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[Agent Unknown]

Thanks again to Aostia and godsend for the excellent impressions. Glad to hear both the Gamepad and Pro controller are comfy.

ClovingSteam/Westbrook was banned, anyone know why?

 

[bgassassin]

Thanks again to Aostia and godsend for the excellent impressions. Glad to hear both the Gamepad and Pro controller are comy.

ClovingSteam/Westbrook was banned, anyone know why?

Agreed about the thanks.

And I can only imagine about the latter.

 

[Terrell]

Oh Giant Bomb.....

You look at that tablet and... what, am I gonna give that to my mom? There's all these buttons and there's this touchscreen, but they look at the touchscreen and go "well, why are there buttons there? iPad doesn't have any buttons."

They're showing it like "one person's gonna hold this and the other is..." - no no, this is what's gonna happen - one person's gonna hold this and go "this is stupid!" And then never play it again.

I.... I don't even know what to say.

ClovingSteam/Westbrook was banned, anyone know why?

I'm surprised you need to ask and can't immediately guess.

 

[Gahiggidy]

It's got nice lighting and shadows, but as for new? I don't think so.

The million dollar question: Are the shadows realtime or not?

Well, the bananas do rotate periodically and the shadow follows suit, but that could all be animated/faked as well.

 

[Agent Unknown]

Is Giant Bomb always that bad?

I'm surprised you need to ask and can't immediately guess.

Well, trolling sure but in a Nintendo thread or where? I want specifics.

 

[Van Owen]

Oh Giant Bomb.....





I.... I don't even know what to say.

Patrick also said the touchscreen is visibly a piece of shit.

 

[User Tron]

With disk games being available as download, has Nintendo said something about copying games from the disk to hdd? (360 style)

 

[walking fiend]

With disk games being available as download, has Nintendo said something about copying games from the disk to hdd? (360 style)

I am not sure even the first part being explicitly stated by them?

 

[Hoo-doo]

Oh Giant Bomb.....

I.... I don't even know what to say.

I'd agree with him in that the people holding Wiimotes while one guy gets to hold the Gamepad will indeed feel quite shafted.

Asymmetric gameplay is merely a made-up term to put a positive spin on the fact that with local play, not everyone can use a gamepad at the same time. It's like Apple removing the screen on the iPod and calling it an iPod shuffle, like it's some grand innovation.

And on the mom part of the comment, I got to admit, my mom wouldn't touch a Wii or Wii-U with a ten foot pole, but she plays tons of puzzle games, card games and word games on the iPad. To expect these kind of "gamers" to get to grips with a dual analog setup or conventional controller of any kind is really short-sighted.

 

[AzaK]

Patrick also said the touchscreen is visibly a piece of shit.

And he seemed to say that touch wise it was laggy and unresponsive in Zombi U and Jeff (I think) said that he could see compression artifacts on the GamePad too. This is the one I really don't want to be true.

Regarding the lag/bad input in Zombi U, I noticed that too in the demo videos I saw. It was like the dragged icons were quite a few frames behind the finger. It looked so bad that I wondered if it was intentional.

The biggest problem I have noticed with people who don't seem enamoured with the Wii U is that they put so much emphasis on how they are not convinced by it's potential that they forget that it's also a 'regular' system with all the same buttons etc. I guess Nintendo is partly to blame seeing as they are concentrating so heavily on the GamePad and ignoring the console and is one reason I wish Nintendo was also marketing this as a core game machine and touring it's capabilities.

I'd hate to be nintendo now, risking all on a tablet like controller they are struggling to describe, in this market of mobile gaming, with a console likely to be quite underpowered to next year's entrants who are going to go for living room dominance from multiple angles.

I can see the potential of the system but can it realise it and can Nintendo sell it to people? And will third parties get on board?

I'd agree with him in that the people holding Wiimotes while one guy gets to hold the Gamepad will indeed feel quite shafted.

