Will Wright Opines That Wii Is the Only Next-Gen Console 381
PhoenixOne writes "In an article that will probably tick off a lot of PS3 owners, Will Wright calls the PS3 and 360 'incremental improvement(s)'. 'The Wii feels like a major jump - not that the graphics are more powerful, but that it hits a completely different demographic. In some sense I see the Wii as the most significant thing that's happened, at least on the console side, in quite a while ... I still, for the most part, prefer playing games on the computer - to me the mouse is the best input device ever. Every generation it's like 'the PC's dead! The PC's dead!'. But it carries on growing when consoles are flat for five years. At the moment I can get better graphics on my PC than I can on the PS3.'"
I agree... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:I agree... (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:I agree... (Score:5, Funny)
Dude, you and Wario need to get a room.
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
As for the other points:
. I still, for the most part, prefer playing games on the computer - to me the mouse is the best input device ever. Every generation it's like 'the PC's dead! The PC's dead!'. But it carries on growing when consoles are flat for five years. At the moment I can get better graphics on my PC than I can on the PS3.'"
Yes, I prefer playing games on the computer, too. And yes, a good computer today has better graphics than any of the consoles. It's been that since the day each of the consoles were released. However, I'm getting tired of having to spend $2,500 every year to build a top of the line gaming machi
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Thank you!!
I finally acquiesced and played the new Metroid game, which my Wii-apologist friend assured me was the pinnacle of interface design for the system. I couldn't play it for more than about 4 minutes without my hands starting to ache, but okay, fine, I'm not used to the Wii.
Then I watched him try to throw the grapple line to pull doors open. He got it to work about one out of four tries. >_
ALL THAT SAID... the bowling
Re:I agree... (Score:4, Insightful)
I enjoy computer games (and console games), but I think "to me the mouse is the best input device ever" seems a bit stupid. I'm surprised such a statement came from someone as esteemed as Will Wright. The best input device clearly depends on the application. Is the mouse the best input device for a word processor? How about Tetris? Anybody ever play Monkeyball, and then try to play Neverball with a mouse? I bet you'll find yourself wishing for an analog control stick...Of course the mouse is better for, say, an FPS or an RTS war-game, but it's not the be-all and end-all of input devices...
Re: (Score:2)
Re:I agree... (Score:5, Insightful)
This is especially important because computer equipment has geometric price increases for diminishing returns. If you buy low-mid range computer every two or three years, you'll still be able to play all the same games, but you'll pay the same price as the PS3.
In fact, I posit that no matter how much your budget is, you'll get more "power" by buying new low-mid machines as often as your budget allows rather than buying monster machines that drain the budget infrequently. This goes for graphics card upgrades as well if you choose to go that route. The price for the currently high-end drops very rapidly in that field. If you're paying more than $100-$200 cards on a video card, you're throwing money away.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Bottom line, who buys $250
"best quality mode obsession will cost ya" (Score:2)
I do have a PS3 *and* several computers, but here's the thing. My last PC ran everything I wanted to play (on a 24" LCD monitor), simply using an AGP Radeon 9800 Pro video card, up until about a year ago. Then I upgraded from an Athlon motherboard to an Intel Core Duo with PCI Express video, and went with a mid-range ATI card (X1600 I think?), and once again, it plays all t
If you spend $2500/year (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't know why it is so often presented as "Ultra high end or nothing." You know what? Turns out you can have plenty of fun gaming on a PC without everything being as high as it can be. You don't have to have a 30" monitor and play at max rez to be happy, you can play at 1920x1200 or 1280x800 and be perfectly happy (and in line with the resolution consoles use). Not every graphics setting in every game has to be turned all the way up, and so on.
I am a PC gamer and have a whole lot of friends who are and none of us break $1000/year. I spend by far the most, probably averaging about $500-600 since I get a new pretty high end graphics card each year and usually upgrade something else. Most of them spend in the range of $150/year if amortized on a yearly basis (generally it's a bi yearly type of thing). Still more than a console, though you are arguably getting close, but not breaking the bank.
