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[Vena]

What I meant was that desite the compression drawbacks the DPI and gammut are fine, and WiiU's output looks gorgeous on the pad.


Depends what you're after. If you're interested in ISAs from a historic perspective, you could read some of the programming manuals of staple species of RISC and CISC. Google up the programming manuals of AMD64 and IA32 (both contemporary CISCs), IBM Gekko (PPC 750-based), Motorola 68K series (iconic CISC series), MIPS32/64 (originally SGI's, later on MIPS consortium, eventually ImgTech), Sun's SPARC. Curiously enough, ARM's ARM (Architecture Reference Manual) book is becoming harder to fetch with each successful generation of the architecture. At the very last ARM require a free registration by email today, which is wtf-worthy in my book ('hey, let's provide a hassle for anybody interested in our ISAs!'). If you're interested in the higher level RISC paradigms, check out RISC V open-source academic ISA design.

Ooh, thanks a bunch! I'll read up on this for now and come back later to suck more knowledge from your brain!

 

[Amentallica]

Just make a competent console that's powerful enough to support third party titles, with no gimmick controller, and with an infrastructure and online features that will allow to buy all Nintendo games dating back to NES. Come the fuck on!

 

[FLAguy954]

A 4" screen at 800x480 (400x480 in 3D mode) has a pixel density of 156 which is slightly higher than the pixel density on the original 3DS which had a pixel density of 132.

I agree that super high resolutions would be a waste of processing power, especially as you surpass "retina" pixel density, but a density of 156 is still super low and not really much of an upgrade over the current 3DS models. Going with 1600x480 (800x480 in 3D mode) would give it a pixel density of 233, which is similar to a 2012 Nexus 7, and should be plenty sharp for gaming.

I agree with this, I hope they go with that resolution as well (especially for BC).

 

[Roo]

Not if Nintendo stick to a simple art style. Many indie games today are 2D (and also built for 720p screens). Would we get lots of graphical bells and whistles like Mario Kart 8 and 3D World? No, but look what they did with Smash on Wii U - 1080p but not lots of additional detail over the Wii version.

It's a conundrum though, and it's hard to know how good a chip AMD can produce in 2016 and with what kind of battery life. 192 shaders (they are currently up to 128)? Will clocks be fixed or will they fluctuate based on load? There will also probably be a thicker abstraction layer this go round so that all games easily play on next gen even if the chipset changes (not all ARMs are compatible).

Also, what form factor are Nintendo going for? A somewhat thick tablet like 2DS and you get a little extra breathing room.

I think that's the key point here.
If they keep a clean and simple art style then yeah, a 720p resolution would be feasible
Similar to this:

Imagine the pic on the left is from the new handheld and the other one is well.. obviously from Wii U
They're virtually the same resolution (technically the same game/franchise) but their art style aproach is completely different.
Would people be ok with that remanins a totally different subject.

 

[disap.ed]

I think that's the key point here.
If they keep a clean and simple art style then yeah, a 720p resolution would be feasible
Similar to this:

Imagine the pic on the left is from the new handheld and the other one is well.. obviously from Wii U
They're virtually the same resolution (technically the same game/franchise) but their art style aproach is completely different.
Would people be ok with that remanins a totally different subject.

Even on the quoted / minimized pic, which is 3,5" on my laptop screen, you can see that the WiiU version has a lot more details. You should really compare the same game to see if the resolution bump from 480p to 720p would be worth it on a 4,5" screen.

Maybe someone could do this with an emulator.

 

[TheMoon]

Just make a competent console that's powerful enough to support third party titles, with no gimmick controller, and with an infrastructure and online features that will allow to buy all Nintendo games dating back to NES. Come the fuck on!

That's exactly what they did this time. Like, exactly this.

 

[DragonSworne]

That's exactly what they did this time. Like, exactly this.

Except that they did the exact opposite this time...

 

[blu]

Just make a competent console that's powerful enough to support third party titles, with no gimmick controller, and with an infrastructure and online features that will allow to buy all Nintendo games dating back to NES. Come the fuck on!

