New Nintendo Console Maybe In 3, 5 Or 8 Years

If they do make new hardware, they will HAVE to improve the software architecture in order to make features people want in their console.

The Wii's software architecture right now is not acceptable.

@TOCATL: While it's possible, I remain skeptical of this outcome. I don't see anything that leads me to believe that Nintendo are learning from their mistakes, hardware- or software-wise. The problem in all of this is that, while they're receiving a lot of criticism, they're still making gobs of money from people who really don't care about video games. I don't believe they see a great need to please their original customers.

@TOCATL: High dev costs are a problem, but they are not an unfixable one. The philosophy of game development will have to change; for instance, more lenient deadlines might allow for more complete planning, thus fewer mistakes and changes need to be made, thus less money is used. A lot of this has to do with the embittered relationship between Publishers and Developers, and might take some time to work out, but it's certainly possible.

@ShadowOdin finally got a copy of Suikoden III. Is upset with the Daily Show: I would say something about the development challenges regarding the PS3, but I'm working on being less of a troll. In response to the rest of your statement, I think this is why this '10 year life cycle' idea exists; games might take longer to develop, so it would be a good idea to keep platforms around for longer. As for worth, I think we've gotten a lot out of this gen so far (new concepts like Assassins Creed and Braid, genre refining games like Modern Warfare, Bioshock, and Fallout 3, etc.), and it looks like we're going to get much more from it before all is said and done (Project Natal, ModNation Racers, and Sony's Motion Control all have me pretty excited).

Personally, this gen has given me more enjoyment and excitement than the last one, and the prospects for the next one are even greater with the rate that technology is progressing.

user_21938

@Eiger: When we reach 2013, I'm going to laugh at all you people.

user_21938

@1Grand_Marquis: that is exactly my feeling. Toshiba was advertising its "HDD HDDVD" player a couple years back here in Japan. very poor marketing!

TT

Wii until 2017... Wonder how many more peripherals will be released during that time...

Gam3r

everyone talks about HD alot and how the wii does not support it.

Rather than (wii 2) being traditional HD i really cbelieve they will take a vector imaging aproach on there games.

lordhewlett

@Snacky_Smores: What exactly is a "next-gen" controller then?

Something wireless? with force feedback? with internal memory in it, with an infrared camera inside it? an accelerometer? a speaker?

Oh, wait. I forgot, you're delusional. The Wii Remote IS a next-gen controller.

Just because you don't like it, doesn't make it "last-gen" or even a gimmick. It's obviously not a gimmick since Nintendo's two biggest competitors saw fit to copy that gimmick: the competitors with consoles which the internet hails as "the real next gen consoles".

So, if the "next-gen" guys are copying the "last-gen" guy, I think we just make an infinite loop in which you're a dumbass.

@Snacky_Smores: How many 7 year-olds take calculus? Obviously svenhoek doesn't mean that every subject and teacher can be replaced by a video game, but basic history, geography, math, and science could be taught by an edutainment title.

Aquila76

I don't care about HD. I can't even afford HD.

As for a new system.... they better freakin' have a way to transfer all my VC files onto the next system.

@Fyrinn: The only way Nintendo's console is next gen. is if it is more powerful than the current generation. Their current console is not even more powerful than one last gen. console. Nintendo will not release another console anytime soon because people still buy the Wii. Besides, how badly do you need Mario party Baseball in HD?

@nago: I think what he means is that the Wii controllers are not next gen controllers. They are not and the gamecube and classic controllers are not either. There is nothing next gen about the Wii, I hate to break that to you.

Gimmick controls != Next gen.

@svenhoek: Will Take The Rapists for $400: You are an idiot! There is not a video game around that could teach as well as a teacher. I have never seen a game that could teach calculus.

@Fyrinn: I wonder just how "next-gen" the Wii is if games keep being ported between it and the PS2. Its control scheme is extraneous; does the Power Glove make the NES current-gen?

@Ueziel: Not only that. After Nintendo came third in the last console war they did not want to make a console that would lose them money with each sale. Look at the PS3 and 360. Sony and Microsoft are losing a good chunk of change with each system sold but they can afford to take the losses. Nintendo would've been 6 feet under if they came out with a HD console back in 2006. I won't be surprised if the next console has HD but is technologically inferior to Sony and MS next offering.

@zimmi88: I would kill no less than ten thousand newborn infants to play an HD Okami.

@Invisible-Echidna:

Set your's for three and watch him wake up 5 years into the WiiII's (see what I did... please dont use that Nintendo) life cycle

I hope... about the three year thing... i want an HD mario you all know that'll make up for everything during these Wii years..

And redo Super Smash Bros please.... add in some combos... its a deep game in certain aspects but... more moves, more characters, more items, more levels, more modes... you forgot the first one the last time around

SaanZ

guys guys guys guys. majority thinks that Nintendo is at a disadvantage when they are really not.

1. Not everyone has an HD tv yet.
2. Right now, Nintendo and many other developpers are used to the wiimotion control and are already making amazing games with the utility of the wii hardware and motion control.
3. By the time Natal and Sony's motion control releases, Nintendo and other devs are probably experts on the wii controller.
4. If microsoft and sony decides to release a new console with motion, or even if it doesnt, which is harder? perfecting hardware and software for motion control or HD? obviously motion control is harder because it needs precision and more.

So Nintendo actually is a Step Ahead like it has always been and at an advantage. And after those big games coming out since 2009 and in the rest of the year and for next year, no one can really deny the fact that the hardcore game has finally been revived in Nintendo's area.

and no, dont think i am a nintendo fanboy. but Yes i do love playing games on Wii, and i do love playing PS3 and 360 as well(though i prefer playing ps3 over 360).

@Vidunder: There are real controllers, though. Both the classic controller and the GC controller.

There are also plenty of games that use the Wii Remote on its side as a regular controller,

And plenty of games that use the Remote + Nunchuk as a regular controller.

What are you talking about?

@NicolasCage: Agreed. The only point I'd like to make is that their technology in their future console needs to be able to run current generation games. I believe they could have had even more market share this generation if they had copies of multiplatform games. Ninja Gaiden Sigma with waggle, anyone? How about Last Remnant or Dead Space? Give us core gamers some excitement for the Wii.

Furysetzer

@Alex_Mexico: i know exactly what you mean! haha i srsly thought i was in the minority in this. or maybe it's because we are that many others lack the basic knowledge in this. don't understand why ppl upgrade only to not upgrade

kw4k

@WDYC: I'm assuming that since you are running at 1080i that you do have a widescreen TV and are viewing the movies as such.

As I understand it, there are two different formats (at least in the US and I believe most of the world): 4x3 and 16x9. While the 4x3 is pretty set, the 16x9 can still have some variants. When a movie is made, they can choose to make the picture wider with black bars or more closer to 16x9. Watch The Dark Knight for a good example of both in one movie. All of the IMAX sequences fill the screen. Once they go to 35mm, there are black bars. As long as you're in the widescreen format, then it's just up to the director whether there are black bars or not.

billyjr82

@majortom1029:

I definitely agree with you. There's a long list innovations nintendo can cite as having originating. I am obviously skeptical of how the pulse sensor is going to compare to the likes of analog sticks, shoulder buttons, and rumble packs. I guess I just think it will be hard for nintendo to live up to it's own standard sometimes.

@fearing: wow, WOW, you just scratched my post by thinking it's based on that video? Do I seem that deranged :( ? Dude, I recorded that video. I've played enough SD games on different TVs to base my opinion on that. Sure, most don't need the resolution, but many do - when it comes to speed, skill or multiplayer.

Now try playing Warhawk in SD. Just try it, and you'll join the club.

