Topic: The NEW Mailbag Talkback Thread

[Nephilim]

Most korean MMORPG, which are designed to work on old computers are only 100-200meg, and can run on old tnt2 and under 1ghz
Im sure a game in this style would easly be able to run on wii, but still have lovly graphics (pangya has awsome graphics and is 220meg)

Dont think the ram is a issue at all, pc games always need more ram, toruk2 for pc (which barely better then n64) needed 32ram, same with sonic heroes with 256ram  

[starfoxssb]

Just something i wanted to bring out.In the mail bag it talked about how much ram the Wii had.Well i am assuming you are talking about the "supposed"specs from IGN.See the thing about that is the documentation was from current Wii dev kits which probably means that almost everthing that IGN reported on the Wii as more of ex.more ram.And also on i guess the current issue of Hardcore Gamer Magazine they had an intervue with Retro Studios.In the article they asked them about the hardware in the Wii.This is what they said.

Mark Pacini (Retro Studios): The graphics have been upgraded considerably. We have more memory, and with the new GPU/CPU architecture, you’re going to see a very noticeable difference in the quality of visuals.�
So all i am saying is that the Wii probably has more memory than what was reported on by IGN.

Sorry the quote the i posted might not of been within the context that i was using it.It might of been talking about upgraded visuals of the Wii from what we saw at E3 or it might of been of what we saw on the GC.

[Weasel47]

The requirements of a MMORPG for the PC can't really be applied directly to a console.  90MB of Ram compared to 128 could easily be enough.  PC Ram requirements are always in powers of two, so a requirement of "128" doesn't mean it's using all of that.  It just means it needs more than 64.  Not only does the OS hog a lot of memory, but PC users often have a lot of other things running as well.  The difference between 128MB on the PC and 90MB on the console (if there is a difference) wouldn't be more than a few MB, and developers can easily compensate for that.

As for the HD space requirement, PC games have always been installed long-term to the Hard Drive, while console games have always streamed from the cartridges or disks.  The only thing that would have to be stored on the HD in both cases would be player-specific data, which probably takes up only a few MB even for modern PC MMORPGs. (And this is ignoring the possibility for most of the player data to be stored server-side).

After having said all that, there may be specific games for the PC that have requirements that would make them difficult to squeeze onto the Wii, but still that is in no way indicative of how well the genre would work on the Wii.  

[Ceric]

I think I've mentioned this before but I would want an MMORPG on the wii so that the crafting system could be closer to the real thing.  that would be my biggest reason.

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

Remote Blacksmithing for everyone!

[MaryJane]

I just want to thank you for finally saying what I've been trying to tell people for the longest time.

The PS3 may have its problems, they may have copied Nintendo's controller, it may cost you your first born child, but it's still the PS3, people are still going to buy because of it's name alone. They will think it will be better than everything else, simply because it is the most popular choice, much how people will buy a $300+ video ipod, when they could buy an archos gmini 402 for $240 that not only plays video, but takes them as well, along with still photographs of course. (i have one and love it, and love showing it to 2 of my idiotic friends who bought video ipods for $400, I'm going to do the say with the Wii when they buy the PS3).

So anyway, thanks. It was nice hearing someone thinking along the same lines as I do, which is rare.

[Ceric]

Yeah. Similar minds are hard to find.

[GoldenPhoenix]

I'm still not convinced that the Sony name is as strong as people try to make it out to be, it seems most gamers today don't have a big loyality for a system, but instead the games on a particular system (such as MGS or FF). Let's say for arguments sake that the Sony name is so strong, I still think the 600$ price tag will hurt sales alot, especially for younger gamers who have to get their systems through their parents.  Also you have to remember that Nintendo was once a strong brand name, and it only took one system to put them behind (the N64).

[WindyMan]

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Originally posted by: starfoxssb
Mark Pacini (Retro Studios): The graphics have been upgraded considerably. We have more memory, and with the new GPU/CPU architecture, you’re going to see a very noticeable difference in the quality of visuals.�
So all i am saying is that the Wii probably has more memory than what was reported on by IGN.

Sorry the quote the i posted might not of been within the context that i was using it.It might of been talking about upgraded visuals of the Wii from what we saw at E3 or it might of been of what we saw on the GC.

Retro was referring to more power compared to the GameCube and better visuals compared to the first two Metroid Prime games.

The Wii hardware should be finalized by now.  There shouldn't be much difference with the guts of the console between then and now, and Nintendo certainly isn't going to add a significant amount of system RAM.

