Just In Time for the Holidays, Nintendo Wii U Gets Its US Release

YokimaSun writes "Nintendo has today fired the first salvo in the next-gen console wars with the U.S. release of their Wii U console, which is massively more powerful than the Nintendo Wii and also the PS3/Xbox 360 (so they claim). Yet again Nintendo has done a world first and released a gamepad which is also a tablet and should provide us with games that stretch the boundaries even more. Wii games are compatible with the console, as is the Wii remote. The Wii U comes in 2 SKUs: a 32GB Deluxe package, and an 8GB Basics pack. The games lineup is a strong one, with games such as New Super Mario Bros U, Arkham City Armoured Edition, Assassins Creed 3, Call of Duty Black Ops 2, Sonic AllStars Racing, Nintendo Land, Tank Tank Tank, ScribbleNauts Unlimited, Epic Mickey 2 The Power of Two, ESPN Sports Connection, DarkSiders 2, Rabbids Land, Mass Effect 3, Ninja Gaiden 3 Razors Edge, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Wipeout 3 and Just Dance 4 all available on launch day."

Comments

Just in time for the holidays.

[Anonymous Coward]

Are you implying it a coincidence? It was certainly targeted at the holidays.

Re:Just in time for the holidays.

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm trying to determine how anyone could read that as implying coincidence.

Re:Just in time for the holidays.

[Anonymous Coward]

No shit? The stipulation is sometimes these things miss their target dates.

I hope it does well

[damn_registrars]

Some people have been suggesting that Nintendo might pull out of the hardware (at least non-portable console) market entirely if the Wii U doesn't go over well. I am one who would very much not want to see that. Hopefully this console goes over well, even if it doesn't make the grand entrance that we saw with the original Wii.

And yes, I do still play my original Wii. I even bought a new game for it this week.

Re:I hope it does well

[Dripdry]

I talked with an investment firm holding a large chunk of Nintendo stock. It was pointed out to me that Nintendo is holding a HUGE amount of cash right now, similar to Apple's strategy. Basically, Nintendo isn't going anywhere, most likely, as they have the resources to weather just about any storm from the looks of it. Doesn't mean they wouldn't make the move out of hardware, but rest assured Nintendo isn't going anywhere, at least for a while.

Re:I hope it does well

[Darkness404]

I don't see why Nintendo would move out of hardware considering it tends to revolutionize the gaming world with its hardware. From the D-Pad on the NES to motion control on the Wii, touchscreens on the DS, etc.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

lol. You crack me up.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

But for how long will that pile of cash last if things go bad?

You have to keep in mind that Nintendo is PURELY in the hardware/software video games industry. If things turn sour, then that pile of cash isn't too impressive. Admittedly this is doubtful since the 3DS is curb-stomping the Vita and iPhone/iPad/iOS fears haven't manifested (yet), but if the WiiU can't mimic (or at least come close to) the Wii's success, you can expect Nintendo's stock price to take a hit.

Re:I hope it does well

[Kjella]

I don't see why Nintendo would move out of hardware considering it tends to revolutionize the gaming world with its hardware. From the D-Pad on the NES to motion control on the Wii, touchscreens on the DS, etc.

So you listed one handheld, two consoles one of which was released in 1985 - that's 27 years ago, man - over how many generations of hardware? Don't get me wrong the Wii was cool but it's like trying to reinvent the steering wheel over and over again. On the PC the mouse and keyboard hasn't changed in ages. On consoles now you can see the DualShock 3, Xbox 360 and Wii U Pro controller are now near identical - since game developers want the same controls. The Wii Remote/Move/Kinect has become an alternative way while the Wii U controller will double as a regular console controller for games that don't use the Wii screen. I don't think there's room for many more controller schemes than that. I think Nintendo is right to launch now though, both Microsoft and Sony are indicating their systems will live to 2015 or so giving Nintendo a few years as top dog.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

Nintendo burned through roughly half of its cash reserves between 2011 and 2012. How much they have burned through this year won't be known until the end of March, but it is probably a lot. I don't think Nintendo's finances are as rosy as you think.

Re:I hope it does well

[future assassin]

And yes, I do still play my original Wii. I even bought a new game for it this week.

Yes I still play my old Turbo Grafx 16, SNES, Saturn, 3DO, Jaguar and Dreamcast.

Re:I hope it does well

[rolfwind]

My first thought looking at that thing is the controllers look too big (heavy) and expensive, that it was another Game Boy VR.

Idk about the sales numbers but I hope I'm wrong. We definitely need more than just 2 console makers, one of whom also spearheads PCs.

Re:I hope it does well

[rolfwind]

Well, looking at the size of the size of the VR controller, it does lead one to ask why didn't they make it a purely autonomous unit at that point (connectable to a TV of coure)....

I guess they didn't want to confuse people with their 3DS line up....

Re:I hope it does well

[Toonol]

He's correct. They have a huge bankroll. I was surprised; there is a better chance of Sony getting out the field than Nintendo.

Re:I hope it does well

[tlhIngan]

My first thought looking at that thing is the controllers look too big (heavy) and expensive, that it was another Game Boy VR.

The tablet controller is expensive, apparently (but every Wii U comes with one, and most games seem to have adopted a tablet controller for player 1, wii+nunchuk for player 2 with player 2 getting the vast majority of the TV (a tiny corner is for player one, who can use the tablet's screen).

The biggest thing though - is the lack of latency on the tablet screen. You'd think there would be some latency, but there isn't. Just fast and snappy.

It's also very light - it's not a huge heavy thing (I think the batteries would be the heaviest part) but it otherwise feels very usable. Nicely balanced and well-designed to feel good. If your arms get tired holding it while playing, I think it's time to step away from the screen and get some exercise.

Re:I hope it does well

[aliquis]

Nokia held a lot of cash to, still do I suppose but even the last dividend which was half of the one before that is almost 10% of the company value, so just two years ago they paid out 20% of the current company value in dividends..

Re:I hope it does well

[aliquis]

Mimic?
http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=NTDOY+Interactive#symbol=ntdoy;range=my;compare=;indicator=volume;charttype=area;crosshair=on;ohlcvalues=0;logscale=off;source=undefined;

It's not like the market has extrapolated the success of the DS and Wii forward or haven't discounted (some of) the future already.

Re:I hope it does well

[aNonnyMouseCowered]

I suspect that even rivals like Sony and Microsoft are hoping that the WiiNew does well, otherwise they'd need to rethink their whole console strategy. If Nintendo fails, then it might mean that dedicated consoles are giving way to tablets and enhanced TVs coupled with an online gaming service.

Re:I hope it does well

[blahplusplus]

I can't say I agree, Nintendo's flagship properties outside of mario and maybe kart are all suffering. Nintendo has nothing there for the core gamer anymore.

Wii U will end up being Wii redux/Gamecube redux unless they start taking seriously their decline in game quality.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

Analysis vids show there is some latency, but only 2-3 frames worth. Could be an issue in versus fighters, but for most games it won't be noticeable.

