Yeah, I think the important thing to note here is that most all the people who’ve actually tried it, like it!.
Certainly a fairly innovative design. Yeah, I can see a lot of possible drawbacks and pitfalls, but I reserve judgement. Sometimes things that seems weird ahead of time actually turn out to be really fun!
It’s probably one of the same people as Pochacco. Friend-via-message board type of friend.
It’s a remote control. Call it whatever you want, it’s a remote control.
I think Nintendo’s definitely got the potential for this to be a massive screwup. You can forget about sports games on the Revolution with that controller. It may be good for FPS games, but there’s no way to play Madden on that thing.
By design. Nintendo has decided that it can’t compete with Microsoft and Sony for the hardcore market, so they’re trying to open up the casual gamer market to people who wouldn’t normally play games. Making the controller look like a normal, non-threatening remote control is part of that strategy.
Personally, I think they’re toast. I thought they were toast at GDC in March when they announced (essentially) that that’s what their plan was. Maybe it will work in Japan where PC ownership is rare, but in the U.S. the casual market is already served by downloadable PC games. I just can’t see granny shelling out money for a Revolution so she can play Bejeweled when she can download it from Popcap.
Nintendo also seems to be focusing on quirky and weird titles. I think that’s really brave and cool, but I question it’s validity as a business model. I love Katamari Damacy and **Ico ** and I’m glad they’ve found their niche in the market. But you gotta have solid cash cows like Madden and Gran Turismo to support a platform.
That said, as a game designer I think the new controller is really sweet. And I admire Nintendo for having the guts to try something original. I hope that it’s so successful that Sony is forced to rip it off … .
Was Katamari Damacy mentioned just for the sake of example, or is it going to actually be available for a Nintendo system? I thought it was a PS2 game.
No, just for principle. My point is that quirky games, even really good quirky games, tend to have small audiences.
Nintendo seems to have two contradictory strategies: pushing for quirky, original games and trying to make their system appeal to very casual gamers to broaden their potential audience.
I don’t think **Electroplankton ** is going to bring a lot of non-gamers into gaming.
On the other hand, **Nintendogs ** probably will … so maybe I’m full of it. I’m sure Nintendo has done a lot of market research and I’m just going in gut instinct.
If you’ve ever used a Gyration Wireless Mouse then you already know what this thing will feel like.
It’s a standard mouse but you can hold it in the air and gyros take over for all mouse movements. It sounds like it would be a pain but I can tell you, it’s a very intuitive feel and you don’t have to point the thing at your TV to use it. It’s RF. And you control it from the wrist, not the whole arm.
I’m sure it’s not EXACTLY like the Gyration but I’m sure it’s using alot of the same technology.
The only negative about it is that it can get “lost” in 3-D space. Say the pointer hits the right edge of the screen and you continue to move your wrist/arm right it will center strangely because the bearing is off.
All in all this will make for some cool games.
Anyone else remember the Power Glove? That is up there for weird/pointless peripherals, considering we’ve got the EyeToy, light guns of various types, dance pads, fishing rods, steering wheels and pedals, joysticks, maracas, bongos, taiko drums, the Dreamcast VMU and related PlayStation version, microphone (for Seaman), R.O.B., Uforce, DVD remotes, mouse, keyboards, the Menacer, the Activator, golf clubs, baseball bats, LCD screens, being able to use a GBA as a GameCube controller, and that adapter for playing GameBoy games to choose from.
I miss anything?
Absolutely. If they can make a Zelda game that will have Link mimic my movements exactly with his sword, I will buy the Revolution. Even if I never touch another game for it, that will satisfy me.
The remote seems set up to allow for a lot of interesting options, especially if you’ve watched the video linked t earlier in the thread. Standard games like Mario may be odd, but swordfighting and gunfighting games will take on an entirely new level (yeah, shooters have been done since Duck Hunt, but the concept of not having to buy a new peripheral intrigues me. And I don’t think I’ve seen a shooter outside the arcade since the Super Scope had its brief time in the sun). On the sports side, football might be hard, but you’ve got baseball, golf, tennis, fishing, racquetball…then there’s the eclectic games that will be new and interesting – the linked video showed someone using the remote like a knife to chop something, apparently in an Iron Chef sort of game.
