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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Wii U Price and Release Date Guess Thread

« on: April 04, 2012, 10:29:20 AM »

Apparently they were working on something that everyone wanted them to do. Myamoto did say that Retro would be a nice collaboration for the next Zelda, but I think it's too early for that.

I think they have more than proven themselves to create their own IP for Nintendo in a western style. Monolith was allowed to make a new IP, Xenoblade, so I don't see how Retro couldn't go ahead and do so.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Wii U Price and Release Date Guess Thread

« on: April 04, 2012, 03:39:11 AM »

A Retro game at launch would be nice, although I would probably like a new IP from them. Maybe an adventure FPS? Or an FPSRPG like Borderlands? They've got quite the talent to pull that off, and a new IP has a better chance of being a success at the start of a new generation. Also, didn't they have two teams at Retro? I remember readying something about that a while ago. Monolith Soft just opened a new studio near Nintendo's HQ, and apparently they're working on a 3DS game while the main team is on a Wii U game.

Then again, if Pikmin is a launch title, then other big Nintendo games, like Retro's project, would be pushed back. I'm actually hoping for an adventure FPSRPG from Retro. Combine Metroid Prime with Borderlands, and you have a winner for me. From Monolith, I'd love a drop in/drop out co-op, open world RPG, but with a lot of color. I can never get into the Elder Scrolls games because of the lack of color. It just feels lifeless and depressing. They did say that Skyrim would be the inspiration for their next project.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Wii U Price and Release Date Guess Thread

« on: April 03, 2012, 01:00:20 PM »

I meant something like the 360 Slim, sort of. They could have a system that looks like the design we saw last year as a cheap offering while the more expensive one looks more attractive in terms of design (maybe black from the get-go).

As for the HDD, there are external ones that don't have a fan, but some part of the case is exposed to dissipate the heat. HDD don't generate as much heat, but they do require a power supply if they're internal or external to operate efficiently. There are external HDD that power off the USB port on your PC, but they are not meant for heavy duty stuff. Having said that, HDD still generate enough heat to cause problems with your system. Plus, an external one or no internal HDD would make it easy for them to get a low cost power supply, which is still an important factor in the cost of the system.

Then again, Nintendo has the tendency of creating reliable hardware (in terms of how long it lasts), so whatever they decide to do, I'm sure they will do it right. I just hope they offer cloud saving. I don't want to lose all my save data after a HDD crash.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Wii U Price and Release Date Guess Thread

« on: April 03, 2012, 11:42:53 AM »

For the hard drive thing, I think they might have tow versions of it. A cheaper model without a hard drive, and a premium model with a hard drive and a sleeker look. No HDD would be the ideal though. You could argue that you can find them really cheap, but are those the good ones? The 5400 RPM ones can cost you around $80, and those are internal ones and kind of slow with only 8MB of cache. The good ones would be the 7200 RPM ones with 16mb of cache. Those are faster but more expensive. PC parts are not as cheap when you want it to do something in specific.

So, what's the advantage of NOT having one? By having moving parts, the system requires a better power supply, which in turn generates more heat, and then you would need a better cooling fan, which then generates more heat and requires a better supply. Cooling systems and power supplies can make the price go up since those are crucial components on your system. It wouldn't be an issue with solid state drives, but those don't offer that much storage space with a ridiculous high price (over $100 for less than 300GB).

It would be better for them to keep the system small since that would help in dissipating the heat faster depending on the design. An inexpensive cooling system would do just fine and keep the cost down, specially if they use a dual core/2 GPUs the way I think they do.

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General-3 / Re: April Fools!

« on: April 01, 2012, 01:39:22 PM »

Take this with a grain of salt.  It is April 1st.  But this seems plausible. 


http://www.digitalsomething.com/news/708.html

It sounds plausible, but I don't think it would be in their best interest to sell games later in the Wii life cycle for digital download when they could offer older titles like Fire Emblem or even the Metroid Prime Collection, which are no longer available, for a rational price. Even with the Wii, they didn't have that many games availalbe right off the bat. The flaw in this is that it's too good to be true, and it's April 1st, but they did source a Japanese name, though I've never heard of it.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Gear Box Excited about Wii U

« on: March 31, 2012, 03:19:16 AM »

Gear Box is Excited to talk about Aliens on Wii U
http://www.theverge.com/gaming/2012/3/28/2903588/half-life-borderlands-gearbox-software-aliens-brothers-in-arms

Another aspect of the upcoming game's design Pitchford hopes will represent a significant advancement is Gearbox's heavy investment in the Wii U. Pitchford says he actually believes the Wii U version of Aliens: Colonial Marines will be the best version.

"The Wii U version has so much more to offer ... no other platform can do what the Wii U can do," he says. "If you love [Xbox] 360 games, you are not used to being in a world where you have this new interface. But once you get used to that, you imagine the possibilities; there are some opportunities that are just not possible on any platform that does not have that device."

Pitchford hints that using the Wii U controller as a motion tracker, or in other ways that evoke signature moments form the films will lure gamers to the Wii U for their Aliens fix.

"I don’t want to give spoilers away on some of things we are thinking of or things we have actually implemented already," he said, "but a lot of cool opportunities with that device that are going to make a very unique and compelling experience on that platform. We have given a lot of attention. I think it will not be too long [before] Nintendo opens up their kimono a little bit more about that platform and where it is going, we will be there right with them talking about how Aliens is using it."

Pitchford was tight-lipped regarding details of the game's story, but he did say at least one detail will be revealed next month, in Boston:

"Competitive multiplayer is in the game," he said. "If you are curious about what we are doing there, I strongly recommend visiting us at PAX East."

I'm already sold on Aliens. Now, make Borderlands 2 happen on the Wii U.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Wii U Price and Release Date Guess Thread

« on: March 31, 2012, 03:02:50 AM »

No, Nintendo was in the red. For the six months that ended September 30, they lost $923 million. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/nintendo-sinks-deeper-into-red-in-first-half-2011-10-27

Sluggish Wii sales had part to do with it, and losing money on every 3DS system sold doesn't help (they are doing it to get the system out there and make up it up with software sales of course).

That info would be shocking if it had happened last year or the year before. However, you have to consider that they have several 3DS titles in development as well as a new HD home console in the works, for which they have licensed several middlewares  for third parties to use, as well as the collaborations and their own HD games. And while they have a more unique approach to art style, as opposed to photorealistic, games like Smash Bros are big. There's also Retro's game and Monolith Soft is also working on something for Wii U. They have also invested in the Nintendo Network, and maybe they have made contracts with other companies already as suggested by Mr. Iwata. All of that requires a lot of money.

Anyways, I predict Wii U launch during or a bit after Summer, or at least that's the ideal time frame. Last holiday season was pretty crowded, and this year looks to be no different if not more crowded. This is even more dangerous for Wii U since the system will have games that will already be on other systems like Batman and Ninja Gaiden 3. They need to launch a bit early to offset those early games so that the system can have a more steady flow of games that will arrive later on like Assassin's Creed 3 and Aliens. If third party support is as big as rumored and if companies like Capcom are on it, we might see RE 6 on it, and CoD is pretty much a given.

As for price, $350 would be ideal if it has a considerable boost in hardware like it seems to have. If they have two versions, maybe one will be priced at $299 and the other at $399 with a HDD and a sleeker look.