@this entire thread:
Goddamn, I go to sleep and awake to this mess... And there's one thing that has been really bugging me:
I see people keep talking about how immersive games are... Honestly, I DON'T think immersion is a good thing. I don't want to think the game is real, or that I'm actually part of it. That's escapism. I just want to play it, and enjoy the game. Not BE the game. So if I lose the game, it's not going to seem so horrible.

Let me make something else perfectly clear: I never said graphics WEREN'T important. I do appreciate good art direction. HOWEVER, raw power and screen resolution alone do not make a game good. There are plenty of good games on all three current consoles, and they take advantage of each platform's individual strengths. They aren't good because of their graphics, but because they're fun to play.

@ShadowOdin:
Dead Rising... is an interesting case. Aside from the zombie count, I don't think anything was changed because of what the Wii can/cannot handle. Things like changing the mission and save structures, removing jumping and photography, etc... seemed more like design decisions than anything else (hey, they removed photography from the true sequel, too). In the end, the result is a very different game from the original.

@Slagathorian:
I don't care how bad the controls are in my games, I just want them to be fun.
But controls are EXTREMELY tied to a game's playability. If you try to jump, and your character leaps five seconds after you press the button, that is a broken game. It's hard for a game to be fun if the controls are bad, since you're constantly fighting WITH the game.

I don't care how lousy the story and voice acting is in my games, I just want them to be fun.
I read books for stories. I don't play video games for that. And terrible voice acting doesn't take away from it, either (see: Megaman 8, Megaman X4, and the original Resident Evil).

I don't care how short my games are, I just want them to be fun.
Hey, Portal was a great game. A game can be short... as long as the price matches. If Portal costed $50 by itself, I'd still enjoy it, but feel ripped off.

@Slagathorian:
Big games have been made since back in the NES days. You just work with the power you have, not against it.

@TT: Well it doesn't help that the whole thing is inherently confusing as hell, and poorly explained to the general populace.

1Grand_Marquis

@Brian Beckmann: It's okay Brian, not all is lost. I'm sure someone will make a virtual controller that you can pretend you're holding.

1Grand_Marquis

@WDYC: You care more about black lines than watching the film as it was intended to be seen? Heathen!

@seanjohnson01: uhum... the gamecube was nearly as powerfull as the original xbox, actually nearly better. and that's how it has been for most of gaming history.
lemme show you the way out...

laencythe

@Paul_Is_Drunk: Hahaha! I love how an opinion about graphics quality has become the equivalent of flamebait around here.

Defensive much, guys? :p

1Grand_Marquis

@David Whitney: -1 for reading disability. a comment making sense and disagreeing with your viewpoint does not make it random conjecture.

laencythe

@SavageOpopanax: why should they dropp out of the console market? because they're successful without you having anything to do with it? because they made money from the start unlike the two "hardcore(porn... sorry)" consoles that started selling ata huge loss? because they don't cater to you're particular interests?
gamers these days really disappoint me in the common sense department

laencythe

@Slagathorian: None of my friends got one. They all got composite with it. And a quick google search shows that I'm correct.

Also, companies SHOULD include all possible cables and a guide to what they are and what they do. My monitor came with VGA, DVI-D AND HDMI cables.

If I can go into a store or shop online at monoprice for cables and find HDMI cables for something like $5, Sony can afford to throw one in and explain what it is.

@Slagathorian: you know when you get angry or scared, when you're anxious, stressed or unimpressed, your heart beats at different frequencies. and all of those things I mentioned are usually called feelings. sure, Nintendo's sensor might not yet be perfected enough to translate the different signals your body sends out 1:1 into feelings, but the idea, the concept is there.

yes, that's why Nintendo is going to release a new console down the road, because you know, now they can afford it, unlike the two other chumps who both started selling consoles at a relatively big loss. Nintendo is doing what wise men do, being patient.
and whatever the future may hold, however awesome Natal might proove to be, however great online microsoft has, Nintendo's hardware durability and quality will always surpass them. no, I'm not talking about technical prowess or about frames per second. I'm talking about a console falling 20 meters and still reading discs as if nothing happened. as it stands, xboxes still tend to die without any external help.
(this does not apply to Sony, though, who's PS3 seems to be quite consistent)

laencythe

@Slagathorian:

Yes, but they still don't have the same appeal, games, public appearance, etc.

They've essentially gathered what makes the Wii appealing and applied the same principles to their systems, but that still doesn't mean they're on par with the Wii in terms of appeal to the public.

@lucasreis: When Chrono Trigger was re-released, everyone overjoyed. No one bitched about shite graphics. It's a fun game, that stands the test of time. Same with many DS games, and that thing is dominating the market.

So is the Wii, IIRC.

I'd argue that "I need hardcore graphics!" is more a mentality of the "hardcore!" set than a general gamer complaint. I have many friends who play games on their computers or whatnot, and none of them have heard of Kotaku or /v/. Guess what we do when we hang out? We play the original Street Fighter 2 Turbo on an SNES.

Why? Because it's fun. Yeah, we could play the Xbox Live version, but we love the feel of the old Nintendo controller and original (some would say shitty) graphics.

Right now I'm replaying Deus Ex for the 20+ time. The graphics are ancient, but no complaints here. I would also cut a man if they tried updating it.

Paul_Is_Drunk

@Dark_Mirage:

not talking about the games.....but the price of the new HD console.

@user_21938: They -have- been working on the next console since the 360 was released.
The same with Sony.
And Nintendo.

I don't think the next gen will be WORTH it. We haven't even gone as far as we can in this gen, and production-times are already through the roofs. Sucker Punch just released their first PS3 game the other week and they're a first-party developer for Sony.

@Ganon255:

This is true, but I've found Nintendo to be VERY similar to Apple as a business. It's almost scary in fact.

They (Nintendo and Apple) will usually lag behind their competitions on some basic features, but will always come up with some "new" feature that captures the attention of the public and gets them lots of sales.

See iPhone, DS, Wii, etc.

They're a smart business, so if they think solidifying an online infrastructure will get them more $$$, then they'll do it.

@Anthony Joseph Lazzarino: Woops. *playing a game.
This site needs an edit but.

2012 doesn't seem like a stretch for a new Nintendo console. Didn't the GC come out in 2000?

Anthony Joseph Lazzarino

@majortom1029: Your pulse doesn't measure how your "feeling" it measures how many times your heart beats per minute. A fat persons heart, beats slower than a healthy persons heart. If you wanted to equate BPM's into a feeling, good luck with that.

And motion control isn't as ridiculous on the 360 and PS3 as you think it is, because if you brought those 2 systems down to the wii's level, people would see just how much better they are.

Now they are the same as the wii, but have better graphics, more storage, bigger games, better online play, web browsers, etc.

@KaneRobot: Meaningless is a stretch, but that comment is pretty much spot on. You have fun with the gameplay, and the art can and will enhance the immersion, but overall, you're [i]playing[/i] a game.

@pslong9: People love to complain about the graphics in a game that's yet to be released, and the only media is a low-res screen. Nice.
And that last comment too, I agree. System power is very important too. Granted, I frequently take higher resolution over framrates, but overall, I'd take lower graphic settings and a smoother framerate over resolution.

Anthony Joseph Lazzarino

@Ueziel: Samsung Tv's don't have refresh rate lag. I call for bullcrap fanboy pro nintendo tripe here.

Does your 360 have HDTV lag?

@user_21938: One thing is that the recession is ending and another is that the market recorvered its levels before the recession, and thats why we are still going to see more studios struggling to release those high dev cost games, wich benefits nintendo that gives some devs a great choice to release games without spending much...

TOCATL

@user_21938: My guess is that nintendo will learns from its mistakes and be competitive in the processing power in its next gen, ATI now has really good GPUs, wich could put the next nintendo console close or even surpass the others...

