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[Neo Child]

So is the new console actually called Stream? Seriousely, does Nintendo not realise the connection between Wii and Stream?

Also, that mockup looks sexy but would be uncomfortable.

 

[MYE]

REAL STICKS OR BUST.

As long as they are always smooth, i see no disadvantages in having big, juicy sliders instead of sticks

 

[Refreshment.01]

interesting, but isn't that line of sight (no walls), also isn't that just streaming video content where lag does not matter at all, but with games it does.

Asus says <1 ms lag for a 1080p stream, which is almost imperceptible, far less than any online game you play on Live.

Aaahhh! but you see not only content with taking Asus word for it, i did a lil search for some user experiences with the device. People play even twitch stuff like Left for Dead with not much of problems.

Completely forgot about this, how does On Live work exactly and don't you need super fast internet for that

I think it is a +5Mb connection, but bandwidth its one part of the problem. The other is latency. If you are some Kilometers away from an onlive server the experience is quiet acceptable but not balls out flawless yet. But i suscribe to the idea that if something like onlive is possible with a 720p compressed image no less, then i could see Nintendo sending a SD or SubSD feed localy withouth much issues.

That type of aplication would be in a per game basis. So onw should consider that the screen could potentially have a lot of other interesting uses.

I know we are way past this shit but moving from the GC pad mockups and taking into consideration the "closest mockup to the real thing" rumor, I'm imagening a final product that looks something like this:

http://i.imgur.com/LVP3G.jpg

That's beautiful, did you made it?

But like you said too big. A way to go if asuming the screen would be embedded in the controller can be a clamshell design. My opinion is that is too lazy and uncreative for Nintendo to just take a tablet and slap some traditional buttons.

 

[MYE]

that thing looks like it should cost $200++

It has everything they say it has in it so maybe its the finish?
Plastic is cheap

 

[Skiesofwonder]

I know we are way past this shit but moving from the GC pad mockups and taking into consideration the "closest mockup to the real thing" rumor, I'm imagening a final product that looks something like this:

Big as shit but why not? As long as its not too heavy and thick.
The back of the tablet/controller would have "bumpy" grips to prevent this thing from sliding off your hands and the triggers/shoulder buttons would still respect the height of the left slider and 4 face buttons in the front.

It would be something diferent alright

edit: Removed the stupid blur effect

I think you should move the analog and buttons/d-pad to the side of the screen, making the controller much smaller. Maybe have the home, start, etc. Buttons below the screen like the 3DS, but leaving the notification light at the top.

But still my favorite mock-up yet.

 

[Leonsito]

I would put all the buttons/sticks below the screen, gameboy style.

 

[MYE]

That's beautiful, did you made it?

yup. Thanks

But like you said too big. A way to go if asuming the screen would be embedded in the controller can be a clamshell design. My opinion is that is too lazy and uncreative for Nintendo to just take a tablet and slap some traditional buttons.

Clamshell controller? hmm, dunno if i like that. Not very fond of hinges

 

[Joey Fox]

I think you should move the analog and buttons/d-pad to the side of the screen, making the controller much smaller.

But still my favorite mock-up yet.

I agree with this. That would make the controller more comfortable to use, especially the D-Pad, although I can see why the second joystick is offset in traditional controllers. Hmm.

The screen would look more impressive without all the plastic below it.

 

[Kandinsky]

I know we are way past this shit but moving from the GC pad mockups and taking into consideration the "closest mockup to the real thing" rumor, I'm imagening a final product that looks something like this:

http://i.imgur.com/jTOin.jpg

Big as shit but why not? As long as its not too heavy and thick.
The back of the tablet/controller would have "bumpy" grips to prevent this thing from sliding off your hands and the triggers/shoulder buttons would still respect the height of the left slider and 4 face buttons in the front.

It would be something diferent alright

edit: Removed the stupid blur effect

That looks fantastic.

Spoiler

the Galaxy screen!

 

[Jocchan]

MYE's latest mockup looks amazing.

 

[BGBW]

that thing looks like it should cost $200++

Sell it as a flatpack. DIYcontrollers.

 

[ClovingWestbrook]

I know we are way past this shit but moving from the GC pad mockups and taking into consideration the "closest mockup to the real thing" rumor, I'm imagening a final product that looks something like this:

Big as shit but why not? As long as its not too heavy and thick.
The back of the tablet/controller would have "bumpy" grips to prevent this thing from sliding off your hands and the triggers/shoulder buttons would still respect the height of the left slider and 4 face buttons in the front.