I think this is a system that could appeal to a wide range of people, particularly those who enjoy arcade games that use more than just a joystick and a few buttons. It won’t be able to handle some games nearly as well as other consoles will, but it doesn’t appear to be intended to handle those games. It seems that, instead of competing for market space with Sony and Microsoft, is going off and making its own market space, at most competing with arcades, which are a dying breed anyway due to the sheer prominence of video game consoles in homes these days.
So I can wield a ninja sword, fish, play ping pong, and aim my sniper rifle, but… how do I move forward? Is there a treadmill attachment too? Cool as it may seem, I simply cannot imagine how you can run and keep your hand steady enough so that your character doesn’t get distracted by its surroundings or pick up an object on a whim.
I can’t possibly imagine Zelda on this, and that game is probably the only reason I buy Nintendo systems in the first place!
Bolded part added. :smack:
It does have a D-pad on it, the operation of which can be done while moving the remote and pressing the trigger button. And for more complex games like FPSes, there’s an attachment with a thumbstick and a couple more buttons to be used in the other hand.
Yes, but isn’t it somewhat difficult or odd to be doing sword moves with your wrist while pressing to run with the same hand? I’ll have to wait and see, I guess.
The run analog stick goes in your other hand. It’s like holding a pair of nunchucks. The remote control motion sensitive controller goes in one hand, and the little pistol grip with the stick goes in the other and a cable connects the two together.
Whoops. Hit submit too soon. I was going to end by saying I don’t think they expect you to use the D-Pad while you’re waving the controller around. If you need that many degrees of freedom, that’s what the analog stick is for.
Oh, I dunno. This is the same company that gave us the directional pad, rumble packs, and analog console controllers, IIRC. I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss this.
Oh yeah? Use the (included) analog stick controller for movement and play calls, then throw (and aim!) with the remote/controller/wand.
Also note that Nintendo also said they’ll have a conventional controller, which you can plug the wand/remote can slip into and play the regular way. That will make it easier for developers to port their existing games, at least.
The hand eye coordination isn’t too tough, I would imagine, and while it would certainly be difficult to pull off a dance step while waving the remote frenetically, simple practiced moves would be much easier. I have no trouble with the concept of pressing Left on the D-pad to strafe left while swinging the remote to the right to attack, for instance. It’s little different from circle-strafing in any number of FPSes (pressing, for example, the strafe left button while turning to the right with the mouse in your other hand, which lets you run in a circle around a target while keeping your crosshairs on them).
As others have already addressed, there is an analog stick attachment to the remote/controller. It’d be very similar to using a keyboard/mouse combo, except that now you have a 3D mouse and a joystick. I think I read that it senses forward and backward motion as well, so you can not only hack and slash, but also thrust and… umm… un-thrust? In any case, it’ll be a bit cheaper than either the PS3 or 360, so I think it’ll be an additional console type thing.
Well, it certainly does seem made for simple games. It looks like it’s modeled after a cellphone and it just doesn’t look like you get to use enough fingers. Holding my PS2 controller I got two sticks and four buttons I can be pressing at once which also allow for loads of combos. With that it’d pretty much be just my thumb out there. Using any more fingers would be difficult and cause the whole thing to shake. Whereas I can press any button on the PS2 controller without it shaking. Meaning getting too excited could hurt any game you play with it. Maybe, I haven’t touched it but that’s the way I envision it.
It frightens me beyond belief. It looks like it has the potential to sink Nintendo’s console forays for good.
I can’t imagine playing a Zelda on it, or a Mario.
As long as the gamecube controller does indeed plug into it and developers make more use of this I’ll be happy; and I suppose if they are going to release back catalogue stuff for download they could release a whole set of controllers that are replicas of the NES, SNES and 64 controllers.