Re:I hope it does well

[drinkypoo]

The tablet controller is expensive, apparently (but every Wii U comes with one, and most games seem to have adopted a tablet controller for player 1, wii+nunchuk for player 2 with player 2 getting the vast majority of the TV

Last I heard, you would only be able to use one tablet controller with the system at a time. Has this changed? Ironically for people who want to avoid buying multiple tablets, this is actually the prime reason I'm not interested, asymmetric gaming is a gimmick.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

Source? I've not heard this before and if anything it probably went into ramping up production on a new console (making 10 million units at a slight loss is a huge sum). Course I would like to see a source.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

One tablet at launch with a second planned to be supported in the future. (I hope they allow up to 4.)

Re:I hope it does well

[Tagged_84]

Since the lifespan of current generation consoles is close to a decade I'm more of the belief this will be the last "gen" of consoles no matter what happens. With the success of mobile computing I don't see them capable of continuing this tradition of large gaps in hardware releases. With AR and neurofeedback likely to play a part in the new gen consoles I see consoles dying down alongside desktops as we transition to a mobile computing world with yearly refresh cycles.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

Last I heard, you would only be able to use one tablet controller with the system at a time. Has this changed? Ironically for people who want to avoid buying multiple tablets, this is actually the prime reason I'm not interested, asymmetric gaming is a gimmick.

The console itself will support 2 tablet controllers and 4 Wii remotes at a time. I am not sure if any of the launch games currently support 2 tablets tho.

Re:I hope it does well

[drinkypoo]

One tablet at launch with a second planned to be supported in the future. (I hope they allow up to 4.)

Well, two is certainly better than one, but I agree with you, four is where it's at. Sports, dungeon crawls, racing, really any kind of game could benefit.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

The overall number may be impressive. But you have to look also at overall revenue, and profits. Between the two numbers you can figure out how long the company will be solvent if nothing is changed. And if that picture doesn't look good, the first thing that companies do is cut expenses - expenses can be turned up and down by the company, revenues and profits not necessarily. And the main and most easily adjusted expense and is the payroll.

Based on the financial report from July, the company assets are 1,295,923 mln yen (about 5% yty decline), the comprehensive income was (37,242) mln yen. The total sales were 84,813 mln yen (9.7% yty decline), 41,985 mln yen of which was from hardware (roughly 20% yty decline) and 42,505 mln yen was from software (about 5% yty increase). The details for hardware sales: 540,000 DS units (65% yty decline), 1,860,000 3DS (150% yty increase), and 710,000 Wii (55% yty decline). While the losses were about 6 bln yen higher than for the same quarter the year before, the majority of it came from "foreign currency translation adjustment" - read: sucks to be dealing in yens right now. But speaking of finances - yes, they are sitting on a ridiculous pile of cash. If they didn't sell anything at all and didn't change anything, they could easily continue operating for another 10 years.

Considering that 3DS is a so-so console, and that it has 2.5 times sales of Wii, it's pretty clear that Wii sales have stagnated to the point where they are only replacing units that are breaking down due to "natural" reasons.

Also, considering their total software sales account for only 50% of overall sales, that the current level of total sales is completely inadequate, it's ridiculous to suggest that Nintendo will pull out of the hardware market. They could, but for that to work at all that would mean that they have 75% of the workforce or more working in hardware, while only 25% or less working in software, so after they lose 50% of the sales, they would wind up with hypothetical gain in the net income. In any case, based on the numbers alone, it seems to be rather clear that it makes a whole lot more sense for Nintendo to release a new and good console instead of cutting down their hardware business.

source: NINTENDO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Re:I hope it does well

[StoneyMahoney]

I saw some a comment from someone, either Nintendo or a dev, I can't remember, that said you would absolutely be able to have multiple tablets running graphics simultaneously from a single console, but the wireless tech behind the low-latency graphics is hard-limited to 60fps, pooled amongst all connected devices. This means 60fps for a single display, down to 15fps for four displays.

Re:I hope it does well

[DiEx-15]

Some people have been suggesting that Nintendo might pull out of the hardware (at least non-portable console) market entirely if the Wii U doesn't go over well. I am one who would very much not want to see that. Hopefully this console goes over well, even if it doesn't make the grand entrance that we saw with the original Wii. And yes, I do still play my original Wii. I even bought a new game for it this week.

Good for you.

However, the Wii U doesn't address Nintendo's main problem: GAMES

People and gamers realize that all Nintendo's game consoles are about producing Shigeru Miyamoto games and... that's all. No offerings for die hard gamers. No offerings for RPG players. Just a bunch of kids games made by Nintendo and maybe a few third party games. Just re-re-release a Mario/Zelda/Kirby/Pokemon/etc game, and break even another year...

Want proof? List all of Wii's hits that are NOT made by Nintendo either directly or indirectly. (Metroid, Pokemon, etc. count as "Nintendo made") It is harder than you think...

Until I see more games that interest me, I have no desire to buy a Wii U.

Re:I hope it does well

[Anonymous Coward]

Citation needed. Hard to see how a company that's only had one single annual loss (in 2011 of $260 million US) and is projecting an annual profit this year that will nearly offset that loss has "burned through half its cash reserves" which are said to be enormous.

Have they announced the Three Stooges game package

[Anonymous Coward]

That would be called "WhyU"?

wonder how long it will take for it to get hacked?

[Nyder]

Now is the part I like, how long does it take for the console to get cracked, and by what methods they are able to do it. Probably more exciting then anything else, to some of us.

Last hurrah

[GeneralTurgidson]

Nintendo, you would make money hand over fist if you became multiplatform and did HD remakes for everything. Seriously, swimming in a lake of green.

Re:Last hurrah

[Darkness404]

...Except for the fact that Nintendo routinely revolutionizes the hardware of gaming, not just the software. The NES brought the D-Pad, the GameBoy basically created decent portable gaming, the Wii was imitated by the 2 other consoles.

Nintendo's success is not just because of software, but hardware has a lot to do with it.

Re:Last hurrah

[LocalH]

They're already making money hand over fist.

Re:Last hurrah

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't think people understand how Nintendo makes their money. There is a reason you can't get Mario for the PS3 and it's not so Nintendo can sell you hardware with no margins. It's because, if you can only get Mario on Nintendo hardware, you might just buy other games for Nintendo hardware. Nintendo gets a cut of those sales through licensing.

I'd love for Nintendo to get out of the console business. I can't believe they are still doing this stupid "SD card expansion" BS with the Wii-U. I'd love to see "PlayStation Move by Nintendo" or rock an HD remake of the classic Zelda on PS3.

But that's a pipe dream, because Nintendo isn't in any danger of collapse unless the Wii-U literally does as bad as the Dreamcast (it can't possibly!) and Nintendo can't fix it before they run out of money. I just don't see that happening.

Re:Last hurrah

[BeansBaxter]

SD card is only for wii compatibility. USB external hard drives can be formatted and used with the wii u.

Re:Last hurrah

[LocalH]

Nintendo's the only company from the old school that's still around making hardware. I'd say they're doing something right. Not everything, but enough to succeed.

Also, I agree about the exclusive franchises. Back in the early days of Nintendo video games, this was not the case - all of the most popular early Nintendo arcade games got ported to numerous systems. Donkey Kong, DK Jr, Mario Bros, even Popeye. Once Nintendo found true success in the home market with Super Mario Bros, they abandoned that strategy (for the most part, although they did release an SMB game for a couple of obscure-in-the-West Japanese home computers).

