"Controller John Chiang is standing up to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger -- refusing to comply with the devastating Executive Order the Governor signed last Thursday -- despite 28,016 petitions Courage Campaign, CREDO Mobile and True Majority members sent to his office."
From
this gamesindustry.biz article the judge has banned sales of the Wii Classic Controller, Wavebird and Gamecube Classic Controllers.
Sony licensed the patent from Anascape, MSFT got sued as well, but settled. Nintendo fought and lost in court to the tune of $21M. The suit included the Wii controllers, but Nintendo was found not guilty.
If Toshiba has lost, they should go down fighting:
1) Slash the prices. keep the cost BluRay players > HDDVD+$50 players.
2) Slash the prices on the HD-DVDs. Why are they more expensive then BluRay movies anyways?
3) Open the format up to everyone for free. No licensing.
4) Start selling porn on HD-DVD. Lots of it.
5) Quickly reduce the cost of the HDDVD burners and media. You'll start getting people backing up BluRay discs on HDDVD because too many of their kids are wrecking the Disney and Sony Bluray cartoons.
No, it's too expensive individually. 1) I still have my PS2, I can buy the entire Guitar Hero 1 WITH a guitar for a decent price... AND I get the guitar. Heck, I can get two guitars for that price. 2) If it IS that expensive, per Major Nelson, then sell the entire GH1 as a bundle for $89.99 with another guitar. I'd buy that. They are attributing the higher price for the individual packaging. Whereas, if you bundled it up, it would be cheaper. No different than buying music singles versus the entire album. If that's the case, release Guitar Hero 1 for Xbox360, and they're guaranteed a more buyers. I personally, am waiting for the Guitar Hero 3 (80s?) to come out.
Microsoft is doing what they've always been trying to do. Just because it's had success in one area, it tries to push it's product in a totally unrelated area expecting the same success.
I have to say that Xbox live is really well done. However, it's successful because it's the only game in town on the Xbox and 360.
On the PC, there's a plethora of games out there that allow you to play online for free after you purchase it. I can see if my friends are online to play against via IM, Yahoo Messenger, Googletalk, ICQ. I can email them and chat with them. I can VOIP with them. I can download game demos from many sites. I can download videos from many sites.
What can Xbox live offer me that I can't get for free online? Gamerpoints? I can play with UNO with people on Live?
Honestly, if I have Halo 2 for the PC, who is still playing Halo 2 on the Xbox? Halo 3 will be on the 360 by that time, so all those Halo 2 PC gamers will just be playing against someone else who has Halo2 on the PC.
So let's see, rumble technology is soooo last generation, but we've made an expensive agreement to offer it for anything new we've developed. We can force anyone who's rich enough to have bought a PS3 to buy new controllers to upgrade. (If they really want this ancient technology.)
PS3 owners should be really exploiting the motion sensitivity of the PS3 as this is sooo current generation. So current generation that our developers haven't made many games for it. (Although the Wii is obviously a gimmick.)
I feel so sorry for the SONY PR department. I honestly don't think the Sony Playstation development department knows what they're doing at all with the PS3 anymore. The PR department is running around trying cover up the Sony Product Development blunders with every step they take.
This article isn't about Canada being a police state.
It was the US that wanted Canadians to have passports to enter the US. Canada implemented the same requirement for Americans entering Canada.
It was the US that wanted the sharing of criminal records for Canadians travelling into the United States, so Canada implemented the same thing for all Americans visiting Canada.
It was the US that instituted the tightened security measures, Canada just followed suit.
Canadians are already being screened this way entering the US, why are Americans upset when Canada starts doing the same thing?
I hope that Best Buy has they courtesy to tell people their inventory... so if they have 10 PS3s in stock, they will tell the 11th person to go home. They probably won't, as they will take the opportunity to milk as much as they can from the press of it.
How ironic. The lack of PS3s out there will most likely drive people to pick up a Wii or a 360.
So
let's put all this logic together about 6 months after this announcement:
1)
The
Gamecube never really got it's established fanbase.
2)
Around
the same time, Nintendo launches the DS. The "Wii-mote" would have distracted
Nintendo from the DS launch.
3)
Let's
say that had trouble making the "Wii-mote" work... say... the Gamecube lacked the
CPU horsepower, or they needed to "refine" the controller more.
