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Nikkei: Nintendo's NX platform will use an Android OS
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I'm not sure how Witcher 3 will be greatly ported to an underpowered android device. And if by that you mean "ho yeah there won't be witcher 3 but oh my candy crush will be easily ported now!".. then i'll tell you that's a bad decision. That's just Nintendo jumping in a water full of shark without any possibility to jump out of it.
But i don't think that's the idea there. We don't know anything.
It removes the barrier for mobile developers. EA etc won't be back unless they address power concerns not OS
Interceptor
Banned
Thats like saying you can only paint Zelda pictures with that green pencil of yours.
The OS says nothing about the specs.
nephilimdj
Member
Be worrying if they get DeNA to make the OS, then barely anything changes like WiiU OS or past partnerships (Opera and Netfront doing Browsers)
Relaxed Muscle
Member
Maybe not Candy Crush, but there's a myriad of smartphones games that easily fit the portable market that never showed up on 3DS that can now easily happen. That's a considerable amount of possible support.
That's the ones they should care, anyway.
And EA has mobile games.
ArtHands
Thinks buying more servers can fix a bad patch
The OS doesn't determine the type of games that will appear. It also doesn't determine the power of the platform.
Theonik
Member
I am not particularly confident about their frontend either.
protomouse
Member
The games industry is already investing heavily in Android development. Several important engines (Unity, UE4, CryEngine, Havok) run on Android, and many others will need to support Android if they wish to stay relevant. Gartner predicts that the number of Android devices shipped in 2015 will outnumber Windows PCs by 4:1. Yearly PlayStation/Xbox shipments are of course dwarfed by these numbers:
Gartner said:
http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2692318
If Nintendo can lock down the security on their devices, it's literally the best option they could possibly go for. Especially if they are aiming to bridge the gap between mobile, handheld and console. I'm really happy about this, because it's a positive outlook for NX and Nintendo.
However, they'd be wise to distance themselves from the Android brand. It carries far too much stigma among console gamers (as evident in this very thread). OUYA suffered from it. At the core, all the Android APIs need to be there, but there shouldn't be a trace of anything remotely Android-like on the surface.
Panajev2001a
GAF's Pleasant Genius
Without putting a big effort in the art style and content of each target platform, huge part of the cost of games nowadays IMHO, a game would look good on one of the two platform and quite crappy on the other just by turning on effects or tackling them on (depending on the original target platform and the upgrade or downgrade path chosen).
This I can agree with, but I do fear publishers would push developers to target both platforms at the same time or not target the NX at all in order to hedge their bets.
KratosEnergyDrink
Member
Android will be most likely only the base for the NX OS. I doubt it will be fully compatibel with android devices.
Nintendo use android because they don't want to create a new OS for NX from ground up. To build a full new OS would be very complicated and time wasting , because consoles OS are much more complex these days than two gens before.
So Nintendo use a free OS like android as the base and creates their own libraries (graphic system, input system) on top of this.
Nintendo use android because they don't want to create a new OS for NX from ground up. To build a full new OS would be very complicated and time wasting , because consoles OS are much more complex these days than two gens before.
So Nintendo use a free OS like android as the base and creates their own libraries (graphic system, input system) on top of this.
Better than Nintendo's.
Bots are better than you
Banned
While i still don't really have any thoughts on how this might affect the next hardware, in any way, i just wanted to ask the "Android = Mobile"-crowd something:
Are TVs and cars mobile devices? Well cars do move around, yes ... but you know what i mean.
So i guess that running Android (or whatever it will be in the end) doesn't equal cheap and slow hardware, that just happens if Nintendo decides so.
Although i can see them using of the shelf components, for faster price reduction and better work enviroment.
Are TVs and cars mobile devices? Well cars do move around, yes ... but you know what i mean.
So i guess that running Android (or whatever it will be in the end) doesn't equal cheap and slow hardware, that just happens if Nintendo decides so.
Although i can see them using of the shelf components, for faster price reduction and better work enviroment.
