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[Pancake Mix]

Thank you OP. This kind of research and info is why GAF is so amazing.

I don't know what to think of this though. I really feel that iffy internet connections in some Western countries won't really be feeling this.

 

[sinxtanx]

Joke aside... how awesome would it be if the supplimental console could connect to the Wii U? (I mean in addition to the NX, not that it'd be required)

USB 2.0 isn't fast enough

SCDs will probably have custom ports (fiber, maybe)

 

[GDGF]

This just sounds cool as all hell too.

Reminds me of the PS3 cloud stuff from long ago.

Nintendo should just hire Kutaragi

 

[Steejee]

I'm really interested to see how this plays out in the actual final product. Supplemental computing addons aren't really a new thing, but seeing something like that in a finalized gaming product could be intriguing.

 

[Orbis Tabula]

This sounds...well, super damn interesting, basically.

 

[ilium]

Will the cloud user sharing be region free tho?!

 

[Bitch Pudding]

The supplemental device is obviously necessary for B/C to WiiU.

 

[JeffZero]

I really did like your point though.

I think they need to come out of the gates with branding that speaks to something different. Don't even mention backwards compatibility when marketing this thing (even if it does have it). The "Wii" brand shouldn't be anywhere near this thing.

Also, spending marketing dollars too. I felt like the Wii U wasn't marketed much.

Yeah, absolutely. I completely agree.

As for marketing the Wii U, I concur with that as well. Not only was the message woefully unclear, there also wasn't enough of said woefully unclear message to begin with. Nintendo seemed to assume the system would sell on name recognition alone; not the craziest idea, but still kind of crazy.

The Wii fad was deader than dead. I guess there was a prevailing belief that the solution to that was a simple "related hardware refresh." The truth that most of us had recognized is that the Wii concept had grown stale in the minds of casual gamers, utterly replaced with tablets and mobile.

 

[Dreamwriter]

Ignoring the cloud bits, this sounds a lot like what Sega did back in the Genesis days

Both the Sega CD/Mega CD and 32X were supplemental devices that assisted the core system's computing power. And when adding cloud stuff, it's like what Microsoft has been doing recently. So seems strange Nintendo can patent it.

 

[King_Moc]

Home and handheld console working in tandem then?

The cloud stuff is probably just for the account system, cloud saves and video streaming (for Hulu users in America only, or something equally useless probably).

 

[brochiller]

Wow this sounds amazing. I really hope they do something with this.

 

[gafneo]

Ignoring the cloud bits, this sounds a lot like what Sega did back in the Genesis days

Both the Sega CD/Mega CD and 32X were supplemental devices that assisted the core system's computing power. And when adding cloud stuff, it's like what Microsoft has been doing recently. So seems strange Nintendo can patent it.

You forgot the 32x cd.

 

[Fine Ham Abounds]

I don't want to be within 10 miles of this forum on the day the NX is revealed to be a 5" tablet that plays smartphone games and streams WiiU games that shuts itself off when it decides it's time for you to sleep

 

[OryoN]

I like the sound of this!

Though it has been promised in the past, it was never this well thought out. This may be the very first step toward real practical and substantial cloud computing for games. Knowing Nintendo's stance on 60fps gaming(necessary for many of their games) and low latency input response time - and *supposing* this is related to NX - I'm sure they would not pursue this route unless they believe they have the partners, tech, and years of research requiredto pull it off with respectable results(much like with Wii U/Gamepad lag-free streaming that left competitors playing catch-up for a few years)

Based on the proposal, and *if* this is NX related, each console or handheld device may have to be sold with at least one supplemental computing device. That would be necessary to ensure enough computing devices are available for extra processing power in the first place. Being able to connect multiple 'Sup-Coms'(lol, calling dibs on that short form now!) means Nintendo, if they choose to, could actually release even more powerful ones in the future(as still affordable prices) as cost drops.

Providing this works as planned, this would be an interesting way for Nintendo to provide a high performance device at an affordable price, while individual users are still free to increase the 'in-house' performance of their sup-coms via multiple linkages(and remote users in turn will benefit!). Seeing how impossible it is to release dedicated consoles that can compete with current PCs, have a small form-factor, produce relatively low heat, AND release at a mass-market price, this may be the only way for console makers to stay competitive. What's important now is that they make sure their approach is truly ready, and commit to it.

 

[krizzx]

This falls right in line with what I have been expecting. Now if they someone make bring the Wii U into the fold of this supplemental computing functionality, all problems with them leaving the system too early will be resolved.