4)
Sony
and MSFT both announces their next-gen consoles at this same time.
So, you have this potentially revolutionary controller. Why
try and compete against Sony and MSFT with the dying Gamecube? Add some
horsepower to the Gamecube. Add a new GPU, and voila... you have a new console.
Therefore, it doesn't surpise me that they COULD have a "pushed"
Gamecube at E3 to demonstrate Wii's capabilities.
1)
It explains the un-exceptional graphics... or at least graphics
the Gamecube could do.
2)
It explains the huge amount of games demoed at E3.
3)
It explains the "Gamecube" housings.
4)
It explains how "polished" the demos were, and how refined the
Wii-mote works.
5)
It explains why the Wii development kits are so cheap... they
are probably very much similar to the Gamecube.
So it doesn't surprise me that the Wii was disguised in
the Gamecube housing. In the end, does it really matter? I'm still buying one
at launch.
Gamasutra has more details on the Nintendo US WiFi plans. "As for software, the American announcement of Wi-Fi for the DS specifically mentioned Mario Kart DS, for which four players at a time can race over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, and which launches November 14, in addition to Animal Crossing: Wild World, in which players can travel to other players' towns or invite up to three other players to visit their own towns, interacting and playing together simultaneously in one town - this title launches December 5th. "
The DS did seem rushed to get it out before the PSP.
However, look at the lineup of the PSP games versus the DS games. There's a lot more fun games for the DS then the PSP.
I'd take the DS anyday.
The very first thing I thought of with dual screens was Nintendo's Arcade Punchout, Super Punchout, and Arm Wrestling game. I'm almost betting that the dual screens will be vertical, ie. stacked right on top of each other... with the controls to the left and right of the bottom one (exactly like the "Game&Watch"). Unique concept, IMHO.... but I think taking advantage of the dual screens will be difficult. My guess will be that the extra screen won't be taken advantage of by most game developers because they are simply not original enough, and there's only so much you can do with it. It will probably be typically used for a "status" display, scoring or radar in most games.
The other question I beg to ask, is will it be backwards compatible with GBA? If so, what will happen with the other screen? I'm hoping it won't turn on, and drain the batteries.
It sounds like they are giving away just the game itself. Who's going to end up playing it?
What's everyone going to do, go out and buy the N-Gage hardware to play the game? It's a pretty inexpensive proposition for Nokia. The software and the memory chip is cheap.
Other then the technological marvel of the controls required for balancing the robot, wouldn't it be so much more cheaper, and efficient for the robot to be on wheels or caterpillar tracks or four legs to travel? You wouldn't think that Bipedular movement is the most efficient form of transport for a robot.
I WAS a French Canadian, and I have left because I could speak english and pursue better opportunities. (...but that's besides the point...)
This is a superficial law. The Quebec laws require the PACKAGING to be bilingual. The handbook and instructions will be bilingual as well. However, the actual game itself (speech, sound, and subtitles) remains the same.
Have people ever noticed that you pay slightly higher prices in Quebec because of that? The extra revenue apparently goes into "language programs" such as these. Quebec did the same thing with the Hollywood movies. France is the same way with American culture.
An easy fix? Regional coding for Quebec / France only. I believe they already have this. If Quebec wants exceptions, then let themselves be seperated from the everyone else.
Perrin's pretty much hit the nail on the head on Nintendo's position in the console wars. It would seem that Nintendo's future looks much brighter for the holiday season... Let's see... #1 selling console in the United States right now, at $99. They probably have the largest number of anticipated games coming out for Xmas.... They're probably the "second" console of choice for gamers who want more then one console... plus they've got a stranglehold as being the "family" friendly game console. Microsoft has been and will always be losing money on Xbox. Sony is losing profit in hardware sales because their console sales have eroded. Nintendo's has increased. MSFT's marketing machine in North America is much more refined then even Sony's is. However, they also spent millions more then anyone else has in marketing (just because Bill can). Considering that Nintendo spends a fraction of MSFT's marketing cost promoting the Xbox, Nintendo's market cost per console sales makes it easier to sell the Cube at $99. Also, Nintendo is in a nice niche right now. It doesn't need to compete for the "older" gamers. Why spend the marketing money? Let MSFT and Sony spend millions in marketing to slug it out for what's left of a saturated "older" gamer market.