Re:Last hurrah

[rolfwind]

Looking at Nintendo hardware of the past, I think they are unlike other consoles. Since it's less powerful, they probably cut even near the beginning of the life of the console and then start making more and more money during it's lifetime as component prices drop.

Although I don't disagree with your point about branching out, it would perhaps expand their audience. But one counterpoint is that with shipping a console, they can always decide to try to make another sucessful franchise of the pack-in game that comes with it. They have done this with a lot of their successful franchises. They would lose that power once they no longer make hardware and probably also have to bid for that slot.

Re:Last hurrah

[Anonymous Coward]

That kind of misses the point. Nintendo screwed two things up with Wii storage:

1. The amount of space available was paltry.
2. The usage of secondary storage was anything but transparent. It wasn't really even fully functional, ever. They fixed it with a cheap, slow hack.

At best, Nintendo fixed #2 with the Wii-U. At worst, it works the same way as it does on the Wii but you can buy yourself more of it. Yay?

The point of keeping storage small seems to be to reduce the price of the unit. But if I have to then buy external storage, it's not really keeping the price down at all, and it's a much less elegant solution. I get to worry about compatibility, extra cables, extra space, etc., etc., when they could just be selling a model with 120GB in it in the first place.

None of these are huge deals, except... Nintendo should already have learned this lesson.

Re:Last hurrah

[thetoadwarrior]

You do realise you can use any USB hard drive you want. If you want 1TB of space then go for it and shop around for the best priced drive you can find unlike xbox which wants you to buy an overpriced hard drive

Re:Last hurrah

[Anonymous Coward]

The initial price is the biggest issue of entry. Inelegant? FUCKING BRILLIANT! If you look at sales of Xbox 360s when the non-HD models were still being offered as a serious route in. Turns out they sold like gangbusters and people then bought HDs separately. It didn't hurt that it was sometimes cheaper but with the speed of USB (3?) Being accessed for saving and limited DLC it shouldn't be an issue.

Re:Last hurrah

[Anonymous Coward]

Why would you want to see Nintendo out of the console business? They are the only console company out there that doesn't actively go after anyone modifying their consoles. I guess to you that's just something pirates do. However there are a lot of people out there like myself, the real hackers of the world, that like to spend their free time exploring what we can make the technology do technology.

Re:Last hurrah

[Cinder6]

Nintendo hardware isn't historically less powerful than its rivals upon release. The NES was the most powerful thing around until the SMS came out, the SNES was more powerful than the Genesis, the N64 beat the pants off the PS1 and Saturn, and the Gamecube was more powerful than the PS2 (but not the Xbox). On the console front, the Wii is the only time that Nintendo intentionally made something weaker than the competition. The Wii U, right now, is the most powerful thing out there (on consoles), but it won't be when Sony and Microsoft get around to releasing their next offerings.

Granted, the portable front has been a little different, with Nintendo's offerings almost always (or is that always?) being weaker than their competitors' offerings.

Re:Last hurrah

[LoverOfJoy]

I don't know about the latest portables, but in the past Nintendo's offerings were always stronger than the competitors where it counts on the portable front: battery life.

Re:Last hurrah

[xstonedogx]

I'm not really a fan of either approach. I want to mix XBox 360 chocolate with Wii-U peanut butter.

An external USB drive is clunky, not elegant. It's worlds better than a maximum 2GB SD card, though and it's non-proprietary (although I'm sure Wii-U-branded drives are coming).

XBox 360 got it right in that the add-on drive might as well be built in to the unit. But I would much rather have had an enclosure which allows me to buy any standard drive instead. Also, it's not transparent enough. The XBox 360 asks you to select where to save stuff. I don't understand why it should. Either the system shouldn't *care* where stuff is located or if there is a reason it cares, it should make the determination on its own and not bother the user.

Re:Last hurrah

[StoneyMahoney]

When a non-fanboi wants to choose a games console these days, there are a number of things to consider - hardware, online services, multimedia capabilities, etc. One of the most important things is exclusive game franchises. Each platform has it's own collection of games you can't play anywhere else. Nintendo has a healthy selection of these that have been going for decades and, for the most part, they still keep them feeling fresh - that's Nintendo's unacknowledged talent.

Re:Last hurrah

[PhotoJim]

Or just shove a surplus hard drive in a $10 USB case and plug it in. Done.

I personally like the storage being open like this. While it's less pretty, perhaps, it leaves me in control. USB hard drives and flash drives are ubiquitous enough that as long as there are working Wii U consoles, they'll be an option. I won't be dependent on Nintendo for them.

Still!? Really!?

[iYk6]

What do you mean you still play your Wii? Wii is a current gen console. At least, it was yesterday.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Anonymous Coward]

Wii is barely a current gen console. It's a gamecube with a motion controller and white case.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[ZombieBraintrust]

My Wii has been stored in a closet for 2 years. It sits on top of my PS2 next to my Gamecube. The Wii U is a current gen console. The Wii is last gen and has been for awhile now.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Man On Pink Corner]

I thought it was two GameCubes, duct-taped together? Now I'm confused.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Anonymous Coward]

That is good, since modern PCs are just a 486 with a video card and a black case.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Anonymous Coward]

There are quite a few people who bought a Wii and then lost interest, possibly because of moving on to another console. Then there are fanboys who exaggerate this and make claims that no one plays a Wii anymore... because they are threatened by others enjoying different things or something. Anyway, it makes people who still use their Wii console into this mythical beast.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Anonymous Coward]

What do you mean you still play your Wii? Wii is a current gen console. At least, it was yesterday.

if you ignore the obvious target market diff and subscribe to purely technical prowess expected of current consoles and pcs, there are 3 words to explain its perceived backwardness:
No HD out.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Anonymous Coward]

Mine is black...

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Toonol]

My Wii is hooked up to the TV, right next to the PS2.

Consoles don't get worse over time. There are games for the PS2 that you haven't yet played that are better than most anything on the 360.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Anonymous Coward]

the wii devkit looks exactly like this

Re:Still!? Really!?

[aliquis]

Regardless of Troll and Funny moderation together (and with some change of expression) you two would be quite correct.

The obvious advantage of that was of course that Nintendos home consoles sold fewer and fewer units with each generation and this way I assume it become a profitable business for them whereas if they had spent more money into creating it and sold something more advanced who knows.

But I too think a HDMI output for say 2D-games could had been nice (but then maybe the developers would try to put all titles in HD just to make it sound good with inferior results.)

If it was more powerful maybe it would had been seen as more relevant today but I guess this work to. At least it will play your old library to so :)

Re:Still!? Really!?

[thetoadwarrior]

And yet it won the console race.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Gilmoure]

But what will exercise my tv's upgrading of picture?

Actually I just got our Wii working again (cd drive stopped reading disks) after daughter got Zelda Twilight Princess for her birthday. We've been using the XBox for 2012. Daughter doesn't seem to mind differences. I'm not sure she even knows what framerate or HD out is, though.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[MikeBabcock]

I was going to write almost exactly the same thing, I'm glad you got modded up for it.

Now, I believe the EA games comment was "two gamecubes held together with tape" but lol anyway.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[MikeBabcock]

As if selling the most console units to the most people actually matters to anyone except shareholders.

Do you have shares? Thanks for the disclosure.

