What company's next-gen plans are you most interested in?

[Evil_Cloud]

Yes. Nintendo didn't put as much effort in Sunshine as it did with M64, the result speak for it self I suppose.

Considering it was made (partially) with the junk levels of Mario 64DD...

I am most curious what Nintendo is up to, now that Iwata has fully replaced Yamauchi. Will they 'revolutionize' console gaming with some sort of Nintendo DS hookup? Will they succeed in garning more third party support, creating new and fresh franchises, and most importantly will they manage to keep their 1st party AAA quality production?

 

[London Geezer]

Yes. Nintendo didn't put as much effort in Sunshine as it did with M64, the result speak for it self I suppose.

Considering it was made (partially) with the junk levels of Mario 64DD...

I am most curious what Nintendo is up to, now that Iwata has fully replaced Yamauchi. Will they 'revolutionize' console gaming with some sort of Nintendo DS hookup? Will they succeed in garning more third party support, creating new and fresh franchises, and most importantly will they manage to keep their 1st party AAA quality production?

... The answer in the next episode of... Geeks of our Lives!!!!







Seriously, hopefully they'll at least TRY to evolve a little bit, cause they've been kinda stuck in their box since the SNES days...

 

[wco81]

The thing about Nintendo is their stance on online gaming. Yes it's a small percentage of all gamers who go online. But it has a huge mindshare.

Plus when you talk about new gameplay experiences, it's not like Nintendo is coming up with new things. Nothing like the analog stick in the N64 controller with the well-done camera controls.

So for them to say they don't see online as financially lucrative tells you that they've gone from a company which innovates on gameplay to a company which uses the bottom line as an alibi. Of course, they've always cared about the bottom line but the fact that they now use it as an excuse means they really don't have unique ideas to contribute to online.

When you hear that Conker may be online for Xenon, it may turn out to be a half-baked grafting of online support to a platformer. Or it may actually be something new. Point is, Rare is trying, even if prodded by MS.

And Insomniac is trying, when they put R&C online. (Although R&C online is more like any other shooter than it is a platformer).

 

[GwymWeepa]

Question time, for you guys who understand the leaked Xenon specs, how exactly does it compare to the geforce 3+ in the Xbox? About how much more raw performance does it have? Can someone compare them feature for feature?

 

[jarrod]

The thing about Nintendo is their stance on online gaming. Yes it's a small percentage of all gamers who go online. But it has a huge mindshare.

Nintendo stated that their plans concerning online games is that they'll go forward when it's simple and free on the user end, while not being a financial burden on their end.

And going by recent Miyamoto comments, we'll likely be seeing online DS games from Nintendo and Square Enix soon.

Plus when you talk about new gameplay experiences, it's not like Nintendo is coming up with new things. Nothing like the analog stick in the N64 controller with the well-done camera controls.

But really, we aren't exactly seeing anything like that from any company this generation. Nintendo's still releasing some lower priority oddities though, like Wario Ware Twisted or Animal Crossing.

So for them to say they don't see online as financially lucrative tells you that they've gone from a company which innovates on gameplay to a company which uses the bottom line as an alibi. Of course, they've always cared about the bottom line but the fact that they now use it as an excuse means they really don't have unique ideas to contribute to online.

Again, catering to a niche (online) of a niche (GameCube) just wasn't a really viable option this generation. It's not like Nintendo isn't testing the waters, every major platform they've released has had some sort of network component (MobileGB, 64DD, BSX, etc)... they just haven't taken the plunge with pushing it full force yet. DS looks to be a change from that, hopefully Revolution follows.

And Insomniac is trying, when they put R&C online. (Although R&C online is more like any other shooter than it is a platformer).

Would you prefer something like Super Mario 64 DS... y'know the game from that software house who just isn't trying anymore?

 

[wco81]

I hadn't heard that Nintendo said they wanted to make online simple and free for gamers. EVerything that I've seen reported referred to their being no business model or economic justification for the company itself.