The 'gimmick controller' has allowed me to play perhaps twice as much as I otherwise play on a home console, regardless of brand. I realize that's anecdotal, but I can live with that.

In all other aspects the console was competent.

 

[GhostTrick]

Wait, you think Japanese third parties won't be there for the successor of the (currently) only platform with a major installed base in the country?

Certainly, one of the things that Nintendo should guarantee is to get multi releases of mobile games, like Puzzle&Dragons, Million Arthur, etc.etc. I mean, not just the possible paid version for console audience (like P&DZ, which's been a big success on the platform, with over 1,5 millions sold), but the f2p, "original" versions as well. Currently, 3DS doesn't allow to port easily most of these games, due to its old architecture, so either they're not released or they're reworked. For example, Million Arthur came out just recently on 3DS, reworked. ...And, somehow, it's already over 200,000 downloads. F2P can work on 3DS already (at least download-wise): Initial D is over 600,000; Denpa Men Free is over 1,500,000.
Paid games as well, of course.

Nintendo should try to get them as near as possible to the release of the mobile versions, if not at the same time. No MS's parity clause, though...that does more harm than good XD

Also, if (as New 3DS is possibly an indication) 3D will still be there, I'd say 540p would be the best we can hope for, considering we're probably talking about a 5" top display at max. On 3D (thus, 1920x540), games should look great, correct me if I'm wrong.

Yes, I think so. Just look at 3DS userbase in Japan. It's not only about difficulties to port. There like 16 millions devices here. There's also the fact that a lot of 3rd parties games sold well on 3DS. And yet... you don't see the support such a successful plateform could get.

 

[wsippel]

Why is that? Within the tablet market the iPad Air 2 is currently the most powerful chipset available. Even if it was applied to a games machine would it still not do the job?

Depends on your definition of "doing the job" of course, but it is far from ideal either way. Yes, the SoC is really powerful for what it is, it's just not very efficient when it comes to gaming. It "wastes" silicon on "useless" features, silicon you'd rather spend elsewhere when gaming is all you really care about.

 

[Interceptor]

The 'gimmick controller' has allowed me to play perhaps twice as much as I otherwise play on a home console, regardless of brand. I realize that's anecdotal, but I can live with that.

In all other aspects the console was competent.

Same for me. Quicklaunch, Metroid, F-Zero and Earthbound (!) in my bed are so freaking liberating its not funny anymore. Havent been playing this regulary on a home console since the N64.

 

[sörine]

Except that they did the exact opposite this time...

No, it is pretty much exactly what they did. 360+ class hardware, a bog standard layout for their controller and a modern day online/shop infrastructure. The only reason Wii U isn't swimming in 3rd party crossgen ports like every other current console is that it sold like a Sega console. If it sold like Wii did everyone would be on board with most stuff.

It's a market performance issue more like Gamecube, not a hardware performance issue like Wii.

 

[NeonZ]

No, it is pretty much exactly what they did. 360+ class hardware, a bog standard layout for their controller and a modern day online/shop infrastructure. The only reason Wii U isn't swimming in 3rd party crossgen ports like every other current console is that it sold like a Sega console. If it sold like Wii did everyone would be on board with most stuff.

It's a market performance issue more like Gamecube, not a hardware performance issue like Wii.

"360+" class hardware when the One and PS4 were about to be released. That really isn't hardware friendly to third parties. People have no reason to buy crossgen titles for a console where most of them won't even be upgraded compared to their original versions.

It's exactly the same situation as the Wii, which was a "PS2++" class hardware when the PS3 and 360 were already out, only, in the Wii U's case, the situation is made worse by the bad sales. It's not really comparable to the GameCube at all, which was competitive with the then current PS2 and X-Box, not PSX and Saturn.