Ignoring the cloud bits, this sounds a lot like what Sega did back in the Genesis days

Both the Sega CD/Mega CD and 32X were supplemental devices that assisted the core system's computing power. And when adding cloud stuff, it's like what Microsoft has been doing recently. So seems strange Nintendo can patent it.

Given that they can patent, whatever it is, is most likely not what Microsoft has been doing.

 

[Godiego]

Joke aside... how awesome would it be if the supplimental console could connect to the Wii U? (I mean in addition to the NX, not that it'd be required)

It would be really awesome, even after watching the fake announcement of that Super Wii U, I wondered if something like a supplemental console could work, but I suppose that the main console has to be designed with that optional hardware in mind, and I'm not sure if it would be possible to use it on the Wii U.

 

[Vena]

USB 2.0 isn't fast enough

SCDs will probably have custom ports (fiber, maybe)

What about the 5GHz transceiver?

 

[GDGF]

The supplemental device is obviously necessary for B/C to WiiU.

What if you could use it to stream PC games or even competing console games to your handheld (with the added value of exclusive games from Nintendo and their partners)

That would kind of solve the no third party problem lol

 

[Instro]

Confusing, but interesting. Hard to tell what this all means. Maybe the handheld and console connect to each other.vWould the "console/scd" work by itself? Or maybe it's literally 3 different devices and the scd can add additional power to both?

One thought though, maybe this is how they remove themselves from the generational hardware cycle? Games built to scale like PCs and to increase power without making the upgrade super expensive you have the ability to chain devices together. As new devices are released they can slowly faze out incompatible older models. Dunno.

Interested to see what happens next year for sure.

 

[wild wild rice]

I don't want to be within 10 miles of this forum on the day the NX is revealed to be a 5" tablet that plays smartphone games and streams WiiU games that shuts itself off when it decides it's time for you to sleep

NeoGAF will be quiet because all the Nintendo fans will be dead.

 

[shandy706]

Is there anyone still left that thinks cloud gaming was/is made up?

lol

Now I want a handheld Crackdown

 

[Maintenance]

Not this thing again, I don't want an always online platform.

 

[BD1]

Also gives Nintendo the ability to move to an upgrade model, making NX a forever console.

New releases of the supplemental device could theoretically boost the power of the NX without ditching the actual console/handheld hardware.

 

[Kimawolf]

Soooo I can hopefully use my pc/980ti to boost my game performance? Seems what a supplemental box would be to me.my PC.

 

[krizzx]

This is actuallyu something I wish had been done in gaming for over a decade, going back to what SEGA was doing. Most of SEGA's idea's weren't bad. They were just too early coupled with lack of proper support.

I've always wanted to see how connecting and upgrading systems in a SEGA CD/N64 expansion pak way would work today with modern tecnology. With the cost of consoles constantly going up, it makes sense to make a console that can receive some type of performance upgrade over time rather than a constantly getting newer and more expensive systems.

Though, I wonder where the limit of upgrades will lie. You certainly can't use this for graphics processing for too long. The throughput would simply not be enough with a detached hardware system.

Now, I wonder how long it will take Nintendo's competitors to copy it.

 

[ViciousDS]

As I understand this it seems you can either use the cloud or buy an external device that can be used by you or others.By sharing your cloud device you get credits? or what?
Edit: I am refering to this.

sounds like instead of Nintendo investing in servers......you share the power of everyones home and connect to the nearest folks in your location if away from home. When people use your device for cloud computing you get credits. So they get the closest device and possibly lowest latency

 

[orioto]

I still don't get how cloud computing works when that means things are calculated with a delay, as internet connection is slower than what's directly calculated by your device.. I still don't get it..

 

[Disorientator]

Very interesting - good one Rösti.

I've been wondering for a while if it's possible for Nintendo to do something like this, but I never thought of "dedicated" helper hardware, that can even be "shared" no less.

Still I think it's a bit too crazy to properly pull it off, but as always, you never know with Nintendo.

 

[Bitch Pudding]

Not this thing again, I don't want an always online platform.

At this point, Nintendo has other worries than the threat of loosing a couple of customers without decent Internet Connection in 2016 or just unwillingness to connect their consoles to the Internet.

I think it's a good idea, unless it's not (again) Wolf-DRM in sheep's clothing.

 

[Asd202]

I wonder how nintendo will market this it already seems to be complicated for non enthusiastic buyers.