Most of the DS games support WLAN only. If they were online, they'd have to build some infrastructure and maintain it.

Not saying they won't do that but so far, they aren't doing it. Neither are PSP developers and publishers, for that matter.

Online is definitely a niche. But you see a lot of people discounting Nintendo because there are no online games. They crack jokes at the broadband adapter which Nintendo released.

 

[archie4oz]

Nintendo...

I already know what's going on in Sony and MS...

 

[GwymWeepa]

Nintendo...

I already know what's going on in Sony and MS...

Enlighten me!

 

[jarrod]

I hadn't heard that Nintendo said they wanted to make online simple and free for gamers. EVerything that I've seen reported referred to their being no business model or economic justification for the company itself.

That's not what Iwata's said...

"I don't think its reasonable to make someone pay for a game and then make them prepare a network connection and charge a monthly fee. In the near future we are hoping to announce something that addresses this issue." "

Most of the DS games support WLAN only. If they were online, they'd have to build some infrastructure and maintain it.

Not saying they won't do that but so far, they aren't doing it. Neither are PSP developers and publishers, for that matter.

Recent interviews suggest the contrary. Miyamoto hinted that PlayOnline may be involved for DS too.

And Sony's also working on online support for PSP, in fact they're working on a MMORPG right now.

Online is definitely a niche. But you see a lot of people discounting Nintendo because there are no online games. They crack jokes at the broadband adapter which Nintendo released.

Sure, but a full blown online plan wasn't going to turn GC around anyway. Nintendo's better off putting those resources into DS/Revolution network R&D.

 

[see colon]

i voted nintendo. maybe my recent DS love affair is pushing me in that direction, i don't know. i'm interested in nintendo, but i think the next generation will belong to microsoft. they've picked up a decent amount of mindshare lately. almost every time i go shopping for games i hear someone say "i should have gotten an xbox". it used to be the other way around.

Point is, Rare is trying, even if prodded by MS.

i'm not sure rare has really tried at anything since goldeneye. goldeneye has elements that are just now making they way into the mainstream PC FPS (the slower, more deliberate pace. objective based missions that make sense. location specific damage). every rrae game i've played since then has been re-hash, re-telling, or re-made from something else.

 

[Guden Oden]

From what I seem to remember, all but two of Rare's N64 games were 3D jumping collectathon platformers in one form or another, it stands to reason they're not going to be particulary original.

Btw, when's Kameo gonna be released? They're certainly exceeding their legendary ability to further delay already overcooked titles!

 

[GwymWeepa]

From what I seem to remember, all but two of Rare's N64 games were 3D jumping collectathon platformers in one form or another, it stands to reason they're not going to be particulary original.

Btw, when's Kameo gonna be released? They're certainly exceeding their legendary ability to further delay already overcooked titles!

Its been put on indefinite hold.

 

[Johnny Awesome]

I'm most excited to hear about Xenon. Although I think the PS3 will be 2-3x as powerful, I'm a bigger fan of the key Xbox franchises (Halo, PGR, Amped) than of the big PS franchises (GT, MGS, FF). In the end, I'll probably get a Xenon in 2005 and a PS3 in 2007. Unless Revolution lives up to its name, it's not even on my radar right now. Mario and Zelda are essentially meaningless to me at this point.

 

[Almasy]

Sony, obviously. Why? Well, the idea behind CELL is just damn too sexy to not pay attention to it. There´s also this little bit about third party support, and here is where Sony reigns as a king.

Maybe I´m taking this for granted, but I´m expecting franchises such as MG, FF, GT, RE (RE4 on PS2 just screams where future itirations of the franchise will land), DMC, Tekken, etc. to be on PS3.

They have credibility, since their plattforms have never been short on the type of products that interest me. And I just can´t wait to see if they can deliver at least half of what they´ve claimed the PS3 will do.

