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new IGN Revolution Mailbag

just c&p here

N-Query


Why are some developers predicting gloom and doom for Revolution?


Revolution a GameCube Peripheral?

After seeing the revolution's controller I came to the conclusion that this interface was probably being planned for release on GameCube. There were comments made that the new Mario title would control in a new way that would forever change platformers. They mentioned that other companies would try and copy them. This title never came to fruition and is probably being set up for Rev. Also Chibi Robo had a point and click interface originally that would be complimented by a different sort of controller better than the current gen ones. I just wanted to see if you guys had thought of this as well. It probably did not make much sense as far as marketing goes to unleash the technology late in the GameCube's life so they focused their energy on the next gen to make sure the tech was solid. The one and only,
Kip Kaloo

Matt responds: Actually, yes, I do believe that the concept for Revolution began its life as a GameCube peripheral. If you recall, a few years ago Nintendo said that it hoped that GCN could enjoy a longer life cycle with the addition of top-secret peripherals that would forever enhance the gameplay experience. I would be willing to bet that the initial plan was to release the innovative controller as a peripheral, but that the Big N reconsidered after taking a look at the dwindling GameCube user base. It could very well be true that Revolution was created solely as a means to market this new controller. It's all speculative, of course, but it makes enough sense to me. After all, Revolution addresses one of the GameCube's biggest drawbacks, which is that it was/is perceived as a toy. Nintendo's next generation console, by comparison, is meaner and sleeker, severing up an all-around more high-tech design that fits more snugly in the living room. If the company was less concerned with processing power than image makeover, is it appears to be, Revolution could serve as the perfect shell for the new device. Obviously, that's not to suggest that this next platform is merely going to be a new case with the same old hardware; we keep hearing that it'll be roughly twice as powerful as GCN - and, of course, a hell of a lot smaller.



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Adult Software

Nintendo is so adamant about keeping Mario and its other established IPs for all ages, do you think that Revolution will be the first to get adult IPs from Nintendo? After all, "something for everyone" doesn't have to mean that everyone is sharing one "something."

Matt responds: That's a tough one to answer. It seems that every time we bring that very question up to someone like Mr. Miyamoto, they respond with the same answer, which is that Nintendo is already making those types of games. They usually reference Zelda. I think there is a gap, however, in what US gamers would define as an adult title and what Nintendo would. Westerners tend to view anything with a realistic storyline, particularly if it includes violent themes, profanity or nudity, as "mature." Nintendo, on the other hand, would very likely say that it's not the subject matter, but the design of games, that qualifies them for one category or another. I think a good example of this philosophy would be the Metroid titles, whose subject matters are moody, but nevertheless appropriate for most gamers. That said, few non-hardcore players - and I think few kids - would be able to beat Prime or its sequel without investing a lot of time and brainpower into them. Does that make it an adult game? Sure. I'm way off topic, I know, but I find these different viewpoints pretty fascinating.
Nintendo rarely, if ever, uses its internal teams to develop what the American audience would label mature or adult-oriented software. It just doesn't happen. These types of titles almost always come from second or third parties and I don't believe that is something that's going to change. If Miyamoto were to respond to one of our queries differently once, I might have a different view, but his answer is always the same, and his example is usually Zelda.

I do find it pretty interesting, however, that for the first time in many, many years, if ever, Nintendo executives are trying to position their new hardware to US and European developers. Look back to N64 and you will remember that the controller was designed pretty specifically to make Super Mario 64 a great product. But when speaking about the Revolution controller, the first thing out of either Iwata's or Miyamoto's mouth is that it will change the way first-person shooters are played on home consoles - and shooters are specifically an American / European export. That clearly demonstrates that even if Nintendo itself isn't planning to make mature games on Revolution, it is at least endeavoring to find developers who will.




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Nintendo Minutes

What happened to the Nintendo Minute, It hasn't been updated for over a month! Lack Of Questions? Lack Of Answers?

Matt responds: Well, I can assure you that there's no short supply of questions. Answers, on the other hand, are a little harder to come by. Nintendo's executive team has been in and out of the office post holiday season and that has made getting a speedy reply a little more difficult. The Nintendo Minute is still functioning and we have questions off. We're told that we'll be getting an answer to one of them tomorrow, but until we actually have it in our hands - figuratively, of course - I'm not going to hold my breath. Stay tuned, I guess. As soon as we get something, it'll go up.