 

[Ninja Dom]

No, it is pretty much exactly what they did. 360+ class hardware, a bog standard layout for their controller and a modern day online/shop infrastructure. The only reason Wii U isn't swimming in 3rd party crossgen ports like every other current console is that it sold like a Sega console. If it sold like Wii did everyone would be on board with most stuff.

It's a market performance issue more like Gamecube, not a hardware performance issue like Wii.

Nah, not really. The Wii was around during the CoD's, Mass Effect's, Skyrim, GTA 4, Ninja Gaiden 2, Bioshock, Assassins Creed, Street Fighter 4 era and it never received those big mainline games at the same time as 360 & PS3. Third Parties were on board with the Wii but those AAA action games weren't really there.

 

[PdotMichael]

No, it is pretty much exactly what they did. 360+ class hardware, a bog standard layout for their controller and a modern day online/shop infrastructure. The only reason Wii U isn't swimming in 3rd party crossgen ports like every other current console is that it sold like a Sega console. If it sold like Wii did everyone would be on board with most stuff.

It's a market performance issue more like Gamecube, not a hardware performance issue like Wii.

Third parties were already doing groundwork for next gen engines. The fact that Nintendo was trying to release a 360 tier console at that time was an joke - no third party would invest money into their old gen engines just to support the WiiU for one or two years before moving to next gen titles or even designing their new engines around the WiiU.

 

[DizzyCrow]

From http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=953194&page=100000#footer

According to Sankei Biz, Sharp (already providing Nintendo with the 3D screen of the 3DS) will provide Nintendo with a free-form display for their next handheld (they mention the 3DS or a successor) or maybe their QoL device. It's all a rumour, but quite credible if Sankei Biz is to be believed.

From the looks of it, mass production for that type of screen (not made just for Nintendo, it's one of Sharp's own projects) was supposed to start in 2017, but Sharp managed to speed things up and production will actually start in 2016. Apparently, Nintendo are experimenting with some sort of donut-shapred display.

If that free-form display is for the next handheld, I doubt we're going to see it before late 2016/early 2017 at the earliest. Same for QoL. What's more, costs for such screen will probably be quite high, and we know Nintendo like their components cheap in order to maximise profits on hardware sales... So who knows what it's all about for now.

Source

Thanks StreetsAhead for the help with translation

 

[sörine]

Nah, not really. The Wii was around during the CoD's, Mass Effect's, Skyrim, GTA 4, Ninja Gaiden 2, Bioshock, Assassins Creed, Street Fighter 4 era and it never received those big mainline games at the same time as 360 & PS3. Third Parties were on board with the Wii but those AAA action games weren't really there.

"360+" class hardware when the One and PS4 were about to be released. That really isn't hardware friendly to third parties. People have no reason to buy crossgen titles for a console where most of them won't even be upgraded compared to their original versions.

It's exactly the same situation as the Wii, which was a "PS2++" class hardware when the PS3 and 360 were already out, only, in the Wii U's case, the situation is made worse by the bad sales. It's not really comparable to the GameCube at all, which was competitive with the then current PS2 and X-Box, not PSX and Saturn.

Last gen was a larger generational leap than this gen. 360 and PS3 were absolute customized bleeding edge, while PS4 and One use nearly off the shelf laptop parts. Also, while Wii U's power envelope is clearly far below them, it's design is still more modern compared to the Wii in 2006. It's a more modern design than 360 or PS3, while Wii was actually more antiquated than even the 2001 Xbox at the time of it's release.

Pretty much every major 3rd party game the past year (and in the coming year) is cross-gen though. Wii U can certainly run most of them and has the tools to fully support ports, and while that'll change as the generation goes on and cross-gen is left behind, it really doesn't explain the lack of 3rd party ports now. What explains that is it's Dreamcastic market performance.

Wii had literally the inverse problem. It had more sales than the industry knew what to do with, but the industry had also fully committed to making games for high spec multicore CPUs and unified shader DX8 GPUs over a year earlier and the Wii simply couldn't run most games being made at the time. Same basic result but a different reasoning. Wii U's more in the Gamecube camp despite it's hardware capability and not because of it.

