on a modified GC, and I can honestly say the control is great. All the FPS fans who were bagging on the Wii in favor of their favorite console Sony or MS will be in for a real surprise.
I will say however, at E3, that there were no real standout games or "must haves" from what I have seen and played so far. Excitetruck is fun, but nothing new, and Mario Galaxy controls like a dream but is a bit too gimmicky. Red Steel is an ABSOLUTE DUD. Don't buy into the hype, it is pure crap. Zelda is a mess to control, the aiming and controls seriously need tweaked and made to be a shitload more forgiving especially aiming the bow and arrow. Wii Sports and Hudson's flying game are the two main games so far that have me interested.
These are just my opinions and based on unfinished and beta games/hardware. So are everyone elses, take them for what they are and realize that I'm being as fair and honest as possible.
http://teasphere.wordpress.com - A little spot of tea
Who thinks this will wear off really quick? I like game immersion in a seemless fashion where i can think, plan and strategize and the standard controller fits that perfectly.. The action of waving my arms around or shaking hands or even swaying back and forth just appears to be as another style of button mashing to me.
I think its a got a "neat-o" factor but hardly something I see myself adopting for anything longer then a party game system when i just want to BS around and not actually get immsersed into what i'm trying to accomplish.
Next time you replace your PS2, consider picking up the Wii instead.
Using a lightgun (or the Wiimote) is indeed much more tiring than using a mouse, especially if you're standing up. Our bodies weren't meant to hold things in front of us for extended periods of time, and I imagine you couldn't play this game without taking frequent breaks (which might be good for RSI but aren't very good for immersion).
Otherwise, I think this is a great idea and would love to swordfight some dude in a game.
Send email from the afterlife! Write your e-will at Dead Man's Switch.
The U-Force for old-school Nintendo? my friend bought that and really only a few games worked for it (Punchout was the most noteworthy). Now Nintendo is basically asking people adopt the same sort of control scheme (abit with much more current tech) just that this time you it isn't a "cool" option (Power glove can be throw in here too), it is a requirement. A big gamble if you ask me if the history of such devices is any kind of prediction to their sucess. Yah I'll still buy it but thats because I 3 my DS and current consoles make my girlfriends jewelery look cheap.
Since the very first mention of the wiimote at TGS it has been explained by Nintendo staff and verified by the press that you can simply rest the controller on your knee and get most of the aiming capabilities with just minor wrist movements. So if you are really so lazy that you can't bother to play the game the FUN way, you can be a lazy couch-urchin just as easily.
I really wanted to buy the Wii, but now it seems, that with my significant other unable to enjoy much of the games, it's not an option.
The "Wiimote" (gawd I hate that even worse than "Wii") looks like it will be very cool, but there's one thing I'm curious about:
What about if I don't find it comfortable to keep both hands on the control all the time? Playing Halo on my XBOX or any FPS on my PC, I can always take a hand away from the controls and still be able to at least aim and fire.
And what about those people who would prefer the classic console interface? I know it's got attachments to expand its abilities, but this device doesn't seem to be very ergonomic for use as a "traditional" console controller.
Speaking of ergonomics...has anyone said much about how this affects the user long-term? Seems to me the motions they're describing may not be good for the hand/wrist/arm if repeated. Could Nintendo Thumb be replaced by Nintendo Wrist--a nasty case of carpal tunnel?
(I know how some people respond: "it's no different than your mouse". That's not true. I move my mouse almost entirely with my fingers, turning my wrist only slightly for long movements. I'm not saying this remote is a bad thing, just pointing out some things I haven't seen satisfactorily addressed)
120 characters for a sig? That's bloody useless.
Repetitive stress wrist injuries... here we come!
You just have to watch the wii dance : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_drrgyeA5U
lawsuits against Nintendo because of repetitive stress injury from waving the thing around.
Can you imagine the kind of movement you have to do for the Hot Coffee mod on this console?
And the speaker in the wiimote could make some noises as well. Squishy wet noises of... um... hot coffee, yeah!
I will buy when nintendo combines this with the power pad. You acctually have to walk to move in an FPS or walk and jump in mario. Talk about a work out, maybe bring back the guns and combine all three for the ultimate FPS game or sensory over load I'm not sure which one.
In case that wasn't a joke, First Person Shooter
I really have to give Nintendo a lot of credit for going out on a limb and trying something new. When you think about it, game controllers haven't changed much in the last 20 years. You have a controller with a joystick or direction pad and a couple of buttons. Making the joystick analog instead of directional is an evolutionary change, as is having more and more buttons. The rest is just ergonomics - making the controller comfortable and sleek rather than a thumb-killer. Folks have been able to dress up controllers to look really cool, but they are essentially unchanged from the days of Atari and the NES.
This, on the other hand, is like a whole 'nother branch on the evolutionary tree. I hope that it gains some real traction and gets game developers thinking in unconventional ways. The samples from E3 indicate that they have already begun to do so. And, if imitation is the best form of flattery, it appears that sony is paying attention, too.
Give me a wireless PS2 Remote over this any day ...
This article isn't about retrogaming...
Anyone got a mirror?
The mouse and keyboard is perfection but it would be cool if there was an alternative even for a more emmersive factor.
6 3&pid=928517
I posted this awhile back on digg on the topic:
What I'd like to hear is just exactly how the wii controller works with a fps.
We all know the venerable mouse/keyboard combo is the superior method for most, with consoles lacking in the precision using a dual analog method.
I'm trying to picture exactly how a fps would work with I assume would be the nunchuck mode.
So the addon part of the controller would replace the wasd, but how would the actual aiming work.
Because what's perfect with the mouse is, you can position it slowly for accurate aiming, or whip it around to do a quick 180'. Now the thing is when one does this quick movement of the mouse, you have to lift the mouse to recenter it, how would that work when translated to the wii?
In one scenario I can picture the motion sensing tracking where your aiming and the onscreen gun actually remains center like a traditional fps and just your view changes.
This works fine when facing one direction, but say you want to quickly turn around? Wouldn't one end up not facing the screen if they simulate a turning around motion? Because the problem is, how do you simulate the lifting of the mouse to recenter?
Or they could make it that the onscreen gun is 'free floating' and can aim at the edge of the screen, and you could use the analog stick to actually change orientation or by aiming at the far edge of the screen, your view rotates. But I could see that being a fixed speed, kind of like rotating in descent.
So even though this controller looks really cool, and might add some truely new styles of gameplay, I'm curious how the nunchuk fairs with a fps. I think it's obvious that it's going to be superior to console's dual analog history of controlling fps's, but can it match a mouse? Or maybe the added 'submersion' by just playing with the controller would make up for any shortcomings?
