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[effzee]

I think you guys are getting ahead of yourselves. Its not coming this year and developers surely haven't had dev kits for upto 2 yrs now. Its that they will have had them for 2 yrs leading up to the 2012 launch.

I think the idea of 2 yrs with dev kits came from the rumor that kits have been out for months. Lets say they were handed out Jan of this year, 2011. Now you have pretty much two years development time till launch fall 2012. I think thats the 2 yrs we are talking about no?

 

[Vinci]

I don't think anyone other than Valve is capable of making an online system that can compete with Xbox Live at the moment, but Nintendo could certainly do something to decrease Live's value in relative terms, like PSN has.

Even Valve would face a challenge due to community connections. It's like anything centered around online engagement - the more people use a service, the stronger the service becomes; the more centralized the community becomes around the service, the stronger it becomes; eventually, you have situation like Live in which there are many small communities that use Live as the primary method by which they communicate. Switching from Live to another platform is possible, but it's unlikely due to familiarity and convenience.

And while we're at it, what if Valve were doing N6's online features? I'm fairly sure this has been discussed already, mind.

I wish they were, but they're not.

 

[Sammy Samusu]

You can bet Battlefield 3 will be on Wii2 at E3. If it isn't I'll be shocked honestly. What better game to highlight new powerful hardware than BF3 and have it running at PC level specs.

Ch... If Nintendo showcase WiiHD with a fucking military game I'll be jailed.

 

[TheRagnCajun]

I don't believe Nintendo will ever do anything online well enough to threaten Live, not entirely. Its built up a very concentrated, strong community around itself that would be hard to tackle for a company as conservative and family-focused as Nintendo. They might be able to get people to buy their system for this, that, or the other thing, but I seriously doubt it will ever be totally at MS's expense as long as Live exists.

I do think Nintendo will overhaul their online space for Wii2. I also think this will make it increasingly difficult for MS to charge for live gold. Aside from that I don't think there's a 'threat' necessarily. All three companies will be offering similar experiences in the online space moving forward into next gen. All three companies will make good money in their online space.

 

[NateDrake]

I don't think anyone other than Valve is capable of making an online system that can compete with Xbox Live at the moment, but Nintendo could certainly do something to decrease Live's value in relative terms, like PSN has.

And while we're at it, what if Valve were doing N6's online features? I'm fairly sure this has been discussed already, mind.

Also, regarding wireless streaming, this youtube video was posted yesterday by someone in this thread, but I can't remember who.

At GDC Nintendo did praise MS and Live for the contribution Live gave to the gaming industry. You have to expect them to make an online interface comparable to Live or PSN at the minimum.

 

[The_Darkest_Red]

I don't believe Nintendo will ever do anything online well enough to threaten Live, not entirely. Its built up a very concentrated, strong community around itself that would be hard to tackle for a company as conservative and family-focused as Nintendo. They might be able to get people to buy their system for this, that, or the other thing, but I seriously doubt it will ever be totally at MS's expense as long as Live exists.

I agree. Not to mention the whole Halo thing.

What I would love to see is a Super Smash Bros. that actually had decent online support. Customizable lobbies, groups, voice chat, a ranking system, all of that good stuff. What would make it even better is the potential use of the tablet as a way to keep up with some secondary information, such as the bracket of the tournament you're currently playing in. You could touch a player's name on the bracket to open up a profile, and then have different options from there such as sending them a message or looking at some of their stats.

I'm trying to keep my expectations in check here but you guys are making it hard...

 

[robor]

Guys. I'm seriously terrified at how huge this thread has become and also by the fresh rumors that have come in.......

Wii2 in 2011? Shit's gonna get real......

 

[Graphics Horse]

I think you guys are getting ahead of yourselves.

You realised that 11156 posts into the thread?

 

[M74]

Interestingly, this would be a kind of echo of their position at the beginning of this gen:

2006 - "Here you go, guys, here's a system built off existing tech that you're all familiar with. It saves us money, and we believe it will save you money rather than launching headlong into HD"

2011 - "Here you go, guys, here's a system built off existing tech that you're all familiar with. It lets you carry on without incurring the crippling costs of another full-gen leap, and it saves us money (natch)"

And it's a strategy that simply failed to work, insofar as recruitment of 3rd party devs is concerned. We should expect this strategy to only work for N6 as long as PS4/Xbox3 stay off the market. The only way to fix that would be for them to push the tech to a reasonable midpoint where they find themselves in a PS2-like position. If all they do is essentially match the current HD consoles, they could easily get left behind again.

