Support NeoGAF

[Terrell]

Sure, but now we have games that look pretty average being shown on the thing. I think that will do just as much damage. Hence releasing the specs will at least counter that to some degree because I generally think they're favourable. I wouldn't release specs if the 720 or PS4 was just about to come out, but they have a year on that.

Unless, y'know, they don't counter anything, exactly like last time they did it. Never mind that Sony and MS could dump vague hints of target specs right then and there to make for a pissing contest before WiiU hits market. By keeping them silent, MS and Sony have no dicks to measure against except each other's, so to speak.

As I said, misinterpretation about specs did more damage to the GameCube than "average games" ever could. Remember, this is the same console than had SMASH BROTHERS a month from launch and still crashed into 3rd place because of misconceptions about the specs coupled with the beginnings of the "kiddie" retort.

 

[bgassassin]

Those were just rumours about what the hardware would be, and they turned out wrong. They weren't rumours that Nintendo had a faster design in mind then backtracked, though.

?

You repeated what I said.

 

[GameplayWhore]

?

You repeated what I said.

Whoops, lemme try again.

Bachi was looking for a rumour that "Nintendo originally wanted the Wii to be stronger" and then backtracked. The link you gave was only peripherally related to that request. It didn't say anything about Nintendo changing their plans.

 

[bgassassin]

Whoops, lemme try again.

Bachi was looking for a rumour that "Nintendo originally wanted the Wii to be stronger" and then backtracked. The link you gave was only peripherally related to that request. It didn't say anything about Nintendo changing their plans.

Right. We'll more than likely never have confirmation if that was true or not.

 

[USC-fan]

Nowhere near 800. Look at what I quoted.

You are saying 500? That is still on the high end. 300-500 gflops would be the correct range.

The memory that's in the kits now is not DDR4.

Because ddr4 is not out yet? Where is the dev kit specs?

I can't believe people are still doing this song and dance. It's an 8th generation console. It's going to be the weakest member of the 8th generation, just as the Wii was the weakest member of the 7th.

It just the simple fact that it not like it used to be with console. All of them were in the same ball park. Wiiu is in the ps360 ball park. It playing the same game and they look just about the same right now.

Wii change the game and went off and did its own thing.

 

[Roo]

The hell is a "wuu"?

Spoiler

Wii U's predecessor

 

[Agent Unknown]

Originally Posted by USC-fan:
…wuu…Wuu…

The hell is a "wuu"?

 

[GameplayWhore]

Spoiler

Wii U's predecessor

bubbrub.gif

I would also have accepted "the sound a post-mortem humanized partybot makes".

 

[Agent Unknown]

I would also have accepted "the sound a post-mortem humanized partybot makes".

Haha Huh? Ya lost me on that one.

 

[Terrell]

Haha Huh? Ya lost me on that one.

The noise expelled from the folds in Bender's fat when he became human and became a grotesque blob and then died. Futurama reference.

http://www.spike.com/video-clips/cw8wk6/futurama-what-if-bender-was-human

 

[Agent Unknown]

I'm just now catching up on that Gamespot interview with Scott Moffitt. "I think it's 1080p." This guy is terrible. Bad interview overall and he gives off a really weak tone. 'I'm afraid it's a bad answer.' Who says something like that when pushing a product?? This guy is a VP of sales? They seriously better not be grooming him to replace Reggie or something with all these poor public appearances. And correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought NSMBU was already confirmed as 720p so how could he not know this???

The noise expelled from the folds in Bender's fat when he became human and became a grotesque blob and then died. Futurama reference.

http://www.spike.com/video-clips/cw8wk6/futurama-what-if-bender-was-human

Man, I'm so behind on Futurama. A 'bot fan like me has no excuse.

 

[Terrell]

I'm just now catching up on that Gamespot interview with Scott. "I think it's 1080p." This guy is terrible. Bad interview overall and he gives off a really weak tone, this guy is a VP of sales? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought NSMBU was already confirmed as 720p so how could he not know this???