[IceCold]

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The PS3 may have its problems, they may have copied Nintendo's controller, it may cost you your first born child, but it's still the PS3, people are still going to buy because of it's name alone. They will think it will be better than everything else, simply because it is the most popular choice

As VG mentioned, what about the N64? And it had some of the best games ever made... don't think we'll be able to say the same about the PS3.

[GoldenPhoenix]

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Originally posted by: IceCold

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The PS3 may have its problems, they may have copied Nintendo's controller, it may cost you your first born child, but it's still the PS3, people are still going to buy because of it's name alone. They will think it will be better than everything else, simply because it is the most popular choice

As VG mentioned, what about the N64? And it had some of the best games ever made... don't think we'll be able to say the same about the PS3.

After thinking about this a bit more, this is actually Sony's first console where they are coming to the party late. With both PS1 (Saturn was not much competition) and PS2 Sony was the first on the block with a next generation system, they no longer will have that luxury either. I'm not sure the Sony brand name has been really tested, so I think it is jumping the gun a bit to completely doom it or give it the benefit of the doubt to suceed. All we have his history, and PS3 is shaping up to be on a similar track N64 was on, relying on brand name, giving customers the finger (with PS3 this would be the price), and launching after everyone else.

[WindyMan]

Quote
Originally posted by: IceCold
As VG mentioned, what about the N64? And it had some of the best games ever made... don't think we'll be able to say the same about the PS3.

The N64 was still a viable console and publishers still made money off of it.  Not very much money, but games were somewhat profitable on it.  The PS3 may turn out to be the same way.  Enough people will own it to where developers need to make games for it, but the profit generated from it could be almost more trouble than it's worth.

We won't know for sure until a few years after the PS3 launch, though.  

[UncleBob]

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Hola Mr. Windyman,

In the July 16th bag, Mysteryman wrote in asking about GBA multiplayer on the DS. You responded "once a game boots in GBA mode, the DS becomes a Game Boy Advance without a link cable port. DS games can access GBA the cartridge slot, but only if the DS card was booted and the system is running in DS mode".

That got me thinking, while almost certainly impractical, do you think it would be possible for Nintendo to release a DS cartridge that told the system to access the GBA port and play the game using the DS' wireless capabilities for multiplayer? I'm sure it's not a commercially viable product, but I'm just curious if it's possible.

Vudu

I've been thinking about this lately, and I don't think it would work in the end. Even if DS hardware allowed GBA games to access the wireless functionality, multiplayer GBA games would have a problem. GBA games expect a wired link between GBA systems, providing a solid, stable connection. A wireless link can't guarantee that, so the slightest bit of network instability would screw up a game. We all thought that the wireless GBA link adapter would let us play all multiplayer GBA games without the cable, but it turned out it only worked with games that were programmed to work with a wireless connection. It would be the same deal for multiplayer GBA games on the DS.

Lies!  It's all lies!  Sorta!

Don't forget the Majesco Wireless Adapter...  It's not perfect by any means, but it does very much get the job done for the majority of GBA games I've played with it (in two player mode, at least).  With Nintendo's superior knowledge about the DS and it's wireless communication protocol along with the superior wireless communication protocol of the DS, I actually think this might be quite possible.

[UniversalJuan]

Just thought I'd swing by and say that last time I played SSBM? I coud menu navigate with D-Pad, that is all.

[EasyCure]

i dont think the sony name on the console is as strong as anyone thinks. the last time i heard anyone say sony is the sh!t because its SONY was some 12 year old kid who didnt know any thing on his own and instead relied on what any older "kewl" person had said. that older "kewl" person probably only said such a thing because it was the system that had the game her prefered to play on it.

as was stated before, loyalty is among a game franchise. i know people  that only own xbox for halo because they claim it as being the best game to ever grace the earth, but talk trash about the rest of the games and prefer their ps2. im sure we all know atleast one person like that.

those said 12 year olds that think sony is the sh!t are the ones who rely on mom and dad to buy their console, and even if they threw the biggest fit imaginable, how many parents would really break down and buy a $600 "video game console". most parents know ziltch about video games and would think it was ridicoulous to pay such an absurd amount for something their kid already has "a video game console".

price will affect the ps3 and its games. the ps1 was the cheaper system so it wasnt that hard of a hit on a parents wallet. its easy to forget sometimes that its not just your demographic that plays games. just because you might be a 15-20 year old male and a gamer doesnt mean everyone else who is 15-20 owns a ps2. theres plenty of 10 year olds out there who wanted to be cool like the kids they look up to and have a ps2 and got their parents to buy one. when ps3 launches its gonna be hard for any younger gamer to own unless their 15-20 something brother gets it.