It would be something diferent alright

edit: Removed the stupid blur effect

Ok, wow. This is the first mockup that I actually would use. Simply awesome. Great job man.

 

[Refreshment.01]

yup. Thanks



Clamshell controller? hmm, dunno if i like that. Not very fond of hinges

Well theres disadvantages and advantages. Clamshell gives you a controller of more manageable and traditional size. The concept i imagined has 2 modes. One where the surface of the control is just the touch screen with just the 2 thumbsticks and 4 trigger buttons accesible. Then in the same controller the touch screen can be lifted and rotated to face the user, and reveals A,B,X,Y plus the D-pad.

Doubt Nintendo would go for something as cool as that but one can dream

Only reason i didnt do this was because having both your hands so low would leave alot of "dead wieght" on top of the controller.
I also tried to keep the hands as centered as possible without putting half the screen bellow finger level. It would be harder to rest my hands on my lap if there was too much controller in the bottom.

Other thing with something that big, is that at some point it will need to rest at something other than your hands. I.E. if you are operating the left stick and trigger while at the same time using the touch screen.

 

[jacksrb]

Since it looks like we are about out of news until E3 (barring a few nice little leaked tidbits from 3rd parties), I wanted to chat about what this story's evolution says about the game press.

Specifically, it is interesting to see how the various outlets (and posters here) give some / a lot / no credence to reports from other outlets.

Since these guys run in the same circles and have often known each other for a while, it is interesting to hear a GT Invisible Walls podcast be dismissive of rumors from GameInformer and IGN. Same for last weeks Weekend Confirmed, those guys were in disbelief about widely reported things I believe to be true about the screen in the controller, etc.

Anyone else find this weird?

 

[plank]

How uneconomical totally different from the from the convenience and out of the way nature of the Wii remote. Nice mock up though.

 

[MYE]

I would put all the buttons/sticks below the screen, gameboy style.

Only reason i didnt do this was because having both your hands so low would leave alot of "dead wieght" on top of the controller.
I also tried to keep the hands as centered as possible without putting half the screen bellow finger level. It would be harder to rest my hands on my lap if there was too much controller in the bottom.

 

[Fafalada]

you probably need to add the time it takes to send the entire image.

Not really - a refresh cycle is 17ms, as long as the connection is stable there's no reason to ever hold the entire picture screen-side.

 

[Kandinsky]

It might be uncomfortable, but it looks soooooo goood.

 

[JaseMath]

Pretty nice mock-up, but I'd imagine it's probably going to be even smaller than that.

 

[Saint Gregory]

I know we are way past this shit but moving from the GC pad mockups and taking into consideration the "closest mockup to the real thing" rumor, I'm imagening a final product that looks something like this:

http://i.imgur.com/jTOin.jpg

Big as shit but why not? As long as its not too heavy and thick.
The back of the tablet/controller would have "bumpy" grips to prevent this thing from sliding off your hands and the triggers/shoulder buttons would still respect the height of the left slider and 4 face buttons in the front.

It would be something diferent alright

edit: Removed the stupid blur effect

Wow, I love this! Best mock-up so far by a mile. I just wish that all the rumors weren't saying that the controller looks like a GC controller so there was a chance that this was the real thing

It looks expensive as hell but if all the processing is housed in the console it may not be that bad.

 

[Joey Fox]

Shittacular refinement of MYE's mockup.

 

[Jocchan]

It might be uncomfortable, but it looks soooooo goood.

Doesn't look less comfortable than a 3DS. If anything, I'd move the D-pad and right analog up a bit, but that's pretty much it.

 

[TheRagnCajun]

I think the problem with a lot of these mockups is they are modeling after a portable device, in terms of form factor. This device doesn't need to be flat, its not going anywhere. I'm envisioning a more conventonal and ergonomic shaped constroller, with a screen thrown in somewhere.

 

[agrajag]

I would not be against this!

I want that koopa enema toy.

 

[Krev]

MYE's mock-up is beautiful. If you could make a version based on Joey Fox's refinements, I imagine you'd have something close to what we'll end up with.

The crucial thing is the back of the controller. It needs to be ergonomic. Fortunately, Nintendo are trustworthy in that department.

 

[Refreshment.01]

I think the problem with a lot of these mockups is they are modeling after a portable device, in terms of form factor. This device doesn't need to be flat, its not going anywhere. I'm envisioning a more conventonal and ergonomic shaped constroller, with a screen thrown in somewhere.