Man, I'm so behind on Futurama. A 'bot fan like me has no excuse.

The problem is likely what was at E3 =/= targets for release date, or some other factor. Besides, if I recall properly, the same source that said it was 720p also said that it had no anti-aliasing, which has since been proven false. Also if I remember rightly, this same source said NONE of the games on display were 1080p, which was disproven by the developer of Scribblenauts.

This is not to excuse Moffitt, though. Part of the problem is that I don't think he's comfortable giving some of the more coy responses and it sets an awful tone. Saying he's giving the "bad answer" when asked about specs is the sign of a man straining against the leash.

And no, there's no excuse. That episode was on the original run of the series on FOX.

 

[Agent Unknown]

The problem is likely what was at E3 =/= targets for release date, or some other factor. Besides, if I recall properly, the same source that said it was 720p also said that it had no anti-aliasing, which has since been proven false. Also if I remember rightly, this same source said NONE of the games on display were 1080p, which was disproven by the developer of Scribblenauts.

So in other words it wasn't officially confirmed and maybe it is 1080p?

This is not to excuse Moffitt, though. Part of the problem is that I don't think he's comfortable giving some of the more coy responses and it sets an awful tone. Saying he's giving the "bad answer" when asked about specs is the sign of a man straining against the leash.

Exactly. But he could at least end it by saying something like "...but in the end I think you'll find that the system is capable of some very impressive visuals that will wow you. Some of our partners (like Grarbox) would agree." Anything, try to create some positive buzz. And remember his lame "Where's the love?" comment during the conference right before he did his segment? Audience: Dead silence. I'll at least give him props for confirming VC content transfer.

And no, there's no excuse. That episode was on the original run of the series on FOX.

Actually I think I do remember that episode now verrrry vaguely. I actually didn't start watching the show until it was released on DVD in 2002/2003. I've actually seen most of the original run episodes but there may be a few stragglers I missed and I don't have (more like don't need) cable so I'm way behind on the Comedy Central epsl. One of my favorites is when Bender adopts a bunch of orphans so he can get welfare. lol Also love the Anthology of Interest "video game wars" where Fry mans a giant Space Invaders tank while Tom Sawyer plays. "Hahaha! You should have aimed for where I was going to be, not where I was!" Classic.

 

[AzaK]

Exactly. But he could at least end it by saying something like "...but in the end I think you'll find that the system is capable of some very impressive visuals that will wow you. Some of our partners (like Grarbox) would agree." Anything, try to create some positive buzz. And remember his lame "Where's the love?" comment during the conference right before he did his segment? Audience: Dead silence. I'll at least give him props for confirming VC content transfer..

It's a real shame that Nintendo don't get themselves a person who can relate to gamers and connect and communicate with them on a more personal level. I guess they are trying to do this with Nintendo directs but for me they're a little too staid and boring. It seems Nintendo are still too scared lot open up and just jazz with customers. They strictly control all information through a very narrow pipe and I don't really feel connected to them on a personal level. And this terror they have with specs or even saying "we will have the best graphics on a console" is just silly.

 

[AniHawk]

I just watched some of the e3 show floor demo videos of AC3. Yeah, it looks "current gen" and all, but damn it's going to take some time for me to get use to it. This HD Nintendo shit is going to be magical.

the guy at the booth said it was the exact same thing visually across the ps3, 360, and wii u.

to be fair this is a 'guy at the booth' but he was the guy who was there playing the game for three days so i'm assuming he knew a little about the behind the scenes process.

 

[Touch]

the guy at the booth said it was the exact same thing visually across the ps3, 360, and wii u.

to be fair this is a 'guy at the booth' but he was the guy who was there playing the game for three days so i'm assuming he knew a little about the behind the scenes process.

That's actually awesome. I'm no graphics whore so this machine being able to pull off current gen visuals out of the box is outstanding (to me). Of course, better is always "better". I just think it's awesome that a Nintendo can pull it off.

Spoiler

not that i didn't believe in them :O

It makes me smile.