TOCATL

Can someone tell me what that picture of that old man, hovering his hands around that orb is? Anyways, I agree that the Wii is a sort've souped up version of the gamecube. I mean, look at Ninjabread man.

@TitillatedOcelot: I guess I'm the only one that actually likes the FF7 graphics, and there was no nostalgia involved at all (never owned a Playstation).

For me it could be more fascination with how they decided to do the 3D and why they chose to do it the way they did. I'm sure enjoying the hell out of the game on my PSP though.

LiekosOfMobius

@eponym: Because everyone could afford a 27 inch TV 8 years ago. Dumbass.

Nitro378

For the next Nintendo console I would like the graphics, processor souped up and maybe a hard-drive but what it really needs is proper online support. Get rid of the friend codes and do the online more like Microsoft and Sony. I keep seeing new super mario bros wii and thinking how awesome it would be if it had proper online. Then I could play with my friends even when they can't come over (some live far away).

ion1626

HD reso@NicolasCage: Um what the heck? Hd resolutions do not cost players extra. There are plenty of HD titles on the 360 that don't cost more than 39 or 49 dollars, which is the same as a Wii game. Sure a few of them are basically Wii ports, but that's not the point... the point is that it's the same game, at the same price, and looking better.

Games prices don't have to do with the resolution of the game. As long as the game is developed on a proper budget and the right time frame, it need not cost a lot of money.

Interesting that they recognize that HD is "now common throughout the world". Had the Wii been in HD, "now" wouldn't have been a problem.

I'm still firm in my belief that the Wii's hardware, from the IOS design to the lack of HD, was shortsightedly designed with barely any consideration for the future and how technology would evolve in the time the console is on the market.

RockyRan

@N●Gage Croal:

I think the Wii as it stands works decently. The problem isn't so much in high resolution textures for me, as it is the elimination of jaggies. So many of the Wii's games could have been much better if the developers had more power to drive out of the Wii. Instead they're trying to take a grand concept and compress it down to actually work on a console such as the Wii.

Aside from that, constantly seeing jaggies or repeating characters, or so few enemies on the screen (such as in Dead Rising), takes away from the effect that the game otherwisely had on a competing console. Nintendo was foolish to not consider a higher development, as at least the elimination of jaggies.

I believe Nintendo extremely underestimated what the gamer wants this generation, resulting in - at least with people I know - buying the Wii because they think it's great fun, and then abandoning the platform two months in save for extremely casual use.

They wanted to immerse the gamer in their games. And they took out the ability of advanced graphics. While graphics don't mean as much in the case of immersion, they also removed surround sound which was pivotal. I personally feel it goes without question that Nintendo took some very bad steps this generation that they should learn from by seeing the success of people Playing the competitors console.

@jacobgermain:

The affordability issue isn't even an issue now.

I can buy a 32" 1080p LCD on sale (a cheap one mind you) for less than what I paid for a 27" tube TV 8 years ago.

eponym

@8-Bit-Soul: That is until Microsoft sends an Xbox360 back in time to the 1980s to kill the NES and prevent the Wii from ever being born. The 360 is out there! It can't be bargained with, it can't be reasoned with, it doesn't feel pity or remorse or fear and it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead.

dundun dun dundun tsh tsh, dundun dun dundun tsh tsh...

@Fox Hound: Wow how to take a comnment totally out of context.

He ment that they will not simply take the wii and make it hd. The next console might have the same kind of controller but wont simply be a wii with hd.

Read the whole interview.

majortom1029

@Lokno: yes, but regular Japanese people don't know that. Many think digital means HD.

TT

@seanjohnson01:

Oh boy, somebody just started gaming.

Nslick

@SavageOpopanax: I guess you havent been seeing all th eprofits from the wii that nintendo has been getting. Read the whole interview.

majortom1029

I really don't care if it isn't in HD. Could it look better on my television? Of course it could.

I guess I'm in the minority that doesn't base how "good" a game is on graphics.

Nslick

@Dyabolic: See typical person with no business sense.

Read the FULL interview. Just the fact that microsoft now has project natal shows that nintendo knows what its doing .

Remember microsoft was bashing nintendo for the mpotion controls 2 -3 years ago when the wii was first shown.

Nintendo knows what they are doing. Microsofts Natal and Nintendos wii profits point to that.

majortom1029

@francoamerica: REad iawatas latest interview. Which kotaku should have posted in full considering he stated and showed off that he also has an iphone and mac.

Nintendo KNEW that microsoft and sony would follow them and release motion controls even after all the bashing they did originally.

Nintendo will be alive for years to come. They have business sense that as of right now microsoft and sony dont seem to have.

Everyone who is saying natal is king where the same people who bashed nintendo for doing the same thing 2 -3 years ago.

I think the vitality sensor is bigger then what people make it out to be. Imagine that human natal demo but even more realistic. The vitality senor would have the console know how you are feeling. If your tired if your scared. this is something nintendo came up with and everybody is laughing at right now.

I think nintendo is way smarter business wise then most people know. the very fact that microsoft came out with natal prooves this.

PS from what iawata stated about apple (besides the fact his laptop is apple and he owns an iphone) i think that down the road we could see nintendo apple colaboration.

majortom1029

@Alex_Mexico:

Not everyone is really interested in tinkering with their things, they expect that when everything is plugged you have HD right of the bat, stupid I know but still is what the general consumer wants and many have failed to deliver.

Now what I want to ask is how the hell can I watch my Blu Ray without the goddamn black lines? 300 is alright but when I watch Iron Man then its shit all over, I don't want black lines, I want 16:9.

By the way yes, I have my resolution at 1080i (sadly my TV doesn't go for p) and I have tried to modify the way I watch Blu Ray, but still I can't get it right.

WDYC

@Fox Hound: You must really hate the 360 and PS3 then, because compared to PCs, they have subpar technology.

pslong9

@Dyabolic: What an ignorant comment. Nintendo is a company, they don't "serve" anyone. If you like what they have to offer you buy their product, if you don't you don't.

And do you really believe Nintendo didn't know a lot of gamers are graphic whores? They made a gamble. They figured that the advantages of cheaper development costs outweighed the number of people who expected HD graphics. I'd say that gamble paid off. Putting HD in also invites comparison between the Wii and PS3/360, and Nintendo wants to separate themselves from that pack as much as possible.

Tiber

@Slagathorian: Well, about the New Super Mario Bros Wii online comment, we really don't know what he means by the hardware limitations it ran into. He could simply be talking about not being able to handle lag / online play very well. That has nothing to do with graphics and the ability to handle "big" games.

But regardless - I think that graphics aren't a big deal. Do they matter? Yes, but they're only a small part of the experience. I still think X-Com and Thief hold up well today, even though they don't have great graphics. Super Metroid, Super Mario Bros 3, Mega Man 2, and a lot more from the NES / SNES era also hold up very well. Would I love graphically updated versions of those games? Absolutely. But ultimately, the gameplay behind it is what causes me to enjoy those games, not the graphics.

Great graphics can help enhance the experience. Bad graphics can detract from the experience. And as has been noted, something like Dead Rising can really only be done with higher graphic processing. But the idea behind the game and the execution matters far more than the graphics.

pslong9

@Alex_Mexico: The best line when people come in the store is: "I need an HD Ready TV, because everything's going digital by 2012!"

@zgreenwell: Actually, Microsoft said they didn't see a need to wait for a new console launch to introduce advancements. If Natal works as planned, there's no reason it couldn't be used for both the 360 and it's successor.

user_21938

@ShadowOdin finally got a copy of Suikoden III. Is upset wit...: If economists are to be believed, the recession is nearing it's end, and things will be going up over the next few years. Previously, Microsoft have stated that they are designing a new console as we speak (this was some time ago).

