Topic: Revolution to launch in March?

[hudsonhawk]

Linky.

[ThePerm]

it looks fake

[Spak-Spang]

It was reported on Gamespot as a fake.  

However, I do not believe we will be waiting till November for the Revolution.

I am predicting Early June or July.  

I think we will know this year though a definite release date.  I just hope that the Revolution is as easy to develop for as Nintendo thinks so that we can get some 3rd party support.  Either that or Nintendo better have a great lineup of first party games.

[Toruresu]

I really thinks it all depends on Sony. When Sony decides when they'll launch, Nintendo will decide themselves.

[Spak-Spang]

Toruresu:  I think Sony definately gives Nintendo pressure on when to launch...but I don't think the decision is solely in response to Sony.

I remember reading a quote from Nintendo talking about the lack of information given so far about Revolution.

It said something like Microsoft has to give out information because they are launching this year.  Sony is launching in a year and has time.  Nintendo is launching sometime in 06.

Two things grab me about those comments.  One noting that Sony will launch in year means Summer launch definately for Sony.  Second, Nintendo's no-answer for its launch.  It could mean late 06 for a holiday release, and Nintendo doesn't want to announce it.  Or it could mean an earlier launch to surprise Sony.

I personally remember the quotes about Nintendo DS and how they wanted to compare the DS launch to what will happen to the Revolution.

I fully predict an earlier but smaller US launch with 2-3 games in the Summer followed by a bigger December Launch in Japan.  

The problem with this plan would be that although Nintendo got an earlier launch for US we probably wouldn't get any new games until Nov from Nintendo.  At least the download service would help remedy that.  

Then just like the Nintendo DS release the Japanse Revolution release will have more games and a more solid lineup from even 3rd parties.  

[nemo_83]

That would be such a slap in the face of MS if they ran ads like that at the launch of 360.  It would seem Sony and Nintendo may be going head to head with launches early in the year 06 in America followed by Japanese launches in the fall.  They can do this because hardcore gamers will buy their consoles in America no matter what time of the year they launch.  Then they get to relaunch their consoles with the Christmas season to a broader audience (the families, Japan, and Europe) as well as release a second wave of games to relax the sphincter upon the 360.  I would believe they are concerned with having Metroid launch with REV in America and then releasing Mario Bros world wide in the fall in time for the Christmas rush.

This ad is cool, except for the fact the REV is the most box like of the three consoles.  So what are they implying by saying think outside the box (aside from the cheap pun on the name Xbox).  It must mean something for their own console.  

That is if the ad is real; and not fan made or viral marketing.  

[Spak-Spang]

Nemo:  My thoughts exactly.  Nintendo could probably very easily get a Metroid Revolution and Super Smash Brothers Revolution ready for Summer 2006.  Those two games would make a great launch line up for first party games.  

Then Nintendo could release another game in the fall, and then Mario and two more games for Christmas.  

Meanwhile the Japanese launch would just be in November with all the regular launches.

Nintendo can easily support a weaker launch lineup with the download service, and a summer launch would be awesome to take the fire from X-box 360.  Playstation 3 isn't that much of a problem.

[nickmitch]

Besides it has to launch after E3 so that Nintendo can have a big announcement of their launch line-up and up comming titles.

[ib2kool4u912]

I really do like that slogan as a way of sticking it to Microsoft.

[stevey]

Not if they have a spaceworld this year and show off the rev and mario 128 I know I'm dreaming so stop waking me up! It a really good dream.

[Ian Sane]

Launching in March would be good timing in relation to the Cube.  The Cube release schedule is barren.  We get Fire Emblem and Zelda and pretty much nothing else.  There aren't enough Cube games in the pipeline to allow for a smooth transition if the Rev launches later in the year.  Plus there's the whole "beat Sony to the market" thing that originally was part of the plans.

But supposedly third parties don't have dev kits yet and Nintendo's hasn't even finalized the controller design.  There just isn't time to launch in March.  If the Rev launches in March I could literally see only 1 or 2 launch games and then nothing for months.  Hell right now I'm thinking that there'll be a huge drought if they launch in November let alone March.  And no the download feature doesn't count as part of the launch lineup.  The classic games are a bonus and cannot be treated as a valid part of the release schedule.  People don't pay hundreds of dollars for a new console to play old games.  You could probably buy a used N64, SNES, and NES for less money than a new Rev.

It would be impossible for Nintendo to pull off an exceptable launch in March so thus I don't think they would do it.  They're just too far behind.  I'm predicting September at the earliest.