 

[Agent Unknown]

It's a real shame that Nintendo don't get themselves a person who can relate to gamers and connect and communicate with them on a more personal level. I guess they are trying to do this with Nintendo directs but for me they're a little too staid and boring. It seems Nintendo are still too scared lot open up and just jazz with customers. They strictly control all information through a very narrow pipe and I don't really feel connected to them on a personal level. And this terror they have with specs or even saying "we will have the best graphics on a console" is just silly.

I couldn't agree more. Even Reggie has seemed a bit awkward and stiff lately. I think they're feeling the pressure.

 

[Terrell]

I couldn't agree more. Even Reggie has seemed a bit awkward and stiff lately. I think they're feeling the pressure.

"Lately"?

 

[onipex]

Am I the only one that watched the wii u panorama demo and thought that someone is going to put the upad tech into a helmet? I wonder if that can be used in a game with the Wiimote to make some cheap virtual reality type experience.

 

[AzaK]

I couldn't agree more. Even Reggie has seemed a bit awkward and stiff lately. I think they're feeling the pressure.

Yeah. They are coming to market first this time, with a console that's only graphically about the same (so far) as current gen HD consoles with MS and Sony coming pretty hard next year with all in one machines. Apple is there too in the back of people's minds and lots of casual gamers are very much into their phones and tablets now. They have generally negative perceptions with enthusiast press built up over this gen, and are again placing everything on a unique controller that seems to be hard to communicate to people. Add in that their handheld struggled at launch and they posted their first loss in 30 years and I can see why they would be a little stressed.

While we still have to see what the machine can do, I think that if at e3 they had have had some graphical showcase titles, or put more tech in to the point they were comfortable to use that in their marketing they might be feeling in a much better position as they could have had a two pronged marketing attack. One to the gamers that like tech and, one to the general consumer. They have said many times that it's the core gamer that buys early and gets the system out there and talking about it, but they didn't impress. Even the Nintendo fan sites are perplexed and unconvinced.

 

[Touch]

Am I the only one that watched the wii u panorama demo and thought that someone is going to put the upad tech into a helmet? I wonder if that can be used in a game with the Wiimote to make some cheap virtual reality type experience.

I don't know but JUST THINK OF THE AIRPLANE DOGFIGHTS! OMG! Can we get Warhawk on the Wii U pls?

 

[Agent Unknown]

"Lately"?

As in more than usual.

 

[DrWong]

It's a real shame that Nintendo don't get themselves a person who can relate to gamers and connect and communicate with them on a more personal level. I guess they are trying to do this with Nintendo directs but for me they're a little too staid and boring. It seems Nintendo are still too scared lot open up and just jazz with customers. They strictly control all information through a very narrow pipe and I don't really feel connected to them on a personal level. And this terror they have with specs or even saying "we will have the best graphics on a console" is just silly.

I don't know. I found Iwata and his banana quite fun and surrealistic. I mean it's the CEO of a big Japanese company doing this in a video displayed on the Internet and 3DS, talking about his next system... Same with the Non Specific Action Figure video, with Iwata, Reggie and Miyamoto. They're acting like characters, which is fun.

 

[burst]

They were obviously just a rumor, but this site lists five. Rumor 1 is the only one I remember being thrown around.

http://members.shaw.ca/judicus/Revolution-rumored-specs.html

pulled from the above rumoured leaks for the revolution
Rumor 1
Controllers: Suggested touch-screen, wireless with a built in battery pack. Possible keyboard - Nintendo has already stated that they are not building a 2-screen system like the DS, so a touchscreen doesn't appear to fit.

Considering how long nintendo have attempted to push asymmetrical controls, with hardly any success with the GBA-GC Link cable and major success with the DS, you would imagine nintendo has some great ideas they have been wanting to explore all these years on a home console. Sad that all we got at e3 was nintendoland. I'm sure it will be great fun, but give us a sizzle real with ideas from the last ten years that you haven't been able to explore, if you are so keen on this control method.