And someone directed me to this article:
http://www.gamespot.com/e3/e3story.html?sid=61502
A relevant bit:
"Before getting too much further into describing the demo level, we'll talk about how the control scheme is handled in Corruption. The game uses the remote-plus-nunchuk configuration, where you'll want to use the remote in your dominant hand, as that is what handles aiming. Simply point the remote at the screen to aim Samus' arm cannon. The cursor actually moves within the screen, instead of being fixed to the center of the screen as with most first-person shooters. This makes it possible to aim and fire at something you see without moving Samus, but the tradeoff is that your ability to turn quickly is compromised. To turn, you'll need to move the cursor all the way to the edge of the screen, at which point Samus will begin turning. There's definitely a learning curve involved with getting used to how the Wii controller works for aiming, but thankfully you can press on the Z trigger on the nunchuk to lock on to a target, which keeps the interface feeling somewhat consistent with previous Prime games. The lock-on only works if you have an enemy somewhat close to the center of the screen, so it's not exactly a crutch--and lock-on won't work on very fast-moving targets, plus enemies can often break out of target lock by dodging back and forth."
"We did have some trouble here and there when the sensors seemed to have trouble reacquiring the signal whenever we put our hands down--finding that invisible plane where the sensor wants your hands to be can be a little tricky or frustrating if you put your hands down for any reason."
That certainly doesn't sound like a revolutionary way to play a fps, esp if it has a need to give the player a button to lock on to enemies. Sounds like it getting around the same old limitations that console controllers have when playing a fps.
And I haven't seen the vids yet, I'll check them out now, but I don't think the wii will revolutionize the fps.
Something about this sentence caught my eye, but it took me a few moments to figure out what:
It says "poses" the question, not "begs." Perhaps the efforts of anal-retentive grammar fascists like me are finally paying off.
Oops-- I mean, "Perhaps the efforts of anal-retentive grammar fascists like me are finally things off of which is paid."
Arr! Read The Government Manual for New Pirates!
Has anybody read this month's EGM? There's in interview in there with Miyamoto, in which he is asked how the Wiimote will be used in Twilight Princess. He said it'll be used for things like aiming the bow, but will not use it for actually controlling Link's sword. He noted that they tried to do that, but it was too tiring for players.
In my mind, that's a pretty big confirmation of the problems many people expected the Wiimote to have. Gyroscopic controllers aren't new, and they've failed in the past for exactly the same reason --- they're too tiring to use. If the Wiimote is actually too tiring for long term use, its possible that it'll be used much sparingly in conjunction with a more traditional control style. Or, perhaps it'll be used mainly for the games intended at the "30 minute non-gamer" gamer market that Nintendo is trying to create.
A deep unwavering belief is a sure sign you're missing something...
Then you are a huge sucker.
I'm sorry, its time to burn some karma. Repeat after me: The Wii has not shipped. You barely know anything about it aside from press releases and E3 demos.
Seriously, what happened to waiting until we actually can get our hands on these things before deciding which console to go with? I mean, I'm happy for you and all, with this remarkable rescient clarity for who has 'done well in the round that has yet to happen...' But I, for one, will actually wait to play each console.
I've tried one new console, X360, and I liked it. But I haven't bought anything yet because there are two more in the pipe. Right now I see each of these boxes as having a significant strike against it: The PS3 is going to (probably) cost too much; the X360 relies heavily on Live! for value and has no standard HD; and the Wii can't do HD.
Sorry for the rant, just sick of all these kneejerk reactionary posts. As far as I'm concerned, I don't take Nintendo's amazing eyepopping demos with any less salt than Sony's and Microsoft's amazing eyepopping demos. Give me the games, then we shall see.
If Jesus wants me it knows where to find me.
Because FPS means first person shooter. why parrents post would be modded troll, i dont understand.
Right now I see each of these boxes as having a significant strike against it: The PS3 is going to (probably) cost too much; the X360 relies heavily on Live! for value and has no standard HD; and the Wii can't do HD.
If that's the ONLY strike against the Wii, then why is he a sucker to want to buy it? Perhaps he simply doesn't care about HD. I know that I, personally, will likely not have an HDTV for the next several years... I think most people are also in the same boat, planning to upgrade to HDTV in a few years but not yet.
I personally will not buy the Wii until i've had a chance to play an in-store unit, but as long as it's pretty fun, I'll be getting one. At $250-$300 including Zelda, that's not an outlandish purchase.
Well, to be fair, not all of the people raving here about how the Wii is the answer to all of life's problems (before it's even shipped, as you point out) are mindless fanboys, suckered into believing marketing hype.
In fact, I'd say only about half of the people heaping praise on Nintendo and the Wii are fanboys.
The other half are almost certainly astroturfers.
You also have to take into account that the Wii dev kit is $2000, compared to the 360's $20 000 price tag. As such, poor media arts students like me can afford to use it as a practical application of their class work.
Hate to be going for that backhand shot, have the thing slip out of my fingers, and go right through my (hypothetical) $3000 TV.
They say the first thing to go is your penis. Well, it's either that or your brain. I forget which...
But that it makes a lot of non-FPS games really fun to play.
Not every stick you see on the ground is a gun. Some can become swords. Some can become walking sticks, or pitons to use as you climb Mount Everest without the use of your left leg. Some can become claws as you become a crab beneath the waves. Some can become fishing rods, as you wait patiently for the slippery silvery salmon to go by.
The attraction of the Wii is that many things become fun - not just one.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
It might be a better controller than the standard for FPSes (what isn't?), but I'm highly skeptical that it will grant better control, enough controls, or the low energy requirements of the standard mouse and keyboard.
...that say Downloadable Movies (Quicktime) ?
"There are people who do not love their fellow human being, and I _hate_ people like that!" - Tom Lehrer
I first need to say that I am a fan of Nintendo and to a large degree Sony. Now having said that, I can't see a controller "selling" a console. The only advantage the Wii has that the other console makers can't copy is "Mario and company" and possibly price. The HUGE disadvantage it has is its performance compared to a year old 360 and even more to the PS3.
I hope Nindendo does well, and there are a ton of fanboys out there that will buy whatever Nintendo puts out, but I honestly don't see this doing much better than their gamecube. Now I am not saying that the cube did bad, but I honestly don't think a controller will win Nintendo the next console war. What has and will help them possibly win it is the price of the PS3. However, that is a somewhat scary position to be in. All it takes is a serious price drop in the PS3 and a "similar" controller to take away two of Nintendos strongest advantages. That leaves them with "Mario" again, and to be honest that may be enough. I am curious about how many 3rd parties jump on board this time around, and what their development kits offer. Also, I am curious where the 360 will fit in to this mix. It appears that they will have Nintendo on the "low" end and Sony on the high end. I can't see the average consumer picking a 360, at its current price point over the Nintendo (because of Mario and friends), or a PS3 because of the backward compatibility and the hardware advantage. Now if Microsoft lowers the price of the 360 to the same level as the Wii then that will put some pressure on Nintendo, but again you have the "Mario" factor.