So if you want to always have the best of the best, fine, but don't pretend that's what PC gaming requires and don't pretend it's comparable to consoles. You already have a system far in excess of any console.
There is, of course, the additional factor that a PC doesn't just have to be used for games. My PC is also a word processor, an Internet terminal, a DAW, a video editor, and so on. If you own a PC purely for gaming, ok then, but I'm going to guess most people get secondary use out of ti and that does factor in to the price.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
The reason why "PC game detractors" focus so much on high-end graphics hardware is that 1) it is what distinguishes the PC gamer's primary gaming device from the general-use computer th
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
2.66 Ghz P4
1.5 Gig ram
Radeon X1950 512ram
You are either sorely mistaken or lying. No one outside of the idiots who buy from Alienware are spending nearly what you claim.
Re: (Score:2)
Gameplay? Like as in 10s shake the controller vigorously mini-games that comprise warioware? I have a wii and I think most of people who exalt it's gameplay are just jumping on a bandwagon. It's basically taking older game concepts (NES era) tacking on a *shake* mechanic replacing button mashing mechanic and calling it a game. Some
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
That said, the wii is a lot of fun, and much more intuitive for people who don't play video games regularly. My wife and I can have people over and teach them Wii bowling in two minutes and play it for hour
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Not that it matters to Will Wright (Score:5, Funny)
Real article (Score:5, Informative)
Poor 360'ers (Score:3, Funny)
So you're saying that 360 owners are resigned to knowing that their system is mediocre at best?
Re:Poor 360'ers (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Poor 360'ers (Score:5, Insightful)
It's not that the 360 or ps3 are bad systems. It's that what they really added to the previous generation was a little better graphics, a little more storage space, small upgrades in individual aspects of the product.
What the Wii did was introduce a really different way of playing the games, and in the process has tapped into a market the ps3 and 360 couldn't dream of. Ergo, the impact of the Wii on the console gaming genre is larger even through the technological advances involved aren't.
Re:Poor 360'ers (Score:4, Interesting)
It's not that the 360 or ps3 are bad systems. It's that what they really added to the previous generation was a little better graphics, a little more storage space, small upgrades in individual aspects of the product.
What the Wii did was introduce a really different way of playing the games, and in the process has tapped into a market the ps3 and 360 couldn't dream of. Ergo, the impact of the Wii on the console gaming genre is larger even through the technological advances involved aren't.
The last console I owned was an original NES,* and I do not, as a general rule, play games. I don't even have any installed on my computers (okay, well, there's the free Chess game that comes with OS X, and I might have an old copy of EV Nova around somewhere). I was pretty content to just sit this whole console generation out, until my very much anti-videogame S.O. declared one day that she wanted a Wii. That in itself says something about the Wii
That said, so far we haven't found any really drop-dead awesome games other than Wii sports. We rented Rockstar Games' table-tennis game, thinking it would be like a continued/advanced version of Wii Tennis, but it was much more of a skill/twitch game than something you could pick up and have fun with immediately. And frankly, spending an hour learning how to hit a ball in a table-tennis videogame does not strike me as a productive use of my time. If I'm going to do something that feels that much like work, I'd best be getting paid, or at least producing something tangible. That's what I like about Wii Sports; the games don't feel like work. They're just fun. Plus, you play them standing up, which makes them feel more like lightweight VR than a regular video game.
I think the big challenge for the Wii is whether Nintendo can get a stream of games coming for it that give people who purchased it essentially just for Wii Sports something to do. I have no idea what their margins are on the consoles themselves, but if they're going for the usual razors-and-blades model, selling the consoles for little profit and hoping to make it up on games, they'd best do something about getting some more Wii Sports-like games out there. Otherwise, I know a lot of people who may be content to just never eject that disc and treat it as a single-purpose machine. (And I don't think that any of them will regret the cost, either; Wii Sports really is worth $250 in my estimation; any more games would just be gravy.)
