Post by: StrikerObi on June 07, 2006, 06:03:40 AM
At a management direction meeting held today, Nintendo unveiled some new information about the DS and Wii.
First off, the Opera Browser for DS has been delayed a month until July. They also talked more about the "Touch Generations" line and how the company is stressing a balance between traditional games and "non-games." Finally, they revealed that Pokémon Diamond/Pearl for the Nintendo DS will feature voice-chat over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.
They then went on to elaborate more on their new console, Wii. Nintendo plans to ship 4 million systems by the end of the calendar year. Exactly when the Wii will launch is still a mystery, but Iwata promised that a date will be announced "before September."
A new game, Pokémon Battle Revolution, will be available for Wii and is releasing a few months after Pokémon Diamond/Pearl and the two games will interact much like prior Pokémon games linked up with Pokémon Stadium.
Other features involving the DS-Wii connectivity include the ability to use the DS as a touch-screen control for Wii games and the Wii acting as a DS download station for game demos. Iwata also said that DS games could be "expanded" via Wii.
Regarding the virtual console, Iwata said that games, including new ones, will be made available for the VC at prices between ¥500 and ¥1000 ($4 and $9).
Nintendo also offered some sales figures, including the tie ratios of some of their more popular DS games in Japan. 32% of DS users bought Animal Crossing: Wild World, 23% bought Mario Kart, 14% bought Tetris DS, and 20% bought New Super Mario Bros., In addition, ten titles have shipped over 1 million units.
Thanks to Jonnyram of the NeoGAF Forums for the translation!
Post by: ShyGuy on June 07, 2006, 06:40:54 AM
Post by: Louieturkey on June 07, 2006, 06:49:05 AM
Post by: UltimatePartyBear on June 07, 2006, 06:50:36 AM
Quote
$4-$9 in Japan for VC games. I bet it will be cheaper in the US
You think? Precedent leads me to believe it will be $5-$10 in the U.S., and offer my condolences to our European friends. It puts a lower cap on prices than I feared, at least, though I was hoping for a lower floor. It's probably for the best, anyway, since at $1 my capacity for reason would have left me and I would have bought nearly everything that caught my eye. At $5 I'd actually weigh the decision.
Post by: Karl Castaneda #2 on June 07, 2006, 07:04:37 AM
Post by: ShyGuy on June 07, 2006, 07:06:32 AM
Post by: Kairon on June 07, 2006, 07:07:49 AM
Now, back to what PGC reported...
Quote
. Nintendo plans to ship 4 million systems by the end of the calendar year.
Did he say CALENDAR?!?!? O.O
~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com
Post by: obscureownership on June 07, 2006, 07:09:17 AM
Quote
Originally posted by: Louieturkey
It better be cheaper in the US. People aren't going to pay $4 for an NES game. I certainly don't want to, especially when you can get similiar games for only $1 or even free nowadays. Plus many have the roms already and $4 is something they will not pay, but at $1-2 they might be willing to buy.
People paid a lot more than $4 for direct ports of NES games on the GBA. Yes, lots of people will pay $4 for a NES game.
Post by: Requiem on June 07, 2006, 07:22:41 AM
In my eyes, the original Mario is worth $20 if it's portable. However, we are talking about the Wii -- a console within someone's home. Plus, I don't think people in the US are as nostalgic as Japan.
Hopefully Reggie will step in and tell them what's up.
Post by: obscureownership on June 07, 2006, 07:32:07 AM
Quote
Originally posted by: Requiem
But that's a portable version.
In my eyes, the original Mario is worth $20 if it's portable. However, we are talking about the Wii -- a console within someone's home. Plus, I don't think people in the US are as nostalgic as Japan.
Hopefully Reggie will step in and tell them what's up.
That's my point. Four dollars is not that much, it's not a lot compared to $20, so if it's a good game that's hard to find, or just a good game that I don't have, I'm willing to shell out $4 for it. Sure, I could have a NES and try to mess with the shotty slot loading mechanism, have a GBA and pay $20 each, or peak around every dark corner on the internet looking for the roms. Or, I could just have a Wii and pay $4 each for those games, which to me, having easy access to them working properly, is worth it.
Post by: JonLeung on June 07, 2006, 07:37:32 AM
But at $4...well, I suppose I could spend as much on just the GOOD games. Naming 200 good NES games might be kind of tough, actually, but I could probably name at least a few dozen for sure.
Nice to kinda-almost-know that if N64 games fall into this range, we won't have to break the bank for them. Too bad about Rareware, though, that kinda hurts the N64 library.
Post by: Bloodworth on June 07, 2006, 07:40:53 AM
Go to slide 70 and then press the third button under the slide to see Pokemon in action.
Post by: Ian Sane on June 07, 2006, 07:47:08 AM
$4 is okay for SOME NES games. Something like Zelda or Super Mario Bros 3 or Final Fantasy is worth $4. Dragon Warrior IV is a bargain at even $9. Translated Japan-only games would be worth that price range too. But there are a lot of NES games that are decent and worth a play but aren't worth $4. They're not classics but they're not duds either and for $1 are worth downloading and goofing around in. With a price of $4 people are going to consider their purchases more carefully. I think for only a buck people would download any old game just to try it out.