So my long winded point is that I don't see a controller putting Nintendo to #1 in the console wars. If the controller is the coolest thing since sliced bread, it will be copied by everyone within a year. So at the end of the day it comes down to the games and hardware. Will Nintendo have the games? Will the 360 just have rehashed PC games?
The more I learn about science, the more my faith in God increases.
Could they pair the Wiimote and upper body movements with a DDR type pad for lower body movements? You could get quite a workout - oh wait.... Gamers don't too much of that, except for bicep curls. 'Curling' that beverage to their mouth. You know, 16oz curls, 32 oz curls, 0.5 or 1 liter curls...
Procrastination; I'll think of a sig tomorrow.
because the motion sensitive controller will appeal to other than exercise video companies as well.
Of course it depends on how locked down Nintendo is with games for this machine, but with dev kits being low priced I expect a few not-so pure games to arise.
* Winners compare their achievements to their goals, losers compare theirs to that of others.
Gamers will finally be getting some exercise rather than sitting motionless (except for the hands) on the couch.
The Wii controller seems to still use the same method of control that every other console FPS uses: You move the crosshair to the edge of the screen and WAIT for it to pan over. This is exactly what the analog stick provides, the Wii just put a new face on it.
I am very disappointed that the crosshair does not stay centered. It looks like the Wii is still not the solution for "twitch" gameplay.
I'll still get a Wii, but this is a huge disappointment to me.
Keep in mind that at least some of the ravers are probably astroturfers and maybe sock puppets also.
You can buy fraudulent "stealth marketing" at places like this.
---
Marketing talk is not just cheap, it has negative value. Free speech can be compromised just as much by too much noise as too little signal.
If that's the ONLY strike against the Wii, then why is he a sucker to want to buy it? Perhaps he simply doesn't care about HD. I know that I, personally, will likely not have an HDTV for the next several years...
Similarly, my family isn't planning on getting a Wii or any other home console during this round because each of us now has a Nintendo DS (the wife and I bought one when the Lite came out). We moved from playing multiplayer Mariokart on the TV where we each had our own section of the screen to playing multiplayer Mariokart where we all have our own handheld console.
I understand we're not getting the near photorealistic graphics that a modern console or good PC could deliver, nor the game depth that a disk- (vs. cartridge-) based game sometimes delivers. However, the DS delivers everything that our family DOES want out of a console, and is portable to boot. Once the web browser is released it'll have even more portable utility.
Some of you already have those cute little shirts on that say disco sucks, right? That's not all that sucks.-Frank Zappa
Now there is an *excellent* point. After all, the standard Nintendo creed is, Its Not About The Graphics, Its The Gameplay... right?
If Jesus wants me it knows where to find me.
that Nintendo had made a standard controller and made the Wii as a optional peripheral controller. That way players could try out the new fancy pants Wiimote but if they get bored or tired of it they could just plug the standard one back in.
Dude, if you would read the next line of Pablo's post, you would realize that he's saying Nintendo has done well in the areas of development and marketing both to developers and to consumers. While I agree that this doesn't neccesarily mean that the Wii will be a good system, I myself plan to get a Wii on launch day, a few extra controllers, and some games. I've played every major (and some minor) game consoles since the NES, and I've always prefered Nintendo. I got the CameCube the Christmas it came out, and although my dad got a PS2 and Xbox for free shortly thereafter, I've been most satisfied with the Gamecube. So I'm willing to take the risk that Wii won't be that good, because the risk is slim. I see no reason to pay $600 (plus games & accessories) to play upgraded versions of the PS2 games that were more of the same even in the previous generation. Worse yet, $400 (plus yadda yadda) so I can play the crummy game that PDZ is (tried it at a friend's, hated it), or to get the opportunity to download zuma, which I can find online. And if it turns out that the Wii's new control scheme isn't as fun as I had hoped, there's still a good number of old games I missed out on availble on VC.
Your technical details about lightguns are a little bit out of date.
The type you described, which has a single-direction lens and a light level or color sensor, that's pretty much the oldest type. It's what was used for the NES, and also for older systems - I had a portable Pong rig that included a lightgun game that worked that way. These types required the screen to flash (or else just have all targets be really high-contrast) in order for the lightgun to get a reading. You can see this effect in games like Duck Hunt.
Then you have the raster scan method. I believe this is what's used on most current console lightguns. Basically it finds out when precisely the TV's raster crosses the point the gun is aimed at, and compares that to the video signal output by the game console to figure out where the gun is pointed. The downside of this method is that it won't work on certain types of TVs, it's mainly a CRT thing. Plus you need to get the video sync signal from the console - on PS2 light guns they do this with an external connector on the lightgun cord, I believe, while on the X-Box a video timing signal is actually included on the controller port. I believe for the sensor to work the video at the target point on-screen does have to be reasonably bright (that is, not black) but I could be wrong about that.
Then you have IR emitter/sensor lightguns. These are used in current and relatively recent arcade lightgun games like House of the Dead series and so on. Basically they use a combination of emitters and sensors to figure out where the gun is pointed. The gun reports the relative intensity of the signal it receives from each emitter (it can discern which is which through timing) and that gives the machine a good idea where the gun is pointed. Some types also use tilt sensors in the gun itself to get better information. The strength of this system is that it's completely independent of the video monitor. So long as it's properly calibrated you can use it with any video display technology at all. There's a home version of this type of lightgun sold at Lik-Sang, and the technology of the Wii pointer is very similar to this type of lightgun. That is why the Wii remote is so commonly compared to lightguns. When people make that comparison, they're talking about this type of lightgun. The fact that most lightgun games don't care about the fact that the lightgun is capable of a fairly accurate 3-D position and orientation report is pretty much incidental.
See also, Wikipedia's Entry on Lightguns
(Also, "it's" is "it is". "its" is a posessive pronoun.)
---GEC
I'm but the humble pupil, seeking to snatch the scratchbuilt pebble from the master's fully articulated hand
I waited in line to play the DS at E3 2004. We were treated to some unfinished games and the DS itself.
The DS felt like nothing but a pile of gimmicks.
Two screens felt like a gimmick to distract from Sony's one large, hi-res screen.
The touch screen was very gimmicky, and the games using it were even more gimmicky.
Microphone? Gimmick.