The Wii was a ballsy move for Nintendo, because it essentially lets Microsoft and Sony have the 'hardcore' market. But I think it's proving to be a smart one -- or at least a popular one -- judging from the sales figures. I see a lot of parallels between the Wii and the NES, including the pack-in game being one of the best (and in the long run, the defining) titles.
Re: (Score:2)
The Wii was a ballsy move for Nintendo, because it essentially lets Microsoft and Sony have the 'hardcore' market. But I think it's proving to be a smart one -- or at least a popular one -- judging from the sales figures. I see a lot of parallels between the Wii and the NES, including the pack-in game being one of the best (and in the long run, the defining) titles.
According to NPD The hardcore market is worth more then all other market segments. So Nintendo let them have a lot.The wii is fairly old tech and thus isn't that expensive to create. Nintendo isn't in the same category as Microsoft regarding losing their shirts on consoles to attempt to make it up in software sales. In fact Sony isn't in that category either as they try to either not lose money or profit. Sega and Microsoft are the only two firms who are known to take a long term loss on console sales.
Seems difficult to quanitfy that. (Score:3, Insightful)
The hardcore market is worth more then all other market segments.
That seems a bit shortsighted. I don't know what they're basing their analysis on, but I know a lot of people who've bought Wiis recently, who probably would have told anyone who asked, "no, I don't play videogames and wouldn't be interested in buying one." And they believed it, too, until they saw a Wii and (like me), before they knew it they were standing in line at Best Buy.
They're manufacturing a market out of essentially nothing; out of people who have written off video games or have never been that i
Re: (Score:2)
Game devs are afraid of trying anything new, because the high cost of development makes it a risk many refuse to take.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
What Nintendo has done is like backtracking to take a different fork in the path. From the viewpoint that Sony and Microsoft are doing the right thing, Nintendo has just shot itself in the foot, setting its con
A creative mind appreciating creativity (Score:5, Insightful)
The Wii itself is actually even worse in this regard, it's the past generation of tech being sold...again. The innovation and creativity is in the controller and that's what he respects. In this way the Wii isn't a Gamecube + 1 it's more like a Gamecube + Demographic widening idea. Is he doing anything of note for the Wii/DS? I'd be curious to see what he comes up with.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
You don't find games like WarioWare on the other systems. The motion controls do help it a ton, though.
And who cares if the Wii is running on Gamecube-level hardware (I'm pretty sure it's not, though)? Does that really give the PS3 an edge over it, disregarding graphics? I've played quite a few ga
Completely (Score:5, Insightful)
I agree completely. I wouldn't care if graphics were stuck where Zak & Wiki and Metroid 3 and Mario are. They all look just fine. If someone could figure out a way to make actual curved surfaces fast, that would be an improvement, but those games look fantastic. Heck, even RE 4 and some of the other 'Cube games looked good enough.
The Wii is different. I read something the other day where someone important commented that we have 50x more power this generation than last (or something like that) and we are using it to calculate 50x as many polygons and stuff like that. They are mostly being used for better graphics. Not more physics. Not more AI. Just more stuff in the background of games that don't effect things as much. There are a few games doing things differently, but the average game is still a PS2 or XBox game with more polygons and shiny things.
This will improve some as people get more familiar, but the Wii is the only system that is trying to do something different at this point in more than 1 or 2 games.
Re: (Score:2)
In SD maybe, in HD zelda looks really bad. The graphics are pretty sloppy, the 3d isn't set up for widescreen so when you turn the sides of the screen distort much more then th
Re: (Score:2)
Zelda didn't look bad, but you will note that I didn't mention that game. I didn't have those problems on my HDTV.
Remember though that Zelda was developed almost entirely on the 'Cube, and was later released on it. It was, in most ways, a last-gen game. It was very fun, but it was not a "look at what Wii graphics can do" game. It looked good though.