Edit: If instead of a PS2-like position, the N6 is designed for a Dreamcast-like position then all bets are off.

 

[Vinci]

And it's a strategy that simply failed to work, insofar as recruitment of 3rd party devs is concerned. We should expect this strategy to only work for N6 as long as PS4/Xbox3 stay off the market. The only way to fix that would be for them to push the tech to a reasonable midpoint where they find themselves in a PS2-like position. If all they do is essentially match the current HD consoles, they could easily get left behind again.

When they suggested the strategy for Wii, it failed... not because the strategy was poor, but because 3rd parties weren't financially hurting like they are now. At this point, and based on timetokill's comments? They might be more willing to listen.

 

[antonz]

Guys. I'm seriously terrified at how huge this thread has become and also by the fresh rumors that have come in.......

Wii2 in 2011? Shit's gonna get real......

2011 could happen. I mean its not impossible especially if the major publishers did get the devkits back in November/December. The reality is this Fall would just mean COD,Skyrim etc and having nearly a year witht he devkits would mean plenty of time to get it done.

Frankly thats the kind of scenario I think Nintendo wants exactly. Launch their new console get the big 3rd party games and because its a new console steal sales away from the others and build a base

 

[Interfectum]

A 2011 release would be insane.

 

[M74]

A 2011 release would be insane.

A March 2012 release, however, would be incredible.

 

[Graphics Horse]

Ch... If Nintendo showcase WiiHD with a fucking military game I'll be jailed.

hah, no chance that would happen, not on stage staring at the guts of a dead soldier like Microsoft's previous E3.

 

[From The Dust]

A March 2012 release, however, would be incredible.

a December release would end the world

 

[McHuj]

And it's a strategy that simply failed to work, insofar as recruitment of 3rd party devs is concerned. We should expect this strategy to only work for N6 as long as PS4/Xbox3 stay off the market. The only way to fix that would be for them to push the tech to a reasonable midpoint where they find themselves in a PS2-like position. If all they do is essentially match the current HD consoles, they could easily get left behind again.

If Wii2 comes out by next year and the other two don't arrive until winter 2013 at the earliest, it may be ok. During the first couple of years of the new MS/Sony hardware we're not going to be seeing software that pushes those systems so multi-platform games between them and Wii2 will exist.


When the new consoles begin to kick into high gear around year 3 of their lives Nintendo should be gearing up for their next system (Wii 2 would be 4 or maybe even 5 years old at this point).

 

[[Nintex]]

There's no console hardware slated for release this year that we know of besides the Wii2. The handheld market is still seperate from the console market so Nintendo would have an advantage if they launched this year. The $399 Kinect bundle that sold like crazy certainly hasn't gone unnoticed at Nintendo HQ. The last thing they need is Microsoft to start gaining on the Wii while Apple expands the app market.

 

[CoffeeJanitor]

2011 is not happening. This is the 3DS' year.

Or you can avoid logic and say it's coming out this year.

 

[Skiesofwonder]

Guys. I'm seriously terrified at how huge this thread has become and also by the fresh rumors that have come in.......

Wii2 in 2011? Shit's gonna get real......

My body is ready.

Spoiler

But my wallet isn't.

 

[antonz]

2011 is not happening. This is the 3DS' year.

Or you can avoid logic and say it's coming out this year.

The 3DS wasnt supposed to come out this year and its not unprecedented for Nintendo to release multiple devices in a single year.

Im not gonna lie Id prefer a March 2012 or fall 2012 launch cause frankly ive already blown more on gaming in the first 3 months of the year than I usually do in a whole year.

 

[TheOddOne]

A March 2012 release, however, would be incredible.

The rest can just pack it up, cut their losses and focus on their new consoles.

 

[M74]

a December release would end the world

I'd rather it be March. Aside from that being around the time of my birthday (yay gift to myself), it would allow them time to truly capitalize on the holiday without persistent supply problems.

 

[robor]

2011 could happen. I mean its not impossible especially if the major publishers did get the devkits back in November/December. The reality is this Fall would just mean COD,Skyrim etc and having nearly a year witht he devkits would mean plenty of time to get it done.

Frankly thats the kind of scenario I think Nintendo wants exactly. Launch their new console get the big 3rd party games and because its a new console steal sales away from the others and build a base

It's definitely one way to swiftly attack the upmarket and leave quite a bit of damage.