Again, I'm putting on my 'I don't know anything so please explain it to me like I'm a moron' hat, but would an Android-based OS really increase the chances of engines like UE4 showing up? I thought Wii U doesn't enjoy such engines because of the nature of its hardware components, rather than anything to do with the OS.
maybe it will have the android OS as part of the a whole package OS ? just like how is the WII is for the WII U ? something like emulating the android OS to the run on the system ? think of blue stacks on pc ?
I don't think the whole OS will be android based. the piracy alone will kill the system so fast in it's first year. specially on Android and more so if these are high popular games like Nintendo games.
I don't think the whole OS will be android based. the piracy alone will kill the system so fast in it's first year. specially on Android and more so if these are high popular games like Nintendo games.
Lilalaunebaer
Member
Seems smart. Have their handheld and home console run Android for scaleable games (Like Smash Bros.4 but easier).
No need to make a completely new OS and waste time and money on it.
Developers can port Android games to the consoles easier.
Also LOL @ the people spewing shit like "lol next ouya, tablet with HDMI, underpowerd".
Android is an OS and has absolutely nothing to do with processing power of the hardware. If they wanted they could have 4 way Titan-sli in their home console on Android. Jesus people.
No need to make a completely new OS and waste time and money on it.
Developers can port Android games to the consoles easier.
Also LOL @ the people spewing shit like "lol next ouya, tablet with HDMI, underpowerd".
Android is an OS and has absolutely nothing to do with processing power of the hardware. If they wanted they could have 4 way Titan-sli in their home console on Android. Jesus people.
My two cents:
Iwata has already stated that they currently don't have plans of merging their mobile and home console business, and given the fact that 3DS is quite older than Wii U it is only reasonable that
their next hardware announcement (NX) will be for a handheld.
So, in a portable market, it makes tons of sense base your OS on something like Android if you plan to get any 3d party support for the next 5 years.
Recently we have seen big companies like Konami and sega admit they are shifting focus to mobile, and after the disappointing sales performance of PSV, Nintendo could be the only one left in the dedicated portable market.
Asking developers to create exclusive engines, and games in this kind of market would be dumb.
So yes, if true, this would be great for Nintendo and could be precisely the thing that the dedicated handeld market needs to survive.
Now about the home console hardware...that is a whole different story since right now the games being developed there are x86 based. Reading what Iwata has said I can imagine they are trying to leapforward their competitors betting that by the time they launch their wii u succesor mobile based games (android) will reach production and quality level of consoles. I doubt it, but I guess we will see...
P.S. Sorry for thw typos, wall of text and bad writing. I wrote this piece from a phone.
Iwata has already stated that they currently don't have plans of merging their mobile and home console business, and given the fact that 3DS is quite older than Wii U it is only reasonable that
their next hardware announcement (NX) will be for a handheld.
So, in a portable market, it makes tons of sense base your OS on something like Android if you plan to get any 3d party support for the next 5 years.
Recently we have seen big companies like Konami and sega admit they are shifting focus to mobile, and after the disappointing sales performance of PSV, Nintendo could be the only one left in the dedicated portable market.
Asking developers to create exclusive engines, and games in this kind of market would be dumb.
So yes, if true, this would be great for Nintendo and could be precisely the thing that the dedicated handeld market needs to survive.
Now about the home console hardware...that is a whole different story since right now the games being developed there are x86 based. Reading what Iwata has said I can imagine they are trying to leapforward their competitors betting that by the time they launch their wii u succesor mobile based games (android) will reach production and quality level of consoles. I doubt it, but I guess we will see...
P.S. Sorry for thw typos, wall of text and bad writing. I wrote this piece from a phone.
jim-jam bongs
Member
Android is such a broad concept these days. You have phones and tablets, sure, but you also have media devices like the Nexus Player and gaming handheld devices like the Shield. Both of the latter have physical controllers, so assumptions about "oh noes not the mobile gamez" are pretty ignorant.
Using Android just means tapping into an existing (and huge) app/developer ecosystem, which in turn means providing the apps which consumers have come to expect on mobile devices with as little effort as possible. It's a brilliant move which will allow Nintendo to focus on what they do best: games.