Even Metroid Prime 3 was, from my understanding, developed to a large degree on the 'Cube (though I think they stepped it up after that). That's a very good lo
Re: (Score:2)
You're sure you weren't playing the Cube version of Zelda? The Cube version wasn't widescreen. The Wii version was.
Re: (Score:2)
I'm certain a standard sized disk with the wii logo printed on it isn't the GC version.
Re: (Score:2)
Are you sure the problem wasn't the settings on your TV? or are you running the console with composite cables?
I kinda disagree (Score:5, Interesting)
The only console I'd really bag on at this point is the PS3. Whatever they tried to do with it, it ended up a failure. I don't really see that conclusion changing any time soon, a late lifecycle resurrection or the like.
I'm still happy with the idea of multiple game systems vigorously competing against one another. The last thing we need is a video game monoculture that stifles all development.
Re:I kinda disagree (Score:4, Interesting)
though, honestly, i don't think he's referring to next-gen in these terms. he's talking about gameplay. as much as you want to say the live services are going into new realms, when you get down to it, its only changing the way you interact with the other players. the gameplay theory is the same. if you played a game on the xbox, you're going to have a very similar learning curve on 360 games as you did on the xbox. however, the whole theory used to develop the Wii was completely different. you could be a master on all other consoles, but be no better than a beginner on the wii.
the gameplay on the PS3 & x360 is *not* that revolutionary. yea, the ps3 uses motion-sensing, but barely. you're talking about added features, which Wright isn't talking about. All of those things are just bells & whistles. The Wii is different. The gameplay is completely different. The way you socialize may be different on the 360. But that's not really next-generation. It may change the way you communicate or plan attacks, but again, its just modifications on a pre-existing framework.
At least, thats my opinion.
Re: (Score:2)
It's not something that Microsoft invented for the XBox, and it's not even remotely new. Although they've done a very admirable job of putting a nice interface on it, and marketing it to every 14 year old in North America. It's nothing particularly new, special, or innovative.
Nintendo shook things up, turned things in a direction where they've never gone before, and then had the balls to sell their c
Re: (Score:2)
I see your point, and lower you a Windows 95. It worked wonders for games and operating system stability overall.
While a monoculture would help game developers make games faster and more reliably, the question is what would it do for hardware? I mean, the Wii really is a hardware innovation more than software, right? The software is made to fit the hardware. If the Wiimote didn't exist, then WiiSports would be a lame party-game ripoff.
I guess you
Spot on (Score:2)
Wii is next gen in it's own way. But I'd say it's not even as "next gen" as the 360 because the 360 is all about Live and interactivity. The Wii to me is a novel party machine with a nifty controller. The 360 isn't about cutting edge graphics, it isn't about a special controller that lets me get bored of bowling after 2 hours.
It's all about Live and how integrated the online experience is to the whole console. It certainly feels next gen when I'm playing MK3 that I just
He does make a good point (Score:4, Insightful)
So, while he does raise a VERY good point, its really just a different use of the term next-gen. its the next generation of each console (sony's, ms's, & nintendo's). while the wii is revolutionary, it doesn't mean you *can't* call the other consoles next-gen. technologically speaking, they are quite revolutionary (ie: ps3's cell processor) in their own regards, but the basic concept behind them hasn't changed.
The sad reality... (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I think nowadays you're more likely to find one than say 6 months ago.
Tom
Supply will double in Christmas (Score:2)
The question is, when are they going to start releasing those units? You have to be attentive, because it's likely that demand is so high, that even doubled supply will still not be enough.
Re:The sad reality... (Score:5, Insightful)
You do know the 360 outsold the Wii last month, right? Do you assume that because your supermarket always has bread on the shelf that no-one wants it?
What happend? (Score:4, Interesting)
The Wii does something new and exciting, yes, but so do the PS3 and the 360...it's not just "shinier graphics", there are many things that game developers are able to do now that they were unable to do before...that extra computing power can go towards smarter AI, larger level design (for example, compare the size of the levels and objects on screen in Beautiful Katamari to the first three Katamari games.)...it's similar to CGI in movies...it is allowing us to achieve things in movies that were previously nigh-impossible.