However for SNES and N64 games $4 to $9 is perfectly acceptable. For N64 games that a great price.
Post by: Athrun Zala on June 07, 2006, 08:00:38 AM
unless it's prerendered, but that's not nintendo's style, so I doubt it
Post by: Kairon on June 07, 2006, 08:09:17 AM
Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
Well we're still getting Pokemon Stadium games instead of a real Pokemon console game. I guess I should stop hoping for one. At least they still make good portable Pokemon games. Still there's such potential and it bothers me that they've had the ultimate killer app right in front of their face for like ten years now. I swear that such a game released on the Cube could have totally changed the outcome of the last gen.
Look, I'm as much of a Pokemon Fanboi as the next guy, but why can no one else see how limited and stagnant the formula has become since Red and Blue?!?! Nintendo needs to sic Miyamoto or some other game design genius on the Pokemon franchise if it's going to grow anything beyond the same tired formula it's been using since 1998.
Pokemon is stagnant, let's face it.
~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com
Post by: ShyGuy on June 07, 2006, 08:31:12 AM
Post by: Ceric on June 07, 2006, 08:43:01 AM
Also I still think that $9 dollars is a wonderfully low top end.
Post by: Luigi Dude on June 07, 2006, 08:48:59 AM
So getting Rondo of Blood for only $9 has got to be one of the greatest deals ever. And since Konami owns Hudson now, there's a very good chance this game will be on the Virtual Console sometime in the future. Hopefully soon.
Post by: Ceric on June 07, 2006, 08:51:08 AM
Post by: Kairon on June 07, 2006, 08:53:57 AM
On a more serious note, the Pokemon art style is clean and simple and pure and child-accessible (like most of the anime style). Giving Pikachu hair and more realism would be opposite of what Pokemon benefits from.
~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com
Post by: JonLeung on June 07, 2006, 09:35:44 AM
I think even on the show, when someone pets Pikachu, or especially that other one, Sparky, it becomes more clear that they have yellow fur/hair as opposed to being yellow-skinned naked mole rats.
Post by: Rize on June 07, 2006, 09:40:02 AM
Post by: couchmonkey on June 07, 2006, 09:42:39 AM
I think this price range is fine...in my own personal opinion, pretty much any game is worth $4, except for a total load like Superman 64...heck even that might be worth it purely for the novelty.
And as others have said, $9 is a bargain for a lot of classics. I'd gladly pay $9 for any good game you care to mention, but I'll buy 3 copies if it's something like Chrono Trigger. There aren't a lot of used game stores left in Calgary, and the only one I've visited recently charges at least $20 for pretty much any game you can mention. This is a great alternative.
Post by: The Omen on June 07, 2006, 09:48:59 AM
Besides, who feels like f'ing with the NES, and that hideous blinking screen?I'd sooner pay $4 even if I owned the game then drag all my wires and rubbing alcohol out just to play Tag Team Wrestling.
Post by: BlkPaladin on June 07, 2006, 10:10:50 AM
Post by: Athrun Zala on June 07, 2006, 10:18:17 AM
Quoteyeah, seems like it
Originally posted by: ShyGuy
Athrun Zala, the video looked like real time play
$9 as the top price is excellent, I was expecting some more for rare games....
let's hope Konami hears us and we get Rondo of Blood
rool:
Post by: Nile Boogie on June 07, 2006, 10:20:23 AM
Yes, that is worth $4.
Post by: Hostile Creation on June 07, 2006, 11:38:04 AM
A little pricey for some NES games, but I don't intend to buy any NES games (having every one ever made as roms burned onto one CD). I might get the original Zelda, but that'd probably be it.
Post by: Bill Aurion on June 07, 2006, 11:41:22 AM
Post by: couchmonkey on June 07, 2006, 12:40:11 PM
Post by: Shecky on June 07, 2006, 01:21:33 PM
Post by: NinGurl69 *huggles on June 07, 2006, 01:22:10 PM
Post by: GoldenPhoenix on June 07, 2006, 01:56:21 PM
Post by: infinitys_end on June 07, 2006, 02:01:04 PM
You guys can't forget to take 1 major thing into consideration: Just like the NES games released on GBA, Nintendo likes to ramp up the prices as an unwritten "convenience fee."
I'll say it before, and I'll say it again: I'm not paying for games I already own. (AND STILL PLAY!)
Post by: joshnickerson on June 07, 2006, 02:09:16 PM
On a side note, is anybody else kind of surprised they haven't bothered to make a cel-shaded Pokemon game? I mean, it's just BEGGING for that kind of style.
Post by: GoldenPhoenix on June 07, 2006, 02:45:13 PM
From IGN-Wii
"June 7, 2006 - Nintendo president Satoru Iwata outlined a price range for some games on Wii's Virtual Console download service during a marketing conference held in Japan on Wednesday. The company leader said that some Virtual Console games would cost between ¥500 and ¥1,000 yen, or $4.50 and $8.99 USD.
"We'd like people to play new, low-scale games for ¥500 yen or ¥1000 yen," Iwata stated.