Really, the only things the DS added that made sense were two more buttons (X & Y) and wireless multiplayer. And the wireless multiplayer didn't even work on GBA games. And additionally even Nintendo didn't seem like they were serious about making DS games, they seemed to look at it as a great platform to play GBA games on. All their A titles at the time were still being released as GBA games. Nintendo's next hardware they started working on was a new GBA (Micro). The original DS titles that came out were no particularly good and the flow of them stopped completely for months.
So it looked like N was just making a gimmick to respond to the threat of the PSP and then immediately started walking away from it as a failed effort. We found out differently later.
I do agree the DS is winning because of the games that are on it. Nintendo is nurturing developers who make good games that are well designed to be played on the go. This is in stark contrast to Sony, who has about 33,291 driving games for the PSP, and in my opinion, driving games are typically too intense to work well on the go. I have a PSP, but I don't like to use it. I haven't used it for months, and won't until Loco Roco comes out.
http://lkml.org/lkml/2005/8/20/95
I played it, and in the games I played it was as immersive as a regular controller or even more so.
But I have to say I think it won't be great for all things. I was very interested to see there was a game pad for the Wii, and I hope the Wavebird keeps working for it too.
To me, the Wiimote opens possibilities. But I don't like to see other possibilities eliminated by removing the kind of controller that would work best for Super Smash Brothers (for example).
http://lkml.org/lkml/2005/8/20/95
That actually reminds me of an interview http://wii.ign.com/articles/713/713627p1.html on IGN where Nintendo's leaders basically state that the DS will prove to be a bigger competitor to the Wii than the 360 or PS3, simply because both are similarly innovative and many families can't or won't buy more than one system, portable or no. Personally though, my family has (thankfully) always recognized the distinction between portable and tv-bound systems when allowing systems into the house. I play the DS when I'm out and about, and my home console instead of watching a movie at home during evening family time. The family gets into watching me play almost as much they get into watching a movie.
Are you going to write to your local swimming pool, complaining that she can't swim there?
-Clio
Karma: Bad (mostly from not giving a fuck)
Blog: http://clintjcl.wordpress.com
It's not unconceivable that you could set the nunchuck into a mode where left/right movements of the stick turn instead of sidestep. I know a lot of people who play Quake 3 (and suchlike) in tournaments and dominate servers with the railgun and NONE of them EVER use sidestep. One guy even set left and right mouse movements to turn instead of sidestep. Another only uses the keyboard, no mouselook at all.
Either way, locking-on isn't an essential feature of an FPS on the Wii, so much as a feature people remember from Metroid Prime (and Zelda where it originated on the platform..) and would probably feel out of place if it was left out. By that I mean if you played Prime or Echoes, you get used to the clumsy controls and lock on a LOT. If you move to Corruption it would be a huge learning curve to stop relying on locking on enemies - just like it's hard to unlearn how to walk or make a cup of tea.
The lock-on is useful and even part of the game dynamic when it comes to bosses who have special weak points (lock on to the glowy red bit and STRAFE AND JUMP LIKE FUCK!)
With the Wii controller in your hand and a bit of experience, and a good enough sensitivity setting, it is EASILY possible to do without the lock-on in Metroid at least.
Zelda, on the other hand, relies on it for things like targetting your boomerang and things at the little stumps. It would be a pain in the ass to accurately aim at a 3-pixel-wide stub halfway across the level, so it's always allowed you to lock. Again it's part of the game dynamic but you probably wouldn't want to do without it.
The MOST fun feature of Corruption is opening doors. You jab your controller at the door port, and Samus puts her arm in the hole. Then you turn the remote and pull. While I could see it pissing people off in the middle of a fight, trying to open the door ("painfully" jabbing at the hull of the spaceship or temple instead of the door hole in an attempt to align yourself), once you got a bit of practise you'd just do it naturally like opening a real door. I fear for real doors.. people may start punching holes in them instead of the handle.
I've purchased all my gaming systems at launch so I've never tried them out before buying. Guess that makes me a huge sucker despite the fact they've all gotten tons of playing time.
The person who has toned arm and leg muscles has the Wii.
The one with the weight problem has the PS3.
I guess the one with the xBox360 is a Borg. Or at least dresses like one.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
Thats not what I'm most concerned about...my big concern is how can you have realistic sword fights when there is nothing to forcibly stop the controller from moving past a certain point if your character makes contact in the game.
I especially see this as a problem for multiplayer swordfighting (think a multiplayer Star Wars game) where two people might be waving their swords, but if they cross blades, the controller keeps moving past the contact point, thus screwing up the positioning of the players hands with the remote.
Not really. It's fairly simple. Remember the Wii controller also has a speaker. What you do is have an audio "clang" when your sword hits another, or a "buzz" when your light saber touches another one.
Also, in the game mechanics, once your sword comes in contact with another, you just stop the forward motion of the displayed sword, and use any further forward motion as "push" motion against the opponent sword, used to simulate strength.
Now, it might take a bit of getting used to, especially if you had a true swords and sorcery game, where someone might be wearing heavy armor - in that a blow straight against someone with plate mail won't penetrate, but will glance off, but it's a fairly simple programming exercise to translate any motion after armor hit or after sword hit into the appropriate vector. The main thing is to use both audio feedback - both Wii controller and speakers - and force feedback (vibration on controllers if applicable) to indicate what's really happening. Most players will quickly adapt.
On the other hand, if you stick to fighting gelatinous blobs, your sword will literally chop straight through them. And a light saber - unless it meets a force field or another light saber (also force field) - will also keep going through the body it chops into. But there should be some audio and other feedback to represent the energy drain.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
I can just see Balmer in his office playing with his Wii (don't laugh just yet - but that does sound appropriate), and having to set the sensitivity so that when he does his chair throwing motions, the virtual chair doesn't end up on the moon. Maybe there needs to be three levels of sensitivity.
Wiipetitive stress injuries...
My point was to his pre-decision; the guy is sold already and he hasn't played a single game. Which strikes me as hasty. Kind of like...
While I agree that this doesn't neccesarily mean that the Wii will be a good system, I myself plan to get a Wii on launch day, a few extra controllers, and some games.
So I'm willing to take the risk that Wii won't be that good, because the risk is slim. I see no reason to pay $600 (plus games & accessories) to play upgraded versions of the PS2 games that were more of the same even in the previous generation.
Oh I hear ya, believe me. But here's the thing: what 'upgraded PS2 games'? What 'innovative Wii games'? Which ones? The ones with good demos? By all means, keep an eye on the interesting-looking titles... I sure do. But ferfucksake, decide after you've played and enjoyed them. All of these consoles will be available for rent right from day one, so there's no reason not to try before you buy, ya know?