Depends on who you're playing with and what game. If you were playing a split screen shooter with a friend, then maybe because you're playing the same game. But if it was super Mario bros and the pad player was just placing blocks for a speed run probably not. Not all Wii U games will be perfect asymmetrical titles and it will be up to the developer to create it accordingly.

Asymmetric gameplay is merely a made-up term to put a positive spin on the fact that with local play, not everyone can use a gamepad at the same time. It's like Apple removing the screen on the iPod and calling it an iPod shuffle, like it's some grand innovation.

Possibly, I could almost give you that. Also, it might very well have been a genius discovery after they said to themselves "Man two players playing the same game split screen is going to leave one feeling gipped" and then went on to realise the asymmetric nature. Thereby lessening that feeling significantly.

And on the mom part of the comment, I got to admit, my mom wouldn't touch a Wii or Wii-U with a ten foot pole, but she plays tons of puzzle games, card games and word games on the iPad. To expect these kind of "gamers" to get to grips with a dual analog setup or conventional controller of any kind is really short-sighted.

Yeah this might be hard for some people because they just aren't into tech that looks complicated. However if they can show that you can have all your regular pad like games, and also additional experiences, that might sell some people on it.

 

[walking fiend]

And he seemed to say that touch wise it was laggy and unresponsive in Zombi U and Jeff (I think) said that he could see compression artifacts on the GamePad too. This is the one I really don't want to be true.

read the DF hands on; this most certainly will depend on the games and developers.

Reading these GB comments, they sure sound bitter, which is patethic

 

[AzaK]

read the DF hands on; this most certainly will depend on the games and developers.

Reading these GB comments, they sure sound bitter, which is patethic

I suggest listening to it if you're interested because I actually didn't think it was toooooo bad. Not as bad as they usually are with Wii Remote controls. Patrick tried to see both sides and I don't care if someone says "it's shit" if they really had a shit experience.

The thing that bothered me the most (And this speaks to Wii U, not them) is that they (and other game media I've followed) just don't seem convinced by the Wii U. Some gaming media are having a hard time seeing it in the market and seeing how different it is. I get a sense they are rather indifference towards it, almost like they see it as nintendo doing their own again and that doesn't align with their tastes. The Wii U is trying to do a lot of things at once (gaming, tablet, media) and the fear is that it won't be great at any compared to the competition for the general masses.

 

[Terrell]

I'd agree with him in that the people holding Wiimotes while one guy gets to hold the Gamepad will indeed feel quite shafted.

Asymmetric gameplay is merely a made-up term to put a positive spin on the fact that with local play, not everyone can use a gamepad at the same time. It's like Apple removing the screen on the iPod and calling it an iPod shuffle, like it's some grand innovation.

And on the mom part of the comment, I got to admit, my mom wouldn't touch a Wii or Wii-U with a ten foot pole, but she plays tons of puzzle games, card games and word games on the iPad. To expect these kind of "gamers" to get to grips with a dual analog setup or conventional controller of any kind is really short-sighted.

I don't see it that way. Why say no to offering different players different experiences? Rock Band showed us that this isn't quite as bad as people make it seem to do exactly that, I don't feel bad when I'm not one of the players on the guitar. Likewise, when I play recreational hockey, I don't feel "shafted" because I'm picked as the goalie.
It's not like the Gamepad provides some sort of a superior game to that player with the Gamepad anyways, it's just a DIFFERENT experience within the same game, so why would you feel "shafted" just because you're not enjoying that specific experience?

As for the mom argument, considering how well NSMB sells or how well games on DS/3DS sell in spite of the button mechanics in some of them, I think people over-state casual gamer reactions to traditional game controls. The controls themselves aren't scary in and of themselves, it's what the games themselves ask players to do with them that is. Some experiences aren't really mom-friendly, but to say they're turned off by buttons and wouldn't play ANYTHING on WiiU because of them is a fallacy. They will know and understand that they are there IF you want to play a game that uses them, not that they are mandatory for every game.

 

[thegodsend]

And he seemed to say that touch wise it was laggy and unresponsive in Zombi U and Jeff (I think) said that he could see compression artifacts on the GamePad too. This is the one I really don't want to be true.