Absolutely, the botton part of the device can have ergonomic curves a like a normal pad. Dont get why people are so dead set in portable designs.

 

[Saint Gregory]

I think the problem with a lot of these mockups is they are modeling after a portable device, in terms of form factor. This device doesn't need to be flat, its not going anywhere. I'm envisioning a more conventonal and ergonomic shaped constroller, with a screen thrown in somewhere.

I would think that's where Nintendo is going with this but I hope that somewhere in Japan Iwata is lurking on GAF and sees MYE's mockup. Not only would something like that represent a real revolutionary controller change but seeing will probably make Steve Jobs spit coffee all over his beautiful cinema display.

I don't have anything against Jobs but I would personally finance that tablet controller just to see his expression at the reveal.

 

[rabhw]

As gigantic as a Nintendo fan as I am, I'm still not really sold on the whole controller with a big screen thing, with the streaming to the controller capability.

Why would I want to stream Mario Galaxy (using MYE's mockup as an example) to a small screen when I'm in my house. Particularly if I'm on my couch in front of my...TV, a much nicer, larger screen?

Is the idea that it becomes a "portable console within your house" so you can play in bed? Surely the latency of playing it further than that would make it useless.

What applications do you guys foresee developers using the second screen / streaming capability for? The common one that comes up is "picking your play in madden", but what else? I'm curious!

 

[Dr.Palutena]

you know a key part to the tablet/game boy style that many haven't focused on is how the back is ergonomically, especially with triggers and bumpers,ease of comfort and all that jazz. besides that MYE and "closest mock up" type controllers have been the most appealing to me

 

[Joey Fox]

MYE's mock-up is beautiful. If you could make a version based on Joey Fox's refinements, I imagine you'd have something close to what we'll end up with.

The crucial thing is the back of the controller. It needs to be ergonomic. Fortunately, Nintendo are trustworthy in that department.

Perhaps there is some way to blend the back of a tablet with the capabilities of having triggers. Finger Indentations?

Or they could just be on the upper corners like the DS.

 

[SovanJedi]

Do you think having the controller come with its own screen (and some speculation pointing to it being used as a screen for when the TV is still being used by other family members) is an attempt for Nintendo to try and capitalise on the fact that the Japanese market has moved away considerably from normal consoles and more to handhelds? Granted you can't leave the house with it, but otherwise it still would have a lot of the same properties of handheld gaming.

 

[agrajag]

Shittacular refinement of MYE's mockup.

looks about right. The whole console in the image is about 6", to give an idea how big of a controller we're talking about here. So the real thing would be slightly larger than this picture.

 

[MYE]

I think the problem with a lot of these mockups is they are modeling after a portable device, in terms of form factor. This device doesn't need to be flat, its not going anywhere. I'm envisioning a more conventonal and ergonomic shaped constroller, with a screen thrown in somewhere.

Flat panels are all the rage. People will look at something Ipad or Iphonish and feel like they are buying something new, modern and expensive looking.

Ergonomically, it would all depend on how they would shape the backside of the controller.

 

[Mael]

Do you think having the controller come with its own screen (and some speculation pointing to it being used as a screen for when the TV is still being used by other family members) is an attempt for Nintendo to try and capitalise on the fact that the Japanese market has moved away considerably from normal consoles and more to handhelds? Granted you can't leave the house with it, but otherwise it still would have a lot of the same properties of handheld gaming.

Possible...heck it's mostly how I use my handhelds most of the time

 

[beje]

As gigantic as a Nintendo fan as I am, I'm still not really sold on the whole controller with a big screen thing, with the streaming to the controller capability.

Why would I want to stream Mario Galaxy (using MYE's mockup as an example) to a small screen when I'm in my house. Particularly if I'm on my couch in front of my...TV, a much nicer, larger screen?

Is the idea that it becomes a "portable console within your house" so you can play in bed? Surely the latency of playing it further than that would make it useless.

What applications do you guys foresee developers using the second screen / streaming capability for? The common one that comes up is "picking your play in madden", but what else? I'm curious!

Think on multiplayer card games where you're the only one allowed to see your hand, that's the easiest concept to grasp. Minimap and inventory management will be also very common if the screen is actually a touchscreen (would be idiotic not to do it). Some people really need to think out of the box and see further than "trollololol nobody wants to game on a 6" screen, gimme a huge TV".