wii is the system thats in a position to be very succesful due to its price alone. come xmas when parents are scrambling to buy their kids that "new video game thing" and the ps3 has shortages or sold out, they are going to walk away with Wii. even if the retailer has ps3 in stock, when they got there and see the price tag... their going for the Wii. then when the gamers out there that buy their on consoles want to branch out and get a second system, we all know its going to be Wii. if you own 360 now, the only reason you'd want to own a ps3 is for an exclusive game. seems like alot of those exclusives that sell so well for sony are coming to 360, so why spend so mu ch on a ps3? their going to buy a wii for curiosities sake and get hooked.

that and nintendo needs rappers to rap about them. i heard a lot of rappers back in the day that would talk about their playstatoin, and show off their ps1/2s on Cribs. nintendo needs to give some wii's away to rappers and Pimp my Ride. i only saw on gamecube on pimp my ride, though ps2s seemed like a standard.  

[Shecky]

Quote
Originally posted by: UncleBob

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Hola Mr. Windyman,

In the July 16th bag, Mysteryman wrote in asking about GBA multiplayer on the DS. You responded "once a game boots in GBA mode, the DS becomes a Game Boy Advance without a link cable port. DS games can access GBA the cartridge slot, but only if the DS card was booted and the system is running in DS mode".

That got me thinking, while almost certainly impractical, do you think it would be possible for Nintendo to release a DS cartridge that told the system to access the GBA port and play the game using the DS' wireless capabilities for multiplayer? I'm sure it's not a commercially viable product, but I'm just curious if it's possible.

Vudu

I've been thinking about this lately, and I don't think it would work in the end. Even if DS hardware allowed GBA games to access the wireless functionality, multiplayer GBA games would have a problem. GBA games expect a wired link between GBA systems, providing a solid, stable connection. A wireless link can't guarantee that, so the slightest bit of network instability would screw up a game. We all thought that the wireless GBA link adapter would let us play all multiplayer GBA games without the cable, but it turned out it only worked with games that were programmed to work with a wireless connection. It would be the same deal for multiplayer GBA games on the DS.

Lies!  It's all lies!  Sorta!

Don't forget the Majesco Wireless Adapter...  It's not perfect by any means, but it does very much get the job done for the majority of GBA games I've played with it (in two player mode, at least).  With Nintendo's superior knowledge about the DS and it's wireless communication protocol along with the superior wireless communication protocol of the DS, I actually think this might be quite possible.

And on top of it all Vudu's "question" was discussed over 2 years ago!

In this thread

You were thinking?  More like you were stealing! (Or is it that great minds think alike?)  

I think the real problem with this is that I doesn't make financial sense for Nintendo to develop.

[UncleBob]

>I think the real problem with this is that I doesn't make financial sense for Nintendo to develop.

Exactly.  I would totally buy one (if not four) of a DS card that would allow multi-player GBA games on the DS, but it'd be a hard sell for most people - and, ideally, it'd probably cost at least $20 retail - which wouldn't help things...  It'd be better than Nintendo's GBA wireless adapter that's $20 and works for about a dozen games though...

[Jensen]

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I'm sure there will be “point and shoot" Wii games that don't have an on-screen aiming reticule

There won't be, and here is why:

1. Screen size.  Some screens will be too big.  When you point to the upper left of a big TV to calibrate the Wiimote, the Wiimote won't see the IR bar.  On small screens, there won't be enough accuracy.  The game would play better with certain TV sizes.

2. The IR bar would have to be in the same plane as the TV.  If is a few inches in front of the TV the calibration would be messed up if you moved laterally in any direction.

3. You'd have to sit/stand directly in front of the TV anyway.  Any lateral movement left/right or up/down changes the shape of the TV from a rectangle to a quadrilateral that isn't a rectangle any more.  The IR bar is 1 dimensional, so it can't be used as a reference for a 2D shape in a 3D world.


And when I say IR bar, I am talking about what others call the "sensor bar".  But that is a misnomer, because it has no sensors, it is an output device only, a point of reference.

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How it could be done is to have the cursor set in the middle of the screen, and by moving the remote up, down, left and right, it would move the game camera in the same way, much like how an analog stick works.

Umm... isn't that the way all Wii games with first person aiming work?  Except that there is a dead zone in which the cursor can move some.  A joystick is self centering, so it would be better to just use 2 analog sticks than using the Wiimote to emulate an analog stick.    