It's amazing what you have to do to get consumers to think they are getting a good deal. Just a few months ago, you can get a Gamecube for $149, with a free game or Gameboy Advance Player. Now, sales quadruple because the Gamecube is $99. However, chances are... you'll pick up a game, like Zelda or the GameBoy Player for $49.99... However, it becomes the same deal as a few months ago! Whoever said that Nintendo is losing money, or breaking even with the GameCube price cut has to think about that. I do have to say that I think the majority of the success is partially due to the "Player's Choice" selection.... You get a Gamecube for $99, and a Gamer's Choice game for $30... Can't beat that deal. I'm glad that the price drop has allowed the GameCube to pick up that much needed momentum for people to finally realize just how under appreciated this system really is.
I'm sorry, I'm under the same
opinion as IGN, that the ads cause more confusion, then the
image Nintendo is trying to market through the advertising
campaigns. Just take a look at
how ridiculous this picture looks. It obviously doesn't look
like Nintendo is aiming for the Xbox GenXer or teen. I have to say that most marketing campaigns, at least when they start out, are meant to be confusing. They are supposed to entice you with your curiosity. Let's hope
Nintendo's hyped commercial changes my opinion.
IMHO, they should have marketed games themselves, not the brand.
Isn't this the reason why game console prices in Europe are so
damn high compared to North America? The reason why Sony tried to
get the PS2 classified as a computer is to get a lowered duty
rate so that they can sell the console at cheaper price.
This isn't any different then plasma computer monitors being MUCH
cheaper then plasma TVs. The US charges a higher duty for import
items classified as a TV. (My next TV will be plasma, but it will
be a computer monitor with RGB and SVideo in.)
Slashdot Mirror
There's much more to this story than that, from Crooks and Liars
"Controller John Chiang is standing up to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger -- refusing to comply with the devastating Executive Order the Governor signed last Thursday -- despite 28,016 petitions Courage Campaign, CREDO Mobile and True Majority members sent to his office."
From this gamesindustry.biz article the judge has banned sales of the Wii Classic Controller, Wavebird and Gamecube Classic Controllers.
Sony licensed the patent from Anascape, MSFT got sued as well, but settled. Nintendo fought and lost in court to the tune of $21M. The suit included the Wii controllers, but Nintendo was found not guilty.
There's more information here at bloomberg.
If Toshiba has lost, they should go down fighting:
1) Slash the prices. keep the cost BluRay players > HDDVD+$50 players.
2) Slash the prices on the HD-DVDs. Why are they more expensive then BluRay movies anyways?
3) Open the format up to everyone for free. No licensing.
4) Start selling porn on HD-DVD. Lots of it.
5) Quickly reduce the cost of the HDDVD burners and media. You'll start getting people backing up BluRay discs on HDDVD because too many of their kids are wrecking the Disney and Sony Bluray cartoons.
No, it's too expensive individually.
1) I still have my PS2, I can buy the entire Guitar Hero 1 WITH a guitar for a decent price... AND I get the guitar. Heck, I can get two guitars for that price.
2) If it IS that expensive, per Major Nelson, then sell the entire GH1 as a bundle for $89.99 with another guitar. I'd buy that.
They are attributing the higher price for the individual packaging. Whereas, if you bundled it up, it would be cheaper. No different than buying music singles versus the entire album. If that's the case, release Guitar Hero 1 for Xbox360, and they're guaranteed a more buyers.
I personally, am waiting for the Guitar Hero 3 (80s?) to come out.
Microsoft is doing what they've always been trying to do. Just because it's had success in one area, it tries to push it's product in a totally unrelated area expecting the same success.
I have to say that Xbox live is really well done. However, it's successful because it's the only game in town on the Xbox and 360.
On the PC, there's a plethora of games out there that allow you to play online for free after you purchase it. I can see if my friends are online to play against via IM, Yahoo Messenger, Googletalk, ICQ. I can email them and chat with them. I can VOIP with them. I can download game demos from many sites. I can download videos from many sites.
What can Xbox live offer me that I can't get for free online? Gamerpoints? I can play with UNO with people on Live?
Honestly, if I have Halo 2 for the PC, who is still playing Halo 2 on the Xbox? Halo 3 will be on the 360 by that time, so all those Halo 2 PC gamers will just be playing against someone else who has Halo2 on the PC.