Though Nintendo's kind of in a "damned if you, damned if you don't" scenario.  To have a seemless transition from the Cube and to beat Sony to the market they have launch in the first half of the year.  But that could result in a dreadful launch that could kill the Rev right from the get-go.  Both scenarios are pretty crummy and risk losing sales to the competition.  I guess they just have to pick the lesser of two evils.  I think if they have an absolutely amazing killer app they should launch earlier and bank on the huge killer app keeping eveyone busy until the rest of the games come.  If they don't though I think they should wait and launch with a fuller lineup.

[stevey]

"Nintendo's hasn't even finalized the controller design."

No Shigeru Miyamoto said that they have a working controller.


"Though Nintendo's kind of in a "damned if you, damned if you don't"

No, Nintendo's a "bitch by Ian if you do, bitch more if you don't, bitch even more if you do it late, and bitch the most by Ian if they stop doing it.

"I think if they have an absolutely amazing killer app they should launch earlier and bank on the huge killer app keeping eveyone busy until the rest of the games come. "

ie SSBO you can play ssb online vs. for day on end for months  

[nolimit19]

i think a september release in 06 makes sense. i really doubt they would release in nov.  

[Artimus]

September 06 = ten years after N64.

[jasonditz]

9.11.06 makes a dandy launch date. Everyone loves holiday launches.

[stevey]

September 09 is seven years after dreamcast.  

[nickmitch]

Well we all know how well the N64 and Dreamcast did. So, september might be an unlucky month. . .

[Caliban]

Ian Sane: "Launching in March would be good timing in relation to the Cube.  The Cube release schedule is barren.  We get Fire Emblem and Zelda and pretty much nothing else.  There aren't enough Cube games in the pipeline to allow for a smooth transition if the Rev launches later in the year.  Plus there's the whole "beat Sony to the market" thing that originally was part of the plans."

I agree with you. Plus, at E3 Nintendo said that full details about Rev would be released by end of year because they don't want competition to see what they are releasing (controller and Rev specs), and that would work perfectly for their secret schemes.

Ian Sane: "But supposedly third parties don't have dev kits yet..."

Exactly, supposedly we don't know if they do or not do have dev kits, possibly some NDA is in effect. Also remember that Nintendo said that whomever knows how to develop games for GameCube already knows how to develop for Rev, that's a pretty good indication that the choice for Rev games might not be low at launch but then again...I can be so terribly wrong lol.

[HereticPB]

NDA, secrets, false news stories, false statements, etc, etc, etc!

[Caillan]

I don't think it really matters when they launch as long as it's before the holidays. It's more important that they've been working on titles for a sufficiently long enough period before hand. Launching before the PS3 isn't going to matter if all they've is Luigi's Mansion for their first month.

Quote
Exactly, supposedly we don't know if they do or not do have dev kits, possibly some NDA is in effect.

Well Reggie has confirmed that some developers have already seen the 'revolutionary' aspect of the Revolution. And so if the API reamains largley the same, it would be possible to start working on the planning phases of a game with a rough idea of what the limitations of the console would be.

Nintendo may have a stricter NDA than it's competitors, but I doubt it restricts anyone from answering in an anonymous poll. More likely the kits are in their later stages but haven't been finalized yet. Sony and MS's wil be the same, just they'd have sent out prototypes already.  

[Rhoq]

I noticed the other that C-Net had a "Nintendo Revolution Movie" on their main page. When I checked it out, it was nothing more than a condensed version of Iwata's E3 presentation, but C-Net's voiceover said the Nintendo plans to launch the Revolution in the "Spring of 2006".

[HereticPB]

Anyhow, March makes since in the aspect of a console generation is usually 4 to 5 years long. As for if, Nintendo is ready or not outside of the childish conspiracy thoughts, I do not know.

[Zach]

I think that no matter what, Nintendo will have somewhat of the childish reputation when the revelution releases, the only thing they can do is to make all of the fanboys screaming OMGOMGOMG NINTENDO IS FOR BABIES eat their words after the rev has come out.  

Edit: getting rid of the K-Word

[nickmitch]

Yeah the 'K' word is forbidden here.

[Zach]

oh, sorry, will change it immediately, whose idea was that anyway?

[TMW]

Reggies.  

It was Reggie's idea.  

[Invincible Donkey Kong]

Did someone call for me?  Yeah, it was my idea, got a problem with it?  *cracks knuckles*

[ShyGuy]

Yeah, here's the link to the flash video where Cnet says Spring of '06 Nintendo Revolution - CNET reviews

and remember MoSys, the memory manufacturer reported mid 2006 News Article: MoSys: Revolution Launching in Mid-2006

[stevey]

but if it's does come out spring how nintendo going to show off the revolution part?