Personally, I loved the N64, couldn't be bothered getting a Gamecube and didn't enjoy playing games in SD anymore by the time the Wii came out. Now sure, lots of people did, and still put up with it, but it looks like dirt on a big screen.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[MikeBabcock]

I still have my PS2 hooked up as well. Was just playing Shadow Hearts again actually. Ahh ... such really good RPGs.

Meanwhile, I can't play Wii games, they hurt my eyes. Too grainy.

Re:Still!? Really!?

[Anonymous Coward]

LOL at the cognitive dissonance that your unintended irony expresses.

You aren't a gamer. You're a graphics whore.

Link goes to a blog, possible ad traffic tactic?

[Anonymous Coward]

Why is the link pointing to a blog and not the nintendo site?

Please correct it.

SEGA: Been There, Done That

[BenJeremy]

Game controller that also plays games? Yeah, they already did that with the Dreamcast.

Look how well it worked out for them, too.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes, but that equated to going from stunning graphics on the tv to the equivalent of a Tiger LCD handheld. Not exactly an apples to apples comparison.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Darkness404]

I'd hardly put the VMU (essentially a memory card with a screen) in the same class as the WiiU controller. Also, the Dreamcast failed because of a lack of really good games, especially exclusive games. Other than Shenmue, Sonic Adventure 1/2 (the only good 3-D sonic games), Code Veronica, Crazy Taxi and a couple of quirky games (I think one was called Seaman?) there wasn't much going for the Dreamcast.

The Saturn failed for much the same reasons, there weren't any good games for it, Sonic which had sold like hotcakes on the Genesis/Mega Drive had no real game on the Saturn aside from various spin-offs and remakes. It would be like Nintendo releasing a console without Mario or Zelda, or the Xbox without Halo.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[__aaqvdr516]

The Dreamcast didn't fail because of the controller. It failed after Sega rapidly put out Sega CD, the 32X followed quickly by the Saturn. They did all this despite some fierce competition with Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony.

Nintendo has had some bad design choices in the past. I don't think this controller is one of those bad design choices. Time will tell.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Anonymous Coward]

Dreamcast had Phatasy Star Online, and above all else Power Stone 2.

I'm sure I'm not alone in wanting a new Power Stone game. It is still more fun than any of the Smash Bros. games.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[LoverOfJoy]

I owned the Dreamcast and actually loved it. Quite a few really fun games for it. That said, their VMUs were tremendously underutilized. Granted, they were nothing like a tablet but they could have been much more. It wasn't never going to be the VMU that would make or break the Dreamcast, though. It's a much different situation compared to the Wii U

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Anonymous Coward]

The lack of games wasn't it. It didn't help, but it wasn't it.

The Dreamcast was essentially the fourth in a string of console failures:

Sega CD
Sega 32X
Sega Saturn

All innovative experiments that really didn't go anywhere.

It wasn't just the lack of games that killed the Dreamcast. It was a smaller market than it is today, there was already Nintendo and Sony to compete against, and then came the XBox. It was just too crowded already and someone had to die. Why not the ones who were offering a lackluster experience and had already lost during the previous generation?

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[vlueboy]

The Dreamcast didn't fail because of the controller. It failed after Sega rapidly put out Sega CD, the 32X followed quickly by the Saturn. ...Time will tell.

I find an eerie parallel with Memory Alpha's content I read just about an hour ago tonight. It's about the fall of Star Trek from Rick Berman:

I again asked them for a little breathing room, that maybe it wasn't a good idea to slap a new show on the air in what was going to be the third season of Deep Space Nine

...

With the end of Voyager's seventh season, Berman was once again approached to create a new series - one to air in the fall of 2001, mere months after the final broadcast of Voyager.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[captjc]

There was also the fact that Sega screwed over some major toy store chains, and pissed off quite a few high-profile game developers. Add to that the fact that the games could be pirated almost trivially and the Playstation 2 had the killer app of a DVD player.

Basically the Dreamcast was the perfect shit-storm.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Anonymous Coward]

they failed because sony did their sony thing and sonyd it all up.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't forget the GameCube could also use Game Boy Advances as controllers!

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Anonymous Coward]

Dreamcast had Phatasy Star Online

Can't tell if trolling, serious, or just an inadvertantly ignorant console-only junky. PSO was remedial shit.

Right, anyhow, to actually list a decent game: The Dreamcast had Skies of Arcadia. That alone justified purchasing the system.

As for the failure - the Dreamcast failed for two specific reasons. First, Sega beat everyone to the punch in that generation. Which sounds like a good thing, but given how far it was released in advance of the PS2 and Xbox... It was effectively its own 'off-generation'. A great many people out there at the time (and even today) only purchase a single console during a generation. With Sony and Microsoft marketing in full force, people waited rather than jumping on Sega's ailing failboat. And when Sony and Microsoft finally released their systems, the Dreamcast simply had no chance of standing in line against them from a technical perspective.

Second, Sega of America is completely fucking clueless. Even in advance of the PS2 and Xbox, you couldn't swing a dead cat during a commercial break without hitting Sony and Microsoft advertisements. Sega? Sega advertised nothing, relying on... I don't even know. Smug assurance that, hey, we're Sega? Didn't work out too well for sales.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[thetoadwarrior]

Not really. That's in no way remotely similar.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[loufoque]

PSO was the first MMO for consoles, working on 56k modem at the time. That was quite innovative.
The console also had a few good jrpgs, as well as many good multiplayer games, of which equivalents didn't arrive on other consoles before the Nintendo Gamecube (which is similar to the Dreamcast on many aspects).

And of course, the Dreamcast is also still today the best console for shoot em ups, but that's very niche.

when Sony and Microsoft finally released their systems, the Dreamcast simply had no chance of standing in line against them from a technical perspective

Yet most multi-platform games were faster, snappier, and just felt plain better on the Dreamcast. In particular Quake 3, which was awesome on the Dreamcast, but downright unplayable on the PS2.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[Cinder6]

It's also important to note that, thanks to Sega's terrible business tactics leading up to the Dreamcast, Sega probably would have had to leave the console business even if the Dreamcast was a runaway hit.

Re:SEGA: Been There, Done That

[UnknownSoldier]

> there wasn't much going for the Dreamcast.

You missed Soul Caliber 1 & 2, Worms, Tony Hawk Pro Skater, and Jet Set Radio.

Universal Remote

[ZombieBraintrust]

I am considering buying it just to use the tablet thing as my universal remote. I was looking at the Logitech Harmony ILink as to turn my Android phone into a remote but the reviews are not very good. Will wait for reviews on the Wii U. I want to see some Youtube vids of the remote functionality before I buy. Not impressed with the launch games.

Re:Universal Remote

[MMC Monster]

Just bite the bullet and get a Harmony One or (if you need to control devices outside line-of-site) the Harmony 900.

I have two (for different media centers) and bought my dad one as well. Haven't had to reprogram any of them since the initial installation more than a year ago.

You don't appreciate physical buttons on your remote until you lose them all.

Re:Universal Remote

[ZombieBraintrust]

Just bite the bullet and get a Harmony One or (if you need to control devices outside line-of-site) the Harmony 900.

I have two (for different media centers) and bought my dad one as well. Haven't had to reprogram any of them since the initial installation more than a year ago.