And let's not forget the online portion as well. Yes, Live was around with the original Xbox, but look at what Live has grown into...a massive marketplace, tons of video and game demos right at your fingertips, not to mention Arcade titles...ditto for the PSN, so much stuff it's nearly overwhelming. The Wii has done well with the Virtual Console in this area, although out of the three I would have to say it has the furthest to go.
The Wii has made some baby steps towards innovation, but it's going to take games where the waggle is no longer labeled as such (Prime 3 is a great example of this, btw.) More powerful CPUs and GPUs don't just make things extra shiny...they make gameplay possible that was not possible before...just like a Wiimote.
Re:What happend? (Score:5, Insightful)
Maybe the wording he's using is a little off; "next gen" has always meant "incremental improvements" over a wide array of features and capabilities. But "next gen" in the context that Will Wright seems to be using it truly does only describe the Wii.
Please do clarify Will Wright's context (Score:2, Insightful)
If the criterium is as you say things "you can't do on a PC" - then it's an argument already lost. There are already 'wiimote'-style controllers for the PC and silly games that make use of them. But say that this peripheral didn't exist, then one could argue that the gun in duck hunt or the mat in DDR was 'next gen'. Puh-lease.
If the criterium is "smaller, more
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Annnnd....the Wiimote does what now?
It provides more interactivity with the game world...just like what you described the 360 and the PS3 do. Just because it's hardware based and not software based doesn't make it any better or any worse...it just makes it different.
It uses what? That's right, more advanced hardware to allow you to interact with things differen
Re: (Score:2)
And the Wiimote does what now?
The Gamecube already had interactive... you were pressing buttons. Now, instead of just pressing buttons, you move your controller as well.
Nothing new... just more interactive.
Re: (Score:2)
Games for the PC have been advancing a bit faster because game developers know that they can develop a game for what they expect the PC will be able to do, and make the game scale base
Re: (Score:2)
Maybe, except that the things you list are, essentially, "shinier graphics" sorts of things that you get through more horsepower in the console. Bigger levels, smarter AI, more online...these are pretty obvious things that *any* next generation platform could supply.
More powerful CPUs and GPUs don't ju
Re: (Score:2)
From a certain point of view, he is right. (Score:5, Insightful)
1. If your point of view is that "next generation console" means "console that introduces a new model for interacting with the system", then it is generally true that the Wii is the true next generation system (though the PS3 does cautiously dip its toe in that water).
2. On the other hand, if "next generation console" means "console that provides the core functions of a next generation TV-based entertainment environment," then the Wii misses the boat and the PS3 (and perhaps the Xbox 360) is the true next gen console.
3. Now, if one asserts that what makes a console "next generation" is that it taps a new or expanded audience of users, then it is not the console that is "next generation" at all. In this case, one might understandably describe the audience as "next generation gamers".
In summary, having a new or expanded class of users means there is a "next generation" audience. Having a new or expanded class of functions means there is a "next generation" device.
Re:From a certain point of view, he is right. (Score:5, Insightful)
1) Large local storage built-in to the console
2) Online gameplay with matching service
3) Downloadable games
4) HD support (at resolutions higher than 480p; I know 480p is a HD resolution, but it's not what people mean when they say "HD.")
5) Built-in ethernet which can be used for the aforementioned online features, and also for setting up local LAN play
Notice how every single console that's come out since the Xbox has integrated all of these features. But no console before the Xbox had them.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Link?
4) - My Gamecube and Dreamcast both did 480p, big deal. Dreamcast did it before the xbox.
How about reading what I typed?