[Caliban]

stevey> If they decide to release it after E3 then your question just has been answered.

[TMW]

March would be awesome cause then I could get it as a birthday present.

...all I would have to do is find a friend willing to buy me one for my birthday.  

==EDIT==
I just read the rumor report over at Gamespot...they don't say the poster is a fake.

They basically say, "We'll see in March."  

[nickmitch]

Yeah, they really punked out on that one. But there should really be a June-ish release. They could show the controller and annouce the date at GDC along with some footage and mre info. Relese dates for games and exactly which titles are going to be available at launch could be said at E3 along with the final design of the Rev itself.

[Spak-Spang]

There hasn't been any real credible evidence besides speculation for the November release.  There isn't much evidence for a Summer release, but there is still more than for the November release.  I completely believe without a shadow of a doubt that Nintendo is gearing for a June launch for Revolution.  It matches everything Nintendo has said about not being late, but not entering until the time is right, it also matched with the projections from the memory company...whom are in the know and need to speak honestly with its investors about issues of production and profit.  

Mario Revolution could be read to go by June or just pushed back for the November holiday game.  Metroid Revolution and Super Smash Brothers will be the big launch games...and I predict a radically different control and feel for Metroid Revolution as I predict Retro will be given the freedom to design a dual analog control system, and concentrate on a story that is perhaps very unmetroid like.  

[stevey]

Come to think about there hasn't been credible evidence for november, summer, or spring all we know from nintendo is that it not come out in 05 the rest is lie on top of lie that that was maded in  that was respeculation on than bitch by Ian and respeculation again and token for the truth and besided are the game going to be ready in time for the for the spring. I think July or agst. no soon than june or later the oct..  

[nemo_83]

more viral marketing here

[couchmonkey]

I think Nintendo could be ready for a March launch, but I admit it seems like a long shot, and third party support would probably be dismal.  It should be possible to quickly port a few unimaginative games to the new system in a matter of months, but there probably wouldn't be any really good titles from third parties until close to Christmas.

I'm personally in favour of a mid to late summer (maybe August) launch.  At that point you're heading straight into the ramp-up period for Christmas, so there would be a sustained period of heavy releases...there'd be a big launch lineup, then a moderate slow-down for a month or so, but the releases would only come out faster and faster as you headed towards Christmas, and there'd probably be a decent selection by the time new year and the traditional drought comes around.

[Spak-Spang]

Couchmonkey:  One problem with that ramp-up logic.  Usually there is a steady release of games for Christmas because publishers and developers are aiming for that period to release games.  If a summer is actually going through then most 3rd parties would aim for that period to release games along side a new system and the lead up to Christmas would actually be quite low.

The only next generation system I really see having a strong Christmas release next year is Xbox 360, but I also see them having a horrible Christmas release this year while Nintendo and Sony should have a descent Christmas with their systems.

[nickmitch]

I think that Nintendo and Sony's releases will be closely intertwined with their Japanese  releases.

[couchmonkey]

I hear you, Spak-Spang, but I still think it would turn out better than Nintendo's Christmas launches which always seem to end in 3-6 months of one or two releases per month after the new year.  Christmas and system launches seem to be the two times for third parties to release new games, so why not try to take advantage of both in the first few months of a system's lifespan?  I admit, an even earlier launch might be better since it would give devs a larger window between launch and Christmas, but I think at some point Nintendo would run into the same problem as before, only the drought would come in May-September (for example) instead of January-May.

[Spak-Spang]

CouchMonkey:  Well, Nintendo could release early without much fear for droughts because their Virtual System concept and Backwards compatiability would really help fill that drought until the Christmas releases are ready.

Think about it.  Revolution will be getting new Nintendo supporters that are older gamers wanting to relive playing the classics.  They will have the option to buy and download the older games, as well as catch up on the Gamecube games they missed.  

Even if Nintendo only has 3-5 games including 3rd party games for the Revolution if one of them is a huge hit, then Nintendo will buy itself time until Christmas for new releases.  

Many people are downplaying the backwards compatiability of the revolution...and I may be up-playing it, but I don't think so.  

[Ian Sane]

"Well, Nintendo could release early without much fear for droughts because their Virtual System concept and Backwards compatiability would really help fill that drought until the Christmas releases are ready."