As for MS and Nintendo...well MS relies too heavily on games that I can find on the PC most of the time, and Nintendo is living in the past, relies too heavily on gimmicks to survive in the public eye(even if the ocational Mario game is still really fun), and just doesn´t know how to get (or keep, in RE´s case) interesting third party products.

 

[j^aws]

Nintendo...'cos out of the three, imo, it has the most ambitious working title revolution...and alot to live upto 'cos of that name. For a console supposedly being released around the same timeframe, has the least info...still I'll buy it to play their franchises!

 

[Nick Spolec]

Nintendo consoles aren't anything to write home about anymore.

They are now always under supported (to a fault), and the only real support comes from Nintendo themselves, who seem incapable of actually create new content/ideas other then that which is based on exisiting series. What was their last "new" game? Pikmin?

Maybe some people think Mario and Zelda are enough to carry a system. But, I don't. There is only so many ways you can create a Mario game before it seems stale and "done before". Same thing goes for Zelda. And Donkey Kong. And Mario Kart. And pretty soon, Metroid.

Why doesn't Nintendo try something new? Like an RPG *NOT BASED ON MARIO*? Or how about a new platforming character? Something fresh?

 

[jvd]

They are now always under supported (to a fault), and the only real support comes from Nintendo themselves, who seem incapable of actually create new content/ideas other then that which is based on exisiting series. What was their last "new" game? Pikmin?

what was the last new content / ideas for the ps2 ? There are none. The biggest selling games are old pc games with 3d graphics (Grand theft auto) , or old psone games , or another final fantsy game. The whole industry is pretty much in a rut , the same rut the movie industry is in .

Maybe some people think Mario and Zelda are enough to carry a system

Dunno if they are enough to carry a system alone . But considering the marios , zeldas and other big nintendo games are system sellers as there are what 15-20 million people with gamecubes that are playing basicly only nintendo tittles like zelda , mario , metriod and pokemon ?

There is only so many ways you can create a Mario game before it seems stale and "done before".

That is the same with any game. Why aren't you listing grand theft auto series as there are now 5 of them , final fantsy , gt , crash and other sony tittles that after 2 generations are already in the high number of sequals . Ms is even starting to offend with halo 2 already.

WIth mario at least there is only 1 or 2 per generation at the most. THe last time there was more than 1 mario game (true mario) was the nintendo . Other than that you get mario once every 4or 5 years . Which is just enough so that it doesn't come over kill. Of course if we had a new mario every year you'd have a point .

Why doesn't Nintendo try something new? Like an RPG *NOT BASED ON MARIO*? Or how about a new platforming character? Something fresh?

Nintendo allways trys something new .

This generation alone they had that donkey kong drum thingy , they had pikmen , they had animal crossing .

What original fresh titles has sony or ms put out ?

The only company that takes more chances and makes new kinds of games is sega (though not recently)

Nintendo makes something and everyone copys them.

 

[Xenus]

Sony has eyetoy and the only thing similiar about all the FF's before they started trying to make sequels was that they all were rpgs and for a while ATB system.

 

[Magnum PI]

i'm more of a nintendo guy, and i'm very curious about this so-said revolution...

but when i look at the way nintendo like to make remakes of previous generation game on the current generation, or at least very similar gamess: ssmb, mario paper, animal crossing, tennis, waverace, mario party 4/5/6, mario sunshine, mario kart, 1080, fzero.. i think i would find my GC much less interesting if i had a N64 before.

i'm not sure it's the best idea to buy two nintendo consoles in a row, maybe my next nintendo will be the one after revolution..

unless revolution proves to bring enough novelty on the table.

 

[jvd]

Sony has eyetoy and the only thing similiar about all the FF's before they started trying to make sequels was that they all were rpgs and for a while ATB system.

Right and no two mario games are the same (except mabye sunshine and 64 )

Yes sony has the eyetoy , but the uforce for the nintendo was out along with another circle device that you would use that would record your movements instead of using the controler