 

[The_Darkest_Red]

2011 is not happening. This is the 3DS' year.

Or you can avoid logic and say it's coming out this year.

What about 2001? GBA launched in June, Gamecube in November. It would be a shock, sure, but there are plenty of valid reasons for Nintendo to do it.

 

[J-Rock]

a December release would end the world

Well then I'm ready for the world to end.

 

[Kard8p3]

The 3DS wasnt supposed to come out this year and its not unprecedented for Nintendo to release multiple devices in a single year.

Im not gonna lie Id prefer a March 2012 or fall 2012 launch cause frankly ive already blown more on gaming in the first 3 months of the year than I usually do in a whole year.

Yeah because they did launch the GBA and Gamecube in the same year.

 

[Lupin the Third]

Well, then my body is ready for the world to end.

Fixed for me!

 

[devildog820]

What about 2001? GBA launched in June, Gamecube in November. It would be a shock, sure, but there are plenty of valid reasons for Nintendo to do it.

I'm not saying they are going to make their schedule if it's supposed to be 2011. But releasing this year makes a ton of sense. Shore up investor confidence, reverse the negative sales trends, recapture lost market share (i.e. people who haven't turned a Wii on in years).

 

[Jackano]

2011 is possible if we look at 3DS history, which was at first slated for release last holiday. But it sounds indeed a little surealist. A new Nintendo system in 7 months? Damn it, I just bought one!

Edit: But my body is ready, go on take my money!

 

[The_Darkest_Red]

I'm not saying they are going to make their schedule if it's supposed to be 2011. But releasing this year makes a ton of sense. Shore up investor confidence, reverse the negative sales trends, recapture lost market share (i.e. people who haven't turned a Wii on in years).

That's how I see it. I think the biggest factor that could hold them back here is whether or not they can ship in 2011, time-wise.

 

[M74]

The rest can just pack it up, cut their losses and focus on their new consoles.

Speaking of cutting loses, have either of the two guys turned a profit on their hardware yet? I haven't really payed attention to their profit totals. To make it relevant, I'm curious because I'd like to know exactly how disruptive Nintendo will really be in forcing their hands.

 

[plex]

Well, if the Café is intended to interact with the 3DS in some way, I can absolutely see them releasing it soon. They wouldn't cannibalize each other but instead could push both systems.

 

[Sadist]

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/...pond-to-nintendo-hd-news.aspx?PostPageIndex=2

Tim Gerritsen, Director of Product Development, Irrational Games:

"Nintendo clearly staked a different market out for themselves with the Wii than Sony and Microsoft did with the PS3 and Xbox 360 respectively. If they are indeed bringing to the table hardware that is on par or better than these platforms, we will need to see if they are going to focus on games outside the market they committed to with the Wii."

Ru Weerasuriya, Co-Founder, Ready at Dawn Studios:

"It's been a while that people have been speculating about the release of a Nintendo HD platform. I do think that such hardware is definitely needed from them at this juncture. But creating new hardware is just a start.

"The Wii gave them an opportunity to expand the gaming audience at large but for many people I know, it was just a short-lived fad. The breadth of games didn't follow. The past has lent credence to the fact that the last Nintendo platforms have been tantamount to closed systems that have really only been beneficial to Nintendo games. Whether they change their approach to third-party publishers, only time will tell. As for developers, any studio out there should always consider the potential of any new hardware coming out if it provides a good platform for the kind of games they make and the type of audience they seek.

"Ultimately, a console and its resulting success or failure will always be defined by the games."

Feargus Urquhart, CEO, Obsidian Entertainment:

"It’s great to hear about a new Nintendo system being in the works. A bunch of my college and post-college years were spent playing on the NES and SNES, and so I’ve been a fan of Nintendo for more than twenty years now. I also remember when playing Final Fantasy meant playing on the NES or even a Gameboy. And I do think it is the right time for Nintendo to launch a new system, and we would absolutely support it. I stated playing RPGs at a pretty young age on personal computers, and I’d love to bring those games to the younger audience Nintendo has always been great at making games and systems for.”

 

[heyf00L]

nm

 

[Vinci]

"Ultimately, a console and its resulting success or failure will always be defined by the games."

Yeah, no shit, Ready at Dawn guy. Which is why putting your games, preferably high quality ones, onto a platform early in its life and building an ecosystem for your work on it is the smart thing to do.