 

[AzaK]

I don't know. I found Iwata and his banana quite fun and surrealistic. I mean it's the CEO of a big Japanese company doing this in a video displayed on the Internet and 3DS, talking about his next system... Same with the Non Specific Action Figure video, with Iwata, Reggie and Miyamoto. They're acting like characters, which is fun.

Their little scenes are amusing, but they aren't actually engaging us in conversation, they are just having fun (and in sme cases obviously marketing to us). It's a one way thing unlike what a community manager would do.

 

[DrWong]

Yep. I was just adressing the "boring" statement. I agree with you for the PR issue.

 

[MDX]

I suspect the UE4 demo was actually used to steal WiiU's thunder.

Epic and MS work closely together, and so when Epic stated that UE4 would
start to get interesting at 1 t-flops, they were basically promoting Durango.
They knew that WiiU was not hitting those numbers.

MS will probably use this as a selling point against the WiiU.
Create the mindset that the WiiU is last gen, like the Wii before it.
I wouldn't be suprised if the 'demon in the demo' is probably a new game
series being made by Epic for Durnago using UE4, replacing GoW.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

What thunder ?

this. says it all

 

[AzaK]

I suspect the UE4 demo was actually used to steal WiiU's thunder.

Epic and MS work closely together, and so when Epic stated that UE4 would
start to get interesting at 1 t-flops, they were basically promoting Durango.
They knew that WiiU was not hitting those numbers.

MS will probably use this as a selling point against the WiiU.
Create the mindset that the WiiU is last gen, like the Wii before it.
I wouldn't be suprised if the 'demon in the demo' is probably a new game
series being made by Epic for Durnago using UE4, replacing GoW.

Yeah it's going to be interesting when the heat is on next year. Nintendo will be counting on their casual audience again to get them a good foothold along with holding the core Nintendo fans with same-as ports of the third party games. MS will likely come out all guns blazing on multiple fronts; the living room box and the high end game machine. I fully expect them to annihilate any sense of Wii U power and basically go for the throat. To be honest while I don't see the Wii U gen being like the Wii (no third party core) I can see once again those core western gamers jumping ship to MS or Sony for those games when their respective consoles come out, even if they get a Wii U to start with.

I'm probbly being a bit over dramatic and still reeling from that shitty e3 but I just have a sense that we might see an even bigger chasm between Nintendo doing their 1st party games and casual 3rd party (with core downports as an afterthought) and the others really going for broke with these all in one set top box, media centremans bigger and more extravagant game titles.

What thunder ?

The thunder in their own minds.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

I think I may be the only one that really wants Nintendo to fail hard with WiiU
I want it to hurt them so bad they never question the need for powerful CPU/GPU ever again
but with so many sheep out there Nintendo failing is harder than people think, the price will not be out of reach for most casuals

 

[fabricated backlash]

I think I may be the only one that really wants Nintendo to fail hard with WiiU
I want it to hurt them so bad they never question the need for powerful CPU/GPU ever again
but with so many sheep out there Nintendo failing is harder than people think, the price will be out of reach for most casuals

The fuck?

 

[lednerg]

I think I may be the only one that really wants Nintendo to fail hard with WiiU
I want it to hurt them so bad they never question the need for powerful CPU/GPU ever again
but with so many sheep out there Nintendo failing is harder than people think, the price will be out of reach for most casuals

Not to get all poetical and shit, but hardware is only a servant to the king - software.

 

[AzaK]

I think I may be the only one that really wants Nintendo to fail hard with WiiU
I want it to hurt them so bad they never question the need for powerful CPU/GPU ever again
but with so many sheep out there Nintendo failing is harder than people think, the price will be out of reach for most casuals

Nope, you are not the only one. I would love to see them kicked hard in the balls if it meant they'd actually get back to giving a fuck about power and promoting that aspect of their machines as well as all the casual and social stuff (which I think is great). Give me a US$400 machine, I'll pay if the tech is in there.


Thing is they have had massively hard times over the last 2 gens in the sense the cube did poorly and the Wii bubble burst followed by 3ds and their first annual loss in video gaming. So what did Nintendo do during those times? They said "fuck it" and did some crazy shit. They gave up the power with the Wii and Wii U is also doing the same (compared to competition). If Wii U failed I imagine they'd release a game and watch next time.