You don't appreciate physical buttons on your remote until you lose them all.

Wow look at the prices on those things. $199 for the Harmony One, and $349 for the Harmony 900. Those are new console prices for controllers with less features than new console controllers. I wonder if Logitech is hobbling its IPad and Android apps on purpose. So it can keep selling these overpriced pieces of plastic.

Re:Universal Remote

[david.given]

I'd wait until there's more information about the protocols involved. It's almost certain that the video being displayed on the tablet is being broadcast via radio from the console --- which means it's entirely feasible that the tablet is dumb as rocks and isn't programmable; and that all the logic is actually happening on the console.

If that were the case, the only way you'd be able to repurpose the tablet would be to clone the no-doubt proprietary radio link that the console used, which is probably going to be hard.

In any event I expect the first reverse-engineering reports to come out approximately thirty seconds after this thing ships in the US, so it's not as if we'd have to wait very long.

Re:Universal Remote

[SlashdotOgre]

In my personal experience, using a tablet or phone as a remote over using an actual, dedicated universal remote is one of those things that's better in theory than in practice. This is primarily due to these remotes having a tendency to walk away from the entertainment room, the relatively poor battery life (hours vs days), and the lack of intelligent help & context switching (compared to a Harmony). I can't speak for "ILink", but Logitech has their actual Harmony remotes down to a science. I never understood why someone would spend so much on a remote until I finally bit the bullet and got one (880), and I can honestly say it's one of my best investments in my home entertainment system. Beyond just being able to build macros, it does great things like having an interactive help for when one of the steps fails -- this is fantastic for folks like my wife who no longer needs to know what input the TV & the receiver needs to be set to, what to turn on/change when she wants to watch a bluray, etc. I liked my 880 so much that I grabbed a Harmony One last year. Also, if you're price conscious like me, you can regularly find refurbs for $100 and new ones on sale for $130 around Black Friday. I have no association with Logitech, but the Harmony line is really fantastic.

Re:Universal Remote

[ZombieBraintrust]

I am not sure if your replying to the wrong thread or not. I am not considering hacking the Wii U tablet. Universal Remote functionality is part of its advertised features. I believe they are branding it TVii

Re:Universal Remote

[ZombieBraintrust]

I think the Wii U will solve the first two issues. I don't see the Wii tablet walking too far away from the Wii. While the battery on the Wii U is poor (3 hours gameplay) It would be tethered to the console most of the time.

From what I read the "ILink" downloads your setup every time the app starts. So if your internet is down or if the Harmony website is down then the remote won't work. The Harmony website went down a few times. (Once during a Superbowl)

Re:Universal Remote

[david.given]

Ah, I didn't gather you just wanted the standard functionality. Even so --- can you use the tablet as a remote without having a console? If it's just a dumb terminal it may require the console running to do anything.

Re:Universal Remote

[OverZealous.com]

Wow look at the prices on those things. $199 for the Harmony One, and $349 for the Harmony 900. [...] overpriced pieces of plastic.

I have (and really like) a Harmony One. About 5 years ago, I still worked in the Custom A/V business, building and selling expensive systems for home theaters.

Even then we had the choice between physical button devices and touch-screen devices. Given how much better physical devices were, we'd only sell a touch-screen device if the owner was more concerned about showing off rather than actually using the system.

Devices like the Harmony One have dozens of buttons, and a minimal touch screen. You only need to use the touch screen for major system functions (e.g., activity switching) or for odd buttons (like Aspect Ratio). Otherwise, you can easily control everything without looking down at the remote, or blinding yourself when the screen flips on.

Dedicated control devices (instead of mobile phone applications) have the benefit of always being available — no need to screw around with your phone to mute or pause the TV when your phone rings. And, if you have more than one person in the house, you don't have to give up your phone to control the entertainment.

As for the price, these are specialty items, with a limited market. They are often built with longer life in mind than most smartphones, and with lots and lots of individual buttons. And they aren't subsidized by a wireless provider.

Re:Universal Remote

[ZombieBraintrust]

A $9.99 remote has just as many real buttons as a Harmony 900. You can purchase a laptop for $349. (unsubsidized) Your basically paying $150-$250 for software.

Re:Universal Remote

[teg]

Just bite the bullet and get a Harmony One or (if you need to control devices outside line-of-site) the Harmony 900.

I have two (for different media centers) and bought my dad one as well. Haven't had to reprogram any of them since the initial installation more than a year ago.

You don't appreciate physical buttons on your remote until you lose them all.

I loved the Harmony One, and I've got a Harmony Touch now - but they did not work at all with the Nintendo Wii. To work with the PS3, you need an extra device for converting IR to bluetooth.

The Harmony is great at setting up the other devices that are part of the activity, though - typically a TV and a receiver.

Re:Universal Remote

[bluefoxlucid]

From what I read, we have a world of moronic drooling couch douchebags who haven't figured out that a TV has channels, volume, and an on/off state. The only thing you could possibly want is TV guide and adjustment of color fidelity. Other non-tuner devices--DVR, media (DVD etc) player, VOD (including Netflix)--require a content browser (select from a list, search for title, scene select) and video control features (play, pause, rewind, stop). Hence smart remotes, for dumb people who need 9 million features and interactive help and on-line connectivity via WiFi.

Re:Universal Remote

[MMC Monster]

Damn good software, apparently. ;-)

Re:Have they announced the Three Stooges game pack

[JustOK]

3 Stooges: Ninja. I like the nyuk chucks.

Don't forget the eShop launch titles!

[Anonymous Coward]

There's 5 additional titles available via download from the Wii U eShop at launch: Little Inferno, Trine 2: Director's Cut, Chasing Aurora, Mighty Switch Force: Hyper Drive Edition, and Nano Assault NEO.

Re:Don't forget the eShop launch titles!

[BeansBaxter]

Little Inferno is a fantastic time waster. Recommend.

Missing Games?

[storkus]

The games lineup is a strong one, with games such as New Super Mario Bros U, Arkham City Armoured Edition, Assassins Creed 3, Call of Duty Black Ops 2, Sonic AllStars Racing, Nintendo Land, Tank Tank Tank, ScribbleNauts Unlimited, Epic Mickey 2 The Power of Two, ESPN Sports Connection, DarkSiders 2, Rabbids Land, Mass Effect 3, Ninja Gaiden 3 Razors Edge, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Wipeout 3 and Just Dance 4 all available on launch day.

What, no Hero's Duty, Sugar Rush Speedway, or Fix-It Felix, Jr?

Um.......

[Hsien-Ko]

Isn't there a better source for this news than some third-party Dreamcast enthusiast site? I swear this is submitted to drive that site's attention.

I'm still not coinvinced...

[lord_mike]

...that this platform will be any different from previous Nintendo platforms--a new design full of promise only to become primarily a target for kiddie games and crap shovelware. It's nice that the WiiU has some real games available at launch, but so did the Wii. That phenomenon didn't last very long. Real software shops pulled out of the Nintendo market quicker than [insert humorous NSFW analogy here]. I wouldn't trust them to stick around with the WiiU, either. After all, it's Nintendo--a company that simply refuses to let go of its, "Super Mario plus other cartoony games," forumula. Why would any other software shop take their platform seriously when Nintendo itself does not.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[Kenoli]

After all, it's Nintendo--a company that simply refuses to let go of its, "Super Mario plus other cartoony games," forumula. Why would any other software shop take their platform seriously when Nintendo itself does not.