A lot of people have brought this up and personally I feel that it's greatly overrating the download concept.  This is a bonus feature but it absolutely cannot count towards filling in the release schedule.  That's because no one has to buy a Rev to play those games and Nintendo can't count on people not already owning them.  A new game fills in a release schedule because no one has it.  Everyone is a potential customer.  But Rev owners might own all the available classic games they want.  There is already a huge chunk of owners that are not potential customers for those games.  If someone wants a new game "play Super Mario World again" is not a valid solution.  If Nintendo expects me to replay old games to make use of the Rev I'm going to be quite displeased and I know I'm not the only one.

Ports don't count.  Period.

[Mario]

I'd rather buy a shiny new console (with a future ahead of it) to play Super Mario Bros on than a dusty dead old NES. I never owned a NES or SNES, in fact i've never played either, so i'm greatly looking forward to this feature and as of now, it's the BIGGEST reason I plan on purchasing a Nintendo Revolution. (Revolution games are a bonus =P)

I also bought a GBA for Super Mario Advance.

So uh, what? Oh yeah, there won't be a drought for me, because I'LL be playing old games, and this whole issue is stupid since we don't know the Nintendo Revolution software lineup, bah, i'm out of this section until there's more solid info on the system.

[TMW]

yeah, Ian.  I think your underestimating the draw of the older games.

Most hardcore Nintendo fans will own the games in question, and even still have a working SNES/NES. But, newcomers to the videogame scene, casual players, and old school Sega fans (such as myself) who never owned a SNES, will be more than happy with the download service as is.

'Sides, they practically -guaranteed- Smash Bros. Online at launch, and that will go a looooong way to sell systems and keep people occupied til the games come out.

On another note...Nintendo seems to be learning from their mistakes.  Reggie is evidence of that.  Announcing Smash Bros Online is also evidence...

I don't think Nintendo will let there be a sizable drought after launch anyways.  What with Zelda Rev, Mario 128, the aforementioned SSBMOnline, and the new "teh mature" franchise (which may or may not be a horror game), already in production, they seem to be aiming for keeping us knee deep in Rev goodness.

If it launches in March, and Nintendo is finally playing their cards rights, then all the right people already have dev kits, and are already working on our new games.  I really don't think we have anything to worry about.

Sides, I'm betting on a Summer release, anyways.  

[nickmitch]

Well couldn't 3rd parties make new GC games and put them out around the Rev's release? That would put off a drought.

[Flames_of_chaos]

TVMan I bet you like making fodder posts so Ian can bitch at them .  

Edit: And if a online super smash bros. and/or mario does come out indeed at launch i bet most PGCers will be busy with that online rather than bitch about a game drought.

[Spak-Spang]

Ian:  You mention that older Nintendo fan gamers should have all the games and systems still in there library...but I feel perhaps you are looking at collectors and yourself as the norm.

I believe the norm are gamers that have gotten rid of their old systems.  Perhaps its because they don't work anymore, or they need money, or they just wanted to save some space around the house...but most don't still have their NES, SNES in working order.  Now the Nintendo 64 may still be around, but I am hoping to play those new games on a superior controller because most of the old N64 controllers are worn down and have lost analog sensitivity.  

Besides who is to say those old games you may have still work perfectly.  Also, with the idea that some games may come with enhanced graphics...it may be like playing a classic with a completely new feel.  Which would be awesome.

You say that Nintendo shouldn't expect that download service to take the place of new games for the Revolution...that a drought would still be bad...but I think once people own the system they will wait for the good games, and MS showed us with Halo that only one killer App is needed to push hardware sales for like a year.  Now imagine having your killer App and hundreds of classic games to download for cheap, while you wait for 3-4 months for the next set of games to launch...then after that FIRST draught games from 1st party and 3rd parties come in steadily.  

3rd parties may actually be encouraged by the drought to pick up the slack and make money easier.

All I am saying is that the Download service WILL play a huge part this next generation.  Will it be enough to push Nintendo into first place...NO.  But it will help Nintendo.

And that Download service gives Nintendo alittle more freedom to launch in 2006 whenever they need to.  They just need one amazing launch game and a few supporting titles.  

[Ian Sane]

"You mention that older Nintendo fan gamers should have all the games and systems still in there library...but I feel perhaps you are looking at collectors and yourself as the norm."

It doesn't matter if you still own them or not.  Just having played them before can make them seem stale.  No one should be expected to play old games in order to get decent usage out of a console.  They're there for those that want them but they should not be mandatory in order to get your money's worth.  This isn't some nostalgia machine.  It's going to be priced as a new console and therefore better damn well be a NEW console.  A classic gaming machine should cost less than 100 bucks.