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Power

Hey Matt good job on the site! I'm aware that Nintendo are not going to include High Definition with the Revolution, but i was wondering (with your tech wiz knowledge) if it would be possible for Nintendo to create some sort of HD add on for the Rev that would work for HD compatible games were they created? That way Nintendo could give us consumers the 'option' as to whether or not we want to pay the extra cash for HD or not. Shouldn't the developers have that option also? Whatever happened to the High speed port on the GameCube? Could the Revolution incorporate something similar to make it more powerful in the future? Let me know your thoughts.


Matt responds: Doubtful. That Revolution doesn't support high-definition games is not really an issue related to physical hardware as it is processing power. Fact is, the console will have a component out option for 480p games so there are from a physical hardware standpoint no further barriers from attaining true high-def support. But the CPU and GPU theoretically can't do it. Some kind of unconventional processing boost via USB 2.0 would not be feasible as, first, it probably wouldn't work, and second, it would split the market and developers probably wouldn't bother with it, anyway.



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Component

Hey Matt, glad to see that you're alive and sort-of updating the mailbag again. Anyway, after seeing the awesome shots of Twilight Princess, I was contemplating an upgrade to the rare & expensive component cable from my measly s-video cable. However, since TP is very likely the last GCN title I will play, I probably wont upgrade unless I can use the component cables on the Rev. I even made the rare move of consulting the FAQ before writing in, and I didn't find anything about backward-compatibility of the cables. Given Nintendo's past (i.e. using the same cable for the SNES-N64-GCN) would you think that the likelihood of the Big N using the same digital output the GCN has (or had I should say) on the Rev is a possibility?

Also, are you as hopelessly addicted to unlocking Xbox 360 Achievements as I am?
Thanks for you time,

-JSquared

Matt responds: Yeah, you know that's really an interesting question and one that I have pondered on more than one occasion. It can't really be definitively answered at this point in time because Nintendo has neither shown the final console shell nor specified what types of outputs it will have. We know that the component output is in the bag because the machine will be able to play 480p games, but other than that, there's not much to go on.

When I played around with the console shell at last year's E3, I was surprised to see only a single video/audio output next to the power plug. If that prototype unit is indicative of the final design then it suggests that a new set of cables will be needed. Even if your GameCube component cables fit in the slot, you would be entirely sacrificing audio. That being true, I wouldn't be too quick to buy any GCN component cables just yet. E3 2006 isn't far off now and we'll know for sure then.




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Revolution's Place

Hello Matt,

What are your thoughts in regards to 3D Realms CEO Scott Miller's comments on Revolution being Nintendo's last console?
Nintendo has stated that it is not out to compete with PS3 or X360 but rather developing a "quiet and affordable console". Do you think that it will inevitably end up as competition for Nintendo even when they've decided to take another road?


Best,

Ralph
New York

Matt responds: I can see where Scott Miller is coming from. I do, however, find it more than a little ironic that a person who has been working for a decade on a game for the dwindling PC market can so easily pass judgment on one of the most profitable videogame companies in the world. That said, I am looking forward to Duke Nukem Forever - not the PC version, mind you, but the inevitable console port, assuming the game does actually materialize.

If you downloaded yesterday's podcast, you undoubtedly heard us touch upon this subject, but I think it bears repeating for those who didn't. I strongly believe that any third party that already discounts Revolution has not bothered to do much research. It would be easy to predict that just because Nintendo's console does not jump headfirst into the so-called "HD era" that the company doesn't stand a competitive chance, but I think that shows ignorance to what the console does do, and its promise.

I don't mean to supply excuses for what could be a technically underpowered console, either. I'm an HD nut and I'm certainly going to miss higher-detail graphic on Revolution. At the same time, one thing I've learned with my Xbox 360 is that the graphics do eventually wear thin; that you come to expect them; and that when all is said and done, everything comes back to gameplay. Lately, when I pop on Xbox Live, I see that most of my friends are playing Zuma, a downloadable arcade game with primitive graphics.