I hate those fuckers and their awesome games and creative vision!

Not to get all poetical and shit, but hardware is only a servant to the king - software.

Absolutely, but we can have both. Just like MS and Sony have done.

 

[Vermillion]

It doesn't need to be super-powerful. It needs to be powerful enough to get ports, and that's about it. Super-strong hardware is... superfluous.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

The fuck?

I fixed it... NOT was missing

 

[Goodlife]

Absolutely, but we can have both. Just like MS and Sony have done.

You need very large pockets to be able to do what MS and Sony have done though.

MS is being propped up by the rest of the company, Sony is in serious shit and needs to start making some money somewhere.

If Nintendo went down that road they'd be gone within a few years as they have nothing else to prop them up

 

[Smiles and Cries]

Not to get all poetical and shit, but hardware is only a servant to the king - software.

no excuse if MS and Sony can pull hardware off Nintendo needs to stop sending out mixed signals with do it my way shit

 

[Captain Smoker]

I think I may be the only one that really wants Nintendo to fail hard with WiiU
I want it to hurt them so bad they never question the need for powerful CPU/GPU ever again
but with so many sheep out there Nintendo failing is harder than people think, the price will not be out of reach for most casuals

This would probably kill them. They can't compensate selling hardware at loss like Microsoft or Sony.

 

[DrWong]

I think I may be the only one that really wants Nintendo to fail hard with WiiU
I want it to hurt them so bad they never question the need for powerful CPU/GPU ever again
but with so many sheep out there Nintendo failing is harder than people think, the price will not be out of reach for most casuals

Disagree.

 

[blu]

Yeah it's going to be interesting when the heat is on next year. Nintendo will be counting on their casual audience again to get them a good foothold along with holding the core Nintendo fans with same-as ports of the third party games. MS will likely come out all guns blazing on multiple fronts; the living room box and the high end game machine. I fully expect them to annihilate any sense of Wii U power and basically go for the throat. To be honest while I don't see the Wii U gen being like the Wii (no third party core) I can see once again those core western gamers jumping ship to MS or Sony for those games when their respective consoles come out, even if they get a Wii U to start with.

I'm probbly being a bit over dramatic and still reeling from that shitty e3 but I just have a sense that we might see an even bigger chasm between Nintendo doing their 1st party games and casual 3rd party (with core downports as an afterthought) and the others really going for broke with these all in one set top box, media centremans bigger and more extravagant game titles.

Not necessarily disagreeing with you there, but MS will need to persuade a good deal of the (paying) market of the worth of MS' subscription model. 'Mom, but it's only 20 bucks a month!' won't hold much ground when the parent knows it's 0 bucks a month with the competition. So it's not nintendo MS need to 'go for the throat' of, it's the darn market they have to win over. The alternative to that is the $600 console, which, as sony so eloquently showed to us this passing gen, is not a business model at all.

The thunder in their own minds.

Frankly I don't think nintendo had those particular illusions. It seems to me they're being too darn strict with their recently-found (ie. post-cube era) principles of 'obligatory universal appeal', 'abstracting the consumer from the hw' and 'disclosing new titles no earlier than a few months to their release', as they apparently believe said principles are worth more in the long term than the associated (and rather apparent) costs of following them. I mean, it's not like anybody believes that by persistently refusing to disclose hw details of the new console, they would somehow succeed in keeping the (inquiring) world away from that box' content. In this regard, nintendo are being very (brutally?) honest with the consumer, as nintendo are not trying to sell any 'potential', 'future-proofness' and what not - they're selling exactly what meets the consumer's eye. And I got to admit that there's something very Zen about this approach.

 

[Aostia]

Absolutely, but we can have both. Just like MS and Sony have done.