[Spak-Spang]

Ian:  I agree that the Revolution shouldn't just have that.  But as a last resort Nintendo has more leiway than Sony to launch whenever they need to in 06...They just have to have a few games ready.  

Nobody expects a brand new system have a perfectly steady stream of games releasing on it.  

[UncleBob]

Quote
Well couldn't 3rd parties make new GC games and put them out around the Rev's release? That would put off a drought.

Why buy a new Revolution at $200+ when you could just buy a GCN for $100-ish (or less) to play these games on and wait for a price drop on the Revolution... and by the time that Price Drop comes around, they've already decided to buy a PS3 or a 360...

[stevey]

:Why buy a new Revolution at $200+ when you could just buy a GCN for $100-ish (or less) to play these games on and wait for a price drop on the Revolution... and by the time that Price Drop comes around, they've already decided to buy a PS3 or a 360... "

What?! You saying that $200 cost too much so people will buy a $500 ps3 or $400 x360 insead?! WTF are you smoking!

[UncleBob]

I'm not saying that $200 is too much... I'm saying why buy a $200 system to play games that you can easily play on a $100 system that you may already own?

[Artimus]

Why buy new systems at all?

[Nile Boogie]

I believe that Twilight Princess is the key to the RevOluti0n launch. If they could somehow squeeze some kinda RevOluti0n exclusive dungeon in to the game similar to the oracle games it would give players more reason to buy a Rev plus replay value. I can't seem to flush out this idea at the moment.  Ahh Retro gameing on the RevOluti0n is worth the price of admission.

[nemo_83]

Or they could just make it so all games can be played with the new controller allowing you to do things in TP you could never do before.

[nickmitch]

UncleBob: It would make more sense to invest in the new system so that you could keep up with the current generation of games. What I was saying was that because 3rd parties haven't the dev kits yet they could still make GC games that Rev owners would buy. Buying a Rev and getting SSBO would be great and then to at least have some new games out.

[UncleBob]

Here's what I'm saying though...

If I already have a GCN, new GCN games do *not* give me a reason to "early adopt" a Revolution.  In fact, they give me more of a reason to *wait* to buy a Revolution.

Why would I want to wait to buy a Revolution?  Well, if I have a GCN, I could spend my $200+ on four (or more) brand new games.  And I could wait to get my Revolution until the price drops or Nintendo offers a good deal (Free games - see Nintendo DS/Super Mario 64 DS deal)

And what's wrong with waiting to purchase the Nintendo Revolution?  The longer I wait to buy it, the longer Microsoft or Sony have to intice me to buy their system.

Granted, I'll be getting a Revolution at Launch.  In fact, I'll likely be the first in line... I'm just saying that new GCN games are not the way to go to get someone to buy a Revolution...

[BlackNMild2k1]

What if these games(New GC games) are forward compatible, i.e. online compatible, unlocking of old gaming content(free downloads), a graphical boost, Rev controller compatibility, [add your own ideas here]

[random thoughts]What if Nintendo allowed you to catalouge all of your old GC games into the Rev, and the more games that you own the more free content they would provide you with(game downloads, NP subscription, T-shirts, etc. etc.), that would be an incentive to upgrade to the Rev, and also to continue buying GC games.[/random thoughts]

[UncleBob]

*That* could work...

Quote
[random thoughts]What if Nintendo allowed you to catalouge all of your old GC games into the Rev, and the more games that you own the more free content they would provide you with(game downloads, NP subscription, T-shirts, etc. etc.), that would be an incentive to upgrade to the Rev, and also to continue buying GC games.[/random thoughts]

The only thing I could see with this is, personally, after logging in all my GCN games, I'd run to the local rental stores to log in all the ones I don't own so that I could get the freebies...

[Ian Sane]

"Why buy new systems at all?"

For new games.  That's the point of this discussion.

My main problem with releasing Cube games to round out the Rev lineup, aside from the "I already own a Cube" factor, is that it's not a realistic plan.  Third parties don't make Cube games NOW.  Why would they make Cube games after the Rev has been released and the Cube is even more neglected than it is now?  Realistically it would be less risky for a third party to release a glorified last-gen game on the Rev than a new game on the Cube.  The Cube is a third party dead zone.  The Rev however is unproven and a third party would have a better chance catching lighting in a bottle with a new userbase looking for games to play for their new console.  And people will look for new Rev games before they look for old games they missed out on.  Plus there's such a negative stigma with the Cube.  For the general public the Cube, well, sucks.  I don't think it does but that's the image it has so it would probably be better for the Rev to distinguish itself from the Cube the best it can.  "Play Cube games to make up for release droughts" is like the worst possible association with the Cube the Rev could have.