 

[sinxtanx]

What about the 5GHz transceiver?

Could use both.

[0023] As described in further detail below, a game console may also couple to multiple supplemental computing devices to even further increase capabilities of the resulting game system. For instance, multiple supplemental devices may be daisy-chained to one another and/or the game console may be physically coupled or wirelessly coupled to other supplemental computing devices.

But a physical connector must of course be provided if you want to avoid wireless interference

 

[Maintenance]

At this point, Nintendo has other worries than the threat of loosing a couple of customers without decent Internet Connection in 2016 or just unwillingness to connect their consoles to the Internet.

I think it's a good idea, unless it's not (again) Wolf-DRM in sheep's clothing.

Right, because that worked so well for Microsoft. Wii U is already a massive failure, if they start with the wrong foot they'll just implode.

 

[Sandfox]

The fact that i've been trying to understand that for 10 minutes, reading the thread, is in itself a really bad sign of things to come .. Just imagine their marketing

I would imagine that something like this is likely to get a demonstration.

 

[weekev]

Call it Lakitu.

That would be perfect.

 

[sir_bumble_bee]

I wonder how nintendo will market this it already seems to be complicated for non enthusiastic buyers.

If Nintendo are really going for a "all-in-one" device, it would be wise for them to have multiple marketing campaigns targeting different markets.

 

[Aggie CMD]

Sounds like a Super FX box. Instead of adding additional processing power to a cartridge you have an additional hardware unit. The interesting part, or incentive to buy such a unit, is that you can share it over the network to gain credits.

So your neighbor could be using it while you are not and you'd be rewarded.

A pessimist could say that Nintendo is trying to offload data center costs to consumers and have them host their distributed computing environment.

 

[orioto]

I would imagine that something like this is likely to get a demonstration.

When you need a demonstration of your product for people to understand it, it's already dead. As proved WiiU already.

 

[Graphics Horse]

Supplemental computing device? Wtf? I just scoffed at the notion of a modular console yesterday!

So did I and I still do for plugging a handheld into a console.
I hadn't considered distributed computing over a network and I'll have to think about it some more, sounds pretty weird so far., especially if it's not an upgrade system.
There's no reason your distributed computing should have to be running on a seperate device to your local process (although the distributed part would be necessarily be 'always on').

 

[Hydrus]

I have no idea what any of this means. I'm super confused. Somebody dumb down the hell out of this for me.

 

[EloquentM]

Right, because that worked so well for Microsoft. Wii U is already a massive failure, if they start with the wrong foot they'll just implode.

This is not an online only console. Read the thread.

 

[Fourth Storm]

When you need a demonstration of your product for people to understand it, it's already dead. As proved WiiU already.

It's possible that this patent represents an earlier concept for the NX and what we actually get will be slightly evolved. For example, there is a pre-Wii U patent which describes a console wirelessly sending the A/V signal to a sensor bar device connected to a tv.

 

[Sandfox]

I wonder how nintendo will market this it already seems to be complicated for non enthusiastic buyers.

I don't see what's so complicated about "press this button/connect to this device for better graphics".

 

[brainchild]

The implications made in this patent are absolutely mind boggling. I can't wait to hear more!

 

[Haines]

Has there been a lamens explanation posted because I'm not exactly wrapping my head around what this is or what its cool

 

[orioto]

I don't see what's so complicated about "press this button/connect to this device for better graphics".

The touchy part is when they will have to show people how will their game look regardless of how much computing power they have

 

[Asd202]

I don't see what's so complicated about "press this button/connect to this device for better graphics".

Tell that to company that would not present Wii U as a different device than Wii. I think most market will think it's too much hassle and confusing.

 

[sinxtanx]

I have no idea what any of this means. I'm super confused. Somebody dumb down the hell out of this for me.

You have a box connected to your console that contains more memory, CPU and graphics

It makes your console STRONGER

when you're not playing the console can connect to others and do game things remotely for them and Nintendo will give you discounts on games

 

[gamerMan]

While I don' know how it will be executed, it makes a whole lot of sense. It's really the Wii U executed on a much larger scale. Instead of the server being in your house, it's in the cloud. As networks get better, we should have to constantly update our hardware.

 

[krizzx]

The part I want to know more about is the "user compensation" part. Are we going to get "virtua" money for letting people use our systems over the internet or something? If so, sign me aboard.

 

[Aostia]

Not this thing again, I don't want an always online platform.

Have you read the OP?