5) - Dreamcast came with standard modem, upgradable to network. Gamecube supported networking, and Atari supported more networking features in their Jaguar than any company since. Shortwave Radio, modem, and direct serial connections. Only thing I see noteworthy is the xbox building the netwo
As an avid gamer but not hardcore... (Score:2)
Nonsense. (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Well... for my fifty-something year old mom and my sixty-something year old aunt it was the fact that they only needed to press ONE button (or hold, one button, in case of bowling) and/or swing the darn thing to play tennis, bowling, ping-pong, shooting, golf, etc. Wh
Wright is Wrong (Score:2)
But he thinks the Wii is the only modern console, even though it's different mostly because of its controller. Which is as much like a mouse as a mouse is like a light pen [wikipedia.org].
Speaking of which, touchscreens which can use a stylus, especially a stylus with 2 position points for angle, plus pressure, are the best input device ever, if we're not counting MIDI musical instruments.
False Bifurcation (Score:4, Insightful)
I see too many people dismissing the importance of improved graphics, particularly in the face of the wii's novel controls. But graphics can improve the gaming experience (of course, I'm not saying that they automatically do; a bad game is a bad game, from text adventures, to sprites, to 3D). And I'm not just talking about hyper realism. Improved graphics can help immerse you in highly stylized games as well (see the upcoming Little Big Planet).
What I'm getting at here is that I think that the wrong message to take from the current generation of games is: graphics don't matter because the wii sold well. (Which isn't really what Wright is saying, but I see it a lot.)
What I want from the next generation of consoles is an amalgam of everything that is good about the current generation. And that includes graphics better than the ps3.
Re: (Score:2)
But anyway, yes, getting the wii's controls to work is challenging and many games fail at it. But some succeed and the number that succeed will increase as developers get experience. (The controller interaction part will probably move into a few third party software library packages that game developers will license, like they do now for graphics
Will is Wright - and I'm glad my son bugged him (Score:2, Interesting)
Now, a more intriguing question is - what will the next gaming console be when America converts over to 80 percent HDTV somewhere in 2009?
I've seen how the PS3 is now shipping features that are part of the Wii in an attempt to catch up - what other features do we think we're likely to see? One can assume it will be an HD-DVD version capable of running both DVD and HD-DVD, w
Agree, but... no. (Score:2)
But, when I bought it I wasn't expecting to be FORCED to use the wii remote for FPS games. I thought I could use it if I liked and if I didn't I could pop in my gamecube controller and play it like a normal game. I was excited about the remote-as-a-gun-pointing-device idea but as it turns out, I'm not a fan. In fact I hate it, mostly d
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Sure, Will. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Sure, Will. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Sure, Will. (Score:5, Interesting)
Wright had as much to do with Sims expansions as John Carmack does with community Quake mods.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
You mean the Sims expansion packs have a wall texture of Will Wright's bloody head impaled on a stick? AWESOME!!!!
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Many people also look at the content that has been made available for the consoles as being what the console is
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Is Wii the only "next gen" video game system? I dont know. What is "next gen?" I dont think it has to do anything with graphics. But, Wii, as Nintendo does, is the only gaming system with a unique HID. Just like they did with the power pad, power
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
"Casual" games are very much like tv, something to do to be mildly entertained with little or no effort involved.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
True gamers have never liked titles like The Sims or Sp
Re:Sure, Will. (Score:4, Funny)
It's easier to use the 360 if you switch to a smaller pole... try 6" or maybe a foot at most.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Sure, Will. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Sure, Will. (Score:5, Insightful)
It seems that you do not know that the largest age group of gamers is 40+. And that their sex is female.
Hardcore gamers typically occupy the 18-34 demographic and are mostly male (not all, but most).
This shift happened years ago. Pogo and all those other Java-based games available online changed things as the internet became popular with the general population. It is no longer what system specs do you have, or what your frame rate is with those specs (or what console you own). It is about sitting down and losing a few hours playing a game that you had originally devoted only fifteen minutes.