 

[nikatapi]

The 'gimmick controller' has allowed me to play perhaps twice as much as I otherwise play on a home console, regardless of brand. I realize that's anecdotal, but I can live with that.

In all other aspects the console was competent.

Well that's also the case for me, for the little time i've been an owner.

In terms of raw horsepower, it's not that competent, and it is obvious in various multiplatform games. Yeah they're not as optimised as they should be, yeah they're low budget ports, but still we're talking about a console that struggles to compete in multiplats with (now ancient) old machines like the ps3 and xbox360.

My only hope for the next console, is that Nintendo gets out of this "unobstructive" small form factor, which was one of their main goals during the design of the WiiU.

 

[Plinko]

From http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=953194&page=100000#footer

Donut-shaped display? That has to be for QoL.

 

[Mpl90]

Donut-shaped display? That has to be for QoL.

That's coming out next year, though. So...a different QOL device? The sleep-tracker is just the beginning, there will be more QOL devices, so it's a possibility.

 

[McHuj]

It's gotta be for QOL.

With the slide in 3DS sales, I assume Nintendo will unveil the successor handheld in 2015 with a Japanese launch by Spring 2016 at the latest. (3DS was announced in March 2010, I can't believe it's been almost 5 years)

 

[DizzyCrow]

It's gotta be for QOL.

With the slide in 3DS sales, I assume Nintendo will unveil the successor handheld in 2015 with a Japanese launch by Spring 2016 at the latest. (3DS was announced in March 2010, I can't believe it's been almost 5 years)

Yep, the 3DS won't survive as long as the DS, with the support is slowing down even more next year, this is more than likely.

 

[Roo]

Even on the quoted / minimized pic, which is 3,5" on my laptop screen, you can see that the WiiU version has a lot more details. You should really compare the same game to see if the resolution bump from 480p to 720p would be worth it on a 4,5" screen.

Maybe someone could do this with an emulator.

That's exactly my point.
they can have a handheld with a 720p screen (same resolution as most Wii U games)
but obviously the handheld games would be less detailed due to the hardware's nature.

You certainly can't expect to get the exact same game in both consoles even if they share the same resolution.

 

[Schnozberry]

You're probably right. qHD sounds like a good option. Especially if they stick with a dual screen setup for one of their skus. I think they will have at least one tablet SKU, but the DS is pretty iconic and we know Nintendo like to be "different." Simply releasing a Nintendo Vita in 2016 would be sad.

I could see them having two SKUs, but I'm not sure about multiple form factors with different screen configurations. Maybe a slab phone sized SKU and a tablet sized sku in order to satisfy different tastes for portability and hand size. That way, they could make them run the same software, and have the tablet be the premium sku that has a little more resolution and horsepower for those who demand it. It's a very Apple-like approach, but it's one worth emulating.

 

[Oregano]

Is my memory a bit fuzzy or is this a similar timeframe to when we first heard murmurs of Wii U stuff?

Could be looking at an announcement at the end of the fiscal years(to investors) and a showing at E3 2015? That is what happened with both 3DS and Wii U right?

 

[Graphics Horse]

Is my memory a bit fuzzy or is this a similar timeframe to when we first heard murmurs of Wii U stuff?

Could be looking at an announcement at the end of the fiscal years(to investors) and a showing at E3 2015? That is what happened with both 3DS and Wii U right?

That would depend when it launches! I think Café was acknowledged at the end of April about 18 months before launch. A statement about 3DS was Jan or feb. about 12 months before launch.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

There is definitely an OS layer running underneath, but I'm pretty sure low-level CPU calls are enabled since Nintendo mentioned features like the locked L1 data cache in the leaked documentation.

If they go with ARM (and blu/Thraktor have swayed me back that way), I think Wii U BC is out. They can always recompile and release the games again digitally...

Actually, I'm wondering if their next home console has an optical drive at all. Nintendo seem to be against putting both an HDD and optical drive in their systems, and given the choice (and the grim state of their retail space), it might be best to just use a combination of digital and Game Cards for their unified platform.