Particularly with a radical new controller. The Wii remote sort of reminds me of the light pen for the C64 years ago. When I saw one of those, I was agog. I thought, this is revolutionary. And then I used one for 10 seconds, trying to hold my wrist at an angle to the vertical screen, and realized how flawed the whole thing was for extended periods of use. I would not have realized that... until I used it. See what I mean?
And if it turns out that the Wii's new control scheme isn't as fun as I had hoped, there's still a good number of old games I missed out on availble on VC.
Sure, and that's a good point. But there's no sense in waiting for that, you can have all those old games now, and probably cheaper than Nintendo will charge you for the download. Go find a garage sale. I'm sure you can bag any old Nintendo unit + a few games for a pittance.
If Jesus wants me it knows where to find me.
"Its Not About The Graphics, Its The Gameplay... right?"
@ - "You got it bub!"
V - "Good graphics with no enjoyable gameplay? That just SUCKS!"
D - "I don't mean to flame, but this has been our motto for decades!"
b b \
bb* bb -- "We don't understand what all the buzz is about, graphics never held us back"
b b b /
(this has to be the dorkiest thing I have ever posted, but if you know what I am talking about you get my point)
When the only tool you have is a claw hammer every problem starts to look like the back of someone's skull.
It could also be that after years of screaming for something different, something that doesn't just make the graphics nicer, one of the manufactorers is listening. If Sony or MS were taking this route you'd hear the same comments. I'm not syaing that 'turfers don't exist on the dot, just that I know I'm going to be getting one, too.
If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
If she can move her wrist in a full circular motion, she can play wii.
(*You will need to adjust the sensitivity settings)
If she has full upper body movement, she just needs to shit in an open chair (think stool, or on a raised platform.) Or just on the floor/open area with a comfortable rug, carpet, pillow, etc.)
It might be a good idea to try to rent the console when it comes out and give it a try and se what she thinks. (Esp if this was caused by an accident that removed sports from her life and she was unwilling/unable to rejoin various chair sport communities.)
I think if they're going to use a motion sensitive controller for the Wii, Nintendo should give us Power Glove owners a free Wii for trusting them the first time they promised a motion sensitive controller.
What I don't see with the wiimote is a way to replace the c-stick. Having experienced camera freedom in Mario Sunshine and Wind Waker, I can't imagine going back to the limitations of the N64 iterations (basic centering and zoom in/zoom/out in Mario64 and behind the player centering in Zelda:OOT & Majora's Mask). Motion sensing of the wiimote has mostly been implemented to get a pointer (as far as I can tell) in the next generation iterations of both Mario and Zelda. I sure hope Nintendo hasn't decided that the N64 camera systems will be acceptable. Perhpas there will be an a way to use the wiimote for the camera as an alternate mode, like if a button is held...
The last major console FPS I can remember using such a scheme was Timesplitters (by the Goldeneye team), and that was ONLY when you wanted it to. Every other FPS keeps the cursor centered.
so you're here advertising for onpoint aren't you?
Gameplay and game length are completely different.
And "depth" usually means level of complexity, i.e. a fighting game with a long move list and several different counter types has a lot of depth. Game length isn't that important in itself - a fighter is usually only a few minutes long, but it has a lot of replay value.
All of these things together combine to what I would call game value.
Nintendo has produced plenty of long, deep games with good gameplay and replay value, e.g. Advance Wars, which is only a handful of megabyes.
p.s. photorealistic MarioKart! What The Fuck?
Great point, and to add the other standard point, it is about the games.
:)
What good is a consol that has a great controller or great output or processor speed when all the games may suck. The games will sell me on a consol, as soon as they put something out that i NEED to play, I will be there buying one, until then, I'll let everybody else buy the first round of equiepment and find all the bugs for me.
Another strike against the Wii is the lack of HD support. I recently have been looking at buying my first hd tv, and looked at plasma, dlp and lcd. I was initially going to go with dlp, then found some great info about lag due to upscaling. If the wii comes ouat at 480p, the lag should not be too great, but it will be more so then if it supported 720p on our great new tvs.
Apparently 480i output (gc or ps2) on a samsug dlp has horrible lag and makes any rythem or timing based games difficult to play. Imagine any sort of video lag due to upscaling with the wii-mote where your point and shoot is delayed 1/4 of a frame. That doesn't sound "next gen" to me.
Anyway the wii looks intersting, but I usually end up going back to my regular controlers when i try to branch out to steering wheels and other types of periferals. I find that I enjoy tight control where I don't have to move around too much and can quickly get to every control, over the novelty of swishing my hands around.
I guess for me the money is on immersion, and that is to the point where I don't even realise that i'm holding a controler, and i'm focused on making the player do something via muscle memory and not even thinking about the fact i'm holding a controler in my hands.
I guess the wii will be nice if it allows us to have more control at our fingertips, and allow new game types, so we can do new things with games rather then the same old with a new method.
Anyway, I hope people like the grandparent stick around, because if everybody waited, people like us would have no opinions to sit around and wait for. So grandparent is doing us a favor, spend on, spender!
Dactyl Nightmare was the "pilot" game for most of the CS1000 virtual reality pods manufactured by W Industries (known later as Virtuality) back in late 1991. As this "in-game" image details (apparently they took this screenshot using an NTSC encoder on the pod's PAL output, thus gaining a black and white image - the original in-game view was in color), the game was a first-person "shooter" whereby you and three other people competed in an "arena" to shoot and "kill" (de-rez?) each other, all the while avoiding the pteradactyl which circled above you, and would grab you (unless you shot it first - tricky, but possible), lift you into the "sky" and drop you to your death on the arena floor below.
The pods were networked together, and ran on extremely customized Amiga 3000 platforms (using custom dual video boards to the Visette HMDs, and a custom 3D spatial position tracking system, IIRC, from Polhemus, to track the pistol-grip controller and head movements, as well as a custom CD-ROM drive system for the software and audio). Each HMD had a microphone, so players could talk with/to each other. The HMDs were large, but well balanced, though the system had lag that could be noticed if you moved your head too rapidly (although the HMD was so heavy that if you did that too much you might wrench your neck from the inertia).
The game was fairly simple in design and play, in a manner like "virtual paintball", where you ran around (by pointing your gun in one direction and pressing a trigger to move forward in that direction - a separate trigger fired your gun), and shot your "pellets" (which had a set velocity, and "gravity" pulled them in an arc in the arena, making for some interesting "shots") at each other as you ran up and down stairs through various levels of the arena, and also used "transporter pads" which were small areas you could step onto and they would transport you in an arc to other levels in the arena (but don't fall off! just like q-bert, you'll die).
What I liked most about the game, which isn't something you can do in a standard FPS (although maybe newer ones today allow for something like it), is that you could "back up" against one of the "pillars" in the game, and use it as "cover", and extend your arm and shoulder around the corner (thus exposing just your arm and a bit of your head, like IRL) to shoot at someone. You could easily crouch and fire, run and hide (strafing was not something you could do, though), duck and fire.
