Topic: The OFFICIAL Big N rumor thread *bring your own salt*

[Chozo Ghost]

Nintendo could release a calculator and EA and Ubisoft would have launch titles for it.

I guess you don't really realize how much EA and Ubisoft support really matters until its gone. Just ask the Dreamcast about that.

[BlackNMild2k1]

The last couple of years, Microsoft's presser has been a 11am PDT start on the Monday. 5pm is the Ubisoft slot, normally.

So this years E# conferences could be

MS - 11am 6/06
Sony - 5pm 6/06
Nintendo - 9am 6/07

Either way Sony is switching up their appearance order.

[n-phage]

When I read about the screen on the controller the first thing I thought was that they were trying to make a console version of the DS.  I almost wonder if this is all real if they could make it backwards compatible with the DS.  Kind of like the Gameboy player for the Gamecube but built in.  And maybe the 3ds, too.  Might be a bad idea though.

[MegaByte]

Sony's schedule has been problematic over the past couple years -- Nintendo can run late, screwing up Sony's start, and then Sony's bleeds into the actual show start time.

[Chozo Ghost]

Maybe they could have a tiny "wiimote" which would serve as the stylus for the touchscreen? Imagine a magical stylus which has buttons and can also be waved around and waggled for motion control, yet it also is a stylus for the touchscreen. Wouldn't that be awesome?

[Oblivion]

No.

[MegaByte]

Maybe they could have a tiny "wiimote" which would serve as the stylus for the touchscreen? Imagine a magical stylus which has buttons and can also be waved around and waggled for motion control, yet it also is a stylus for the touchscreen. Wouldn't that be awesome?

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/22732

[Ian Sane]

Imagine a magical stylus which has buttons and can also be waved around and waggled for motion control, yet it also is a stylus for the touchscreen.

How do you get usable buttons at such a small size though?  Either that or you have a really chubby stylus.

[BlackNMild2k1]

3 core PPC (i'm guessing Cell based by previous rumor) & AMD Radeon 4000 HD class GPU
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/298348/news/wii-2-is-project-caf-says-report-tech-specs-controller-details-claimed/

'Wii 2' is being internally referred to as 'Project Café', and sports architecture similar to that of the Xbox 360, "but a bit more powerful".

It says the console will include a custom IBM PowerPC CPU with three cores, a GPU from the ATI R700 family with a shader unit at version 4.1, and at least 512Mb of RAM.

This would of course make HD console ports very easy for developers, but 'Project Café' will also include backwards compatibility with both the Wii (including all peripherals) and GameCube games, it's said.

The controller has a six-inch touch screen, a front-facing camera, D-Pad, two bumpers, two triggers and "possibly more," and can allegedly be used as a Wii sensor bar.

Late 2012 is the release date, and another "big surprise" about the console is set to be revealed at E3, the report concludes.

As always consider this a strong rumour for now, but it's a good source indeed.

[MegaByte]

3 core and Cell don't go together logically.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Rumor Consolidation 2011

October 2010:
-Marvell QuadCore processors for new console - *This might have had something to do with Kinect, But I don't remember.
-IBM implies that Wii2 uses Cell based PPC

November 2010:
-Marvell Quad cores gets a large order: From large console manufacturer - *once again might be Kinect related.
-House of the Dead: Overkill 2 in the works 
-EA reviving NFL Blitz

December 2010:

January 2011:
-UltraViolet Media Cloud service coming to a console - Most Likely Sony since Sony is a partner.
-New Pokemon game for Wii

February 2011:
-Wii2 announcement coming soon according to THQ

March 2011:
-Wii2 announcement coming soon according to EA
-AMD working on CPU/GPU combined chip for console due for release @ end of 2012; Told to bring schedule in for earlier release