[MrMojoRising]

I agree with Ian.  Cube games are not going to ease any early droughts on the Rev.  What's more likely is games that started out intended for Cube get shifted to Rev.  It would be nice if Pennent chase Baseball came out as a launch title with online play...although that would probably only work if the Rev were to come out around march-may. If Nintendo would just get their dev kits out already we could maybe at least get some ports of 360 games or something by launch.  Hell, if the Rev is as easy to develop for as it's made out to be then if they gave out the kits now maybe we could have some good games by launch.  My point is...get things moving already so we can have some games!

[stevey]

yeah but what about people that don't have a gamecube so insted of buying a cube for tp they wait a few month for the rev and then get it and all the other geat cube game they miss out on and after the drought they buy rev game.

[Spak-Spang]

Stevey:  Those people can pick up TP whenever they want after they buy the Revolution.

Really the only backwards compatability that truly helps the Revolution is the NES and SNES compatability and even then mostly the SNES.  

The reason for this is that both systems are over like 12 years old, and many new gamers haven't played everything available for those systems, and those that have may not have their originals.  

Super Nintendo was also the era that brought 2D gaming to its pinnacle state...so you can find the best 2D games ever created on that system...games that stand the test of time even today.  

To a lesser degree the Nintendo 64 backwards compatability may help.  This would be because there were some great party games and multiplayer games on that system that several people would love to play again.

So it isn't the Gamecube games that would allow for a small drought between a Spring/Summer launch and Christmas games to be acceptable, but the older games.

Another side note.  Having backwards compatability also allows Nintendo the freedom to work on new franchises more instead of old games.  With the revolution if I want to play Mario Golf I have 2 options the Gamecube and the Nintendo 64 version.  Same with Mario Tennis.  

For my Mario fix I have 5 2D Mario games to play and 2 3D Mario games...so I am happy to wait for a perfect Mario Revolution.

Puzzle Games:  I have a huge variety of Nintendo produced Tetris clones, many of them the best ever created.  With the Revolution and Nintendo's old library I won't need to buy another Tetris clone again.

Racing Games:  3 F-Zeros, 3 Mario Karts, FX-Racers, Uni-racers, Do you need anymore?  

The point is.  Revolution will have a large enough selection of games that will play and look good because they are from the pinnacle of 2D gaming.  People will buy those games, and they will be happy.

In fact upon release of the Revolution I am buying 2-3 256/515 SD cards (depends on price) and I am just going to download every SNES, N64 game I loved growing up.  Then I will pick up a few of the classic Nintendo games you have to own as a game enthusiast.  

If you doubt that every hardcore gamer won't be doing the same your crazy.  I also see several casual gamers doing the same, because it sounds cool to do.  Yeah I have the original Mario, but I also have All Stars SNES version, and the new one Nintendo released with even better enhanced graphics.

[Famicom]

We'd only have those games depending if Nintendo provided access to them out of the box. They've given no indication that the entire library of Nintendo published games will be available from day 1. What if they gave away SNES and N64 Mario Kart with a release of Rev Mario Kart? What if that game didn't come until two years into the life of the Rev? And to get any of the Cube games, you'd have to buy them from the store or already own them, and that isn't a solution to a drought. As it stands now, old games aren't a dependable replacement for newer ones.

[kirby_killer_dedede]

As far as what Ian said on the 1st page goes...I think everything's been taken care of, development houses are cranking, and the reason Nintendo has yet to reveal any information is to give Sony the thought they have the upper-hand while they really plan to launch before Sony.

And they could stck a controller together in like 5 minutes.  I mean it can't possibly look worse than Sony's.

[couchmonkey]

I believe having new games is a sort of advertisement for a system.  Keeping the existing fanbase happy is a nice side-effect, but the worst effect a drought can have is not just boring the existing customers, but also turning away potential new ones.  If I'm Joe Casualgamer and I walk into Wal Mart and see a Revolution shelf that is half as full as Xbox 360 and PS3, what system am I going to choose?  I can't "see" most of the backwards compatible games and, even if I could, those are all "old" games that are of less interest to me than new games anyway.

I do think the multi-gen backwards compatability is cool, and I think it could even be a very big selling point for Revolution, but I don't think Nintendo should count on it for content.