No, the graphics weren't hi-res, the speed wasn't fantastic, the game wasn't complex - but I have yet to play any game that was as engrossing and caused me to feel like I was "really there" - where I could look down and see my legs, look at my hand and see my gun - then run, duck, crouch, rise up and fire, blowing my opponent away, while I heard them in the headphones saying "what happened?" (unfortunately for most people they didn't have a clue as to how the whole thing worked - many "players" seemed to stand around looking, and not realizing that they were supposed to run around and shoot at things - this made for bad gameplay sometimes, it was always a much better experience playing with people who knew how to play).
You can't find these pods much anymore - there are a few on the fairground amusement rounds, that is about it. Others have moved on to the newer pods, which are still being made and sold by Arcadian Virtual Reality and their partners. Still, despite the real immersive interactivity these machines offer, there doesn't seem to be great interest, and to most they are still a "novelty"...
We probably won't ever see such a system in the home any time soon, mainly because of several reasons, which include liability concerns (from falling hazards to
Reason is the Path to God - Anon
That's also true... If you had to make large movements like that. In reality, you can rest your hands/arms on your legs and use small motions (exlcuding games like WarioWare).
Sony and M$ = bad bad bad
Nintendo = GOOD!
Arguing with an engineer is like wrestling a pig in mud. Soon, you realize the pig is dirty, and he likes it.
"I can't see a controller 'selling' a console."
Funny, I'm planning to buy a Wii primarily for the controller -- because it will be the only game controller on the market that my non-gaming family and friends can grok easily.
The choices are as follows:
1. Buy an XBox or a PS2/PS3, and have it played by myself and my son.
2. Buy a Wii, and have it played by myself, my son, my wife, my parents, my in-laws, friends, visitors...
Call me crazy, but I think making gaming more accessible to everyone is a good thing -- and having a family that games together is doubleplusgood for this geek. If it takes a radical new controller to do the job, then so be it.
--R.J.
Electric-Escape.net
I'm nearly as sold on the Wii as the original poster. I spent over four hours playing games on it at E3 and enjoyed the heck out of the experience. Overall, I was more impressed with the 360 and PS3, but the Wii was fun, and it will be cheap. More importantly, it will be a system my daughter will love and that we will be able to play together. The chance of the PS3 or 360 having a good lineup of games a four-year old can enjoy seems very slim. I haven't decided yet between the 360 and PS3 (lots will depend on if I get a free system for reviews), but the Wii is a definite buy. Now, as far as the games so far...Excite Truck is awesome, Red Steel was great in the FPS portions and not-so-great in the swordplay, Tony Hawk sucked, Mario was okay, Metroid was good, but didn't benefit much from the wii-mote controls, I loved the horse racing game (name's escaping me at the moment), the sports titles were a blast (especially tennis), Madden was blah (and I sucked at it). I guess Excite Truck was the biggest surprise. The controller worked great for that one.
Do not cross the beams!!
I have a DS, but I will be getting a standard console (at least one) as well, because I do crave the "deeper" games, as well as the 4 player games like mario kart or timesplitters/halo/quake/whatever (and not all of my friends have a DS). So I will definitely eventually get at least one console to satisfy those joneses.
No, it doesn't.
These games will certainly need an "expert mode" that enables customized controls. To replace a mouse/keyboard the device will need this customizability. (Ever seen a hardcore Quake player's config file? Yeah.) I say "expert mode" because you want the game to default to a setting that is far more intuitive, and not necessarily efficient. You don't want your typical player forced into a steep learning curve. The solution described for Metroid sounds about as steep as you'd want to go. It also sounds adequate for most players, even if it doesn't match the keyboard/mouse. Imagine describing to someone how to use the "clutch" button for repositioning the cursor! For the record, I will be every bit as disappointed as you if they don't include extreme customizability in these games.
I can't wait to be able to use the Wii controller with my PC, so it will know when I'm bashing the shit out of it in frustration.
Or maybe it will know when I decide to delete Windows.
- RG>
Hey pal, this isn't a pleasantforest, so don't waste my time with pleasantries!
A: (shouting) "For fuck's sake, I needed those girls by Sunday! How can you just lose a cargo container full of twelve-year-olds!?"
B: "Uh, excuse me, what are you talking about?"
A: (turns head, points to bluetooth headset) "Ahem! Okay...uh-huh...all right. We'll tell the captain he can keep the skim..." (covers microphone) "Do you mind?"
B: (laughing nervously) "Oh, my bad. How rude of me to interrupt!"
[pink beam of light]
" And once again this poses the question " ...why can't these videos be downloadable for those w/o high speed connections or for those who want to rewatch it whenever they want?
Coder's Stone: The programming language quick ref for iPad
Responding to Nintendo's market dominance, due to the hugely popular "Wii-mote" control scheme, Sony executives unveiled the Bodyshokk (tm) controller for the PS3.
"The user will put on this controller like a jumpsuit," explained Sony executive Ken Kutaragi. "They will then be able to control the actions of on-screen characters through physical gestures."
The Bodyshokk (tm) resembles a neon-pink wetsuit and can be customized with a variety of attractive racing stripes. During the demonstration, Kutaragi played a demo of God of War 3, in which the main character fought off a dozen assailants. He danced around the stage, then clutched his chest and screamed in pain when an enemy character struck his onscreen avatar with a large glowing weapon.
"Muscular feedback electrodes are built right into the controller," said Kutaragi. "In this case, a hit on the chest is translated into a tazer-level shock through the wearer's nipples. Force-feedback and motion tracking is the wave of the future. People want to feel their games, not just play them." Kutaragi then jerked spasmodically, as his game character was assaulted by multiple enemies, before his assistants could pause the game.
Executives at Microsoft are just as optimistic about their upcoming UltraPrecision series of console peripherals. Recently demoed was a life-sized robot, nicknamed "The RealFoe", which resembled a crash-test dummy. Programmers then punched and kicked the robot, and on the screen behind them the robot's cowering actions were displayed, as well as bruises forming on the in-game avatar, which resembled a middle-aged blond woman.
"You don't get that kind of force-feedback from just a controller's vibration," said one of the demo-givers, who wished to remain anonymous. He then turned towards the robot and delivered a backhanded slap. "Git your ass off the floor and make me some breakfast!"
On the screen, the virtual woman shakily got up, synchronized to the robot's actions, and stumbled towards a virtual kitchen. The game being demoed was The Sims 3 - Domestic Drama. The robot even slouched its shoulders in the same way the character was animated.
