Author Topic: A Hypothetical about Wii Digital Distribution (Read 9346 times)

ShyGuy · « **on:** July 08, 2009, 08:32:27 PM »

Now that the Wii has SD card support, any game on the system could technically be made available as a download, since you could fit several DVD Wii games onto a 32gb SD card.

So that got me wondering, what if Nintendo offered Super Mario Galaxy 2 for $40 via download instead of $50 for the retail disc, would you do it?

If for $40 isn't low enough, what if it was only $30 (savings of $20) but you had to have the first Mario Galaxy disc inserted for assets?

If Mario Galaxy wouldn't entice you to do this, how about if High Voltage did the same scenario with the Grinder? Only $30 for the full Grinder game via digital download, but you need to have the Conduit disc to play it.

Mop it up · « **Reply #1 on:** July 08, 2009, 08:40:10 PM »

Quote from: ShyGuy on July 08, 2009, 08:32:27 PM

Now that the Wii has SD card support, any game on the system could technically be made available as a download, since you could fit several DVD Wii games onto a 32gb SD card.

I was under the impression that the Wii still can't play games directly from an SD card, it just loads them temporarily into the Wii internal memory. So games are still limited by the 512MB limit... and I'd guess half of that is reserved for firmware updates and messges. So really it's a 256MB limit, and that means no other game saves either.

Am I wrong about this?

ShyGuy · « **Reply #2 on:** July 08, 2009, 08:43:06 PM »

I don't see why you couldn't stream the data off the SD card instead of off the DVD. Hax0r people are all over talking about playing the Conduit from a USB hard drive.

Mop it up · « **Reply #3 on:** July 08, 2009, 08:51:56 PM »

It looks like I'm right:

Quote

What the SD Card Menu actually does is place a "phantom" copy of a game that's on the SD Card in your Wii's system memory. For example, World of Goo - a 320-block game - still requires 320 open blocks on your Wii. However, if you launch another game, like Onslaught (a 308-block game), the 320-block reserved space then changes to a 308-block reserved space. You can always delete this phantom image from the Wii's Data Management menu to free up the space entirely.

From: http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=18036

It may be possible to have the Wii play games directly from an SD card but right now it doesn't do it.

And to answer your question: no, I wouldn't buy any digital version of a game available at retail no matter what the difference in price is.

kraken613 · « **Reply #4 on:** July 08, 2009, 09:04:36 PM »

You know how big Wii games average? About 3-4gb. Some are smaller (Wii Sports is around 800mb) then others are larger (Smash Bros is around 7gb). We would need HDD's because SD cards are still crazy expensive for a large enough size. Plus we are limited to 32gb SD cards.

stevey · « **Reply #5 on:** July 08, 2009, 09:09:51 PM »

SD cards are too small and expensive too most people (that don't find magic deals; 4gig cards at best buy are still something like $20-40). On the other hand, Nintendo does have special Wiis that run games off HDDs that they loan to Cancer patients at Hospitals, so it's not a big leap for Nintendo to do it for all of us by DLC with USB HDD...

(not to mention that it just takes 6 hours to make one by homebrew

)

Quote from: Mop_it_up on July 08, 2009, 08:51:56 PM

It looks like I'm right:

Quote
What the SD Card Menu actually does is place a "phantom" copy of a game that's on the SD Card in your Wii's system memory. For example, World of Goo - a 320-block game - still requires 320 open blocks on your Wii. However, if you launch another game, like Onslaught (a 308-block game), the 320-block reserved space then changes to a 308-block reserved space. You can always delete this phantom image from the Wii's Data Management menu to free up the space entirely.
From: http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=18036

It may be possible to have the Wii play games directly from an SD card but right now it doesn't do it.

And to answer your question: no, I wouldn't buy any digital version of a game available at retail no matter what the difference in price is.

Nintendo's software engineers are brain dead and wrote the wii's OS (and VC games) in such a way that it is near impossible to give it a real upgrade to allow it without updating every single Wii DLC along with it and even then there are still problems...

With Wii disk games, they don't assume that they are on the internal memory so all Nintendo needs to do is either
Quickly updated the games to rewrite calls to the disk drive with calls to the hard drive or
Be extra lazy and in real time patch the game like Homebrew does...

Deguello · « **Reply #6 on:** July 08, 2009, 09:28:42 PM »

Quote

SD cards are too small and expensive too most people (that don't find magic deals; 4gig cards at best buy are still something like $20-40).

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10660681

Super Secret Clandestine Wal-mart deal.