They're not going to just let go of Mario. That's the best selling video game franchise in the world.

Hundreds of millions of sales sounds pretty serious to me.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[LocalH]

Even "Mario is Missing" is better than 90% of the FPS tripe that's out today.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[Anonymous Coward]

GP's point wasn't "ditch Mario". It was that Mario and Borderlands 2 could live on the same system. It doesn't have to be only Mario and Strawberry Shortcake Superstar Racers. But that's what it becomes, partially because of Nintendo's branding and partially because their systems are so weak relative to other consoles and PC gaming. People who have both a PS3 and a Wii are generally going to buy the PS3 version of a game, with the result that a lot of games don't get ported to Wii.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[aliquis]

Because it looks like cartoons make it a kid game.

Just play the kiddie games. Fuck the shovelware.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[loufoque]

Those cartoony games are not only played by kids.
They're just games for all ages.

Nintendo just manages to make good games without resorting to big guns and baseless violence.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[Anonymous Coward]

Borderlands 2 shouldn't live on any system. It is a fucking sucky piece of shit embarrassment and destroyed the franchise. It is electronic feces.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[Anonymous Coward]

It was strictly a power issue and has had nothing to do with Nintendo's branding, EVER. Nintendo has released ultra-violent games throughout their existence. Rare made a great fighting game who's name eludes me, perfect dark, conker's bad fur day, and others. They aren't afraid to go dark it was simply a power issue for ports. Now that that has been solved we're going to see ports and the new generation of gamers viewing Nintendo with the rest of them once again.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[Anonymous Coward]

Sorry, kid. The Nintendo of today is not the Nintendo I grew up with and yes, it is a branding issue. Honestly, have you ever seen a Wii advertisement?

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[Anonymous Coward]

Aww, somebody is still hurting over getting his Bee shield nerfed.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh, you mean like Batman or Mass Effect being launch day titles? Nope, Nintendo would never go down that route.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[bluefoxlucid]

After all, it's Nintendo--a company that simply refuses to let go of its, "Super Mario plus other cartoony games," forumula.

DarkSiders 2 is rated M for Mature.

Re:I'm still not coinvinced...

[trdrstv]

partially because their systems are so weak relative to other consoles and PC gaming. People who have both a PS3 and a Wii are generally going to buy the PS3 version of a game, with the result that a lot of games don't get ported to Wii.

Though the Wii was a lot less powerful than either the 360 or the PS3 (meaning many games didn't get ported at all) that isn't the case with the Wii U. Call of Duty for Example is Activision has found little difficulty in porting their PS3 / 360 games over to the Wii U and getting them running better. Example Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 Runs 1080p60 native on the Wii U, but 720p on the PS3 / 360. So if you're strictly basing it off of graphics, the Wii U is the best bet.

32 gb deluxe?

[JimboFBX]

With flash memory dirt cheap and hdd even cheaper I'd say I'm surprised they went skimpy on the storage except it's nintendo so I'm not surprised at all. With consoles as old as they are is it really that hard to imagine not having one concession?

Re:32 gb deluxe?

[Anonymous Coward]

It allows you to connect and external hard drive, I wouldn't worry too much
http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/wiiu/en_na/external_usb_storage.jsp
Question 6

Re:32 gb deluxe?

[Anonymous Coward]

Had the same thought too, initially... then thought about the millions of re-releases of the XBox360 and PS3, only to have marginally larger hard drives. Now the hard drive is a separate component that the end-users can easily upgrade using 3rd party standardized hardware (USB HDD), instead of the consoles proprietary drives.

Hell, for me personally, I had a spare 250gb drive laying around. for $15 I got an enclosure for it, and that's it. Not a bad cost for dumping a ton more storage onto the console!

Re:32 gb deluxe?

[trdrstv]

With flash memory dirt cheap and hdd even cheaper I'd say I'm surprised they went skimpy on the storage except it's nintendo so I'm not surprised at all. With consoles as old as they are is it really that hard to imagine not having one concession?

I like that they aren't in the hard drive business and allow you to use your own USB 2.0 Hard Drive (and they support capacities up to 2 TB.).

Nintendo dodges and weaves...

[Anonymous Coward]

Nintendo has proven itself to be a nimble competitor. They routinely reinvent the market and stay relevant despite huge competitors.
I thought they made a mistake by making their own tablet instead of using phones and existing tablets as controllers ( like Microsoft has released to try to undercut Nintendo's new strategy ). I now realize that a standard base system is required ( and thus the tablet ) for good game support of peripherals.

I now realize they've got a bigger picture to paint..
It would be quite funny to see Nintendo walk in and do TV right... Microsoft's tried how many times? Apple? Google..

I think might just kick ass (again).. + they seem to have the market to themselves this year.

Re:Bye bye Nintendo

[O('_')O_Bush]

Yea, which is why it never outsold the other consoles, or remains the most popular of the three.

Reality is, there are many great titles for the Wii, just none worth mentioning for COD fans.

Doomed

[Anonymous Coward]

Nintendo: doomed in five years.. since 1995.

For anyone who preordered...

[Mashiki]

You might very well be disappointed. I have a few friends who work in retail at several B&M stores(walmart, bestbuy, EB), and if what they told me is true half or more of their preorder customers will not be getting their preorders because Nintendo didn't ship enough of these boxes out. Whether that holds true everywhere I can't say, but their rep said that a second shipment won't arrive for another 7-18 days.

Wipeout 3

[Cochonou]

The games lineup is a strong one, with games such as New Super Mario Bros U, Arkham City Armoured Edition, Assassins Creed 3, Call of Duty Black Ops 2, Sonic AllStars Racing, Nintendo Land, Tank Tank Tank, ScribbleNauts Unlimited, Epic Mickey 2 The Power of Two, ESPN Sports Connection, DarkSiders 2, Rabbids Land, Mass Effect 3, Ninja Gaiden 3 Razors Edge, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Wipeout 3 and Just Dance 4 all available on launch day.

This is NOT the Wipeout you are looking for. What a pity.

Super Mario U review

[SternisheFan]

Here's a link to an ArsTechnica review of '$uper MarioBrothers U'. Video games sure have improved since the atari 2600 days.

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2012/11/new-super-mario-bros-u-review-the-best-2d-mario-in-decades/

Re:Bye bye Nintendo

[BonzaiThePenguin]

Reality is, there are many great titles for the Wii, just none worth mentioning for COD fans.

Which is ironic since the Wii has quite a few Call of Duty games.

Just in time?

[Anonymous Coward]

Either you Americans have insanely long Christmas holidays, or you guys have another holiday before Christmas. I just read that the Netherlands is getting them about two weeks from now -- which really is a triple-A stupid move, since 3 days is too close to the largest kids-gift-giving occasion in NL.

Anyway, you guys have more holidays, we have 2 gift-giving occasions in December. I guess it all balances out :)

Re:Just in time?

[BitZtream]

Every year the stores start this crap earlier and earlier.

What you don't realize is they are referring to the 2014 holiday season, not the 2012!

Re:Just in time?