Ummm, anyhow, I do hope Nintendo is planning for an earlier-than-Christmas release, and I do hope it plans on filling in third parties soon so there can be a good launch lineup.

[Pale]

Quote
Originally posted by: kirby_killer_dedede
As far as what Ian said on the 1st page goes...I think everything's been taken care of, development houses are cranking, and the reason Nintendo has yet to reveal any information is to give Sony the thought they have the upper-hand while they really plan to launch before Sony.

And they could stck a controller together in like 5 minutes.  I mean it can't possibly look worse than Sony's.

The reason they aren't going to show the controller is because Sony has said the batarang was a concept and people hated it, so Sony is most likely reworking it.  Why should Nintendo help them along?

We will hear about the Rev controller as soon as sony shows their final controller...  who knows when that will be.

[Spak-Spang]

Kirby_Killer_Dede:  That is some very powerful faith you have in Nintendo.  I believe that Nintendo is further along then we think.  

I think the controller's features are finalized just not optimized for ultimate comfort.  I believe gamers are further along...but I don't know how many 3rd party developers are truly in the loop.

I think the companies that are now announcing they will support Revolution now what its about.  Konami knows.  Capcom knows.  I wouldn't doubt several other people know as well...but NDAs won't let talk.  

However, I don't have faith that Nintendo is having a grand scheme to just beat Sony with a surprise early launch with huge 3rd party and 1st party support.  You couldn't keep a secret like that.

CouchMonkey:  Nintendo could easily market backwards compatiable with game cards that have images of games you could download.  They could also market it heavily on television so that people know about it when they buy it.  You also seem to make it appear that Xbox 360 and PS3 will have huge number of launch games ready to go.  They won't...no launch has ever had enough games.

I also believe more games will be available from the start than not...I would predict the whole library, and I suspect that bonus games would be included as preorder bonuses.  Or how about the games with the updated graphics as the bonuses.

We don't know what will be available, I am just saying I predict more than less and that backwards compatiability makes for a huge impressive bonus launch lineup.

[stevey]

"Having backwards compatability also allows Nintendo the freedom to work on new franchises more instead of old games. With the revolution if I want to play Mario Golf I have 2 options the Gamecube and the Nintendo 64 version. Same with Mario Tennis.

For my Mario fix I have 5 2D Mario games to play and 2 3D Mario games...so I am happy to wait for a perfect Mario Revolution.

Puzzle Games: I have a huge variety of Nintendo produced Tetris clones, many of them the best ever created. With the Revolution and Nintendo's old library I won't need to buy another Tetris clone again.

Racing Games: 3 F-Zeros, 3 Mario Karts, FX-Racers, Uni-racers, Do you need anymore?

The point is. Revolution will have a large enough selection of games that will play and look good because they are from the pinnacle of 2D gaming. People will buy those games, and they will be happy."

No no no by your way of thinking there should never be more than one kind of game there is already is a game like so nintendo should never make a new f-zero, zelda, or mario one. That wrong wrong wrong!

Game don't last forever people get bored and want new games of the same franchise that are longer and look better and have new levels and stuff that the last didn't. They don't want to replay last gen game over just because it on the new system. They want to play an upgraded game that has new mode and stuff.  

[Spak-Spang]

Stevey:  That isn't my line of thinking at all.  My line of thinking is no launch can cater to everyones needs.  You can't have your racing game, RPG, Puzzle Game, Platformer, New Franchise, Fighter, Multiplayer party game, FPS, Sports games, all out day one of launch...or even all those games out in the first year of launch.  

It takes time to develop all those games, even with excelent 3rd party support it takes time.  However, Revolution will at least have a large variety of older games that many people will not have played in years available.  And these games are brilliant excelent games that are some of the best in the genre period.  Not best during their time period.  

With those games available it gives Nintendo extra time to work on other games without the immediate necessity to create the franchise games all Nintendo fans demand to play on each new Nintendo system.

Nintendo fans expect and demand to be able to play their favorite games on the new system...and therefore Nintendo must use valuable developers to create those games instead of working on new projects or original projects.  If Nintendo can use older games to help temporarily sedate the demands of the fans then they have freedom to create new and different games which are also being demanded.

Also, my analogy was in reference to the launch.  I wasn't saying new versions of those games or those types of games should be made...I am saying Nintendo will have several games available in each genre to help flesh out any launch list of games.  If its a launch with a few games the download service makes it bearable, if its a launch with tons of games then the download service makes it even better fleshing out genres that might have been neglected.