Using Android just means tapping into an existing (and huge) app/developer ecosystem, which in turn means providing the apps which consumers have come to expect on mobile devices with as little effort as possible. It's a brilliant move which will allow Nintendo to focus on what they do best: games.
Graphics Horse
Member
They ARE merging their home and handheld development. It's just not going to be on a single hardware platform.
witchedwiz
Member
so uhm...
time to polish my android fu?
I mean, no disrespect nintendo, but on android EVERY developers struggle against piracy :X
so either the android layer will be just an "on-top" layer with little to no system capability, or prepare to see piracy @nintendo-ds level....
time to polish my android fu?
I mean, no disrespect nintendo, but on android EVERY developers struggle against piracy :X
so either the android layer will be just an "on-top" layer with little to no system capability, or prepare to see piracy @nintendo-ds level....
If true, I think a lot of people called this, including myself. There were a ton of detractors that did not seem to understand that an Android based OS Nintendo console did not mean an Ouya clone.
In a similar way Android is a Linux based OS but I can't just run my .deb files on it. (Though there is a way to install a full Ubuntu installation...) also as far as gaming devices go I dont think you can just install Sheild games on any other tablet by just copy and pasting the .apk file onto it. Would Sheild Half Life 2 work on a Samsung device easily or would there need to be some modifications to the file to run it?
I think this goes right along with what Nintendo said about bringing console and portable architecture closer together. It would be cool if there were two devices and you built one game but the engine allows it to be extremely scaled up or down according to which one is being used. I think the best visual example of this idea would be the PSTV and the Vita IF the PSTVv rerendered the Vita games similarly to how PPSSPP and a modded version of Desmune allow for rerendered 3D models, as well as higher AA, and other features, and effects. The textures would also be much better on the home device since the portable would essentially compress them all. Game play and UI features could also be unlocked or changed depending on which device you are using. Of course this is if they are a selling both as a package. They could very well sale two different versions of the game for home and portable use.
In a similar way Android is a Linux based OS but I can't just run my .deb files on it. (Though there is a way to install a full Ubuntu installation...) also as far as gaming devices go I dont think you can just install Sheild games on any other tablet by just copy and pasting the .apk file onto it. Would Sheild Half Life 2 work on a Samsung device easily or would there need to be some modifications to the file to run it?
I think this goes right along with what Nintendo said about bringing console and portable architecture closer together. It would be cool if there were two devices and you built one game but the engine allows it to be extremely scaled up or down according to which one is being used. I think the best visual example of this idea would be the PSTV and the Vita IF the PSTVv rerendered the Vita games similarly to how PPSSPP and a modded version of Desmune allow for rerendered 3D models, as well as higher AA, and other features, and effects. The textures would also be much better on the home device since the portable would essentially compress them all. Game play and UI features could also be unlocked or changed depending on which device you are using. Of course this is if they are a selling both as a package. They could very well sale two different versions of the game for home and portable use.
You're right, but nintendo does. They won't go for the best graphics we know that. So if this is all true, we have a good chance of having something android and less powerfull than at least a PS4, which struggles already for big pc titles anyway.
What i'm saying is yeah, i don't see how android os can help to win that fight. If that means competing more with smartphones, this is a war Nintendo will also lose i fear, and hurt his image even more in the process.
This is because anyone can install anything on Android by checking a checkbox.
Anyone who thinks that Nintendo will allow the 'outside installs' portion of Android is nuts.
Milly Osworth
Member
Someone that knows what they are talking about should list the pro and cons of Android for Nintendo.
Iacobellis
Junior Member
This is how I see all three console makers structure their business plan moving forward. Use the same architecture with each console, with a similar OS to eliminate the need for updates to carry over features and keep backwards compatibility each generation.
I'll miss the days of custom silicon that will reward the consumers with more bang for their buck, but someday that will hopefully be solved with what Microsoft initially envisioned with cloud computing.
This will open the doors for developers and hopefully ease the process of development, allowing to create the same code for one or two combinations of hardware, but work with three times that number in platforms.
I'll miss the days of custom silicon that will reward the consumers with more bang for their buck, but someday that will hopefully be solved with what Microsoft initially envisioned with cloud computing.