 

[Refreshment.01]

I would think that's where Nintendo is going with this but I hope that somewhere in Japan Iwata is lurking on GAF and sees MYE's mockup. Not only would something like that represent a real revolutionary controller change but seeing will probably make Steve Jobs spit coffee all over his beautiful cinema display.

Da Sh!T! You find adding buttons to a tablet revolutionary? Your Brain most have exploded when you saw the Wiiremote then, and can't even imagine what happened what reaction the Kinect unleashed on you.

 

[Mael]

Anyone thought it could actually be something like a wiimote attaching to a tablet with a nunchuck attaching on the other side?

 

[Nemo]

I know we are way past this shit but moving from the GC pad mockups and taking into consideration the "closest mockup to the real thing" rumor, I'm imagening a final product that looks something like this:

Big as shit but why not? As long as its not too heavy and thick.
The back of the tablet/controller would have "bumpy" grips to prevent this thing from sliding off your hands and the triggers/shoulder buttons would still respect the height of the left slider and 4 face buttons in the front.

It would be something diferent alright

edit: Removed the stupid blur effect

I wonder if that same marketing (showing people playing the game) will work this time again

 

[agrajag]

Da Sh!T! You find adding buttons to a tablet revolutionary? Your Brain most have exploded when you saw the Wiiremote then, and can't even imagine what happened what reaction the Kinect unleashed on you.

The controller itself may not be revolutionary, but the new ways it might interact with the console sure is.

 

[Jocchan]

Shittacular refinement of MYE's mockup.

http://i.imgur.com/WFqF8.png[IMG][/QUOTE]
Not sure it would be an improvement. A diagonal relative positioning would make the D-pad and right analog stick easier to reach without changing the way you hold the controller. It's not a coincidence if all the home console controllers use that sort of setup.
On the 3DS Nintendo probably had to put the D-pad below the circle pad because of size/form factor limitations leaving them with no choice, and it shows. Switching between them is not exactly comfortable.

[QUOTE=SovanJedi]Do you think having the controller come with its own screen (and some speculation pointing to it being used as a screen for when the TV is still being used by other family members) is an attempt for Nintendo to try and capitalise on the fact that the Japanese market has moved away considerably from normal consoles and more to handhelds? Granted you can't leave the house with it, but otherwise it still would have a lot of the same properties of handheld gaming.[/QUOTE]
I'd say it's actually pretty likely.

 

[rabhw]

Think on multiplayer card games where you're the only one allowed to see your hand, that's the easiest concept to grasp. Minimap and inventory management will be also very common if the screen is actually a touchscreen (would be idiotic not to do it). Some people really need to think out of the box and see further than "trollololol nobody wants to game on a 6" screen, gimme a huge TV".

Sorry, I didn't mean to come off that way. Inventory management would be cool for sure

 

[manueldelalas]

As gigantic as a Nintendo fan as I am, I'm still not really sold on the whole controller with a big screen thing, with the streaming to the controller capability.

Why would I want to stream Mario Galaxy (using MYE's mockup as an example) to a small screen when I'm in my house. Particularly if I'm on my couch in front of my...TV, a much nicer, larger screen?

Is the idea that it becomes a "portable console within your house" so you can play in bed? Surely the latency of playing it further than that would make it useless.

What applications do you guys foresee developers using the second screen / streaming capability for? The common one that comes up is "picking your play in madden", but what else? I'm curious!

I don't think that'll be the main use (I don't even think most games will support it's use that way).

Don't think about old games on it, but think about the new gaming possibilities.

The first obvious thought would be the use of it like the DS second screen, where there would be maps, HUD stuff, rear view, touch control input for gaming (added accuracy for many games), drawing stuff (Mario Paint), etc.

The other obvious thing, is using it the same as the GBA-GCN link thing we had, Pacman VS, FFCC and Zelda Four Swords would be awesome. We can now play HD battleship!.

In other games, like Pokemon Stadium, you won't have to show your moves to the opponent, he won't know what Pokemon you have, etc.

And there are the new gameplay possibilities (local multiplayer), all will play in the main screen, but you'll have your stuff in your screen, it's the benefit of online play, but locally.

Also, it's probable that you'll be able to use the screen without the need of the console, for stuff such as e-reading and little mini-games; and the possibility to try games at stores. There are a lot of new possibilities, and I'm very excited.

I don't think of this as a revolution, but as a welcome new method of gaming that opens a lot of possibilities.