So let's see, rumble technology is soooo last generation, but we've made an expensive agreement to offer it for anything new we've developed. We can force anyone who's rich enough to have bought a PS3 to buy new controllers to upgrade. (If they really want this ancient technology.)
PS3 owners should be really exploiting the motion sensitivity of the PS3 as this is sooo current generation. So current generation that our developers haven't made many games for it. (Although the Wii is obviously a gimmick.)
Our supply system is so good, that we have PS3s sitting on people's shelves. (Although I defy anyone of you from trying to find any PS3s!)
I feel so sorry for the SONY PR department. I honestly don't think the Sony Playstation development department knows what they're doing at all with the PS3 anymore. The PR department is running around trying cover up the Sony Product Development blunders with every step they take.
This article isn't about Canada being a police state.
It was the US that wanted Canadians to have passports to enter the US. Canada implemented the same requirement for Americans entering Canada.
It was the US that wanted the sharing of criminal records for Canadians travelling into the United States, so Canada implemented the same thing for all Americans visiting Canada.
It was the US that instituted the tightened security measures, Canada just followed suit.
Canadians are already being screened this way entering the US, why are Americans upset when Canada starts doing the same thing?
I hope that Best Buy has they courtesy to tell people their inventory... so if they have 10 PS3s in stock, they will tell the 11th person to go home. They probably won't, as they will take the opportunity to milk as much as they can from the press of it. How ironic. The lack of PS3s out there will most likely drive people to pick up a Wii or a 360.
Walmart was apparently offered the Wii demo units, but declined due to safety concerns with children, and lack of floorspace. Of course, that's just rumour.
Doesn't anyone find it interesting that you can browse the internet with the WiiMote, AND OPERA supports "gestures"?
Back in 2004, there were many rumours that Nintendo was going to announce a new peripheral add-on for the Gamecube that would add new functionality and possibly extend the life of the Gamecube. Let's assume that this peripheral was the "Wii-mote".
So let's put all this logic together about 6 months after this announcement:
1) The Gamecube never really got it's established fanbase.
2) Around the same time, Nintendo launches the DS. The "Wii-mote" would have distracted Nintendo from the DS launch.
3) Let's say that had trouble making the "Wii-mote" work... say... the Gamecube lacked the CPU horsepower, or they needed to "refine" the controller more.
4) Sony and MSFT both announces their next-gen consoles at this same time.
So, you have this potentially revolutionary controller. Why try and compete against Sony and MSFT with the dying Gamecube? Add some horsepower to the Gamecube. Add a new GPU, and voila... you have a new console.
Therefore, it doesn't surpise me that they COULD have a "pushed" Gamecube at E3 to demonstrate Wii's capabilities.
1) It explains the un-exceptional graphics... or at least graphics the Gamecube could do.
2) It explains the huge amount of games demoed at E3.
3) It explains the "Gamecube" housings.
4) It explains how "polished" the demos were, and how refined the Wii-mote works.
5) It explains why the Wii development kits are so cheap... they are probably very much similar to the Gamecube.
So it doesn't surprise me that the Wii was disguised in the Gamecube housing. In the end, does it really matter? I'm still buying one at launch.
Gamasutra has more details on the Nintendo US WiFi plans. "As for software, the American announcement of Wi-Fi for the DS specifically mentioned Mario Kart DS, for which four players at a time can race over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, and which launches November 14, in addition to Animal Crossing: Wild World, in which players can travel to other players' towns or invite up to three other players to visit their own towns, interacting and playing together simultaneously in one town - this title launches December 5th. "
The DS did seem rushed to get it out before the PSP. However, look at the lineup of the PSP games versus the DS games. There's a lot more fun games for the DS then the PSP. I'd take the DS anyday.
Over at vgtalk.com, the rumour had been circulating around since March 15. There is a scanned Walmart ad showing the price.
Gamesindustry.biz has the rumour that the new Gameboy DS will be sub 100 or under $180 US dollars.
The very first thing I thought of with dual screens was Nintendo's Arcade Punchout, Super Punchout, and Arm Wrestling game. I'm almost betting that the dual screens will be vertical, ie. stacked right on top of each other... with the controls to the left and right of the bottom one (exactly like the "Game&Watch"). Unique concept, IMHO.... but I think taking advantage of the dual screens will be difficult. My guess will be that the extra screen won't be taken advantage of by most game developers because they are simply not original enough, and there's only so much you can do with it. It will probably be typically used for a "status" display, scoring or radar in most games.