Barring any major changes, I think my analysis is accurate.

user_21938

"However, as far as the Wii is concerned, we have not found a significant reason to make it HD-compatible at this time."

Translation

"However, as far as the Wii is concerned, we are stacking millions of dollars from it, and HD would not really increase these piles of millions, so were going to offer subpar technology for almost another decade, because we are still going to make millions of dollars.

Fox Hound

@lucasreis: The thing about an underpowered machine, is that you can't have "big" games. Miyamoto said he couldn't have online multiplayer in the new super mario bros wii, because he used the machine to its limitations. And its only 3 years in to the wii's lifespan. Thats kinda sad.

@Vidunder: Look at Sony and Microsoft solution for that one LOL [/sarcasm]

Hayabusa_San

@stingjc: That would only be true if we didn't have the extremely popular PSN and XBN. Where people can make low budget, but fun games that are bought by the masses. Go away troll.

@JauntyHat:
Nooo! You should've chose 3! I don't want to wait 8 years. :(

Invisible-Echidna

@seanjohnson01: Yeah, just like the Gamecube, it was so far behind the PS2. Oh, wait, it was more advanced.

Or the SNES... compared to its competitors, it was so weak. Oh wait, it was more advanced.

Learn some history, son.

pslong9

@N●Gage Croal: What? Just What?

Why do the two have to be mutually exclusive? Why can't games be fun and look good? Games become more fun when you become drawn in, and a great looking game helps you to become drawn in. If people really didn't care about visual quality, people would still all be watching their VHS's. And HDTV's would have flopped and we'd all be on SDTV's. But I can say meaningless rubbish like you to:

I don't care how bad the controls are in my games, I just want them to be fun.

I don't care how lousy the story and voice acting is in my games, I just want them to be fun.

I don't care how short my games are, I just want them to be fun.

All those things EQUAL a game being fun. graphics, story, gameplay, length, immersion quality, controls etc.

No one here doesn't care about graphics, if that were true, we'd still be making games for the atari.

@DarCowAlways: What? You make no sense. All I'm saying is that at launch, the Wii was sold at slightly above production cost so Nintendo would make a profit on every console sold. The PS3 and 360 sold below (in the PS3 case, well below) production cost with the intent of making it up in software / licensing. If Sony had pursued the same strategy as Nintendo, trying to make a profit with each console from day 1, you would have been looking at an $850 - $900 price tag.

pslong9

@ATimson: I doubt the TV manufacturers care that much about how it's used after it's purchased. And what would they do anyway, put it in the instruction manual? How many people read that?

The person in the best position to tell customers these things is the guy at the store selling you the TV, but sadly he's more interested in (or at he's least ordered to try) selling you overpriced Monster cables or getting you to pay to have it installed.

Tiber

@Ueziel: what are you talking about? My PS3 came with an HDMI cable?

@pslong9: Hah! Weak hardware and a fancy controller make not an expensive console.

@N●Gage Croal: Yeah there is room for both, but only enough budget for one or the other. I'm sorry, like I posted awhile back, I predict that the Next iterations of the Wii, PS3 and XBOX will have motion controls out of the box, the classic controllers will be "optional." :(

It would just be nice to have a Nintendo console on par with the other gaming systems for once.

I bought a Wii because I was excited by the motion control, but it has disappointed me time and time again. I'm not a Mario fan, and what other proper games have they produced?

I later bought a PS3, and I was amazed by how deep their next-gen games are compared to Wii games. Even something which gets loads of plaudits like No More Heroes, I thought was utter shit, and incomparable to Uncharted, GTA or Bioshock.

I'm excited by Motion Plus and the new EA Tennis and Golf games, but as soon as Sony release their motion controls with some decent games, I'll be selling my Wii in a flash.

That statement from Iwata has really annoyed me. The Wii graphics look shit on a decent TV, it is dying to be improved upon.

And I agree with Ganon255, their online play sucks too.

I used to think Wii haters were idiots, but now I completely understand. I just hope that the Wii's success don't stop Sony and Microsoft from producing deep, rich, beautiful and adult games.

spirojunk

@theharribokid: Came to this reply thread looking for some reference to that.

I was not dissappointed.

New doomsday theory for a post Y2K world. Mayan calendar ends, everything wigs out. Feel good times all around. :p

@JahB: Exactly. No matter what people say, beautiful graphics and stunning resolution certainly help the immersion.

It's easier for me to love a pretty game than an ugly game.

@Konchu: its all about games and features for console dominance. Sure, we talked about the snes having better graphics in 93, but thats the last time the most powerful system on the market won a race. The master system, n64, xbox, and now ps3 were/are all more powerful than their market leading contemporaries. Shoot, even gamegear and psp can attest to this.

I will say though, the wii is grossly under powered, so were not going to be wowed by much on the machine, but, that doesnt mean that millions wont be enjoying the games for the thing.

I think it's funny how Nintendo uses HD TVs in all their demos, promotions and ads to display their jaggy SD games :P

I'm waiting to hear that all the stuff I've bought through VC and Wiiware will be incompatible with the next gen hardware.

yukonrye

@Cheevocabra: What now?

Yeah, HD is nice and all but how about some online?

Hire SEGA to help you with online infrastructure. You maybe a mean game, Nintendo--but you can learn a lot as far as online communities go.

Why not just predict that a new console will come out within 10 years? It's less wordy that way. Here, I'll show a few good examples, so Nintendo console soothsayers will know how to be better at this stuff.

"I predict... within... 100 years, Nintendo might be in business, or completely out of business."

"By the end of the Millennium, Nintendo will release a new Mario game."

"By the year 2050, Nintendo will release more than 2 M-rated games that will be moderately successful."

See? It's not so hard. You try it.

@TitillatedOcelot: well i think for some, thatd be because the game wasnt all that hot in the first place. The playstation era was the 3d equivalent to the atari era. Go back to those games, and ure like "gross." nes and sms games still look nice, and snes games that looked good then still have a good look to them. Sure, they hadnt reached perfection in 2d graphics yet (we still havent), but we reached a good middleground. Were just starting to do that with 3d graphics now.

I was 12 when the playstation came out, and even in 95 i hated the machines graphics. Basically, not many games will come out 15 years from now imitating ps1 graphics, while i suspect we'll be seeing plenty that look like ps2 games. Similar to how many new "retro" games look like either nes or snes games, but nobody imitates atari era games. Even in the 70s, those games were ugly, while nes games were pretty in 85.

may be HD but a new console wont offer much more than the Wii currently does. I cant see Nintendo every really switching gears and start catering to the people who made Nintendo successful in the first place.

I have a feeling they are always gonna be that odd ball out that goes in another direction. Dont think thats a bad thing, they tried going the Sony route with gamecube but it didnt work for them. I just hope they give real gamers more than 1 or 2 game games a year.

Scott J

@Tim Goeree: All you mention is processing power. That's my point. The Wii is different from the gamecube in more ways than the 360 is different than the xbox. Yes, the games are a massive part of it. Made possible b the all-new gamechanging controller which is even moreso. The standard in every console internal storage the cube didn't have, the increased disc capacity. The expanded demographic targets. The SD card and built in wireless. The full day-one backward compatibility the cube completely lacked. The VC. All are significant upgrades to the cube, more significant even than adding........wait for it.......triple core CPU...DUN DUN DUN! Most of the upgrades on the cube were unchanged between the xbox and 360, unless you count the loss of a standard internal storage solution on the 360.

Wii looks great on a 720p plasma when using component cables - it's composite cables on 1080p LCDs that make it look like shit.