I suspect that they'll put a DS card slot in. Download to match the DS game if it's any different on the big screen. Some cartridges can just be dummys and just be there to verify the ownership.

Edit: For that matter, they could put an empty slot in the next home console, and you'd buy a piece of cardboard with an NFC chip in it to verify ownership. Slot in whatever card you want to play, and if it's not downloaded, you'll just have to wait...

 

[Nostremitus]

The digital only console that requires online was killed with the Microsoft Xbox One backlash, I think.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

The digital only console that requires online was killed with the Microsoft Xbox One backlash, I think.

I don't think the 'digital only' is what killed it. Make a game card that validates that you own the game the same way any offline console would.

 

[Nostremitus]

I don't think the 'digital only' is what killed it. Make a game card that validates that you own the game the same way any offline console would.

But you would still have to download the game, not everyone has unlimited data. One game could be more than their month's data cap.

 

[TheMoon]

Is my memory a bit fuzzy or is this a similar timeframe to when we first heard murmurs of Wii U stuff?

Could be looking at an announcement at the end of the fiscal years(to investors) and a showing at E3 2015? That is what happened with both 3DS and Wii U right?

Sure if they wanna kill any and all interest for N3DS or Wii U sales now lol.

Not gonna happen. You won't hear about new hardware from them in 2015 that isn't QoL or N3DS.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

But you would still have to download the game, not everyone has unlimited data. One game could be more than their month's data cap.

Where? I'm really curious. I was totally good with that declaration 2-3 years ago, but not so much now. Really not so much two years from now.

 

[Nostremitus]

Where? I'm really curious. I was totally good with that declaration 2-3 years ago, but not so much now. Really not so much two years from now.

The United States...

The majority of the U.S. is still rural. If you want high speed internet, you have to get it through a satellite provider.

Dish:
Up to 10Mbps Download
up to 30GB per month

Hughes Net:
Up to 15 Mbps Download
Up to 20GB Anytime + 20Gbps Bonus per month

Wild Blue:
Up to 1.5Mbps
Up to 17GB Monthly Download

The best one I'm seeing though, (and I just found a website that compiled a list so I'll link to it) is Exede, and you'll pay $75 a month for unlimited browsing and email and 15GB/mo for downloads. But, they provide an early bird "free zone." You have to get up at 3am to start your download and hope it's finished by 8am on their 12Mb/s speeds.

http://www.bestsatelliteproviders.com/satellite-internet-providers/

Their disclosure states that they aren't paid to do reviews and have no affiliation with any service providers.

 

[DizzyCrow]

But you would still have to download the game, not everyone has unlimited data. One game could be more than their month's data cap.

Nintendo is famous for how small their games are, the biggest Nintendo game right now is 15GB, Zelda will probably surpass it though. PC players are doing this for years even with data caps.

 

[Oregano]

That would depend when it launches! I think Café was acknowledged at the end of April about 18 months before launch. A statement about 3DS was Jan or feb. about 12 months before launch.

True, I think the Wii U was only announced so far out because of the rumours. I wonder when third parties will be getting a look. I imagine a few developers might already have an idea, IIRC Nintendo approached Capcom's Takeuchi rather early in the process.

I suspect that they'll put a DS card slot in. Download to match the DS game if it's any different on the big screen. Some cartridges can just be dummys and just be there to verify the ownership.

Edit: For that matter, they could put an empty slot in the next home console, and you'd buy a piece of cardboard with an NFC chip in it to verify ownership. Slot in whatever card you want to play, and if it's not downloaded, you'll just have to wait...

I don't think they would require downloading. Would it not make more sense to have them playable with the "normal", lower res assets with hi-res asset packs working like updates.

"There are high resolution assets available for this software?"

"Download/Update now" or "Play Now"

Would that work?

Sure if they wanna kill any and all interest for N3DS or Wii U sales now lol.

