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"It's War"

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Wed 18/02/04 at 11:35
Regular
Posts: 18,185
Nintendo are not the company that runs risks, this is why they have outlasted so many of their competitors. They are weary of losing money in Online gaming, they're nervous of the amount of money they can lose with mass advertisement and so their main new gameplay ideas such as the GBA-GC connection are on a small scale. But it is these lack of risks that created the Playstation, these lack of risks that mean year in year out Nintendo's sales are slowly depleating...

And so once again, much like this time last generation, we rely on Nintendo kicking butt with their next generation of systems. Why do "we" rely on this? Because dammit I WANT to play Driv3r, I WANT to play Hitman 3 and I WANT to play Grand Theft Auto... I don't care if they look crap (I know Hitman certainly doesn't) but if Nintendo want a cut of these system sellers they NEED to get a larger share of the market. And Nintendo aren't pretending otherwise.

The Gamecube 2, N5 or Dr. Doolittle's house of fun... whatever you want to call it WILL have specifications to match their rivals. Ignore Iwati going on about "no need for good graphics" they did that last time to some effect and Nintendo know the importance of multi-format titles. Hopefully Nintendo can continue their good ties with Capcom, EA, Namco and SEGA into the next generation because that will be damn useful. What games we are to recieve is up for speculation... Smash Brothers and Mario Kart seem a certainty as does a Mario game, whether this is the much touted Mario 128 or not is to be seen. Regardless we won't know anything until E3 2005 and so we will just have to wait and see.

Regarding The Gameboy next/extreme/advance 2/Dr. Doolittle house of fun... we can make a few more educated guesses about. The system will be released late in comparison to the PSP, it doesn't mean Nintendo are giving Sony a head start. The price of the PSP will mean the Gameboy Advance SP... coupled with a nice price cut will still enjoy the exact same success as before. Also Nintendo plan to steal alot of Sony's thunder with the DS... Sony going up against 2 Nintendo handhelds is very risky especially as both will undercut the price greatly. The IQue also gives a hint to what we can expect from the next Gameboy, the IQue has the power to play Nintendo 64 games and is the approximate size of an N64 controller, slap on a screen and you have a N64 handheld... easy. With the fast pacing improvements in technology we can expect a higher specifications system than THAT! What does this mean? Well it means yet ANOTHER re-release (Ocarina of Time was released 3 times last year!) of Ocarina of Time, we'll see the long lost Mario 64 on a handheld console and... as RARE are an official Gameboy developer we can expect Perfect Dark, Banjo and maybe even that PROPER re-make of Goldeneye we want to badly.

But these are systems for the back end of 2005/2006 or even 2007. Nintendo's big issue, their big hitter comes in the form of a third piller... the Nintendo DS. Criticised to start with but the public (62.2% in Japan anyway) are starting to come round, developers are getting very excited about it (93.3% of Japanese ones) and retailers are getting ready for it (64.4% Japanese ones at the moment). The Nintendo DS is a dual screen handheld system, conviently released around the same time as the PSP and plans to offer things not seen in the Gaming industry ever before. Dual Screen was done during the Game and Watch era to a slightly reductive affair but with different memory storage, new types of games, the possibilty of touch screen and wireless technology we can assume that Nintendo are pulling out all the stops hardware wise.

Despite how damn cool the entire idea sounds it is the developers that are truly excited. SEGA have recently declared their interest with Sonic Team's Yuji Naka saying:

"We've been waiting for this! We'll be sure to try out something new with this, and release something for the launch!"

Other developers have reported to say things such as "The roots of gaming are returning and it looks like they will put up a good fight", "It should allow the birth of a whole host of new ideas and play experiences that haven't existed before.", "Having two separately functioning screens suits the time perfectly - with users becoming increasingly multi-tasking." and Nintendo's own Camelot had this to say:

"In a game industry that is feeling more and more penned in, this should create a few openings."

Despite negative reports from the general public moaning about lack of concentration of next gen systems or new software for these systems, the gaming world is getting ready for it... in fantastic anticipation. Developers are all discussing the possibilities of this new handheld, such as Koei who stated:

"I think we can make an interesting game with one screen for the large-scale battle with the other screen focusing on a local battle, in historical strategy games, and so on."

Amusement Vision read the specifications of the system and turned their "?" into a "!" (their words not mine). To me Nintendo's last fight no longer seems like a doomed idea, but instead the birth of probably the biggest change in gaming since the onset of 3D gaming.

Nintendo have run their biggest risk in a very long time...

Are you excited yet?

Dringo.
Thu 19/02/04 at 15:29
Regular
"50 BLM,30 SMN,25 RD"
Posts: 2,299
Rickoss wrote:
> get rid of a few pointless extras, who cares.

Funny you should say that:

"With Sony having just finished work on the very first prototype of the PSP, new information is emerging today regarding the handheld's capabilities.