Schmeg Peg

@lucasreis: It's not only about graphics, though, it's what they can handle.

Dead Rising is a good argument for that. Do you think anyone think it is a better game on the Wii than on the 360 when they remove important elements due to restrictions in what the Wii can handle?

@zgreenwell: Or because Nintendo actually wants to make a profit and not pursue the loss-leader strategy. At launch, if the PS3 cost as much as its components, it would probably have been somewhere between $800 - $850.

pslong9

@Casual_Hardcore: Yeah, also consider that having digital signal does not require you to have an HD TV.

@KaneRobot: I agree with you but I think there are some exceptions. I mean. Let´s examine some games. Call of Duty looks better on PS360 for sure, it´s a fact. But a cartoony game can be done on a less powerful machine and be just as fun (like you said, Madworld is an example). So, for realism, the Wii is not going to do the trick very well, but for cartoony stuff it has a cool setup.

lucasreis

@Tim Goeree:+1 for a correct answer to some guys random conjecture!

@svenhoek: Will Take The Rapists for $400:

Addendum:

Video games are the one of the best tools for teaching children. If an educational game is well made, it can teach a child just as well as any teacher, and they can be especially helpful for children with learning disabilities or behavioral problems. I think its really a shame there aren't better games like Layton, Brain Age, etc. as widely available, or marketed as heavily. I know when I go down the Wii aisle there is a whole section for the Imagine! series. I really think if developers made good educational games it could help to reverse some of this cultural stupidity most kids seem to have nowadays. No offense meant, but most kids today are kind of fucking retarded. And I'm not confusing this for childhood ignorance, they really are getting stupider. Of course there are exceptions...blah blah pc bullshit to not get flamed.

@subnet6:

Care to explain this a bit? The Wii IS a souped up Cube. There's nothing wrong with that but it is. Early Wii dev kits were just Cube kits with Wiimotes. Clockspeed, ram configuration, storage solutions and communication solutions are the only things that have changed. Architectually, the Wii is exactly the same as the Cube; that is why it can play Cube games native.

360 on the other hand has a triple core PPC cpu architecture. Much more different than a single core x86 cpu. Still, conceptually the architecture is not all that different.

I'm assuming you looked at the games for both systems to reach your conclusions because the Wii has much more different games than the Cube and the 360 pretty much does Xbox stuff but then in HD. That's not the point though. A souped up version of a tech product is something that's basically the same with better specs, like the first and second iPhone for example.

Tim Goeree

@Ueziel: Honestly, you don't have more fun with a game with great graphics. It's meaningless.

This tired cliche was shown to be inaccurate a long time ago. Graphics alone do not make a game better, true. But they do enhance the experience beyond what it would normally be. Make everything else in the game equal - control/gameplay, sound, design - and a Wii version of a game is not going to be as entertaining an experience as a 360 or PS3 version of a game if both are pushing the graphics as hard as the systems are capable of.

The Wii is capable of putting out some decent looking games - Madworld had a nice style, Punch-Out is well done.

But graphics are not even close to "meaningless." Nice try to make it seem juvenile to like nicer graphics with that dumb comment about being 5 years old, though.

"Meaningless" indeed.

KaneRobot

It's cool and all that they will add HD but please, add some better games. I haven't played my Wii since Mario Kart Wii was released.

@Derangel: I used old games as an argument to express how I feel about graphics. Do I care if a new game has subpar graphics? Most likely not, as long as it´s fun. I used Tetris as an example that graphics = meh to me. I really mean it. Sure, I do love to see evolution in graphics but gameplay is what really matters. So, if a game isn´t that beautiful, screw it, as long as it´s fun I´ll play it.

lucasreis

@XtaLarge: Actually, I could argue that better graphics are destroying the gaming industry. Think about it. Development costs have soared, and small studios which were producing good games have closed up. Because of better graphics on our systems, we now rely on giant corporations like EA and Activision to give us something.

@Mrrix32: Agreed!!

lucasreis

@Ace Jon: I think its more up to the developers that make the Wii games to get them some more interesting games. Most seem to realize you can turn out fucking garbage like the Imagine series, and little kids and their parents buy it up. Then those children grow up hating video-games and looking down at the rest of us for playing. These aren't games you buy for your 7 year old.

I mean come on. Where are the great childrens games that teach them important lessons about logic and critical thinking, or history, or reading? Games like Professor Layton! If I had a kid, that would be the FIRST game I got for them. If the Wii and DS had more games as well made, fun to play, and educational as that game....well this world would be a much better place, and I wouldn't be so scared of the upcoming generation(s).

@Lozmaster:
*Sorry, that should be taking responsibility for what their kids are doing.

Lozmaster

@Zarian:
Parents are stupid, having optional parental controls are ignored by the dumbnuts, followed by nintendo being blame.

Parents caring about what their kids do? Bah, stop living in the 1900's

Lozmaster

@Dyabolic:

..Yeah, you see, the trick is using "Proabbly" means that if something better comes out before nintendo releases another console, they could incorporate that instead

Lozmaster

@N●Gage Croal: Games have really always been a whole picture thing for most gamer and graphics have mattered to most since as far back as I can remember the SNES could display more colors than the genesis mode 7 blast processing etc.

So we have matured a little and we say graphics do not matter and that is true to some extent I have played ugly games on all systems that where fun enough to look past their faults and I have see under powered systems pushed to make some pretty stuff.

But Power does matter for getting more enemies on screen and making a more realistic experiences that define some games. The Wii cannot do all these games well and that is fine Miyamoto himself said devs have to make the games for what they have. But there seems to be an elitist over tone that good graphic = Crap game play,but just looking at games like Gears of War and Metal gear Solid and many others to mention we know this is not the case. So when there are equally fun games fighting for my dollar the extra that the 360 and PS3 offer push me that direction.

For me the Wii is like McDonalds that is not bad thing (substitute a favorite fast food place if you loathe Mickie D's). You can get a tasty meal there and its filling and its a little cheaper and you sometimes get a toy. But the other systems are more like a sit down place slightly more expensive but overall better quality food. And I will be fair sometimes a Burger really hits the spot more that a fancy dinner. But that does not mean the other place are crap or the quality they offer do not matter.

Konchu

"Face it, the Nintendo Wii is a souped-up GameCube."

It's incredible that informed people still make this comment in seriousness. Sure, the CPU/GPU are souped-up versions of the earlier gamecube parts, but the things that make the Wii unique and successful are DRASTICALLY different from the gamecube. In fact, the Wii is more different in more ways from the gamecube than the 360 is from the original xbox. Processing power is not the only metric by which we judge consoles. The Wiis (and PS2s and Gameboys, and DS's) massive success should make that obvious. C'mon Brian, you know this as well as anyone. Dont get me wrong, I LOVE my 360, but other than graphical updates, it's nearly an identical (although much less reliable) console to my original xbox. If ever a console was simply a "souped-up" version of it's predecessor, it's the 360, but I'm not complaining because I was a big fan of the original xbox.

That being said, I am ready for the next gen. Not just on the Wii. I'm ready for the XBOX720, Wii-HD and PS4. I love looking forward to new consoles and I really get excited thinking about what things may change or be improved, (and no I'm not talking about the CPU/GPU)and what features may be added.

@JGab: I would understand if only old people didn't notice the difference, but young people? even gamers? I have several friends that not only can't notice the difference between SD and HD, they can't even notice the difference between 60fps and 30fps.

One of them played his 360 on a (get this, and I am NOT joking) 15 yr old 14" tv, he just got a 21" SDTV to play. yes, another, slightly bigger Standard Definition TV. (Facepalms through his skull)

I remember playing quake 3 on my old PC and lowering the resolution to 640x480 because I preferred a smoother framerate over smaller text (because that was the only thing I noticed when switching to higher resolutions), over time I started to prefer 1024x768 graphics and when the 360 came out I was floored. Would I've noticed if I didn't decide to start playing on the PC at higher resolutions earlier?