Not gonna happen. You won't hear about new hardware from them in 2015 that isn't QoL or N3DS.

Well it would be the same announcement cycle as the 3DS and Wii U underwent. The vast majority of the general public would be unaware. Hell the general public is still unaware of the 3DS and Wii U now.

 

[flattie]

What explains that is it's Dreamcastic market performance.

I think Nintendo would be happy with 'Dreamcastic' numbers at this point seeing as the Wii U has yet to actually reach them, despite having been available globally for quite a bit longer than the DC was.

 

[Nostremitus]

Nintendo is famous for how small their games are, the biggest Nintendo game right now is 15GB, Zelda will probably surpass it though. PC players are doing this for years even with data caps.

Nintendo hasn't figured how how to stop a download half-way through without having to delete the partially downloaded game and start over. If you reach you data cap before the game in finished downloading, you have to start over the next time. This means that if a game exceeds your data cap, you can't download it at all on the Wii U. Every time I've lost internet while downloading a game on the Wii U I've had to delete the previously downloaded data and start over.

Bayonetta 2 was 32.2GB. It's not Nintendo first party, but is a Wii U exclusive.

 

[Grampa Simpson]

The United States...

The majority of the U.S. is still rural. If you want high speed internet, you have to get it through a satellite provider.

Dish:
Up to 10Mbps Download
up to 30GB per month

Hughes Net:
Up to 15 Mbps Download
Up to 20GB Anytime + 20Gbps Bonus per month

Wild Blue:
Up to 1.5Mbps
Up to 17GB Monthly Download

The best one I'm seeing though, (and I just found a website that compiled a list so I'll link to it) is Exede, and you'll pay $75 a month for unlimited browsing and email and 15GB/mo for downloads. But, they provide an early bird "free zone." You have to get up at 3am to start your download and hope it's finished by 8am on their 12Mb/s speeds.

http://www.bestsatelliteproviders.com/satellite-internet-providers/

Their disclosure states that they aren't paid to do reviews and have no affiliation with any service providers.

The majority of the land mass is rural, but I'm not sure that holds for population. I have cousins in the southwest corner of Iowa (City population of 1500) and they have DSL. I really don't know how far out you have to go to be stuck with Satellite.

 

[Nostremitus]

The majority of the land mass is rural, but I'm not sure that holds for population. I have cousins in the southwest corner of Iowa (City population of 1500) and they have DSL. I really don't know how far out you have to go to be stuck with Satellite.

It's as easy as moving off of a main road. You can get it, but you have to pay the cable company to run the lines out to where you live. That's expensive. For example, i have an uncle who bought a farm in Alabama. His neighbors on the left have Time Warner and the ones on his right have Comcast. In order to get either service, he would have to pay around $1,000 to have either of them run the cable to his property and set it up. He has satellite internet. He isn't even that far off of a main road. Others around him who do not live on his street would have to pay more to have it ran to them.

 

[lyrick]

Nintendo hasn't figured how how to stop a download half-way through without having to delete the partially downloaded game and start over. If you reach you data cap before the game in finished downloading, you have to start over the next time. This means that if a game exceeds your data cap, you can't download it at all on the Wii U. Every time I've lost internet while downloading a game on the Wii U I've had to delete the previously downloaded data and start over.

Bayonetta 2 was 32.2GB. It's not Nintendo first party, but is a Wii U exclusive.

what? This hasn't been a thing on Wii U since at least the first out of the box update.
How to Pause or Resume Downloads

The one or two times I've had a power bump during a download, the download resumed from where it last was.

 

[Nostremitus]

what? This hasn't been a thing on Wii U since at least the first out of the box update.
How to Pause or Resume Downloads

There's a difference between pausing your download, and your internet suddenly stopping. The Wii U can't react to that and the data is corrupted.