While not officially confirmed yet by Sony, it now appears as if PSP will feature connectivity with PlayStation 2, in a manner similar to that in which GBA links up to Gamecube.

Reportedly, gamers will be able to save their progress on a PSP game and then continue the same game on PlayStation 2. To this end, Sony will apparently sell special PS2/PSP software bundles that include two copies of the same game - one for each format - to allow games to play it both in their living room and on the move.

Less good, however, are current rumours that PSP now won't support wireless networking and MP3s. Sony UK weren't available for comment at the time of writing"

I don't care about either machine. I got a GBA when I worked abroad to pass the time, other than that I don't need a handheld. What I am concerned about is Nintendo stupidly staking their future on a daft idea.

Although if the PSP is really that good I might be tempted.
Thu 19/02/04 at 14:49
Regular
Posts: 10,437
Safedisc_V2 wrote:
> not look like you have stashed a couple of apples in there.

Some people have though. HAW HAW HAW!

Anyway, I don't think simply a brand name will help Sony if they don't push the price down a bit, and pretty much what Safedisc said - get rid of a few pointless extras, who cares.

For all the advertising in the world, the N-Gage is still struggling to hit double figures in the sales department, despite Nokia being a huge name and a number of new, original features on it.

I don't think anyone can fully predict what will happen.
Thu 19/02/04 at 12:04
Regular
"uncopyable"
Posts: 146
Well. In my well-paid opinion...

The Nintendo DS nothing more than a gimmick device, a kinda’ stop gap until the next gen GameBoy comes out - a way for Nintendo to get something new on the shelve around the time of the PSP and steal a little bit of Sony's thunder. As much as it pains me to agree with Ali, I also think that it'll generate interest upon release (particularly in Japan as they like odd little gadgets) but will soon become nothing more than a collectors item.
Personally I would rather seen Nintendo re-route cash and dev time away from the DS and toward the next gen GameBoy, as I think everyone would agree, this machine has the far more potential.

The Sony PSP on the other hand does have the potential to be a great system. Two simple questions will dictate the future, and success, of this device.

1. Price
2. battery lift/size - maybe that’s three then ;-)

If it's too expensive (read: £200+) it will out price itself from the very market it will be trying to tap into. A huge reason the GBA is so successful is the low price point - yes it has great games, looks cool, but the price means its within the reach of a huge section of the demographic that games consoles appeal to. Who wants to spend £200 on a portable system - it's just too much. Think about it, when do you really use the thing. I have a GBA and iPod and use both daily on the train for a couple of hours, but when I get home I don't use them as I have a PC/PS2 and a nice Hi Fi. Which means a portable device needs to fall into the price bracket that means you don't mind buying it in the knowledge that its only going to get sporadic use. And before anyone says, 'I play my GBA all the time at home', yes I did the same when I first got it, but lets be honest, once the novelty has warm off its primary use will be for the purpose it was designs, gaming on the move. Sony need to get this machine on the street at around the £125 quid mark - if they can do that, then they will have taken a huge step toward really challenging Ninty.

The battery life point speaks for itself - the Game Gear and Lynx died because of short battery life, and while technology has moved on, this basic fact remains: no one wants to be recharging a portable games system after 2 hours. If the battery is, as mentioned in this thread, going to be around 10 hours, then that this is a moot point. 10 hours is enough to travel anywhere in the UK (unless you are walking) and it'll also see you thru a flight to the US. Bottom line is that people don't mind charging a machine at the end of the day after use - it can be done over night so your are ready to go for the next day, want stinks is running out of power half way through a game, and with half your journey still to go.

Size is another easy point to understand. The GBA (the SP in particular) works so well because it's small, you can genuinely put it in your pocket and not look like you have stashed a couple of apples in there. This is a portable device, and as such it needs to be small. I also hope that the PSP has some kinda’ of flip that at the very least covers the screen, as scratching on the original GBA was a huge problem.

If Sony get these two (or three) thing right then the rest will take care of itself as we know there'll be some great games for this machine, regardless of whether it's closer to terms of power to the PS1 or PS2. For the record I reckon it'll be closer to the former simply due to power requirements of the PS2 architecture. Final Fantasy 7, 8 and 9, Metal Gear, the list goes on. There is no need to worry about getting good games for this machine. If the price (and size) is right, Sony will have a real hit on their hands - well, another hit on their hands.

It'll be interesting to see what Nintendo have planned for the next gen GameBoy, as this is the first time a real (or should I say credible) competitor has entered the handheld market.

oh, and I apologise for the length of this post. If indeed you are still awake to read this. ;-)
Thu 19/02/04 at 11:25
Regular
"Gundammmmm!"
Posts: 2,339
phuzzy wrote:
> Darwock wrote:
> And the cost hasn't been decided yet, where are you all getting
> 200-300 quid from?
>
> Chris Deering mentioned this is a possible and likely price band, at
> some event or other.