TheContender

@jacobgermain: 2012 is also appropriate because that's the year of the apocalypse.

The system has only been out for 3 years now, so I'm actually guessing that in 2 more years we will probably start hearing about a new system. And so the 3 year mark for the next system makes sense.

I just hope Nintendo realizes that more people seem to want consoles to be not just gaming systems but full media center boxes.

They definitely need to get their online act together. No more friend codes. If they are worried about kids getting online, then just make some function that parents can use to control how their kids use the system.

@Grooveraider: I don't like the way motion controls work on the Wii, but I'm not worried. I tend to think of the Wii controls as the metaphorical equivalent to the NES controller. In a few years people will look back and the Wii and see it as the innovator, but at the same time they'll wonder how they ever used such horrible controls.

@fearing: Ugh, supposed to say "...if you're playing with RCA cables on and HD monitor..."

I'll join the chorus here "Edit button please!"

@somarix: You realize that's a Youtube video and is at a far lower resolution than any standard def TV right? I play all my stuff on an HD tv and have since I got my original Xbox so I could do the 720p games there in actual 720p, but you're statement is a pretty big exaggeration. Playing Burnout on SD tvs never had that kind of problems where a vehicle in the distance looked like it was just a random pixel. That's a bit ridiculous. If your playing with RCA cables on an SD monitor you get a bit more of a problem as anything through RCA actually looks worse on an HD TV than a CRT TV in most cases, but it's still not THAT bad.

@lucasreis: Old games aren't modern games. You don't go back to old games expecting them to have modern graphics. The argument of still being able to play old games is crap, it has no bearing on modern games. I still play old NES games from time to time, but that doesn't mean I'd want modern games to look like that (Mega Man 9 aside) or that I would consider that to be acceptable graphics. If it was anyone except Nintendo pulling this shit, people would be all over it. Because its, Nintendo they get an instant free-pass.

I don't own any TVs, SD or HD. All I have is my 24" monitor. The Wii would look very ugly on my monitor. My monitor supports one-to-one, but that would make for a rather tiny image. I don't even like doing one-to-one for PS3 games in 720p. I do want a Wii, but I'll be damned if I'm going to buy a TV solely for a video game console and a few games.

Derangel

@No I wouldn't like tea and crumpets: This is only because of the Wii's inflated retail price and the number of accessories people usually buy.

@somarix: I have to agree with this. Just because a game is higher resolution does not mean it is better, but good games take advantage of the available pixels to make a better experience.

@Black-Dog-Howls: I wouldn't say that. They were COMPLETELY DOMINATING the handheld space with the GBA and GBA SP before they came out with the DS which was quite a change in design. They pretty much won the 16 bit era, but with their next console (the N64) they were the first system (since the old Ataris I believe) the put an analog stick on thier controller and then come out with a rumble pack as well (remember the old PSX controllers before dual-shock? ugh, how did we play 3d games with that thing?) and had a pretty unusual design that let you shift your grip to different sections of the controller. I think they always are trying something different, the Wii has probably just been the more extreme end of what they've done.

@N●Gage Croal: +1

@zgreenwell: Exactly and from what i can tell more people are buying HD sets very quickly, i was the first to have one out of my friends a year ago now they all have one. HD is somthing they must support in the next console

By the time Nintendo releases something with HD support we'll have moved on to a new format. Honestly, I think they should drop out of the console game next gen and focus on handhelds, where their strength is.

@user_21938: Microsoft says they're viewing project Natal as a new console launch. I'm not sure how it will play out, but I'm predicting it to be bundled with new consoles very soon and a lot of first party support. If it works, then that will put off a real new console launch for a while. If not, then they'll just dump it, like the did with the original Xbox.

@Ueziel: Electronics companies have three choices: a) pay more and include 2/3 types of cables, hoping that consumers choose the right one; b) include only component or HDMI, and hope that people with composite figure things out and don't return it "because it's missing parts"; or c) aim for the lowest common denominator.

At this point, c) really is the best solution as far as manufacturers are concerned.

ATimson

@Vishus: The problem is trying to survey these numbers. If you ask the average consumer if they had an HDTV, they would think, "Have I replaced my TV recently?". If they had they would mark "yes" even if their new TV was not HD. If they hadn't they'd mark "no" even if they had purchased an earlier HD set from back around 2000-2005.

@Duoae: Sorry, that should be *no shops carry SD sets

@Vishus:

That's exactly what i meant. AFAIK no shops carry HD sets but seriously, how many households update their TV (if they bought it and don't rent it) more than every 5-10 years? HD wasn't even being pushed in this country until about 4 years ago and there's really not much to support it... there's about 20-30 HD channels if you get sky or cable and two of the consoles support HD but then what's the penetration and overlap of PS3/360 ownership and HD TV ownership compared to the uptake of HD subscriptions on cable/sky? It's likely that the majority of TVs owned by the populace is SD and not HD otherwise all TV content would be moving to HD sooner rather than later.

@badong: Well, then at least they can relate to their target market.

@Alex_Mexico: If you've ever sold electronics at retail then you would have more trouble believing that some customer bought all they needed from you and when they took it home actually hooked it up correctly.

@user_21938: You can believe that Sony and Microsoft will launch new consoles in just a few years when the market is unstable, the development-cost for a single game is sky-high and the climate is already bad enough for developers to go bankrupt despite years as a stable company
If they DO I suspect quite a few to stay with Nintendo

@Ace Jon: Their not gamers yet. I need a professed confession of faith and a document of conversion before I will accept them. Or, at least a couple comments from them on kotaku.

People rambling about graphics are lame and so forth, (noone actualy said that, think of it in this way:

When black and white was the standard, everyone was like WEEE MOVING PICTURES!

then color came out.

(I know alot of people still watch black and white movies..and like the best movies are from black and white times blah blah) but when you got the technology to make something beautiful AND fun, why not go for it?
It's a dick thing to argue that graphics are meaningless and "OH YEAH GAMES CAN BE FUN WITHOUT GRAPHICS" we know that, it just.. looks ugly.

Prathik

@TitillatedOcelot: "I'm also 28 years older than 5" rofl that mad me laugh

Prathik

@XtaLarge: your totally right with that one, if they pick up the banner of gameplay>graphics huur durr it just shows their blindsighted fanboyism.

i'm dissapointed my wii isnt HD, i think it would have really set off the visuals in games like Zack and Wiki and De blob.

The Super Nintendo Wii would be a very good idea; meaning a HD, all around better version of the Wii in a couple years cheaper than everything else.

What an ignorant comment. To believe that players wouldn't expect HD out of their game console's is a whole new level of marketing mental absence. This is yet another example of Nintendo forgetting who they serve and who has been loyal to their company for the many, many years that it's been in business.

The very word "probably" sparks aggravation as is. Apparently the executives of Nintendo no longer believe they are selling a game console, rather they're selling an incredibly expensive rendition of a LeapFrog. Nintendo lives in the past days of toy development, and due to recent years I'm willing to fully support that perhaps they should just go back to making toys, as they are not willing to adapt to modern gaming mechanics. Apparently Nintendo knows what gamers want more then the gamers themselves.

Dyabolic

@user_21938: Nintendo is like Sony in a lot of ways. They only really get innovative if they're the underdog. Honestly the only way you'll see another "Wii" like situation from Nintendo is if Sony or Microsoft absolutely dominates the next generation.