To me was harder to be on board with PS3 than Wii, honestly (probably 360 approach was the most balanced)
I didn't like PS3's approach at all, and in any case I prefer to have different approaches to the market, in order to get diversified experiences.
Plus, I don't think that Nintendo could sustain MS/SONY-like efforts in terms of business plan.
I don't want another Dreamcast drama, please.

Up to now I'm not satisfied with the Wii U, but (especially considering the still-to-be-revealed price) it's not a matter of horsepower.

Their biggest problem is to be able to put on the shelves enough games, getting third party support. And, obviously, the lack of a lot of PS360 multiplatform games is not related to the CPU/GPU of the Wii U

 

[DrWong]

And I got to admit that there's something very Zen about this approach.

And mature. ^^

 

[lednerg]

Absolutely, but we can have both. Just like MS and Sony have done.

But at what cost? MS and Sony have set up the conditions for the annihilation of numerous talented studios, where they follow their lead into oblivion via skyrocketing all-in bets. That's not progress, that's merely greed at it's worst, cutting off the industry's nose to spite its face for the sake of appeasing anonymous short-term investors.

The complexity of these new devices only serves to raise the stakes for developers who, in the end, have to either foot the bill or liquidate themselves. They have to guess at which trends will be hot years from now when they start development for an increasingly fickle audience. This forces them into making the safest bets possible - which doesn't translate into the most fun or interesting games, just the ones most likely to cater to the lowest common denominator.

 

[InfiniDragon]

no excuse if MS and Sony can pull hardware off Nintendo needs to stop sending out mixed signals with do it my way shit

Guess you want Nintendo to die out then because the reason Sony and MS "pull it off" is that they throw tons of money at everything. And even that's subjective in Sony's case because they're bleeding cash and floundering around. When the game division of Sony is the one they consider to be doing well and it took years for them to break even and start getting profit...something is very wrong there.

While I do think that a balance of power and cost is best, people saying Nintendo should just copy the competition's business practices when they can't afford to is just silly.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

You need very large pockets to be able to do what MS and Sony have done though.

MS is being propped up by the rest of the company, Sony is in serious shit and needs to start making some money somewhere.

If Nintendo went down that road they'd be gone within a few years as they have nothing else to prop them up

Nintendo only has one core business to protect VideoGAMES

they cannot allow themselves to be out shined every generation by others sooner or later you brand becomes worthless because people just know what to expect from you after 12 years of weak sauce it may become harder for people to take you seriously in an industry you once owned

Its not so impossible for Nintendo to die... Atari, NEC, Philips, Sega, Apple all these companies made a run at consoles some lasted longer than others

I understand Nintendo wants to stay alive by being profitable but being cheap all the time while your competition for gaming/visuals are Highend PC vs Cutting Edge Consoles vs iOS gaming

some where in there you need to find your spot in the eyes of all consumers for this range of stuff. How long will Mario/Zelda keep Nintendo alive?

So even with what you are saying, they can still die in a few years if marketing is falling apart from the current console confusing everyone.

I did not expect to be talking about yet another weak Nintendo home console for another 6 years to come... that does not sound like a bright healthy future for your core business

Nintendo is vulnerable right now, they can be out of it easily

 

[DXB-KNIGHT]

What thunder ?

The pre E3 anticipated thunder that Nintendo made sure never happens in during E3.

 

[Captain Smoker]

Here are some nice gameplay-videos from gamesradar and you see the controller in action:

Project P-100

New Super Mario Bros. U

Zombi U

 

[Smiles and Cries]

The pre E3 anticipated thunder that Nintendo made sure never happens in during E3.

that is the most upsetting part I truly believed they would deliver by Sunday I thought we would have like 3 days of hype overload

 

[Goodlife]

How long will Mario/Zelda keep Nintendo alive?

27 years and counting

 

[Nibel]

Here are some nice gameplay-videos from gamesradar and you see the controller in action:

Project P-100

New Super Mario Bros. U

Zombi U

Thanks!
Those 3 are very good titles I would probably get if I'd buy one

This morning, I was thinking: if Wii U turns out to be a success - would they keep the Wii brand when they present the next console in like 5-x years? How powerfull is the Wii name?