I didn't noticed that and I looked closely.
Actually, I found that the graphics looked sharper on the GamePad than on the TVs. And Nintendo used pretty good Panasonic setups.

 

[fabricated backlash]

I didn't noticed that and I looked closely.
Actually, I found that the graphics looked sharper on the GamePad than on the TVs. And Nintendo used pretty good Panasonic setups.

They probably didn't disable any of the TV post processing bullshit. Which wouldn't be surprising considering that Nintendo even hooked up all their Wii demos to HD TVs with a composite cable/in 480i.

Also thanks for your impressions. Luigis Ghost Mansion sure sounds like the perfect Party game.

 

[japtor]

But I don't think those are coaxial ports, they seem much too shallow from the close up:

Yeah I assumed they were antenna connectors (like the "BT" label could mean Bluetooth), but they look similar enough that I thought you'd mention it.

I am not sure even the first part being explicitly stated by them?

I think Iwata said all their stuff would be available same day as retail digitally. I'm sure they want all games but I guess they'll leave that decision to the third parties for their games. Don't think anything has been said about installs off disc.

 

[Aostia]

Thanks again to Aostia and godsend for the excellent impressions. Glad to hear both the Gamepad and Pro controller are comfy.

Agreed about the thanks.

thanks to you.
If I've missed some question, or if someone has other questions, feel free to ask.
I can just confirm that the gamepad (and the CCPro pad) are comfortable, that's the most clear impression I've got during the event.

On other topics I'm still disappointed as before, on the other hand.

 

[fabricated backlash]

thanks to you.
If I've missed some question, or if someone has other questions, feel free to ask.
I can just confirm that the gamepad (and the CCPro pad) are comfortable, that's the most clear impression I've got during the event.

On other topics I'm still disappointed as before, on the other hand.

I have a question about the CCPro and Gamepad analog sticks: Is the deadzone/loose center comparable to the DS3 or the 360 conroller?

Or is it more GC/CC style.

Also, how does the clicking feel? Is it as cheap and flimsy as on the 360 or more firm like the DS3?

 

[DrWong]

Like amazon.de, amazon.fr has the Wii U at 399€ with a December 21 release date > http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0054XMGPK/

They also changed their Wii U games price point, up from 50€ to 69.99€.

 

[Aostia]

I've just listened to the latest GiantBomb podcast and two things they said about Wii U concerned me. Can anyone who's used it talk about them?

1) That the screen definitely feels like a big DS screen and not at all as responsive as an iPhone for instance.

2) That you can notice the video compression on the gamepad. Especially in the blacks.

From what I've tested two days ago: I disagree with both the statement. It's not a multitouch OLED screen. That said, graphics on it look very sharp (it depends also from game to game: does this make sense? because I've got this impression) and the responsivness (tested especially in the Castle minigame of Land) is very good.

It doesn't look something cheap, also if it is not OLED multitouch, as I said before.

 

[Aostia]

I have a question about the CCPro and Gamepad analog sticks: Is the deadzone/loose center comparable to the DS3 or the 360 conroller?

Or is it more GC/CC style.

Also, how does the clicking feel? Is it as cheap and flimsy as on the 360 or more firm like the DS3?

Mmmh...hard questions!
To me the feeling is more similar to GC/CC style about the deadzone, and more 360 style about the clicking.

 

[Dr.Hadji]

Asymmetric gameplay is merely a made-up term to put a positive spin on the fact that with local play, not everyone can use a gamepad at the same time. It's like Apple removing the screen on the iPod and calling it an iPod shuffle, like it's some grand innovation.

Wow. Asymmetric game(play) has been around before videogames were even possible. But now it becomes some kind of "spin". Its so well reasoned it hurts!

 

[DrWong]

Another thing to note about amazon.fr: there's now a page for the black Wii U. It wasn't here a few days ago > http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B008CYATI4/

 

[DaSorcerer7]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=479372

And fully owns the Spirit Camera.