Ages and ages ago, last announcement was that it would be sub £200 and possibly cheaper.
Thu 19/02/04 at 11:14
Regular
"Devotion 2The Ocean"
Posts: 6,658
Sony are going with a higher price tag so that they can actually make a profit on the consoles sold, so that they don't have to charge developers as much for them to make games for it.

Time will tell how much it comes out as, and how long it will be till it significantly drops in price.

:)
Thu 19/02/04 at 10:50
Regular
"previously phuzzy."
Posts: 3,487
Darwock wrote:
> And the cost hasn't been decided yet, where are you all getting
> 200-300 quid from?

Chris Deering mentioned this is a possible and likely price band, at some event or other.
Thu 19/02/04 at 10:23
Regular
"50 BLM,30 SMN,25 RD"
Posts: 2,299
The prototype PSP has a battery life of 10 hours, with the final build expected to have more than that. It's apparently helped because they decided to use an OLED display instead of LCD. I've seen these displays on a Kodak camera and they are super bright and lovely.

By the way, I've got to laugh at the guy who said "why would anyone buy a handheld console just to play games they already own on the move" and then proceeded to say how wonderful the Gameboy is.

And the cost hasn't been decided yet, where are you all getting 200-300 quid from?
Thu 19/02/04 at 10:18
Regular
"Devotion 2The Ocean"
Posts: 6,658
Dringo wrote:
> It's a pretty smart idea really... Lets take Koei's example, imagine
> you are fighting a global war... you concentrate on smaller scale
> battles on the bottom screen... where you are fighting to win whilst
> the larger screen has a full world view where you can see if your
> generals are succeeding or failing as well as you and perhaps
> manouver your units accordingly. Advance Wars here then.

To be honest that would just over complicate matters. RTS games are hard enough to play on a normal console, let alone having complex RTS on a screen a 10th the size, with two screen to try and keep track of.

> The PSP has the same appeal to me as the N-Gage...

The appeal isn't the same as the N-Gage at all. The N-Gage was to allow mobile users to play console type gaming on their phone. It failed because it had a million buttons, looks like a piece of p00, and had a pain in the neck way of changing the games!

The PSP is being sold ideally as a hand-held games machine, but if it can also play some movie files and more importantly MP3s, then people WILL see this as an added incentive to get this machine over a Nintendo machine which only plays some select games.

:)
Thu 19/02/04 at 09:30
Regular
Posts: 18,185
Mr Snuggly wrote:
> The Nintendo DS will have two or three classic games, will sell
> moderate amounts and will then die out. The PSP on the other hand,
> will sell bucketloads on release, and will continue to sell
> bucketloads upon each PS2 re-release ie. GTA, Pro Evo etc. You can't
> deny it, Sony is the name the casual gamer goes for.

For starters as close to the PS2 specs as they maybe they won't actually play PS2 games. Secondly the Gameboy is just as much a name as Playstation. And thirdly the reason why GTA, Pro Evo etc.... isn't on the Gamecube is because they don't have the market for the games... these are 2 games that will ALSO be on the Gameboy.

> When the PSP was announced, I could see infinite possibilities, as
> it's basically a handheld PlayStation 1.5. Upon the announcement of
> the Nintendo DS, all I could think of was 'why would I ever need to
> look at two screens at once?' It'll have appeal, but it'll be
> limited.

It's a pretty smart idea really... Lets take Koei's example, imagine you are fighting a global war... you concentrate on smaller scale battles on the bottom screen... where you are fighting to win whilst the larger screen has a full world view where you can see if your generals are succeeding or failing as well as you and perhaps manouver your units accordingly. Advance Wars here then.

Ikargu would work brilliantly on the 2 screen idea. But it's not just that, what about the concept of touch screen?

It could really take off.

The PSP has the same appeal to me as the N-Gage... an expensive system that does loads more than it has to. The GBA SP is also VERY popular with the adults, Nintendo repeatidly state this fact and I know on my localised scale where my girlfriend and their mates all think the SP is one of the damn right sexiest things to walk the earth.

So many people own a GBA SP... people are buying them in their droves as we speak... how many people are willing to fork out £200 + for another handheld come the end of the year?
Thu 19/02/04 at 00:55
Regular
"Devotion 2The Ocean"
Posts: 6,658
Peter Venkman wrote:
> Can't they use some sort of nuclear power source like plutonium.

Wasn't there talk of somewhere like Iraq buying loads of PS2s when they came out to use in weapon systems because they were so powerful! lol. Now just imagine using plutonium on a hand-held! lol

> But think of the games that have been remade or rereleased. We have
> some of the best games to have ever come out being released on the
> GBA. The PS1/2 has had few great games that have stayed on their
> system, if any.

Eventually their gonna run out of old games to re-release. Unless they then re-re-release the games on the next GBA. Which I wouldn't put past Nintendo actually!

> Hey, don't argue with me. It's my birthday

Happy birthday mate! :)

> and I'm going commando right now.

Didn't need to know that!

> You better watch it!

Not if your commando!!!

:S

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