 

[Ian Sane]

Gamespot's reporting that the Rev might launch after the PS3.  Iwata suggested such at shareholders meeting though the general idea is that if it launches later it won't be much later.

I wouldn't be surprised really.  If they were on target then they probably would have shown more at E3 and there wouldn't be rumours about the controller not being done yet or third parties not having dev kits yet.  I figure they assumed the PS3 would launch later in the year way back when they first made their plans and didn't expect Sony to launch in Spring.  

[Darc Requiem]

Yeah I didn't think Sony would launch in the Spring in the US. I though they'd to a 3rd Quarter release at the earliest. I really wonder given the fact that Sony really didn't show anymore than Nintendo what kind of games they will have out. It seems like they are repeating the PS2 launch scenario. I mean all of the "games" shown at E3 were just renders. I think they are launch early to cut down the 360s headstart....360 isn't Dreamcast. MS has the cash to make Sony pay for a PS2like software lull.

[nickmitch]

Well, if Sony announces a date then that will determine the Rev's launch date as Nintendo will fully base it on that, but that's if (and only if) Sony announces their date by GDC.
MS is in the best position right now. They just need to have a strong launch line-up and then a huge wave of games for when the PS3 and Rev sit the shelves.

[Caliban]

Quote
Originally posted by: Spak-Spang
In fact upon release of the Revolution I am buying 2-3 256/515 SD cards (depends on price) and I am just going to download every SNES, N64 game I loved growing up.

If Nintendo releases a small app to use on your computer so that you can store/send on/from your hard-drive any downloaded content for Rev or DS, then you won't need to spend money on more SD cards. I am so wishing for such thing to happen.

About the launch date that Iwata "announced", I didn't like his comment at all, I want the Rev as soon as possible, I still have plenty of games for GameCube to finish, plus whatever they put available from the huge library of games from the NES, SNES, N64 will keep me occupied for a long while.  

[Spak-Spang]

Iwata's comments actually give me faith for a summer launch.  He stated to shareholders the realization that they may be last in the market, but not my much.  I think Sony surprised everyone by trying to launch around March...I think they probably even surprised their 3rd party support.

Now everyone will be raising to meet a potentially impossible deadline.  However, it sounds Nintendo isn't too worried because perhaps they were planning to launch in the summer all along.  Iwata told shareholders if they are late it will not be long.  That suggests a few months difference not a few Quaters difference.

Ian:  Also new reports say that 3rd parties know what the Revolutionary aspect of the controller is.  This means they can use Gamecube Development kits with the understanding of the enhanced specs to start programming and creating their games.  This is also very positive for a Summer launch.  It means 3rd parties will have about a year to design a Revolution game...which is about the time all 3rd party developers have for new hardware launches.

Last really cool news information is Nintendo practically confirmed a $200-$250 price point with the Revolution.  Reggie stated that the Revolution will cost much less than the competition.  I really like this...especially coupled with the GBAM that sounds like it will be dirt cheap as well.  I am predicting under $75.  

[MrMojoRising]

I hear a lot of people saying "just give us the Rev with a couple of games and the entire back library and we'll be set!!!"  I would agree that I personally would be happy with nothing more than SSB online and to be able to download classic games...but I'm worried that Nintendo might start to use the "virtual system" backwards compatibility as an excuse or crutch of some sort.
         
If the Rev launches in March or the summer with little to no third party support then we won't be complaining...but the mass market (casual gamers, if you will) will see a weak system (like what couchmonkey was saying earlier).  Then we'll be seeing the same 3rd party support, or lack thereof, for the Rev that we see now for the Cube.  And Nintendo meanwhile will simply say, "you don't need as much third party support, you can download games!"  I can see the press complaining now..."Nintendo thinks that their uber backwards compatibility allows them to slack off on new games."  
               
The reality is that a drought will not be relieved by downloadable games.  Perhaps on a personal level, some people will be satisfied with going back and playing old games...but then the same thing could be said about any system that has a drought, just the old games won't be downloaded, they will just be games you never got to.  To put it more simply so even I understand what I'm saying:  gamecube's drought right now isn't solved by the fact that there are a bunch of great games I still haven't played on GC yet.  In my opinion, the Revolution can't use it's backward compatibility to satisfy customers, it can only help lure them in.

Edit: I just fixed some grammar and such.

[Spak-Spang]

MrMojoRising:  Luckily that won't be the case...as key 3rd party developers have the controller and are using the latest Gamecube Development Kits are pre-Rev Kits and started working on games.  

We will have 3rd party support at launch.  

[UncleBob]

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=9898