[vudu]

Quote
Originally posted by: Shecky
You were thinking?  More like you were stealing! (Or is it that great minds think alike?)  

Alright, I admit it, I stole the idea.  Happy?  (Seriously, how the Hell am I supposed to recall a thread from nearly two years ago?

Also, I'd just like to point out, that the idea wasn't even yours, it belonged to someone called Tunnelvision456.  And he probably stole it from someone else.  So there.

[UncleBob]

I know a lot of people keep giving Nintendo gripe for only selling the cables online, however, has anyone given thought to the idea that perhaps Nintendo tried to sell them in stores but no stores were interested?  I mean, it's a rare occasion that I see Sony or MS branded Component Cables in stores, and with the so-called "underpowered" kiddah GameCube, I can see stores passing on this particular accessory.

Why the heck thrid parties never made a GCN-compatible cable, I'll never know.

Anywhoo, for a while, I know that you could call Nintendo for a Component Cable even though their website said they were Out of Stock.  This was a precaution so people wouldn't order the cable just to find out that they couldn't use it - supposedly they were getting a lot of returns on it.  Also, last thing I knew, the Nintendo World Store in NYC stocked them...

[WindyMan]

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Originally posted by: UncleBob
I mean, it's a rare occasion that I see Sony or MS branded Component Cables in stores, and with the so-called "underpowered" kiddah GameCube, I can see stores passing on this particular accessory.

Of course it'd be rare at this point, but during the prime years of the PS2 and Xbox you could walk in to any store and get the component cables on the spot.  I got my PS2 component cables from Wal-Mart about two years ago.

[Athrun Zala]

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Originally posted by: UncleBob
Also, last thing I knew, the Nintendo World Store in NYC stocked them...

really???

T_T

I'm going to slit my wrists with a cookie....

[Ceric]

Yep and when PSO was released you could walk into Walmart and buy a modem or Network adapter because thats where I got mine.

[UncleBob]

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Originally posted by: WindyMan

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Originally posted by: UncleBob
I mean, it's a rare occasion that I see Sony or MS branded Component Cables in stores, and with the so-called "underpowered" kiddah GameCube, I can see stores passing on this particular accessory.

Of course it'd be rare at this point, but during the prime years of the PS2 and Xbox you could walk in to any store and get the component cables on the spot.  I got my PS2 component cables from Wal-Mart about two years ago.

Sony and MS branded?  I've seen plenty of the third party ones, but the 1st party ones... I don't see them very often...

[Rhoq]

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Originally posted by: WindyMan
Ten days from now Nintendo is going to speak at the German Games Conference. “Wii Prove Our Promise," their presentation is entitled. They promised that the Wii would change how we play games forever, and they promised us that playing is believing. Well, they pretty much nailed down the second part of that at E3, so whatever they say in Germany will probably confirm how exactly Nintendo is going to change games for the long haul. The only thing I can think that would satisfy their thesis is Wii's online plans. Nintendo hasn't given us any solid details on WiiConnect24, Virtual Console, or their general plans for online games. There's a good chance they still have some surprises for online, too. Nintendo must have something in the way of an online strategy that will help to change the way we play games, and we may get to see it when they speak to the world.

Since I'm guessing they'll spill the online beans, I don't think they'll have the exact launch details at the show. I think it would be better to announce that in Japan at Tokyo Game Show next month, when they have a stronger grasp of how many units they'll have available, what they should include with the system and what the best price would be. The launch day, the price and a list of launch titles would be in that announcement. Nintendo could reveal that info in Germany as well, though. Really, the last pieces of the Wii puzzle are online details and launch details, and I'm confident that we'll get one piece of it in Leipzig and the other in Tokyo. We'll all find out together!

On-line strategy is a must. XBox Live is a huge part of the 360. The PS3 will have something similar. I don't think the Wii will be taken seriously by many gamers until Nintendo can at least show that they have thought out their interface. They have to be able to offer a comparable on-line experience.

Remembering back to Iwata's original comments...

(From IGN) June 7, 2006 - During a Japanese marketing event held on Wednesday, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said that Wii's price and release date would be revealed by September.

Nintendo has previously stated that Wii would "not exceed $250" and would be released in the "fourth quarter" of this year.

After this information hit all of the news sites, "by September" got twisted into "sometime in September". To me this always meant "prior to September 1st". Honestly the Tokyo Game Show will be a little late to announce this vital information, especially if the plan is to launch the Wii only one month after TGS. Announcing this next week (in Leipzig) will give Nintendo and retailers 2 months to prepare the launch and give them more than enough time to ensure that the launch goes smoothly.