 

[J-Rock]

I can't see why Nintendo would pass on the all that 2011 holiday money if they have a finished console and games to suppport it. If they don't have eveything ready in time, then yeah... next year.

 

[Log4Girlz]

Wii 2 is 80% More Powerful than 360

has this been posted?

I knew the Xbox 360 was barely twice as powerful as the Wii

 

[Foffy]

Yeah because they did launch the GBA and Gamecube in the same year.

The only way I could see this working well for them is if they get all of their major Wii stuff out before this new platform.

This means Skyward Sword would have to launch November, at the latest. Maybe do something like Pokemon Black/White; They're regarded as the final super heavy titles for the DS, and they came out a few weeks in the US and Europe before the 3DS did.

If that were to happen, I wonder what's going to happen to Pikmin 3 and Dragon Quest X. Do they stay on Wii, or move to the next platform? Nintendo moved some games they announced in 2006 for Gamecube to the Wii just after announcement, like Super Paper Mario.

 

[J-Rock]

I knew the Xbox 360 was barely twice as powerful as the Wii

Xbox 360 = 2 duct taped Wii's

 

[DimmuBurgerKing]

Feargus Urquhart, CEO, Obsidian Entertainment:

"It’s great to hear about a new Nintendo system being in the works. A bunch of my college and post-college years were spent playing on the NES and SNES, and so I’ve been a fan of Nintendo for more than twenty years now. I also remember when playing Final Fantasy meant playing on the NES or even a Gameboy. And I do think it is the right time for Nintendo to launch a new system, and we would absolutely support it. I stated playing RPGs at a pretty young age on personal computers, and I’d love to bring those games to the younger audience Nintendo has always been great at making games and systems for.”

smh

 

[M74]

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/...pond-to-nintendo-hd-news.aspx?PostPageIndex=2

So fair to say the devs in this article don't have SKUs/haven't been invited to the leak party?

I can't see why Nintendo would pass on the all that 2011 holiday money if they have a finished console and games to suppport it. If they don't have eveything ready in time, then yeah... next year.

If Detective GAF is even close to being right about the whole Trinity thing, then presumably the console is not going to be ready. And at least one Ubisoft dev, supposedly, mentioned trying to get the 360>N6 ports ready for March.

 

[RedSwirl]

Interestingly, this would be a kind of echo of their position at the beginning of this gen:

2006 - "Here you go, guys, here's a system built off existing tech that you're all familiar with. It saves us money, and we believe it will save you money rather than launching headlong into HD"

2011 - "Here you go, guys, here's a system built off existing tech that you're all familiar with. It lets you carry on without incurring the crippling costs of another full-gen leap, and it saves us money (natch)"

I have a feeling that third parties will continue to willfully bite the massive costs of going full-blown bleeding edge next gen. Their side of the industry at large hasn't quite reached its threshold of bankruptcies yet.

I don't believe Nintendo will ever do anything online well enough to threaten Live, not entirely. Its built up a very concentrated, strong community around itself that would be hard to tackle for a company as conservative and family-focused as Nintendo. They might be able to get people to buy their system for this, that, or the other thing, but I seriously doubt it will ever be totally at MS's expense as long as Live exists.

Even as Nintendo adds to their service, I don't think they're even trying to threaten Live. They have a different vision for how they want multiplayer gaming to work on consoles. Honestly I agree with them on one level.

Live is more or less an attempt to take the experience of online gaming as it was on the PC and transfer it onto consoles (with less than ideal results if you ask me). Nintendo is trying to find a way to get the family audience to easily connect to and enjoy online gaming.

 

[StevieP]

Third party publishers are still so.... stupid sometimes. Just genuinely f'ed up in their way of thinking.

The past has lent credence to the fact that the last Nintendo platforms have been tantamount to closed systems that have really only been beneficial to Nintendo games

Put good games on ANY system and market them, they will sell.

Nintendo clearly staked a different market out for themselves with the Wii than Sony and Microsoft did with the PS3 and Xbox 360 respectively

Yeah, they wanted *everyone* to buy their box. Gamers, too. Of all kinds. These are the same people MS is going after with Kinect, for example.

and I’d love to bring those games to the younger audience Nintendo has always been great at making games and systems for

I mean they're still doing the kiddy thing. Perhaps the latest Gamasutra article can speak to them: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/6350/npd_behind_the_numbers_march_2011.php?page=3

The Wii, with its installed base of over 35 million units, clearly leads in terms of total software sold. We also note that the Wii launched a full year after the Xbox 360, so it has moved significantly more software per year on average than has Microsoft's platform.