 

[fabricated backlash]

Mmmh...hard questions!
To me the feeling is more similar to GC/CC style about the deadzone, and more 360 style about the clicking.

So I can expect the gamepad sticks to become unreliable and worn out after two years. Fuck klickable sticks!

I hope devs give the option to remap the stick buttons to virtual buttons on the touchscreen.

 

[IdeaMan]

But I don't think those are coaxial ports, they seem much too shallow from the close up:

For the two ports that intrigued you, they are the Gamepad ones. Developers plug the controller with wire through this port if they don't want to use it wireless.

There is the exact same port on v2 to v4 dev kits on a side of the box, and, as i said, two ports in the mass production ("v5") dev kits.

Another proof then of this late integration of two Gamepad ports on the Wii U, as those E3 2012 units got them. They are surely similar to the "final form" dev kit with built-in drive received just a few days before E3.

 

[CaVaYeRo]

Did you get a chance to play Lego Undercover?

Nope. Wasn't available. Batman was, but couldn't play it. Will have a new chance come next week - let's see if Lego is there. Castlevania 3DS was available - will have many things on it next week.

Did you notice any of the compression artifacting on the controller? I heard people complaining about that.

No. Nothing like that. What I noticed is huuuuge compression in Panorama view. It was disappointing because experience is beautiful. I hope they improve video Q for launch.

finally your getting it.

Pro looks very comfortable

It is. And the main unit too, I have to stress.

 

[IdeaMan]

With disk games being available as download, has Nintendo said something about copying games from the disk to hdd? (360 style)

You mean install them ?

Then, you have some answers here, in the "other important points" part.

- They are now able to emulate Wii U discs digitally, on hard drive (those of the dev kits). It certainly means that the system is now capable to run fully dematerialized content, transfered from discs, on the flash memory or the external HDD.

 

[AniHawk]

i didn't realize that panorama view was a new ip. pretty much everyone at e3 was like 'oh mmhm, that's neat' and moved along. apparently on the third day, they converted some of those kiosks into kiosks for games people might want to play.

 

[IdeaMan]

I didn't noticed that and I looked closely.
Actually, I found that the graphics looked sharper on the GamePad than on the TVs. And Nintendo used pretty good Panasonic setups.

It's an observation vastly shared by people who attended to those european showrooms, that the graphics looked nicer on the gamepad than on the TV for a lot of games, tanks to a mix of screen size, resolution, impression than it's a tad blurred (read: the flaws are less visible) and therefore more clean than on the big TV's, etc. Note that the situation will change at launch, with proper AA and a good polishing of the image quality of a lot of titles on the main screen.

 

[AzaK]

I didn't noticed that and I looked closely.
Actually, I found that the graphics looked sharper on the GamePad than on the TVs. And Nintendo used pretty good Panasonic setups.

From what I've tested two days ago: I disagree with both the statement. It's not a multitouch OLED screen. That said, graphics on it look very sharp (it depends also from game to game: does this make sense? because I've got this impression) and the responsivness (tested especially in the Castle minigame of Land) is very good.

It doesn't look something cheap, also if it is not OLED multitouch, as I said before.

Thanks guys and yeah I'm not expecting an OLED or IPS I can't wait to try one out.

I'm starting to wonder if the compression artifacts that people saw at e3 was due to interference lowering the bandwidth and the pad having to adapt......actually, they were all wired weren't they? Damn, there goes that theory.

Were the ones you tried wired or wireless?

 

[Aostia]

Thanks guys and yeah I'm not expecting an OLED or IPS I can't wait to try one out.

Were the ones you tried wired or wireless?

Well, another hard question! AH AH

Please note that all the pads (gamepads and CCPRo pads) were wired, probably to avoid that some thief could steal them :\
The funny thing is: the wire looked as one of those iron wire used also in the store to avoid stealing, but the gamepad to me was too light to be the final one and some friend of mine told me that the wired developers gamepads are missing the battery inside.