"You see that realism? Some people might complain that [these new controllers] take too much physical exertion, but once you actually play the game, the immersion is incredible!"
[pink beam of light]
I should have been clearer - I meant, rent the game/console, or play it at a friend's place, to make sure you actually want it before buying it.
If Jesus wants me it knows where to find me.
In case anyone else has had the same issues. At least some of the downloaded zips confuse the crap out of Windows and WinRAR they simply wont be able to extract them. Explorer will get confused over what the directory structure is doing. WinRAR wont even show you the directory the mov is in. (This may be because my winRAR isnt fully up to date.)
The current winACE will open the file fine though.
As to why im not so sure. For metroid the directory that causes the problems is \\227.mov (explorer reads it as WINDOWS) I can only assume this is because the thing was made on a Unix system and that folder will work on Unix will not work on Windows.
Needless to say there wasnt really any reason to have any folder structure zipped up, let alone a folder that can cause issues. Still its free so cant complain. (Well I can, and have... but you should probably ignore that.)
Actually, it's just that, compared to the general population's opinions on Sony and Microsoft here, most of the lower life forms look like Jesus Christ's Second Coming by comparison.
Ninjas and pirates. How piquant.
Uh, Sony kinda did... (Half-heartedly, I admit.) But I'm not hearing the same comments about that system...
As for the HDTV thing, of all the people I know through friends, work, and church, I only know 2 people who have one. Buying a Next-Gen because it supports something you don't have is just silly. When I do get an HDTV in 10 years, then it might be worth it. But not until.
If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
Personally, I bought a HDTV a few weeks after getting the 360. I felt it was worth it. I'm going to pick up both the PS3 and the Wii, though I may wait a while to see how they're doing first.
3 dimensions, 6 degrees of freedom. More than 3 dimensions would require the manipulation of time and/or some string theory dimensions.
...
Or a rewind button as in Prince of Persia.
Oh, wait, that's already implemented
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
You should probably try to play a few more DS games. I'd suggest starting with Kirby Canvas Curse and Trauma Center, two games with gameplay that could not be implemented without the DS' touchscreen.
One time I threw a brick at a duck.
"Please excuse me, I have to go clean myself off."
www.linuxpenguin.net
Currently haptics devices from Sensable http://www.sensable.com/ have extraordinarily accurate force sensations. The problem with these haptics devices are that they cost in the thousands of dollars per device.
However Novint http://www.novint.com/ made a showing at E3 and are claiming they'll be coming out with a device under $100 in a year. Here's a link to an ign review off their website.
http://gear.ign.com/articles/709/709246p1.html
I think it would be neat (and probably in their best interest) if Nintendo kept supports and software hooks in mind for haptics devices in the future.
I'd like to believe this...but I honestly think most people around here worship Nintendo/Apple/Linux. There is a good enough number of them that if you say anything negative about them, you get modded down. I wish there was a little more balance to the posters on games.slashdot.org, but it just isn't the case. I mean, someone saying they will buy 3 of anything that doesn't exist yet is crazy. But I believe that it is probably real. Just shows how well they marketed this that someone would be so stupid.
I don't care what console it is. You will always save money and get a better rev of the hardware if you wait 6 months to a year.
Support a great indie game: http://www.abaddon360.com
swords are not hack and slash, they require a lot of training. anyone that knows how to use a katana or foil will not need such a swing to use it effecively. properly used a katana, or kenpo stick bounces off when it encounters a block (ie not flesh or scoring area). this is to speed up the time betweens strikes. and yes even with full armor kenpo still hurts when u get hit. as far as the controller goes, my guess is it will no longer respond after a certain point, and players who do not want to get killed will not make such lumbering strikes.
On the other hand, I HATE the name, I still want to know what genius is responible, and what names were rejected in its favor. The system is always going to be "The Revolution" to me. It's been weeks now and saying "Wii" in conversation still makes me physically cringe.
Nintendo is the only company with a console I will buy. Microsoft is an evil company, that makes lousy products, and has been Convicted multiple times of abusing their monopoly status. Sony is likewise very malignant, and meddlesome in legislation. The Rootkit fiasco and their obsession with crippled, proprietary, expensive formats round out reasons not to like them. Nintendo on the other hand, doesn't really do anything at all I don't like. They've historically made their games difficult to copy, but I don't really have a problem with that.
Forget FPS. I want a lightsaber game. I've been wanting one for almost thirty years.
"It's been weeks now and saying "Wii" in conversation still makes me physically cringe."
Myself as well. I've started referring to it as pronounced "why" rather than "we" (long 'i' sound, instead of long 'e')... Try it, it's empowering or something
You don't understand. Take me for instance. When I saw what would become Yoshi's Touch and Go at E3 2004 via Gamespot, I understood the DS, and I knew I wanted the machine.
Maybe I have a better imagination than most people, but I knew exactly what I was in for when I bought it. The DS was the first console I ever bought on launch day. After 26 years of gaming, here was something new, something fresh. After all those years of promises, Nintendo was about to deliver, and I was not going to be on the sidelines for a day.
Now we have the Wii. I understand that too. Better, I think, than a lot of developers do. It's something new, something fresh. Nintendo is about to deliver again, and I will not be on the sidelines for a single day.
Nintendo doesn't pay me. They earned my admiration. They make great games and great hardware. I laugh at anyone offering me an extended warranty on a Nintendo product, right in their face. A Nintendo system is the only electronics purchase I don't worry about.
Well, they are hinting at the DS having some kind of tie to the Wii. The Wii is said to be able to download demos that can be downloaded into the Wii (much like how the DS startions are in Best Buy, etc)... Also some hints (no confirmation) that you can have added functionality in future games with the DS + Wii.
Why? The nunchaku has the motion sensor too.
Unless half the games say "Wii Remote required". The Wii classic controller (a SNES style Dual Shock clone) and the GCN pad work with Smash Bros., but do they work with Red Steel or Water Sports ^W^W Wii Sports?
I don't know... there are quite a few games I can't imagine playing without the touch screen now. Meteos... Animal Crossing... Big Brain Academy.. There were some that we kind of gimicky, but which ones were stupid?
Watch one of the earlier demos for Red Steel. See how it looks like a rail shooter because you're shooting things in the corners of the screen and not just the center. Movement/camera is controled via the thumbstick on the nunchuck attachment and the aiming and shooting is done with the main controler. The attachment also has motion sensing, so that would offer you everything you need. Thumb for movement, tilt for camera and pointing of the main unit for aiming.
"Sic Semper Tyrannosaurus Rex."
Yes, yes there is. This form of control simply wouldn't work.
How would you turn around 180 degrees in a FPS? you would now be facing away from the TV. You want to get smart about it? Okay how about you turn the controller around instead of your whole body. Now you're aiming in reverse. It's even tricker when you are facing the controller at a weird angle.