 

[DizzyCrow]

Nintendo hasn't figured how how to stop a download half-way through without having to delete the partially downloaded game and start over. If you reach you data cap before the game in finished downloading, you have to start over the next time. This means that if a game exceeds your data cap, you can't download it at all on the Wii U. Every time I've lost internet while downloading a game on the Wii U I've had to delete the previously downloaded data and start over.

Bayonetta 2 was 32.2GB. It's not Nintendo first party, but is a Wii U exclusive.

Actually Baonetta 2 is around 15GB and the first game is around 16GB. I've downloaded Bayonetta 2 three weeks ago and when my router was accidentally turned off I didn't have to restart the download when it was turned on again.

 

[lyrick]

There's a difference between pausing your download, and your internet suddenly stopping. The Wii U can't react to that and the data is corrupted.

That's not what happens though. It simply resumes from where it last was.

 

[Nostremitus]

Actually Baonetta 2 is around 15GB and the first game is around 16GB. I've downloaded Bayonetta 2 three weeks ago and when my router was accidentally turned off I didn't have to restart the download when it was turned on again.

I had to restart the download twice.You were right about the size, I listed the size of them both, I apologize.

That's not what happens though. It simply resumes from where it last was.

There must be something wrong with my Wii U then. I've had to manually delete the data and start over every time my internet has been disrupted. I have the most recent firmware.

Edit:

I guess my Wii U has been acting weird since launch and I had no idea. Anyway, I need to get ready for work.

 

[TheMoon]

I think Nintendo would be happy with 'Dreamcastic' numbers at this point seeing as the Wii U has yet to actually reach them, despite having been available globally for quite a bit longer than the DC was.

DC came out in November '98, discontinued March 2001 (it had sold 6.5m by January that year, after a bit over two years), sold 10m+ LTD according to wikipedia
Wii U came out November 2012, now it's Dec 2014 = 2 years, sold over 7.5m in two years (7.29m [Sep 30 LTD] + 250k Nov. NPD)

Check your math.

 

[lyrick]

DC came out in November '98, discontinued March 2001 (it had sold 6.5m by January that year), sold 10m+ LTD according to wikipedia
Wii U came out November 2012, now it's Dec 2014 = 2 years, sold over 7.5m (7.29m [Sep 30 LTD] + 250k Nov. NPD

Check your math.

There's some magic 10.something Million number on Wikipedia from a "Worst selling Consoles of all time" list. People love to use that number even though there is little to no reference associated with it.

 

[TheMoon]

There's some magic 10.something Million number on Wikipedia from a "Worst selling Consoles of all time" list. People love to use that number even though there is little to no reference associated with it.

Still, the LTD isn't relevant until the Wii U gets shelved. Point is it already sold more than the DC at this point in its life, which is what flattie got wrong.

 

[DizzyCrow]

I don't think they would require downloading. Would it not make more sense to have them playable with the "normal", lower res assets with hi-res asset packs working like updates.

"There are high resolution assets available for this software?"

"Download/Update now" or "Play Now"

Would that work?

Depending on the extent of the sharing they are going for I think this could work, it's similar to what happens on PC.

They can also just sell download codes at retail like they already do with some eShop games on Japan:

I hope Nintendo realises that low-power is not a selling point, they can aim for efficiency but not in detriment of the platform horsepower, because if they don't at least match the PS4 with a lower price point none of the PS and Xbox owners will not want their platform, the same way it happened with the Wii U.

 

[flattie]

DC came out in November '98, discontinued March 2001 (it had sold 6.5m by January that year, after a bit over two years), sold 10m+ LTD according to wikipedia
Wii U came out November 2012, now it's Dec 2014 = 2 years, sold over 7.5m in two years (7.29m [Sep 30 LTD] + 250k Nov. NPD)

Check your math.

I did make a point of saying globally, which for the DC was a year after its JP launch.

 

[sörine]

I did make a point of saying globally, which for the DC was a year after its JP launch.

Globally implies all markets, and the only way to compare that in first release anywhere. Wii U leads DC globally going by those numbers.

If you want to break it down by regions each systems leads in different ones (DC in US, U in Japan, etc).