This will open the doors for developers and hopefully ease the process of development, allowing to create the same code for one or two combinations of hardware, but work with three times that number in platforms.
Jodast
Member
Yep.
I guess that I got a little careless there since what people think of as Android is Google's version and I was trying to make it clear that what they have on their phone is not what they would have on their console. Instead it would be built from the same base but without Google's APIs or apps, kinda like FireOS or community ROMs, which is why I mentioned that it would only be sharing a kernel and some APIs.
So yeah, I guess what I mean to say in short hand is that people need to stop thinking of Android like it is on their mobile device since this will be its own flavour of Android, based on AOSP rather than the Google version and the two will have little in common
Nintendo's Android OS will be modified and not open-source, people. You won't plug that thing into your computer and install random .apk files, come on. Those systems will be closed.
And I also have no clue what the Android OS has to do with the specs of future Nintendo hardware, but carry on
And I also have no clue what the Android OS has to do with the specs of future Nintendo hardware, but carry on
Really interesting news!
I would totally buy it if it can run android games(implying that it's a Handheld with good physical controls obviously).
Imo the best thing to do is to make it dual os, android + propretary(android based or not) or it will be hacked at d1 lol...
I would totally buy it if it can run android games(implying that it's a Handheld with good physical controls obviously).
Imo the best thing to do is to make it dual os, android + propretary(android based or not) or it will be hacked at d1 lol...
Can't you all see it? Nintendo is saving both the mobile and handheld gaming at once, they are the ones who are embracing the future, you complain that they are stuck in the past but now can't accept that they are the ones that are trying to be ahead, if they mange to make this right they will be the winners of the next generation.
Bjoern the Smexy
Member
Everytime you post I silently thank you for making the most sense in any thread.
This
UE4 works on android, so if they would include the basic OS layer/stacks of android (network, filesystem, openGL ES) it shouldn't be too hard to get it up and running.
But UE4 not being on WiiU has more to do with no one willing to put in the effort. It's kind of pointless. For what it's worth, UE3 works on WiiU.
while my assumption is that you are correct in your speculation regarding the nx platform being a shared library among multiple devices, how they handle the media for this thing remains my only wonder.
do they do cards + discs again? do they just make one and have it read on every platform? is every game going to be $40 at retail (i can't imagine a handheld with even higher prices in the mobile age, but cards are expensive and have smaller storage space)?
Well it does raise some interesting speculation about cpu platform (it currently being x86 and ARM and not PowerPC).
I wonder what requirements the GPL nature of Android means for it though, if true.
Toadthemushroom
Member
It's not going to happen. Even if Nintendo forked Android, they would still cede control over to Google, because a lot of games depend on Google Play services, which Nintendo would then have to try and replicate, and keep up to date with Google's offerings, a phenomenal task when you consider how Amazon's Kindle Fire platform barely matches it. If they don't fork Android then it means bundling a bunch of competing services and a competing App Store, so Nintendo can't play the role of a platform holder.
So the idea is to gather third party support, but that doesn't exactly suit Nintendo's position:
Option 1: Don't fork Android: Why should third parties publish their games on Nintendo's platform? They'll just go through Google Play and Google gets a 30-40% cut from every sale
Option 2: Fork Android: Nintendo banned from Android Open Handset Alliance. Nintendo becomes a direct competitor to Google, life made harder for them on a platform that's supposed to make things easier.
It's not going to accomplish that for mobile games either, just look at the response to Windows 10, which MS has made it very easy for iOS/Android ports to happen, but developers aren't biting because of that very issue of needing to support a third platform (much like Amazon's position with Kindle, an Android fork).
When publishers like Square Enix can't even be bothered to support their games on a long-term basis on one-two platforms, who says they'll bother with a third?
How developers really feel about Microsoft welcoming iOS and Android - http://j.mp/1dzqSSB
So the idea is to gather third party support, but that doesn't exactly suit Nintendo's position:
Option 1: Don't fork Android: Why should third parties publish their games on Nintendo's platform? They'll just go through Google Play and Google gets a 30-40% cut from every sale
Option 2: Fork Android: Nintendo banned from Android Open Handset Alliance. Nintendo becomes a direct competitor to Google, life made harder for them on a platform that's supposed to make things easier.