The PS2 has been out for about six years and has from day one been the least capable console in terms of graphics (even the Dreamcast was better, IMO).
I have a Dreamcast and a PS2. I enjoy both systems.
I think you are almost as insane as a person that denies evolution, global warming, or the holocaust.
Only your belief isn't hurting anyone.
Back when Nintendo was number 1, they were more evil then you could imagine.
Whoever modded you troll probably had that in mind.
It's just not true that Nintendo doesn't have any bad karma. They have plenty.
Fair enuff.
Here are my reasons for buying it:
- I have GC and a load of games.
- I dont have a snowballs chance of getting an Xbox or PS3
- It will be cheap.
- It will be small and portable.
- I care nothing for HD TV and the GFX in the Wii will be better than the GC.
- It will have the ability to download old games from my childhood.
- Nintendo have a good rep for producing the games and hardware that I am interested in.
- It is something very different from the PC games which I also play.
Any of the above would make me inclined to buy it. So I have already decided. My brother likes the look of it and he wants one as he is not going to get an Xbox or PS3 any time soon. And when I showed some of the vids to my Mam she wanted one for the kids in the house.
So am I a sucker? Ive checked as many reports of user experiences with this as I can and the dev/software is only going to get better as they come to grips with the hardware.
Ur on the fence, fine!! But dont heckle me because I have already made my decision.
Pablo
Kirby Canvas Curse is actually suprisingly boring and challengless, the only reason why it is 'fun' is because its something new, but seriously, I was over that 'new' thingy after half an hour and then the resulting game was just pretty damn boring. Not that the other Kirby games were huge challenges, but direct character control at least provide a better feel for the game then that "look at the screen for the some time and draw a line here and there" Canvas Curse style gameplay. Trauma Center is more interesting, since the stylus is used in better ways there, its however also not without fault, since it allows very little freedom and thus boils down to some who-can-click-faster mini-game, thats however the fault of the game design, not the controls. The best use of the stylus I have seen so far was BrainAge, since that really felt quite different then normal games and went far bejoint of being just classic old game play with new controls. However seen as a game BrainAge is certainly a bit on the short side.
So far I still havn't seen a "killer-app" for the stylus, there are certainly some ok stylus games out there, but non gets anywhere near to what Mario64 did for the analog-stick. Most developers are still strugeling hard to find any use for the stylus and most of the great games on the DS make little or no use of it (Mario64, MarioKart, Castlevania, AdvanceWars). That doesn't mean that the second screen is useless, its nice to have the map on a seperate screen in Castlevania or Mario64, and doing camera control via touchscreen in Mario64 is also a nice way to compensate for the lack of buttons, but those could probally also been done by providing two analogsticks and a bigger screen instead of an additional touchscreen.
I really enjoyed Kirby - the later levels were more interesting and challenging. Trauma center is fun, but the difficulty level ramps up far too quickly for me: an hour in and I'm hopelessly stuck on the multiple aneurysm level.
Ok, ok, I get it. Perhaps you will excuse those of use who do not have this remakably prescient clarity.
If Jesus wants me it knows where to find me.
I recall that there was a controller like this for the good old sega genesis, it was some sort of circle where you kicked and the little guy on screen would kick. However this one seems to be way more complex, just imagine... I twich one eyebrow and the guy leans to the left, I twich the other and he leans to the right... and when I have hiccups the guy will be constantly jumping!
Really, why not? Is it that big of a deal to support it? Many people love that interface, but have pumping money in a PC to keep it current. I WOULD put a console on my desktop. I'm that much of a gamer...
Damn it. I actually had work to do tonight. Thanks a lot, jerk.
*eats his kitten*
Geez, it looks like almost everyone gets jammed up there. Glad I'm not the only one.
What I did: Once the aneurysm's start zerging, don't go through the whole song and dance for each one. Shrink it, cut it out, and LEAVE it. Do 3 this way. Shrink the others. Remove the three you cut, sew it up, inject stabilizer. Repeat.
Still took me a bunch of tries and an assload of luck, though. HTH.
its nice to have the map on a seperate screen
Agreed, but is it nice enough to have justified the expense of including it, and at the cost of other improvements? PSP is doing quite well commercially with only one screen... Frankly the second screen is another cute addition that I'm not sure has that much value. Half the time the second screen is a pseudo-controller to make the stylus useful, and the other half the time the second screen is either a map, or a glorified 320x200 status bar. Note also that half the time, this low-interaction view of map and/or status is the one taking up the touchscreen!
Urbz DS is a good example. The gameplay takes place almost entirely in the non-touchscreen view. You use the stylus like a mouse to click on things in the status/choice view at the bottom, most of which don't need stylus or mouse control at all. Pointer control would be most useful in the gameplay view, a la every other Sims game. But the developers decided it would be more gimmicky to squander the second screen so that the game decision interface could be point-and-touch. And it doesn't even need to be.
Terrorists can attack freedom, but only Congress can destroy it.
pretty sure that it is a network of gameworlds...:) !
Help Me! I'm trapped in the tubes! Oh noes! Here comes a internet!
The PS3 is going to (probably) cost too much; the X360 relies heavily on Live! for value and has no standard HD; and the Wii can't do HD.
You're right, this generation's not even here yet. But POV of a parent here: both the 360 and the PS3 seem to be fatally flawed in price. People with a regular TV -- me -- aren't going to think the 360 or the PS3 are worth the cost. It's not just the consoles, it's the HD monitor cost that puts me well above a grand before there's a game popped in there.
A huge increase in market penetration for HD monitors is what Sony and MS are banking on. I dunno. I do know three families with big HD screens, at least -- and none of those happens to be in the market for what the game companies are selling. (One of them actually had an original X-Box, bought by two sons who shared the cost: the 360 is out of their price range, they say. So the console price alone alienated previous buyers, there. [The broken original X-Box maybe contributed some to that too.])
At worst Nintendo's lack of HD is a wash. They're pitching for a market that exists, and their system is significantly cheaper because of that choice. Pool of people with a TV > Pool of people with an HDTV, by many times, and the greater than sign isn't going to flip over for a long, long time.
"Fundamentalism" isn't about divine morality. It's about human authority.
Yeah, Nintendo, Google, Apple, etc. all have astroturfers flooding Slashdot, digg, etc. with positive comments. As for Linux, it's probably Linus who spends most of his time creating new Slashdot accounts to astroturf for Linux. Yes sir. Because it's impossible that lots of people are genuinely excited about news products from someone.
Clever signature text goes here.
Hey they dont even link to my page. I made those videos, please link to my video page instead: http://e3cast.com/