 

[TheRagnCajun]

Flat panels are all the rage. People will look at something Ipad or Iphonish and feel like they are buying something new, modern and expensive looking.

Ergonomically, it would all depend on how they would shape the backside of the controller.

I think the illusion of an apple-ish product is lost once you add a shit-tonne of buttons and analogue sticks. That mockup looks like a controller, trying to be a tablet, ultimately failing at both.

 

[Refreshment.01]

Anyone thought it could actually be something like a wiimote attaching to a tablet with a nunchuck attaching on the other side?

Yes it has been though, That would allow to have every control method but a transformable controller doesn't seem so hot with manufacturers. Explains why MS hasn't explored a split controller to complement Kinect yet.

The controller itself may not be revolutionary, but the new ways it might interact with the console sure is.

That's not saying much really. One could claim theres a lot of revolutionary uses you can come up with a traditional dual thumbstick controller. Another thing is some of the possible uses of the screen has already been explored by Sega and NIntendo.

 

[birdchili]

Anyone thought it could actually be something like a wiimote attaching to a tablet with a nunchuck attaching on the other side?

yeah... i've been trying to figure out how this would work... something more modular, so you don't always need to have a 6" screen attached. you'd need a lot of separate battery compartments...

 

[KAL2006]

This streaming on a controller is really appealing to me and I hope it is true. I mainly play handhelds in the house anyway. This console gives NGP a run for it's money. The reason I was so excited about NGP is because of the big screen size and dual analog controls, but if Project Caffae can do this too, then that is great. Imagine playing Elder Scrolls Skyrim on Project Caffae console in the day, then later on in the night you decide to carry on playing the game in bed.

 

[MYE]

Why would I want to stream Mario Galaxy (using MYE's mockup as an example) to a small screen when I'm in my house. Particularly if I'm on my couch in front of my...TV, a much nicer, larger screen?

In my case, it would probably duplicate the amount of playtime i usually spend on a homeconsole.

When i get pissed at a game, i usually turn the system off and watch TV.
When i'm split between watching a movie or show that interests me and playing something, movie/show usually wins.
When someone's hanging around and doesnt really wanna play, game system usually goes off to watch movies or whatever.
When i dont feel like sitting in my bean couch, i'l stream it to the controller and throw myself in bed or walk around the house.
etc, etc...

 

[Saint Gregory]

Do you think having the controller come with its own screen (and some speculation pointing to it being used as a screen for when the TV is still being used by other family members) is an attempt for Nintendo to try and capitalise on the fact that the Japanese market has moved away considerably from normal consoles and more to handhelds? Granted you can't leave the house with it, but otherwise it still would have a lot of the same properties of handheld gaming.

That's clearly exactly what they're shooting for. I don't think that Nintendo designed this for large western households where everyone has their own TV but more for smaller Japanese households were consoles really battle for TV time.

Da Sh!T! You find adding buttons to a tablet revolutionary? Your Brain most have exploded when you saw the Wiiremote then, and can't even imagine what happened what reaction the Kinect unleashed on you.

How would you describe it then? Those controllers are/were revolutionary and I certainly wouldn't describe using a tablet as a main console controller as evolutionary.

 

[linkboy]

As gigantic as a Nintendo fan as I am, I'm still not really sold on the whole controller with a big screen thing, with the streaming to the controller capability.

Why would I want to stream Mario Galaxy (using MYE's mockup as an example) to a small screen when I'm in my house. Particularly if I'm on my couch in front of my...TV, a much nicer, larger screen?

Is the idea that it becomes a "portable console within your house" so you can play in bed? Surely the latency of playing it further than that would make it useless.

What applications do you guys foresee developers using the second screen / streaming capability for? The common one that comes up is "picking your play in madden", but what else? I'm curious!

If I could play a Mario game in the same room with my wife while she's watching TV, its a total win.

I just wish I had this when I was a kid, then my parents couldn't have bitched at me for hogging the TV.

 

[Mael]

Yes it has been though, That would allow to have every control method but a transformable controller doesn't seem so hot with manufacturers. Explains why MS hasn't explored a split controller to complement Kinect yet.

On the contrary, it worked perfectly for Wii after all, and it's kinda mandatory for BC anyway.
MSFT wasn't interested in anything but the camera for Kinect anyway

yeah... i've been trying to figure out how this would work... something more modular, so you don't always need to have a 6" screen attached. you'd need a lot of separate battery compartments...

Or not it's not like battery pack for handhelds are expensive anyway.
It'd probably need a dock or something though.