The other question I beg to ask, is will it be backwards compatible with GBA? If so, what will happen with the other screen? I'm hoping it won't turn on, and drain the batteries.
It sounds like they are giving away just the game itself. Who's going to end up playing it? What's everyone going to do, go out and buy the N-Gage hardware to play the game? It's a pretty inexpensive proposition for Nokia. The software and the memory chip is cheap.
It's interesting to note that Take Two has net sales over the BILLION dollar mark.
Other then the technological marvel of the controls required for balancing the robot, wouldn't it be so much more cheaper, and efficient for the robot to be on wheels or caterpillar tracks or four legs to travel? You wouldn't think that Bipedular movement is the most efficient form of transport for a robot.
Pachinko is an Asian gambling machine, and most people aren't aware that Sega makes gambling machines (Royal Derby, Blackjack, Royal Ascot, Bingo Party, and Roulette Club) as well.
I WAS a French Canadian, and I have left because I could speak english and pursue better opportunities. (...but that's besides the point...)
This is a superficial law. The Quebec laws require the PACKAGING to be bilingual. The handbook and instructions will be bilingual as well. However, the actual game itself (speech, sound, and subtitles) remains the same.
Have people ever noticed that you pay slightly higher prices in Quebec because of that? The extra revenue apparently goes into "language programs" such as these. Quebec did the same thing with the Hollywood movies. France is the same way with American culture.
An easy fix? Regional coding for Quebec / France only. I believe they already have this. If Quebec wants exceptions, then let themselves be seperated from the everyone else.
Perrin's pretty much hit the nail on the head on Nintendo's position in the console wars. It would seem that Nintendo's future looks much brighter for the holiday season... Let's see... #1 selling console in the United States right now, at $99. They probably have the largest number of anticipated games coming out for Xmas.... They're probably the "second" console of choice for gamers who want more then one console... plus they've got a stranglehold as being the "family" friendly game console.
Microsoft has been and will always be losing money on Xbox. Sony is losing profit in hardware sales because their console sales have eroded. Nintendo's has increased.
MSFT's marketing machine in North America is much more refined then even Sony's is. However, they also spent millions more then anyone else has in marketing (just because Bill can). Considering that Nintendo spends a fraction of MSFT's marketing cost promoting the Xbox, Nintendo's market cost per console sales makes it easier to sell the Cube at $99.
Also, Nintendo is in a nice niche right now. It doesn't need to compete for the "older" gamers. Why spend the marketing money? Let MSFT and Sony spend millions in marketing to slug it out for what's left of a saturated "older" gamer market.
It's amazing what you have to do to get consumers to think they are getting a good deal. Just a few months ago, you can get a Gamecube for $149, with a free game or Gameboy Advance Player. Now, sales quadruple because the Gamecube is $99. However, chances are... you'll pick up a game, like Zelda or the GameBoy Player for $49.99... However, it becomes the same deal as a few months ago! Whoever said that Nintendo is losing money, or breaking even with the GameCube price cut has to think about that.
I do have to say that I think the majority of the success is partially due to the "Player's Choice" selection.... You get a Gamecube for $99, and a Gamer's Choice game for $30... Can't beat that deal.
I'm glad that the price drop has allowed the GameCube to pick up that much needed momentum for people to finally realize just how under appreciated this system really is.
I'm sorry, I'm under the same opinion as IGN, that the ads cause more confusion, then the image Nintendo is trying to market through the advertising campaigns. Just take a look at how ridiculous this picture looks. It obviously doesn't look like Nintendo is aiming for the Xbox GenXer or teen. I have to say that most marketing campaigns, at least when they start out, are meant to be confusing. They are supposed to entice you with your curiosity. Let's hope Nintendo's hyped commercial changes my opinion.
IMHO, they should have marketed games themselves, not the brand.
Isn't this the reason why game console prices in Europe are so damn high compared to North America? The reason why Sony tried to get the PS2 classified as a computer is to get a lowered duty rate so that they can sell the console at cheaper price.
This isn't any different then plasma computer monitors being MUCH cheaper then plasma TVs. The US charges a higher duty for import items classified as a TV. (My next TV will be plasma, but it will be a computer monitor with RGB and SVideo in.)