These prices apparently encapsulate only titles newly created for the Virtual Console. It is not yet clear if classic NES, S-NES and N64 games will fall under the same price range umbrella."
Post by: Caliban on June 07, 2006, 03:27:15 PM
Post by: KnowsNothing on June 07, 2006, 04:00:47 PM
Quote
On a side note, is anybody else kind of surprised they haven't bothered to make a cel-shaded Pokemon game? I mean, it's just BEGGING for that kind of style.
YES
I've been crying about this for YEARS. I want a console Pokemon RPG, cel-shaded, with anime-like character models. Ideally I'd like it to be an MMORPG, it'd be the only mmorpg I'd actually be interested in. But simple online battles and perhaps trading would still make me happy.
A game like that would be just about the greatest thing ever.
Post by: Crimm on June 07, 2006, 04:14:40 PM
Post by: Rize on June 07, 2006, 06:39:50 PM
Quote
Originally posted by: The Omen
the prices are fine. $4 is slightly much for an old NES game like Urban Champion. But $9 is a steal for Snes classics like A Link To The Past or Shadowrun, not to mention N64 classics. It ends up being a bargain in my eyes.
Besides, who feels like f'ing with the NES, and that hideous blinking screen?I'd sooner pay $4 even if I owned the game then drag all my wires and rubbing alcohol out just to play Tag Team Wrestling.
haha, everyone has their own ritual to make those old NES's work
My trick was to blow the dust off the contacts, then blow humid air onto contacts (make a slow breath from the back of your throat). The humidity helps initial electrical conductivity. Then I put the game in just a little more than I have to (don't push it all the way back). Finally, I push the game down and take another game (a crappy one) and insert it into the nes on top of the other game holding it down (rather than the normal method where the game pops back up a little bit). Using this trick I can get all but the most nasty or broken game to work on two or three tries. If not one.
And I'd much rather play the original if I have it than any emulated version, including Wii's. Metroid Prime's copy of Metroid 1 for example is just a little weird looking compared to the original NES. The screen dimensions are slightly different and the colors or just a tad off. Things are a slight bit blurry even. I hope they do a better job with the Wii emulators.
Post by: Michael8983 on June 07, 2006, 06:57:13 PM
I'm dissapointed in the lack of cel-shaded Nintendo games period.
I love the style and it's the perfect way to bring that classic sprite-based look into full 3D.
Not to mention how it would cover for the Wii's technical limitations. Attempting to compete with the 360 and PS3 with realistic textured graphics is not a good move IMO when perfectly crisp, bold cell-shaded graphics are an alternative.
Post by: GoldenPhoenix on June 07, 2006, 07:02:57 PM
Post by: Spak-Spang on June 07, 2006, 07:11:56 PM
If you aren't will to pay the price of of a cup of coffee for a classic game, then don't...someone else will enjoy the game.
Post by: GoldenPhoenix on June 07, 2006, 07:14:52 PM
Post by: Nick DiMola on June 08, 2006, 02:15:45 AM
Quote
Originally posted by: RizeQuote
Originally posted by: The Omen
the prices are fine. $4 is slightly much for an old NES game like Urban Champion. But $9 is a steal for Snes classics like A Link To The Past or Shadowrun, not to mention N64 classics. It ends up being a bargain in my eyes.
Besides, who feels like f'ing with the NES, and that hideous blinking screen?I'd sooner pay $4 even if I owned the game then drag all my wires and rubbing alcohol out just to play Tag Team Wrestling.
haha, everyone has their own ritual to make those old NES's work
My trick was to blow the dust off the contacts, then blow humid air onto contacts (make a slow breath from the back of your throat). The humidity helps initial electrical conductivity. Then I put the game in just a little more than I have to (don't push it all the way back). Finally, I push the game down and take another game (a crappy one) and insert it into the nes on top of the other game holding it down (rather than the normal method where the game pops back up a little bit). Using this trick I can get all but the most nasty or broken game to work on two or three tries. If not one.
And I'd much rather play the original if I have it than any emulated version, including Wii's. Metroid Prime's copy of Metroid 1 for example is just a little weird looking compared to the original NES. The screen dimensions are slightly different and the colors or just a tad off. Things are a slight bit blurry even. I hope they do a better job with the Wii emulators.
You have to go get yourself a new 72 Pin Connector. I replaced mine about a year ago and the NES has worked fine since. No tricks, no blowing in cartridges, every game thus far has worked on the first try. I too had my rituals as a child so I can sympathize.
Back to the article, am I the only one excited about the DS being used as a touch screen controller for the Wii? I think we all knew it was coming but I can't wait to see what they do with this new connectivity. No wires to purchase, no dark screens due to a lack of backlight, no batteries to worry about. Seems like the DS might really help bring Nintendo's whole connectivity feature to the forefront of gaming.
Post by: Rize on June 08, 2006, 02:20:27 PM
Post by: UncleBob on June 08, 2006, 02:35:31 PM
By the way, I am in no way responsible if someone tries this and screw up their NES (or themselves). I'm just sayin'...
Post by: BlackNMild2k1 on June 20, 2006, 08:09:47 AM