Yes, many people do not consider anyone outside of the 18-34 demographic to be gamers, but they are. They are the ones that are being targeted with the Wii. These are people that have influence over others. If someone's mother, father or grandparent is wanting to play a game with them on a Wii, then that is saying something. That is saying that gaming is finally hitting the general population.
I am not saying that hardcore gamers are people to just let fall by the wayside. They are not. However, they are not the most important demographic anymore. There are not enough of them to carry a PS3 or Xbox 360 into profitable margins in the first few years. Yes, I did just read something about the Xbox division of MS making a profit during a quarter this year, but that is not for this conversation.
Hardcore gamers were the life blood of many gaming companies for years. Many have changed what they liked. They have expanded their horizons and found other games that can draw them in. I am one of them. Although I did not consider myself a hardcore gamer, I did play many games associated with the hardcore crowd. I played them ten to fifteen hours a day, sometimes more. However, I have moved on. I started playing RTS games, and have even moved on to TBS games now. I play RPG games and quite a few Java-based games, but not as much as years past.
So, although, there will always be a hardcore gamer market, the industry has grown beyond them. They will still have their games coming to them, but they will have to live for awhile knowing that what they consider to be the best is not what is going to be talked about. Almost feels like a videophile talking about how much better Beta was over VHS, only to watch VHS take off leaving Beta fewer and fewer customers and therefore releases and then availability.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Hrm... Will may be right.... (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm honest up front here no trolling intended. The PS3, I only play PS2 games on it currently. I have a lot of them, they look much better, and not having to swap memory cards is a world of difference. I've put in 160 hours playing Persona 3 (when will it end damnit?)
No trolling intended I'm going to
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
It's kind of like claiming that a laptop is the next generation of desktop computers. They can do a lot of the same stuff but
The graphics of Paint Shop Pro (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
That's partially because the current generation of game developers aren't really trying to think outside the box. Instead, as you point out, they're just repackaging the same tired stuff that they've been doing since the 1980's.
What I'm looking forward to is going to be a FPS on the Wii that takes advantage of both the 'gun' and the Wii-fit board thingy. You'll aim & shoot with the gun, and move around by shifting your balance forward, back, or to the side. Or a boxing game where the hand positions are determined by the controller (and nunchuck) and the 'dance' is done via the Wii-fit board. It will be even cooler when things like impact vests let you feel when you get hit (and where you get hit) rather than just a flasing light or a change in your life bar.
I'm not saying that such a game has to be on the Wii, it's just that the Wii is the only console with an interface capable of such immersive games. Personally, I _hope_ that at least one of the two other consoles adds Wii-like controls.
Oddly all yrou ideas have already been done. Metroid is the FPS, wii sports has that Boxing game, and there is a vest there exists a vest that takes the rumble signal from a console (PS2 or xbox or GC) to hit you with a rumble in the vest. They have a chair that does this too. The "movement" via wii board isn't around yet but many of the light gun namco games used a floor pedal to dodge. Actually it's not wii exclusive to have those things, but it's just neat peripherals. Like guitar hero or the games with
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
"The majority of games are diluted versions / ports from other systems or kiddie games."
You know, for the 360 and ps3, you could say most games are ports or FPSs. How's that any different?
"The few Nintendo games on the system that are good are well... such a small amount of the library."
The PS3 came out at the same time as the Wii and there are -far- more games on my shelf for the Wii than the PS3. In fact, it rivals the
Re: (Score:2)
I'm sure you've played sports, at least as a kid. What you just said was 'isn't a sport just the rules?' You've completely ignored that the balls and goals are different, the entire game is played differently, and that there are rabid fans after you now for insulting their idol.
Can you play soccer with an American football?
Can you play dodgeball with a pingpong ball?
Likewise, you can't play Wii Sports with a joypad. And you can't play Doom
Re: (Score:2)
Microsoft is doing you a favor. Seriously, you should have checked the review sites: it's simply not at all a good game. It's got interesting mechanics, sure, but the maps and game modes all suck, and the bugs don't stop with the install or update process.