So, my guess is that they were lighter than the final ones, and that the wire was actually used to transfer data.

 

[blu]

So, my guess is that they were lighter than the final ones, and that the wire was actually used to transfer data.

Or perhaps power. Could be both, too.

 

[AzaK]

Well, another hard question! AH AH

Please note that all the pads (gamepads and CCPRo pads) were wired, probably to avoid that some thief could steal them :\
The funny thing is: the wire looked as one of those iron wire used also in the store to avoid stealing, but the gamepad to me was too light to be the final one and some friend of mine told me that the wired developers gamepads are missing the battery inside.

So, my guess is that they were lighter than the final ones, and that the wire was actually used to transfer data.

Strange. If it's the thin twisted wire then I'd say it's likely just a security wire, because all the ones we've seen to date were pretty thick and connected at the top-back of the GamePad with a pretty large plug.

If it was a power and/or data wire, then I'm a little concerned (that's my word of the day it seems) that we have yet to see them working wirelessly.

Blu, while you're here. With these rumoured compute shaders, what are their core competencies? Is it stuff like physics and animation that a normal CPU would do or are they good at drawing pixels too? I'm just wondering if they could also contribute to graphical "quality" along with stuff like wavy grass and are they considerably faster than just putting a beefier CPU in there?

 

[Aostia]

Or perhaps power. Could be both, too.

I think you are right

Strange. If it's the thin twisted wire then I'd say it's likely just a security wire, because all the ones we've seen to date were pretty thick and connected at the top-back of the GamePad with a pretty large plug.

It was like this:
http://www.gamereactor.es/noticias/23441/Wii+U+en+Espa%F1a%3A+galer%EDa+de+fotos/

it was the same for both gamepad and CCPro pad as in those pics

What do you think?

My suspect arised because the gamepad was tooooo light, really.

 

[AzaK]

I think you are right



It was like this:
http://www.gamereactor.es/noticias/23441/Wii+U+en+Espa%F1a%3A+galer%EDa+de+fotos/

it was the same for both gamepad and CCPro pad as in those pics

What do you think?

My suspect arised because the gamepad was tooooo light, really.

Weird, that's not like any other GamePad cable I've seen. Maybe that's the one that will ship in the box for charging or something?

I've heard a number of people say they felt it must be battery-less because it's so light.

 

[Aostia]

Weird, that's not like any other GamePad cable I've seen. Maybe that's the one that will ship in the box for charging or something?

I've heard a number of people say they felt it must be battery-less because it's so light.

Another Nintendo SECRET!!!
OMG, let's hope for some reliable update HAHA

 

[CaVaYeRo]

Weird, that's not like any other GamePad cable I've seen. Maybe that's the one that will ship in the box for charging or something?

I've heard a number of people say they felt it must be battery-less because it's so light.

But charging cable connects to the upper edge of the GamePad, not to the bottom like these ones @ events.

 

[Plinko]

The thing that bothered me the most (And this speaks to Wii U, not them) is that they (and other game media I've followed) just don't seem convinced by the Wii U. Some gaming media are having a hard time seeing it in the market and seeing how different it is. I get a sense they are rather indifference towards it, almost like they see it as nintendo doing their own again and that doesn't align with their tastes. The Wii U is trying to do a lot of things at once (gaming, tablet, media) and the fear is that it won't be great at any compared to the competition for the general masses.

Let's be quite honest here, though--the "gaming media" right now hasn't been enamored with Nintendo since the Gamecube and felt slighted when the Wii came out and started to appeal to more people than just hardcore gamers.

 

[Apophis2036]

You mean install them ?

Then, you have some answers here, in the "other important points" part.

Just read the link, cheers.

So if it has 8Gb of Flash memory for things like save files, patches, downloadable content and another 512MB drive for the OS, does this mean that the full 1.5GB of Ram will be used for games ?.

Cheers.

 

[thegodsend]

Note that the situation will change at launch, with proper AA and a good polishing of the image quality of a lot of titles on the main screen.

Did you give any reason behind this yet?