April 2011:
-Monster Hunter 3DS to be announced soon
-SSFIV3D connects to home console - Hint @ Wii2 from Capcom and 3DS -> Wii2 connectivity
-Wii price drop to $150 on May 15th
-Wii2 announcement @ E3: 1080p HD, More powerful than PS360, BC with Wii, release late 2012
-New Wii2 controller has HD screen built in
-Wii2 to use Bluray technology
-Wii2 actually aimed at early 2012 release (1st half 2012) *IGN backs this up in their mailbag*
-Controller Screen is actually a Touch Screen
-Project Cafe: Wii2 Controller is a Tablet: 6" touch Screen on Controller, front facing camera & doubles as sensor bar for BC
-Dual Analogs, Streaming & Games Wii2 controller to rival 3DS, NGP, iPhone & iPad apparently
-1st & 3rd Party games @ E3 EA, Ubisoft & Capcom all but confirmed
-Wii2 = TriCore PPC & R700 class GPU w/ 512+MB Ram Another surprise to be shown @ E3
-3rd Parties have had Wii2 Dev Kits for Months, Has better Motion Tracking than Move
-Pikmin 3 moved to Project Cafe to be shown @ E3; Nintendo also in talks with R* for solid AAA support.
-Wii2 launch June 2012; Rockstar delivering game (?GTA V?) during launch window
-Wii2, 3DS & E3!? Oh Yes!!; 3rd Parties taking a front seat this time around.
-Retro working on Wii2 game; and it's "a project everyone wants us to do" (Starfox? Zelda? New Original FPS?)
-Retro's new game is actually Eternal Darkness 2?
-"Where there's smoke, there's fire" - Miyamoto's comment on Project Cafe - He also said not to believe everything you hear though.
-Wii2 controller has a 6.2" screen and 8 buttons

[BlackNMild2k1]

3 core and Cell don't go together logically.

IBM is the one that said they were already integrating cell architecture/tech into the future PPC line, so don't tell me, tell them.


From rumor consolidation list:
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/forums/index.php?topic=16688.msg638565#msg638565

Lessons in reading waaay too deep into a statement


IBM to use Cell in next Nintendo System!!?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20101008/tc_pcworld/cellprocessordevelopmenthasntstalledibmctosays

IBM is working with gaming machine vendors including Nintendo and Sony, said Jai Menon, CTO of IBM's Systems and Technology Group, during an interview Thursday. "We want to stay in the business, we intend to stay in the business," he said.


"I think you'll see [Cell] integrated into our future Power road map. That's the way to think about it as opposed to a separate line -- it'll just get integrated into the next line of things that we do," Menon said. "But certainly, we're working with all of the game folks to provide our capabilities into those next-generation machines."


"The kinds of things you used to be able to do with the Cell you can do in ... [the] Power line," Menon said

Also remember that AMD was working on a CPU/GPU combined chip for a console manufacturer (I think I forgot to include that rumor, it was from March) that was similar to the work they did for MS and the X360Slim.


These specs match up to that exactly.

[MegaByte]

I'm saying if it was Cell-based, they would have reported how many PPEs and how many SPEs it included rather than just saying Cores.
AMD already sells CPU/GPU processors for computers.

[Chozo Ghost]

Imagine a magical stylus which has buttons and can also be waved around and waggled for motion control, yet it also is a stylus for the touchscreen.

How do you get usable buttons at such a small size though?  Either that or you have a really chubby stylus.

It could be about the size of a pen or a laser pointer. I guess you'd have to have tiny buttons though, and probably only a few. Maybe just A and B buttons. But imagine the potential that would have. Not only could you touch the screen, but you could also click a button while you are touching it so it could perhaps grab and item and move it around as you lift the stylus from the screen, then you could click the button again to drop the item. So it would work like a mouse, except in 3D. With a mouse you can move a cursor around in a 2 dimensional plane, but with this idea you could move in every direction.

You could also have awesome FPS games where you aim by moving the stylus around on the touchscreen so you could touch on an enemy target and then click a button on the stylus to fire a gun.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I'm saying if it was Cell-based, they would have reported how many PPEs and how many SPEs it included rather than just saying Cores.
AMD already sells CPU/GPU processors for computers.

But we don't know how Cell was "integrated" into PPC architecture, and these are still rumors that are likely being passed on 2nd and 3rd hand, so I can't expect too many of the "Details" to be specific. Just like the game telephone, something always get lost in translation.

[UncleBob]

It's three GameCubes duct taped together... that's where the three cores come from.  (Did the GCN have a core processor at all?)