[Cinder6]

Every year the stores start this crap earlier and earlier.

Yep. The Christmas and back-to-school seasons start earlier each year. This year I noticed Macy's had Christmas decorations up well over a week before Halloween. I'm fully expecting to see back-to-school specials cropping up mid-May.

Re:Just in time?

[bluefoxlucid]

It's because Christmas is a retail bubble. A short one.

Mario - not that great

[clickclickdrone]

I suspect all the Mario love is a generational thing. For me, he peaked at Donkey Kong. I grew up with the Apple II/Atari 800/TRS 80/Pet etc so really didn't get that interested in Nintendo at all, that entire NES period passed me by. I did have a Dreamcast, which was me getting back into games then jumped to the 360.
My son had a Wii so I downloaded Mario 64 to see what all the fuss was about as I remembered that being a landmark game and frankly, really couldn't see why people thought it was so great. Maybe you just had to be there at the time.

Re:Mario - not that great

[Anonymous Coward]

I guess you did have to be there at the time...are you a fan of platformers? There may have been a few half-hearted or poorly-executed attempts at 3D platforming before Mario 64, but it set design standards that all modern examples of the genre still follow. I would have expected "Mario love is a generational thing" to refer to *younger* people not liking Mario, not older people.

Re:Mario - not that great

[clickclickdrone]

are you a fan of platformers

Quite like them and there were quite a few good ones pre Mario - Miner 2049er, Mr Robot etc.
As for it appealing to younger people, I'd have thought that those that grew up on NES/SNES *are* older people now :--)

Re:Mario - not that great

[wertigon]

Mario 64 is one heck of a platformer - for it's time. Just like Super Mario Bros 3 is a heck of a platformer for the NES, but today it's kinda sorta a bit dated.

However, playing it on an emulator is not quite the same, since you won't have quite as tight controls (controls are off by around 100ms or so). On the N64 the balance of the game is just right IMO, well designed puzzles, new-ish moves like backflips and longjumps, and epic moments like when you meet Bowser for the second time and he makes the ground almost flip you off. And the difficulty is just enough to be challenging without being frustrating, and the size of the game is just enough to make you want more without actuallly making you tire midway because it's so much. :)

I find Mario Galaxy 2 to be the game Mario64 should've been to be honest, except that I find it a bit *too* large... But to each to his own eh?

Re:Mario - not that great

[Anonymous Coward]

Are you bitter that your penis requires a little pill to get going?

Ummm...

[Sycraft-fu]

Of your examples, only one has stuck around for any length of time and that is d-pad. The motion control has remained firmly a niche thing. While other companies have played with it, by and large it is something that is used only as a gimmick, and in very few titles (outside of the Wii where it is mandatory more or less). Revolutionary it is not.

As for touch screens, you seriously think the DS has driven that? Not even. That would be smartphones all the way. For the most part the touch screen stuff on the DS is again gimmicky, with primary game control being done with the controllers. The heavy touchscreen platform is smartphones.

This also seems to conveniently forget the N64, which was a rather poor showing next to the Playstation. Sony, a brand new company to the console market, managed to rocket to the #1 spot largely because the Saturn was expensive and problematic and the N64 couldn't produce the same visuals and used expensive carts.

Nintendo has not continued to "revolutionize the gaming world" they have just made games and gaming systems, some which have done better than others. Nothing wrong with that but stop trying to pretend like they are some amazing force of nature that drives things forward. No, not really.

The motion control thing is the best example. It fascinated many people, sold a lot of Wiis, encouraged copying, and ultimately changed nothing. A success commercially, not revolutionary.

Re:Ummm...

[Anonymous Coward]

Nintendo developed the playstation with Sony then abandoned it. Untilbthe PS2 and Xbox generation Nintendo was in the driver's seat. This whole fight is between twitch types who support the FPS consoles and Wii lovers. The WiiU now does both, stop complaining.

Re:Ummm...

[bluefoxlucid]

You are a fool. Sony got all their hardware and software development experience by developing for both the Saturn and the N64, and then pulled out and made their own. If they failed, they were tethered to Nintendo and Sega and would make a lot of money; if they succeeded, they would have their own hardware platform and a strong in-house game development branch with lots of experience right out of the gate. They engineered perfect penetration into the market with the right lube and the right sized organ.

Re:Ummm...

[jasenj1]

"Revolutionary it is not."

I think you have a very short memory. Or are extremely jaded. The Wiimote was and is a revolutionary controller. Swinging the controller for golf, tennis, baseball, frisbee, sword fighting, etc. was revolutionary.

You need to read this. Sony and Microsoft were offered the technology that powers the Wiimote. They turned it down. Nintendo now controls the patent on the technology. So yes, it is a niche. But not because it is a gimmick - because Nintendo owns it, and uses it as a competitive differentiator.

- Jasen.

Re:wonder how long it will take for it to get hack

[Anonymous Coward]

If their past record is anything to go by, it shouldn't take all that long. It was pretty hilarious when it emerged the Wii used the same drive firmware password as the gamecube, only made "secure" by being in upper case instead ...

Clocked only 50% higher

[tepples]

In the i486 era, most PCs were clocked no higher than about 75 MHz. Clock rates are about 40 times faster than that by now (with no compensating horrid loss in IPC). Wii, on the other hand, is clocked only 50% faster than a GameCube, and it has just over twice the RAM. So when people say a Wii is an overclocked GameCube with a Bluetooth motion controller, that's what they mean.

Re:Clocked only 50% higher

[Anonymous Coward]

So it's more like a core duo 2 to sandy bridge? Nintendo was at a defecit in raw gaming power and heavily outsold the xbox 360 & PS3. I know this board eskews such lack of tech power but it dominated the market in console sales and made Nintendo a large enough fortune to innovate again. With atleast a 1-2 year lead on the competition they should have a large enough install base that with all current releases coming to it it shouldn't suffer much for some time. Especially as devs will make AAA games to WiiU standards and port to the newer ones.

Re:Clocked only 50% higher

[Anonymous Coward]

Except what that post was replying to didn't even say "over clocked gamecube", and said just "a gamecube with...". A reductio ad absurdum extrapolation was posted to show that is a crappy way to describe the Wii. The fact there is a factor of 40 or whatever difference in clock rate is half the point, that it is a ridiculous description, it wasn't trying to form an exact analogy for PCs.

Consoles get worse over time

[tepples]

Consoles don't get worse over time.

Any user of Other OS Installer for PlayStation 3 would like a word with you. So would anyone who can't play online with strangers due to DNAS -103 errors or the termination of Xbox Live service for original Xbox games.

Microsoft, Sony, and Valve

[tepples]

We definitely need more than just 2 console makers, one of whom also spearheads PCs.

You mean Microsoft, Sony, and reportedly Valve?

Startup cost

[tepples]

The WiiU will be able to play ports of iDevice games

It takes $1250 (including the cost of replacing a PC with a Mac) to get started developing an iDevice game. It takes $200 plus an existing PC to get started developing an Android game. How much does it cost to start porting that game to the Wii U, including meeting Nintendo's requirements to obtain a devkit?

Re:Startup cost

[Anonymous Coward]

Not cheap. At all.