I'm under the impression that Nintendo is on purpose or by accident onto something with Revolution - assuming, that is, that the controller works as well as we've all been told that it does. There is so much potential with the device to make games play a hell of a lot better and on top of that to invent brand new gameplay types. Games that would not be fun on a competing console could be downright addictive on Revolution simply because of the new controller. And with an attractive price point and a slew of pick-up-and-play titles, what's to stop the machine from becoming a huge success? Certainly a lot of us, myself included, predicted that the PSP would stomp the DS, and yet Nintendo's handheld remains in the lead despite inferior technology.

So no, I absolutely do not agree with developers who have already shrugged off Revolution. I will go one step farther. I do believe that Revolution could become market leader in the next round if everything were to fall exactly in place. In my mind, it has that much potential.
 
I do, however, find it more than a little ironic that a person who has been working for a decade on a game for the dwindling PC market can so easily pass judgment on one of the most profitable videogame companies in the world.

That oughta shut Scott Miller up. Or how about quit talking and put out a damn game, jackass!
 
After all, Revolution addresses one of the GameCube's biggest drawbacks, which is that it was/is perceived as a toy. Nintendo's next generation console, by comparison, is meaner and sleeker, severing up an all-around more high-tech design that fits more snugly in the living room.

Yeah... right. Because that was what made people view the Gamecube as a toy. It obviously had nothing to do with the legacy of the brand name, and many years of very successful precision marketing to kids and families with kids. "Meaner and sleeker" :lol

Then again...

pikachu_sys.jpg
 

mj1108

Member
AltogetherAndrews said:
Yeah... right. Because that was what made people view the Gamecube as a toy. It obviously had nothing to do with the legacy of the brand name, and many years of very successful precision marketing to kids and families with kids. "Meaner and sleeker" :lol

Then again...

pikachu_sys.jpg

Purple + a handle... how could it not be seen as that to some?
 
mj1108 said:
Purple + a handle... how could it not be seen as that to some?

It doesn't matter, that was never as big of a problem as Matt seems to suggest. The Gamecube's "failure" had less to do with the look of the console, and far more to do with the actual content offered, as well as the above mentioned Nintendo brand legacy.
 

Shaheed79

dabbled in the jelly
I disagree with this theory. I think Gamecube was always designed as a stop-gap to buy them some time to perfect the technology now going into te revolution. Everything from half-assed Mario's to the half-assed 3rd party relationships screams a certain lack of dedication because the plan was always to go a different route.
 

Walshey

Member
I am truly concerned by the lack of handles on next gen consoles.
I think there will be alot of sad children who will learn the pain of console dropage :(
 

DDayton

(more a nerd than a geek)
IGN is doing podcasts now?

Are the real ones, or "go through hoops to download something"?
 

Danthrax

Batteries the CRISIS!
Walshey said:
I am truly concerned by the lack of handles on next gen consoles.
I think there will be alot of sad children who will learn the pain of console dropage :(

I concur. I love the GameCube handle and I use it every chance I get -- I enjoy such handle-using actions as, "moving GameCube into bookbag," "moving GameCube onto carpet," "moving GameCube on top of Xbox" and my personal favorite, "moving GameCube aside to make room for generation 1 Sega Genesis/Sega CD only to find out it no longer works."

...maybe that one isn't my favorite. =(
 
Why Cassamina sounds so bitter, after all the Nintendo bashing he did in the past, he doesn't get any inside info anymore from Nintendo except the usual sales crap. Didn't this guy knew all the nonsense he was spewing was hurting Nintendo and the GC's image?
 

Hero

Member
Matt actually sounds less angsty than he usually does with his Nintendo related articles where he tells Nintendo how to run their company.
 

Jasper

Member
Does anyone else think maybe Nintendo have told IGN Revolution to fuck off?


IGN Revolution has been an utter joke for quite a while now.

:lol

I honestly believe these so called ‘journalists’ prefer to wander the Gaming-Age forums for Revolution info, instead of actually getting of their butts and finding out new details for themselves.

Also since IGN’s Revolution hardware specs exposé, there have been absolutely no interviews with Perrin Kaplan or Reggie of Nintendo America, which used to have practically every fortnight.

If the IGN PS3 channel can come up with info, why can’t IGN Revolution? Both consoles are just as a mystery, as each other.
 

Danthrax

Batteries the CRISIS!
Jasper said:
I honestly believe these so called ‘journalists’ prefer to wander the Gaming-Age forums for Revolution info, instead of actually getting of their butts and finding out new details for themselves.