 

[DaSorcerer7]

Posted a thread on the gaming side.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=479404

 

[MDX]

Just read the link, cheers.

So if it has 8Gb of Flash memory for things like save files, patches, downloadable content and another 512MB drive for the OS, does this mean that the full 1.5GB of Ram will be used for games ?.

Cheers.

(not specifically directed to you Apophis)

If the 8Gb of flash memory has not been confirmed, can we stop mentioning it like it is?

 

[ozfunghi]

Just read the link, cheers.

So if it has 8Gb of Flash memory for things like save files, patches, downloadable content and another 512MB drive for the OS, does this mean that the full 1.5GB of Ram will be used for games ?.

Cheers.

What does RAM have to do with SSD/Flash?

 

[User Tron]

You mean install them ?

Then, you have some answers here, in the "other important points" part.

Yes, so it's already possible but will they allow it that's the question. (Technically it's copying the disk image and not installing like the ps3 does. /smart ass)

 

[Gahiggidy]

The official weight of the gamepad is 1.1 pounds.

That's close to two wavebirds with one battery each.

-----

Edit - people really need to start bringing rulers and digital scales to these Wii U events.

 

[Apophis2036]

What does RAM have to do with SSD/Flash?

Ok i see where i went wrong lol .

Does anyone still think that the OS will use 512MB's of the consoles 1.5GB Ram tho ?, Miiverse doesn't look to be the most technically demanding thing in the world.

Or is Miiverse not the OS ? and will we get a main menu system similar to XBL where we can browse games, demos, videos ect or will those things just be options from a Miiverse window.

I would prefer a 360 like menu with Miiverse as an 'app' kind of like PS Home, i play most console games SP so having all those Twitter like comments pop up all the time would get annoying really fast for me.

Don't know if anyone has this info so apologies if Nintendo have not talked about it yet.

Cheers.

 

[Berg]

But charging cable connects to the upper edge of the GamePad, not to the bottom like these ones @ events.

IIRC the power connect will be on the bottom edge on final retail version. I'll have to find that quote.

I'm glad the screen looks great! Is there any word on how far of a viewing angle the screen will have? will I have to view it head on?

 

[Dreamwriter]

Note that the situation will change at launch, with proper AA and a good polishing of the image quality of a lot of titles on the main screen.

Did you give any reason behind this yet?

Games still have at least 2 months of development left, maybe longer depending on release date, and that sort of optimization/polishing tends to be one of the last steps in making games. I would expect some games running at 720p to support 1080p, others will solidify their framerate, others will add AA in some form, some will use more/better graphical effects. Some games will of course stay the same. The least likely scenario is for games to jump from 30fps to 60fps, though if the developer thinks it's important enough for their title, they may go to that effort.

 

[IdeaMan]

Just read the link, cheers.

So if it has 8Gb of Flash memory for things like save files, patches, downloadable content and another 512MB drive for the OS, does this mean that the full 1.5GB of Ram will be used for games ?.

Cheers.

The 512MB of separated flash memory (let's called it X) dedicated to the storage of the OS (+ system updates, etc.) isn't the same than the RAM memory reserved for the same OS and the system services (it's Y). Once you boot up your Wii U, it will load several files from X to Y. It's a strong, additional clue, than Y will be big, but not necessarily as much as X for the retail console (it was at least 512MB of ram for the "OS" a few months ago). And a lot of this room, in the storage and in the RAM, is just reserved, it's not filled with data. It's more a space planned in advance for system features like multi-tasking, pausing your game, saving your progression, etc, it requires to cache a lot of data, hence this reservation.

Think of your windows files stored in your hard-drive, and loaded in the memory when you turn on your PC. Don't hesitate to search for some of my posts in the speculation thread 6 i think, where i tried to be the more thorough possible for this subject to avoid any confusion.

Did you give any reason behind this yet?

I listed the plausible explanations in some posts a few days after E3, but it's a fact, my sources told me that the AA situation at E3 was normal and that it will be implemented at launch. And it came from two different studios.