Starting with a requirement to have "a stable business organization with secure office facilities separate from a personal residence ( Home offices do not meet this requirement ), sufficient resources to insure the security of Nintendo confidential information and in order to ensure an effective environment for working with Nintendo and/or its Publishers".

Re:Startup cost

[Tagged_84]

Nice comparison, but to me fair it takes $100 plus an existing Mac to get started developing iOS games. At least that's what it cost me, https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/laundry-rush/id417527984?mt=8 /shameless plug

Gadidae

[tepples]

Reality is, there are many great titles for the Wii, just none worth mentioning for COD fans.

But for fans of all the other kinds of fish, there is Animal Crossing: City Folk.

Then buy one

[tepples]

With flash memory dirt cheap and hdd even cheaper

For one thing, HDD is another moving part, which means more repairs. For another, I've gathered from other comments to this story that people who want the HDD can buy a PC HDD and plug it in, unlike a certain competitor's console that demands a proprietary HDD.

Three reasons to make a new tablet controller

[tepples]

I thought they made a mistake by making their own tablet instead of using phones and existing tablets as controllers

Three reasons: First, existing tablets such as the Kindle Fire, Nexus 7, and iPad wouldn't lock people into Nintendo's eShop like the Wii U GamePad does. Second, developers of Wii U games wouldn't make games targeting them because it wouldn't be guaranteed that players would own them. Owning a smartphone in particular carries the implication that a customer's entertainment budget is already taken by having to pay several hundred per year for a smartphone plan. Third, the Wii U GamePad has traditional physical buttons on the left and right sides because not all genres are amenable to touch-only control. Among major Android tablets, only the forthcoming Archos GamePad and WikiPad come with physical buttons.

It's called Thanksgiving

[tepples]

you guys have another holiday before Christmas

It's called Thanksgiving, and it happens on the first Thursday after November 21. It represents being thankful that the election is over.

Re:It's called Thanksgiving

[eharvill]

It's called Thanksgiving, and it happens on the first Thursday after November 21. It represents being thankful that the election is over.

That's interesting. I've never heard Thanksgiving Day referenced in that manner. I've always known it the be the 4th Thursday in November.

That's why Wii U won't take market from iOS/droid

[tepples]

So in other words, because a lot of smaller developers of casual games won't qualify for Wii U devkits, iPad and Android tablets will continue to see the lion's share of selection of games in the genres popular on iPad and Android tablets.

Just missing a white delux edition.

[Midnight Thunder]

I am torn. I want the delux edition, but I want it in white.

Getting the white edition as is makes no financial sense, since once you have added all the extras, including a base game, in the delux edition you are $100 over the price of the black version. Once there is stock I may end up grudgingly getting the black version. I can understand why thy did this, since it is clear which is which, but that doesn't men I like it.

Rant over

Re:Just missing a white delux edition.

[Anonymous Coward]

The included game is garbage. We played it 30 minutes and shelved it. Don't factor that in to the decision :/

Adapting platformers to a flat sheet of glass

[tepples]

Playing games on a capacitive screen is just more fun than mashing buttons, for many people.

True, a touch screen is ideal for Fruit Ninja or Polarium or Meteos or possibly even for a turn-based game like Pokemon. But how would you adapt, say, Mega Man series to a touch screen? I tried playing Mega Man 2 in Nesoid, and my fingers kept missing the buttons because I was watching the action, not the on-screen gamepad, and a flat sheet of glass provides no feedback as to where my thumb is relative to the edges of the buttons.

Can I have both variety and socialization?

[tepples]

If you like that kind of variety go to PC gaming.

So what if I like that kind of variety, but I also like to play non-FPS, non-RTS video games in the same room with friends who happen to be visiting? Single-screen multiplayer has a higher spouse acceptance factor than a LAN party, yet few PC games support multiple USB gamepads.

Re:Can I have both variety and socialization?

[Xeranar]

Then you live with it I guess? Life is full of compromise. That is simply how it works.

Too early for motion games though...

[WillAdams]

The games I've enjoyed most have been Wii Motion Plus games w/ IR pointing and RPGs rounding out things --- wish there was a blending of all 3 genres:

  - Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword --- amazingly fun, just wish there was DLC and an option to switch handedness
  - Red Steel 2 --- lots of fun, but too short and needed on-line multiplayer
  - Wii Sports Resort --- wish the menus were faster to navigate
  - Xenoblade Chronicles --- wish it were motion controlled w/ more of a 1st person view
  - The Last Story --- the lack of IR pointing for looking / aiming is bizarre, plus motion sword controls and DLC and it'd be the perfect game for me.

Looks Dumb

[ZipXap]

Ok f*ckers, which one of my five kids gets to hold the remote with the LCD? Dumb.

Re:Looks Dumb

[bluefoxlucid]

Why do you have five kids?

Re:Looks Dumb

[TheSkepticalOptimist]

Cause he gets laid.

Re:Looks Dumb

[Anonymous Coward]

And he's Catholic or Mormon? I mean, I get laid. I managed one kid and a miscarriage.

Why must there be a compromise?

[tepples]

Why, technically, must there be a compromise? The PC is perfectly capable of handling a 2-player game; Capcom showed this with the PC version of Street Fighter IV. Why don't more PC game developers make games for people like Penguinshit, TemplePilot, CidHighwind, exomondo, mcgrew, Anonymous Freak, Praetor.Zero, vlm, Belial6, and Fishchip, who have a PC hooked up to a TV?

Re:Have they announced the Three Stooges game pack

[gmhowell]

Oh, a wise guy...

Re:Bye bye Nintendo

[bluefoxlucid]

"Flashy gimmicks" is called "Experimentation" in the entertainment industry. It's risk. It's like when Titan A.E. came out during the hay-day of hollywood movies, versus modern chick-flicks and re-hashes of Resident Evil etc etc. It's like when Marvel started producing superhero movies (based on comics), following in the footsteps of failures like Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (movies based on video games, or at least on a franchise), which itself followed in the footsteps of major successes like Toy Story (full CGI movies).

You can see the impact of a poor economy and fear of piracy with movies like Doom, which was going to be a major experiment--which was relegated to an awesome 5 minute scene in the end from an FPS viewpoint, and instead churned into a Resident Evil clone (which is SAFE and not experimental). A major movie like Doom, following the video game, with a lone hero, with minimal dialogue, major action, would pave the way for movies based on the likes of Metroid. These concepts are too experimental for the movie industry to risk.

Nintendo is throwing down all kinds of experiments, ideas and innovations. Some of them fall, some of them hold. Sony played catch-up to the Wii controller by integrating motion control--poorly. Microsoft tried for the same thing but differentiated itself by expanding on the ideas presented by eyeToy, another way to base in-game movements on actual player physical movements. This isn't desperation; this is progress. This is how progress happens.

Cheap Discount UGG Boots sale

[dsangdhw]

Hello!! Fashion,low price,the good shopping places, Cheap wholesale and retail Gucci/Shoes , ( Discount UGG/Boots ) LV Shoes , DG Shoes , BURBERRY Shoes , LACOSTE Shoes , Women Boots , handbags(Coach lv fendi d&g/Gucci) , Sunglasses(Oakey,coach/Gucci,Armaini) , free shipping and quantity discount, Accept credit card and PAYPAL ==== http://www.cbssbase.com/ ==== ==== http://www.cbssbase.com/ ====