It's not going to accomplish that for mobile games either, just look at the response to Windows 10, which MS has made it very easy for iOS/Android ports to happen, but developers aren't biting because of that very issue of needing to support a third platform (much like Amazon's position with Kindle, an Android fork).
When publishers like Square Enix can't even be bothered to support their games on a long-term basis on one-two platforms, who says they'll bother with a third?
How developers really feel about Microsoft welcoming iOS and Android - http://j.mp/1dzqSSB
DS/3DS has never been powerPC
And the speculation their next home console would go ARM has been there for a long time.Google services work on top of the android base OS. You can perfectly use/install a open source version of android that has none of the google applications/services included.
Yeah. The negativity is rather scary
Quite frankly, the F2P IAP mobile model is a bubble just waiting to be popped. While F2P in this style is not a bad model, it is getting far too much focus from developers and will end up popping once the whales decide to stop biting on all but the very top games that they want to pay into. That's just what happens when there is far too much competition when only a few can ever rise to the top. This doesn't mean that I'm saying F2P will die or that mobile itself is a bubble. F2P can be a great model if done correctly and mobile is practically essential to the modern world. I am saying that mobile as a platform for games will have to change if it wants to survive beyond catering to a 1% of users willing to put money in. In fact, if Nintendo only focused on the sorts of F2P games mobile is known for on the NX, then Nintendo may as well just make mobile games since there would be no point to make dedicated hardware. I also never said that the NX would lack F2P games. Not even the PS4 and XB1 lack them. Again, F2P is a good model when done right. But the vast majority of mobile games don't do the F2P model right, which is sad given how important mobile platforms are.
Sell cards for a handheld and discs for a console. Include a code that adds all the other versions of the game to your account at no extra charge. The discs and cards work just like they do today, but you just download the other versions of it.
Presumably a big part of why Nintendo would go down the avenue they are describing with NX is so they can more easily convert people who own their handheld consoles into being people who also own their home consoles.
I imagine the Wii U would be selling a lot better if 3DS owners could play all the games they own on 3DS on the Wii U.
ArtHands
Thinks buying more servers can fix a bad patch
You are too quick to jump to conclusion here regarding the power of the NX. Discussion of the power aside, the point here is that using Android OS will help in lowering some of the barriers that the major publishers will have to face should they want to port over their games.
but if discs are more expensive than cards, why not just buy the card and use the code to download the game for your console? unless nintendo's planning on some pseudo-xb1 drm.
They wouldn't be more expensive, they would be the same price.
Nintendo will never ever ship a console that requires always online.
maquiladora
Member
I guess you missed the news where Nintendo announced they were going to make some mobile games now.
Toadthemushroom
Member
That's not the point, developers and apps depend on Google Play services for their software to run. If Nintendo ditches them through an Android fork then it has the task of trying to build replicates, just so third party software can operate normally. Trying to replicate Google's vast range of services is a phenomenal task. Remember, the whole point of adopting Android, according to the source, is third party support and cost reasons. Forking Android wouldn't solve these problems.
Further reading:
Google’s iron grip on Android: Controlling open source by any means necessary
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2013...rolling-open-source-by-any-means-necessary/4/
Taking the Android app ecosystem from Google seems easy: just get your own app store up and running, convince developers to upload their apps to it, and you're on your way. But the Google APIs that ship with Play Services are out to stop this by convincing developers to weave dependence on Google into their apps. Google's strategy with Google Play Services is to turn the "Android App Ecosystem" into the "Google Play Ecosystem" by making a developer's life as easy as possible on a Google-approved device—and as difficult as possible on a non-Google-approved device.
If you use any Google APIs and try to run your app on a Kindle, or any other non-Google version of AOSP: surprise! Your app is broken. Google's Android is a very high percentage of the Android market, and developers only really care about making their app easily, making it work well, and reaching a wide audience. Google APIs accomplish all that, with the side effect that your app is now dependent on the device having a Google Apps license.
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