[MegaByte]

But we don't know how Cell was "integrated" into PPC architecture, and these are still rumors that are likely being passed on 2nd and 3rd hand, so I can't expect too many of the "Details" to be specific. Just like the game telephone, something always get lost in translation.

The defining features were the two types of cores and the interconnect bus among them. Anything else is just general microprocessor technology (e.g. the Xenon core is just a modified PPE core).

[BlackNMild2k1]

Wii2 has a camera? - No idea, but it has better motion sensing than Move
Studios have had Dev Kits for Months
http://www.next-gen.biz/news/sources-confirm-more-details-on-wii-successor

Ubisoft studios have had development kits “for months”, motion-sensing “better than Move”; announcement at E3?

Sources have this morning confirmed reports that Nintendo has a successor to the Wii in the works, telling us that thirdparty studios including those of Ubisoft, Activision and Electronic Arts have had development units of the new hardware for months.

They have also claimed that the system retains motion control, with capabilities that are “better than Move”, meaning that they boast higher fidelity. We do not yet have word on whether or not its motion-controlled solution introduces a camera.

This gives me hope on my Sensor Bar 2.0 idea. 2 way camera tracking.

[MegaByte]

Engine revealed

[Kytim89]

I still want a more advanced version of the current Wiimote for the Wii 2 along side a controller with a built in screen. I a not convinced with this new controller and hope that it is nothing more than rumours, or atleast until I see it in action in June.
 
Edit:
 
If studios have had the development kits for months then could CoD Modern Warfare 3, Mass Effect 3 and MGS Rising be released in time to be Wii 2 launch titles?

[SixthAngel]

Considering that after the 3ds launched people were stilll trying to figure out exactly what was inside I don't trust any of this stuff in the slightest.

With how retarded Ubisoft is in general it wouldn't surprise me if they were still developing for the Wii heartbeat sensor and didn't know it.

A touchscreen motion controller sounds like the most unwieldy thing in the world.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I found a report from Oct. 1st 2008

http://www.next-gen.biz/news/report-wii-hd-set-2011

Citing "multiple sources in the game industry" veteran games journalist John Davison has filed a report on a new Wii, set to launch in 2011.

Posted at WhatTheyPlay, the story says that Nintendo is currently "showing early presentations of its next home console hardware" . It's going under the name Wii HD, suggesting a significant graphical overhaul.

Davison admits details are sketchy but says his sources are pointing towards "a greater emphasis on digitally distributed and backwardly compatible content". Nintendo will once again focus on innovating the console's controller.

Davison, who is extremely well connected and respected in the game industry, points towards surging R&D costs at Nintendo as supporting evidence of his story.

Nothing major, but does line up with what we are hearing today. It's just good to know that Nintendo has been refining this idea for quite some time.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Wii 2 Breakdown

-Codenamed "Project Café"
-To be revealed @ E3 2011
-Architecture similar to Xbox360, porting titles from 360 should be very easy
-Fully Backwards Compatible - Plays GameCube and Wii games, and support all Wii peripherals
-Specs : CPU is custom IBM PowerPC with three cores, GPU should be an ATI from the R700 family (Radeon 4000 HD series), with a shader unit at version 4.1. Ram should be at least 512MB.
-Controller is a touch tablet that can stream content from the console
-Controller Specs : 6-inch screen, single touch (?no multi touch?), front camera, acts as a wii sensor bar, has a d-pad, 2 shoulder buttons, two triggers, and a full set of standard buttons (A, B, X, Y) & 2 analogs.
-Should be released between mid 2012 (in Japan?), and holiday season 2012(U.S.?)
-A big surprise about he console is to be revealed @ E3 (June 7th 2011)

[UncleBob]

I'm curious - if the controller "acts as the sensor bar", A) What's it interacting with (i.e.: is there a Kinect-like camera?) and B) Wouldn't this new beast still need a regular(-ish) sensor bar to work with Wii titles?

[BlackNMild2k1]

My guess is the controller has 2 IR lights and you set it infront of the TV facing you and then you use your old Wii remotes, or the Wiimote 2.0's for whatever the game you are playing requires.