It's harder than you'd think to "find" new details about anything from Nintendo. NoA doesn't know shit, and even when they do, they won't say anything more than their press releases already say. Investigative reporting in the video game industry is worse than pulling teeth.
 
Danthrax said:
It's harder than you'd think to "find" new details about anything from Nintendo. NoA doesn't know shit, and even when they do, they won't say anything more than their press releases already say. Investigative reporting in the video game industry is worse than pulling teeth.


Oh NOA knows their stuff, i mean we aren't talikng about NOE here :lol

Why should they bother telling a guy who thinks he knows how Nintendo should be run? A guy who cries on the internet because Nintendo isn't going the same route as Sony and MS :lol :lol
 

Dupy

"it is in giving that we receive"
If the IGN PS3 channel can come up with info, why can’t IGN Revolution? Both consoles are just as a mystery, as each other.

Where is this PS3 info you speak of? They had that Project IM story on the front page for like a month. Both sites are a joke right now. Well sorry, all of IGN is a joke, but you know what I mean...
 

Chittagong

Gold Member
I'm pretty sure that the GameCube version for the Revolution controller not only existed, but was done for the game called "Marionette" that vanished from earth after once appearing in NOA's lineup.

It'd make total sense that youd hold the revmote like a marionette handle in the air, and then a Mario on the screen would act like the marionette. You could jump over obstacles etc. etc.

Most likely it became insanely fun and they decied to save it for Revoution and release a pair of bongos instead.
 

Danthrax

Batteries the CRISIS!
norinrad21 said:
Oh NOA knows their stuff, i mean we aren't talikng about NOE here :lol

Why should they bother telling a guy who thinks he knows how Nintendo should be run? A guy who cries on the internet because Nintendo isn't going the same route as Sony and MS :lol :lol

Well, I was speaking more from experience. Nintendo has given me the PR runaround more than once when I call them while working on a story. It's annoying, to say the least.
 
Jasper said:
Also since IGN’s Revolution hardware specs exposé, there have been absolutely no interviews with Perrin Kaplan or Reggie of Nintendo America, which used to have practically every fortnight.

Ouch. It hurts because its probably true...

Poor matt. At least Craig has been busy, even if it means reviewing bad games.
 
I can see where Scott Miller is coming from. I do, however, find it more than a little ironic that a person who has been working for a decade on a game for the dwindling PC market can so easily pass judgment on one of the most profitable videogame companies in the world.

Thank god someone said it.
 

DrGAKMAN

Banned
AltogetherAndrews said:
Yeah... right. Because that was what made people view the Gamecube as a toy. It obviously had nothing to do with the legacy of the brand name, and many years of very successful precision marketing to kids and families with kids. "Meaner and sleeker" :lol

Then again...

pikachu_sys.jpg

This is what happened. Nintendo promiced pretty much a PS2-killer, then showed a purple lunchbox...and the stigma has lasted. MS's unveiling of the X-BOX was *perfect* timing 'cos just as Nintendo had dashed alot of people's hopes/dreams with the GCN unveiling, here comes an even more powerful PS2-killer backed by a more "secure" (image wise) company with tons of money. Before either even launched there was naysayers on both sides, but it was pretty much: "MS is an unproven company in games" and "Nintendo has this cute lil' purple thing for kids" which were both negative, but Nintendo's was more shoe-horned, limiting & less optimistic.

MS's X-BOX & Nintendo's GCN basically split the pre-existing N64 userbase up and neither became a PS2-killer 'cos they were too busy fighting with one another while Sony laughed at both. However, with Nintendo's bad image and MS's better image you would think that MS were right behind Sony in userbase when that's not the case at all. Image means alot to people, especially when it comes to things like entertainment.

Yes, there was alot of image problems at Nintendo (N64, PokeMon, kiddy, bla bla bla) before GCN was even unveiled, but at least people were hopeful (like they are now with Revolution) that Nintendo would "turn things around". Nintendo had turned some things around, but they left themselves wide open for attack with the GCN case design (by the press, competitors & consumers) and ignoring the MS threat (which came at the right time to steal away the N64 userbase, which again, was split pretty much down the middle). With Revolution they aren't ignoring who their competition is and they're working on boosting up their image in a way more possitive light than GCN had.
 
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