Black-Dog-Howls

@metallicorphan:
Or ..NEVER.
Ah, I just can't seem to get back into my Wii. Maybe with Metroid, but still..We will all live on the moon by the time it's released.

@8-Bit-Soul:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHHA
Good job! Here's your paycheck.

@FunkyMunxy:
Just because most of the new sets sitting on store shelves are HD doesn't mean that they outnumber SD sets that are currently in use. HD saturation still has a ways to go.

However, by 2011 or so, it'd be a fair bet to say that HD sets will be the norm in most households.

@jacobgermain: Its not that they cant, its just they dont know what HD is, Nintendo for example.

@NicolasCage: It's been done before but I do wish to point out that HD consoles only cost a TINY bit more, or in some calculations less.

Your point is moot.

"Honestly, you don't have more fun with a game with great graphics. It's meaningless."

Do you really think that? None of us are trying to argue that graphics > gameplay here, but at the same time, I'm getting way tired of people who argue that graphics are unimportant (and have been ever since Nintendo decided to put an underpowered system on the market).

Graphics do mean something. They mean that, for those of us who are actually moving forward with technology, things look better. It's as easy as that. And resolution does add a lot to the experience, believe it or not, even to games with great art styles. Don't believe me? Play Wipeout HD or Prince of Persia on an SDTV. Still very fun games, and certainly worth owning. It doesn't mean they don't look damn nice on an HDTV. You get deeper colors, crisper edges... it allows the game to more easily immerse you into the experience. As someone who's been HD gaming for the last few years now, I can tell ya there's a big difference. I'd have loved to have an HD Wii, even if the system wasn't actually any more powerful - jaggies can pull you out of the experience.

Never did I say once in that paragraph that you can't have fun without a high resolution. Just pointing that out, since around here, people like to put words in my mouth.

XtaLarge

Why all the obsession with graphics? A couple of my favourite games are Tetris and Guitar Hero. It's the gameplay that makes those games, not whether the blocks falling have stupid amounts of detail.

You get good games when developers put the effort into gameplay, not graphics. Having said that there are a lot of terrible games on the Wii (Thanks to Ubisoft :P)

"What is the significant meaning to the users?"

It means your games won't look like ass on millions of televisions everywhere?

Booji-Boy

@N●Gage Croal: I agree with everything you say.

And, for the other guys discussing graphics. Yeah, beautiful graphics are something that everyone looks for, because its expected. It doesn't mean we can't have fun without them. I do have fun with very old games and I just don't care. If it doesn't look good on an HDTV, play it on an SDTV and you're fine, that's what I think. I will probably buy a new SDTV to play my old games since I only have HDTVs in my house and it was a stupid decision not to have an SD around to play the old stuff.

I honesly don't care about graphics and if a game is old, and how it ages. I still play that old Tetris from game boy on a green/black screen and I love it the way it is...

lucasreis

@paulrenzo:

Well those retirement home Wii Sports experts have only got so long... three years? They'll be lucky

@Ueziel: Really? Because I downloaded FF7 yesterday, and once the nostalgia wore off, I found myself saying "my god this looks bad" to the point where it was actually having an effect on the overall experience of the game. I'm also 28 years older than 5.

Art direction is important, given, but I LOVE seeing the leaps and bounds made by the graphics in video games. The games that I have loved the most this generation would not have been the same without the level of graphical quality they boast. I'm talking games like Mass Effect, Bioshock, Uncharted. Not to mention if these games were ported to the Wii, they would have had to undergo a complete engine overhaul. The gameplay in all of the games I mentioned is solid, but they're also easy on the eyes, and it DOES add something to total experience.

@Alex_Mexico: I can agree with you there. My family got a 360 for Christmas and then my step dad promptly got an HDTV for my brothers. They hooked it up and my brother was telling me how my step dad was amazed by the HD graphics.

I then looked at the TV. It wasn't HD. The console's settings weren't even set for HD. And my brother was playing it on the same TV the other day. I walk in and he didn't even know it wasn't in HD.

I'm not sure why some people can't tell the difference. Boggles me.

do me a favour and make it 18 years

@N●Gage Croal: 720p allows for so much more text or fun onscreen, no matter if it's shiny stuff or simply... text. SD makes it downright impossible to have more than 2 words nicely visible onscreen (which one can quickly read and continue with the gameplay in the next 66ms).
SD makes it impossible to identify objects that are not next to the camera and are as big as your character. (try Burnout 3 - is that pixel a truck coming at you, is it a jaggie? Too bad, you didn't guess right and crashed) Now try Burnout4, where objects onscreen are many times more - you start being a fortune-teller instead of driver.
Here, identify them pixels:

+ Watch video

Maybe they can add online play next time around, they still have a lot to learn there

"Let's see, Japanese analog broadcasts stop in 2011, so we're betting sometime before then."

I bet you're wrong! When Iwata says 3,5 or 8 years, why do you think 2 years? When Nintendo clearly does not care about core-gamer HD experience.

Casual_Hardcore

@Ueziel:
I think newer TVs have higher refresh rates.

As much as Wii changed the game for nintendo, this next console is going to be a huge turning point for the company. They are either going to keep up with current competitor consoles or go in entirely different direction entirely.

I don't think they will stradle the fence like they are doing now between casual new audiences and faithful gamers raised on nintendo. But at the same time, I have a feeling nintendo won't do as well next generation as they did this generation. I think many people are no long using their wii's and definitely don't have enough incentive to purchase an upgrade. It will be very hard for nintendo to generate as much buzz as they did with wii unless they really pull something off.

I really hope they do because I've always been a fan of nintendo's innovation.

@Brian Beckmann:
There's room for both, I believe. I mean, even the Wii has options like the Classic Controller and the Hori Fighting Stick.

@Fyrinn: I think you've misunderstood the concept of the "10-year life cycle." Microsoft and Sony are going to be releasing new consoles within the next few years (2011-2012). When they do, however, they will still support their previous consoles into their 10th year, and beyond.

If Nintendo wants to hold onto their inexpensive philosophy, then it's likely the HD hardware they include in their next console will either match or just slightly exceed the 360 and PS3. Sony and Microsoft's next consoles will likely be better than that (assuming they don't do something stupid), plus they'll have better motion controls.

I'm curious to see what, if anything, Nintendo can do to maintain their dominance in the next cycle.

user_21938

@paulrenzo:
You in Australia? I recall hearing their Internet situation isn't too great.

Since the world ends in 2012, they better make it 3 years.

I want me some Super Smash Brothers Revolution?...

@Brian Beckmann:
I Hate to break it to you. Its not a fad. I mean its no-longer a fad. Motion controller is on its way to being perfected.

The way I see it, the day Nintendo will release a new console will be the day non-core gamers will get tired of the Wii. Why would non-HD appreciating people buy the newest incarnation of the Wii if they don't get the difference?

Which is why I want to see what Nintendo has up their sleeves should they plan to release a new console. And hopefully when that time comes, I have an HDTV by then.

paulrenzo

Man I didn't think they had anywhere left to go but the stars after the vitality sensor announcement.

Teira

@FunkyMunxy: uhm, he means "TV programmes" by "televisions", not "TV sets".

@Duoae: Are you sure? I bought two TVs last year, and HD TV's seemed to massively outnumber SD sets in all of the major retailers. Go take a look

FunkyMunxy

@Ueziel: If we didn't enjoy improvements in visual fidelity, how do explain... well, the entire entertainment industry that has anything to do with video.

@Brian Beckmann:

Motion controls does have it's advantages for more core games (think FPS' on consoles for example). But yeah, I would like to still see buttons and joysticks next generation.

paulrenzo

I thought it was pretty obvious that Nintendo just had the foresight to not jump the gun and wait for prices to come down and penetration on HD to be high to warrant taking advantage of it.