EDIT: Keeeripes, look at this deal.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012W7HQK

kraken613 · « **Reply #7 on:** July 08, 2009, 09:56:16 PM »

That's still only 2 games on the 8gb and 4 on the 16gb.... Then the max 32gb would be about 8 games. Where a cheap external HDD could 40+.

Deguello · « **Reply #8 on:** July 08, 2009, 10:10:25 PM »

I was just concerned about the price. I am against Digital Distribution because it only benefits publishers who wanna slice off a little on shipping and deprive customers the rights to their products.

It'll also block out the childrens, because instead of them having a DS and Pokemon or Mario or CONTRA IV, they'll have to get their parents to set up their subscription information and sign up for a service and submit credit card information and social security numbers just to access a game, which they will reasonably balk at. That will result in children's tears, lost sales, and lowered revenue. Just for the "convenience" of having something electronically transmitted to a hard drive. No thanks.

ShyGuy · « **Reply #9 on:** July 08, 2009, 10:11:22 PM »

I don't think most Wii games are close to pushing the 4.7gb DVD limit...

kraken613 · « **Reply #10 on:** July 08, 2009, 10:36:53 PM »

A good majority of the games are somewhere in the 3-4gb range. I have all my games installed to a HDD so I know the sizes of them.

ShyGuy · « **Reply #11 on:** July 08, 2009, 10:50:59 PM »

SOOO kraken, you aren't using your Wii DVDs anyhow. Would you buy a digital version of a Wii retail game?

kraken613 · « **Reply #12 on:** July 08, 2009, 10:59:41 PM »

Yeah, then I wouldn't have to go find a store to get a game and then we would have it on the release date. Not have to wait for a store to get it because it was a "ship date". I have gone 100% digital with PC games.

I wish every console would go digital...

Mop it up · « **Reply #13 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:04:56 PM »

Quote from: kraken613 on July 08, 2009, 10:59:41 PM

I wish every console would go digital...

That will be the day I quit gaming.

kraken613 · « **Reply #14 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:12:32 PM »

Why? Well you will be quitting gaming in the next 10-15 years I guess....

Mop it up · « **Reply #15 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:22:07 PM »

That takes the fun out of shopping.

I doubt it's going to replace retail releases, I think instead there will be the option of both.

kraken613 · « **Reply #16 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:27:26 PM »

Its not fun trying to find a game they say will come out one day but then ends up the "shipping date" and the store doesn't get it so you have to wait longer....

Mop it up · « **Reply #17 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:31:02 PM »

Then you impatient people can just go download it. Don't take away from us the thrill of shopping and the enjoyment of owning a physical copy just because you can't wait a few more days.

King of Twitch · « **Reply #18 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:36:15 PM »

mop is a girl, shopping is automatically good.

Nintendo doesn't understand the internet, how are they supposed to use it to "sell" products? 10-15 years is when they'll get around to dropping friend codes.

kraken613 · « **Reply #19 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:38:30 PM »

PC games are just about all digital, in store purchases have drastically dropped. Once consoles go digital not many people will buy games in store. So stores will slowly stop carrying as many games. Look at any stores PC section compared to just even 5 years ago. It is drastically smaller.

I bet when we see the PSP2 it will not have a slot for a disk.

EDIT: Wow that lest sentence made no sense! lol

ShyGuy · « **Reply #20 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:41:23 PM »

digital isn't the only thing that shrank the PC section. World of Warcraft and Piracy played big parts as well.

Mop it up · « **Reply #21 on:** July 08, 2009, 11:44:06 PM »

There is already a PSPGo which is all-digital that's destined to fail.

PC games weren't selling even before digital distribution so that's not an accurate comparison.

We recently had a discussion about this, there are some good points for both sides here:

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/forums/index.php?topic=28003.0

Dirk Temporo · « **Reply #22 on:** July 09, 2009, 12:49:24 AM »

Quote from: Mop_it_up on July 08, 2009, 11:31:02 PM

thrill of shopping

Ugh.

UncleBob · « **Reply #23 on:** July 09, 2009, 12:51:40 AM »

If consoles go digital only, I think you're going to see a change in the way the hardware is sold. Right now, retailers make jack squat on hardware sales. They make their money on software attachments. If you take that away, retailers are going to either want a larger percentage of the initial hardware sales (makes me wonder about the $250 price tag on the PSPGo) or will just opt-out of selling the hardware (leaving companies to direct sales and such).

ShyGuy · « **Reply #24 on:** July 09, 2009, 02:07:13 AM »

Kraken makes an interesting point, when the Conduit was released several people on this board where scouring the local retailers to try and find a copy ASAP to play online. Are we all going to go throught the same thing when The Grinder is released?

News:

Author Topic: A Hypothetical about Wii Digital Distribution (Read 9346 times)