 

[Fantastical]

I can't see why Nintendo would pass on the all that 2011 holiday money if they have a finished console and games to suppport it. If they don't have eveything ready in time, then yeah... next year.

If they do they are going to run into the same problem with the 3DS. 3rd parties aren't going to have any games ready except for shitty ports.

Then again, I think Nintendo themselves will have some very promising software at launch, but it would be so crazy to go with a 2011 release.

I could buy a new generation console in 7 months...

 

[Furret]

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/...pond-to-nintendo-hd-news.aspx?PostPageIndex=2

That is toxic level of faint praise.

Translation: we wouldn't dream of releasing any "proper" games for a Nintendo console but we might do some cheap ports or any kiddie game ideas we come up with.

After all we're talking about Western developers here - who managed to completely ignore the two fastest selling consoles ever (DS and Wii) for no acceptably good reason.

 

[Vinci]

Even as Nintendo adds to their service, I don't think they're even trying to threaten Live. They have a different vision for how they want multiplayer gaming to work on consoles. Honestly I agree with them on one level.

Live is more or less an attempt to take the experience of online gaming as it was on the PC and transfer it onto consoles (with less than ideal results if you ask me). Nintendo is trying to find a way to get the family audience to easily connect to and enjoy online gaming.

And this should be their focus, because taking on Live directly in order to grab its audience is a non-starter of a strategy.

 

[antonz]

So fair to say the devs in this article don't have SKUs/haven't been invited to the leak party?

They wouldnt hint one way or the other in a public interview. THQs president is the only one who has seemingly suggested the Wii 2 is coming.

 

[Christine]

Interestingly, this would be a kind of echo of their position at the beginning of this gen:

2006 - "Here you go, guys, here's a system built off existing tech that you're all familiar with. It saves us money, and we believe it will save you money rather than launching headlong into HD"

2011 - "Here you go, guys, here's a system built off existing tech that you're all familiar with. It lets you carry on without incurring the crippling costs of another full-gen leap, and it saves us money (natch)"

The bolded bit is actually much truer for 2011 than 2006. Relatively few developers ever got more than passingly familiar with TEV, but almost anything that Nintendo could conceivably build today would be right inside most developers' comfort zones.

 

[AceBandage]

That is toxic level of faint praise.

Translation: we wouldn't dream of releasing any "proper" games for a Nintendo console but we might do some cheap ports or any kiddie game ideas we come up with.

After all we're talking about Western developers here - who managed to completely ignore the two fastest selling consoles ever (DS and Wii) for no acceptably good reason.

I think Obsidian would release the same games that they are on PS3/360.
The other two... who the fuck cares? They're nobodies.


Also, every retailer slashed the Wii price to $170 today (despite another cut coming in May) and WSR and WiiParty are both getting price cuts.
Looks like the N6 is coming sooner rather than later indeed...

 

[devildog820]

Ru Weerasuriya, Co-Founder, Ready at Dawn Studios:

"It's been a while that people have been speculating about the release of a Nintendo HD platform. I do think that such hardware is definitely needed from them at this juncture. But creating new hardware is just a start.

"The Wii gave them an opportunity to expand the gaming audience at large but for many people I know, it was just a short-lived fad. The breadth of games didn't follow. The past has lent credence to the fact that the last Nintendo platforms have been tantamount to closed systems that have really only been beneficial to Nintendo games. Whether they change their approach to third-party publishers, only time will tell. As for developers, any studio out there should always consider the potential of any new hardware coming out if it provides a good platform for the kind of games they make and the type of audience they seek.

"Ultimately, a console and its resulting success or failure will always be defined by the games."

In my opinion, they tried to differentiate by the motion control gimmick. But, as we learn in MBA school, differentiation must be attained by meeting the base standards of your competition and then doing something else that will wow consumers.

The underpowered nature of the Wii meant that even with motion controls, developers couldn't put out similar products across all systems. Medal of Honor on Wii was fun, but it looked like crap, comparatively, and was very constrained. Call of Duty similarly had to be stripped down. Were those developers able to design the same experience as the 360 or PS3 had, but with motion controls, they definitely would have. The assumed success would lead to innovative new titles designed completely with motion control because it wouldn't be as big a risk.