Although, there is also the possibility that Nintendo is waiting for HDTV's to not have so much goddamn lag. I actually owned a really nice Samsung HDTV for all of one day. Took it back after I noticed monstrous amounts of lag regardless of the setting. It's possible that Nintendo just hadn't figured out how to combat that yet or were waiting for TV's to beat the problem on their own, which they're starting to do now.

I don't really care either way. I still regularly play stuff on my Saturn/SNES/NES/whatever all the time and all the various Bemani home versions kind of need a regular TV to get away from any lag so I'm all set on every count.

@N●Gage Croal:

if you think America is lagging behind the rest of the world in broadband speeds, you should check out my country.

paulrenzo

For the business plan they were going with for the Wii, it makes sense. Yes, pretty-looking graphics can be fun and potentially enhance the experience (especially if that visual style is inspired by gameplay mechanics and scenario... I :heart: you, Okami), but it's only one factor in creating the game world. As long as graphics don't hinder the experience, they're fine by me.

I think the big question is not that an HD console is likely in the future, but how far away is it? I think this generation of consoles, especially X360 and PS3, has the potential to go on for quite a while. But eventually, I think Nintendo will have to jump ahead with a new console mid-generation.

Just... please... please make the new console backwards-compatible. =)

@Alex_Mexico: It certainly doesn't help that a lot of appliances don't come with anything close to a helpful guide. Or in something like the PS3's case, even the right cables for what it can do. I mean really, not even component cables?

@Alex_Mexico: Ugh, I know how you feel man.

I recently came to realize that my friend had been playing his 360 in 480p on his HDtv that he has had for over a year and a half. He just thought his tv sucked.

@JahB: Honestly, you don't have more fun with a game with great graphics. It's meaningless. It creates a different response with you when you see a big shiny explosion but it doesn't mean anything as far as fun is concerned just because it's such a nebulous feeling.

Unless you're something like 5 and and shiny stuff is all you need to make something more fun.

@Alex_Mexico: its wierd how much of a HD snob i became after getting a taste of it. now all i see everywhere are badly colored in pixles. hmmm i spose in retrospect ignorance kinda is bliss eh.

@JahB:
"i have more fun with games that look good - let's be honest here - instead of plain ugly."
Sorry, but I fail to see what a game's screen resolution has to do with it looking good or bad. That has more to do with art direction. Nor do I see how a game looking good makes it more fun to play. That's really shallow.

@KnightsofRound: Wow that comment so went in the wrong spot.

@NicolasCage: Don't worry, you're not alone. My family is technologically illiterate too.

@Vidunder:

The magic lies in the wrists.

I pray that motion-controls are not the end-all, be-all future of gaming. It works for Nintendo. But the the introduction of Microsoft's and Sony's new tech scares me. Yeah, it's a nice fad and all but does this mean the extinction or decline of analogue controllers? I really, really don't want the gaming community to slip into a trend that will change games so much.

Brian Beckmann

I think what he means is, he hasn't found a reason for HD resolutions costing consumers extra, when they can get the same amount of gameplay and fun without the frills.
Even as an admirer of pretty graphics, I have respect for that at least.
Nintendo proves that even if everyone else is doing steroids, you can still win without them. Just say no, Nintendo; just say no.

I bet it will be in the future :D

8-Bit-Soul

@JahB: *instead of plain ugly.

EDIT button!!!!

@N●Gage Croal: so you're implying that people that enjoy HD gaming (myself included) are just doing so because they're pixel counters?

heads up: i play games to have fun, just like you do. thing is, i have more fun with games that look good - let's be honest here - plain ugly. i know that good graphics alone won't make a game good, but bad graphics alone can ruin a game.

Lets see what will I be doing in the next 8 years....

Think about Nintendo.

I'm fine with the Wii not being HD. I play games to have fun, not admire the pixel count on my TV.

Their next system, however, not being HD would be extremely foolish. HDTVs will be far more widespread in the coming years (and may soon have a higher penetration percentage than SDTVs or EDTVs). Plus, the cost for such processing power fwill be much more... mass-market friendly then than it is now.

And if their next system doesn't go purely digital for new games (only thing that could really hold that back is average broadband speeds... Because America is lagging behind the rest of the world in broadband speeds), I'd imagine it'd have a Blu-ray drive, as well (since the format war is over, and the drives are getting cheaper all the time). Ditto for Microsoft's next system (again, if it doesn't go digital only). It probably won't play movies (what a surprise) and just use the medium for games only.

WiiDos.

@jacobgermain: What hurts my eyes is when I go to someone's house and they have a 360 or a PS3 hooked up to some kickass HDTV via regular RCA cables. One time at an uncle's they had Comcast HD hooked to their big screen HDTV in the fireplace...... with RCA (the component cables were lying around). I just grabbed the correct cables, hooked those bad boys and "voilá" my entire family's jaw dropped when they continued watching their Sunday NFL games in this new thing called High Definition.
Or when I fool around with the DVD player and notice they've been watching their DVDs in a 4:3 stretched format when they could've been watching them in 16:9 without the black bars on top and bottom (or less black bars)!

What we lack is HD education. Un-fucking-belivable stuff right there.

@Duoae:
It isn't the case in America, either. Not everything is HD, even if it is a digital signal.

With Sony and Microsoft apparently adapting to the "10 year life cycle" model, this is what I hope happens: in a few years, Nintendo releases an HD console at least equal in power to their competitors. That way they'd technically be releasing a next-gen console with last-gen hardware, much like they did with the Wii. And since such hardware will probably be much cheaper to produce by then, pretty much everyone will be on a level playing field.

But the real problem for Sony and Microsoft then would be, what trick could Nintendo pull out of its sleeve next? If it's just a PS360-like device with a standard 1:1 control scheme (suped-up Wii MotionPlus?), then Sony and Microsoft could relaunch the PS3 and 360 with their respective motion devices packed in. But if Nintendo pulls another Wii and surprises everyone with a new gimmick that immediately catches on and results in massive sales, then they could really make the competition rethink their current plans.

Really, the ball is in Nintendo's court yet again. They've already conquered this generation, but the question of if and/or when they decide to launch the Wii's successor has the potential to both shift the next generation's landscape and determine who comes out on top. This could either be very exciting (I'm interested to see what else they can do), or very frustrating (pushing Sony and Microsoft to develop next-gen hardware for release in just a few years would annoy me, since I want this generation to last as long as possible).

Just because analog broadcasting is stopping it doesn't automatically mean that all digital content is HD. Certainly that's not going to be the case here in the UK and certainly there's still a lot of SD televisions out there, more than HD i would guess.

Yes, ok. Hopefully with real controllers? Wii is tiresome :P

Vidunder

2012 seems appropriate. that would give the Wii a six year lifespan. Though, as with every other Wii based decision, I'm sure the answer will rely more on sales as we approach the date.

He is right, though. Despite their sudden cheapness (kerf derf price controls), the vast majority of people can't afford an HDTV. It's why you see so many families still playing with last-gen consoles.

jacobgermain

Interesting. I hope they nurture all these new 'gamers' they've found into some more interesting games.

*Sets my alarm for 8 years from now*

@Snacky_Smores: The term "next-gen" should only be defined by time. Technically, the Wii is next-gen because it was released around the time the PS3 and 360 were and after the PS2, Xbox, and GCN. Though actually, the 360, Wii, and PS3 are in the current-gen. The Xbox 720, Wii 2 and PS4 are technically next-gen.

@fearing: Well when the GCN wasn't doing too hot, they came up with the Wii, which has dominated the market for years.

The only thing we know for sure about Nintendo's next console is that it'll probably be backwards compatible with the Wii.