New Nintendo HD Console to be revealed at E3; Launches after April 2012

[icelt]

Rumor Roundup on the Wii 2

By Mike Sharkey | Apr 15, 2011
http://www.gamespy.com/

We scour the tubes for the latest speculation on Nintendo's next console.

Game Informer opened the floodgates yesterday when it reported Nintendo's next console will make its debut at E3 in June, and today the tubes are swimming with rumors and speculation about the specs and features of the "Wii 2."

Beyond Nintendo's next console being powerful enough for HD gaming, Game Informer wasn't able to dig up any additional details about the new device. Various other outlets, however, are claiming to have uncovered just about everything there is to know.


Our friends at IGN, citing their own anonymous sources, report the Wii 2 will be backwards compatible with current Wii software, a clear indication Nintendo still plans to make motion controls a big part of its strategy. IGN also heard the Wii 2 will be "significantly more powerful than the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3," and it's Nintendo's intent to "recapture the hardcore market."

CVG tracked down its own unnamed sources and reported the Wii 2 will feature a new controller more in-tune with Xbox 360 and PS3 controllers, and it will include a built-in HD touch-screen. The site also reported the Wii 2 will be more powerful than the 360 and PS3.

According to Edge, Ubisoft, Activision, and EA already have Wii 2 dev kits, and have had them for "months." The site also reports that Nintendo plans to greatly improve its motion control capabilities with the new system to make it "better than Move."

But the biggest claims come from the French site famous for revealing accurate Sony NGP specs long before they were officially announced. 01net claims the Wii 2 is codenamed "Project Cafe" by Nintendo and will feature a custom IBM Power PC CPU with three cores, and a GPU from the ATI R700 family with at least 512Mb of RAM. The site claims there is another "big surprise" about Project Cafe's specs, and all will be revealed at E3.

Initially noticed this rumor much earlier today but didn't post it since, dunno, just seemed pretty immature. However, now with all these confirming links I suppose the topic has reached the stage of at least being plausible if not likely.

So what does the GTP contingent think?

Myself, always hard not to be a fan of seeing new hardware, but I'm perfectly happy with my PS3 for HD gaming. It is always possible Ninty will pull something awe inspiring out of its hat, but I just can't see the likelihood of slightly prettier looking graphics being a big enough appeal.

However I will admit they could do some exciting things on the software side that just might make me more interested. As it stands right now though I am fully in the "meh" department at this prospect of a Wii-HD.

Ohhh... actually if they could do this whilst bringing down avg HD game prices $10-$15, now that could be a worthwhile step forward.

 

[Terronium-12]

I'm skeptical for one reason and one reason only: the hardware. It was never Nintendo's intention to directly compete with (in terms of hardware) either the PS3 or the 360 as such would saturate the market. Which is much of the reason Nintendo went their own way with the Wii - innovating where the others paid no attention to. Not to mention the price range; if this is true and it does have a tri-core CPU with an R700-based GPU it's going to top $399...which would negate everything they've set out to do with the Wii.

And how is introducing an upgraded Wii that would, in theory, negate the current Wii do them any favors? Yes, they've already sold close to 90 million units...but still. I'm not buying it.

The story I mean. If it is true...then HOT DAMN!

 

[nick09]

For a moment when I saw the title I thought Nintendo was releasing an HD DS or something like that. Though I am looking forward to a new Wii if this is correct. I could consider owning a Wii if this rumor is true(I might not own one since I have been playing video games less this year).

 

[Spacegoat]

E3 just got really interesting.

 

[Lizard]

If this is true its the start of the next generation of consoles and we will see the ps4 soon.

 

[Alex p.]

Can't wait! As a graphics whore I'm waiting for all the tech demos and first gameplay.

 

[kimi123]

They have 3DS for handheld and Sony has NGP. So it won't come before 2012 I think.

Of course Nintendo home console will come early than xbox 720 and PS4 will come after those two.

 

[icelt]

From Blu-Ray.com:

Nintendo are said to be looking at turning the fortunes of their home console business around and are set to announce the successor to their massively successful Wii home console at E3. Sources have revealed to Blu-ray.com that Nintendo are looking at including Blu-ray as the main optical drive. This would be a natural progression from the Wii which uses DVD, but it isn't clear if Nintendo would enable BD movie playback on the new console or whether they would just use it for data as they do with DVD on the Wii. This new device could be the internal successor to the Blu-ray enabled Wii that was rumored for release in 2010.

I dunno, maybe if the motion controls are upgraded enough to run/play something like Battlefield 3 "properly" then I might be more interested. Still not feeling it though, 'course I was completely underwhelmed by the whole Wii experience.

 

[Tesla]

While it is good seeing Nintendo going above and beyond hardware wise, the Wii 2 at it's core will still be a childrens console. It will take a good line-up of games announced (MGS, a good CoD, a semi-sim racer, etc) to really convince me to actually consider picking this up.

 

[icelt]

Can I now change the title to "Almost Very Nearly Confirmed?"
Wii now $170

By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot
Posted Apr 18, 2011 10:46 am PT

Best Buy, GameStop, and Target slash $30 off Nintendo's console just under one month away from a rumored price drop to $150.

Last week, rumors surfaced that the Wii would have $50 shaved off its then-price of $200 on May 15 ahead of a Wii 2 unveiling in June. Now, it appears several retailers have jumped the gun by slashing the cost of the console as of today. Best Buy, GameStop, and Target are all now selling the Wii bundle for just $170. The discount applies to both the white and black versions of the console.

The Wii is now $30 cheaper.

The Wii console package includes Wii Sports, Wii Sports Resort, and the Wii MotionPlus controller. The two compilation discs include a variety of games, with the former offering tennis, baseball, golf, bowling, and boxing. Wii Sports Resort features a series of Wii MotionPlus-enabled games, including skydiving, nerf-katana swordplay, water scooter racing, and a throw-and-fetch minigame involving a dog.

Though not officially announced by Nintendo, today's price cut is just the latest cost reduction for the popular console. Initially $250 when released in 2006, the platform saw its cost cut to $200 in late 2009. In mid-2010, the console's bundle expanded to include Wii Sports Resort and the Wii MotionPlus controller. Nintendo recently announced the latter will also now be available as part of Wii Play: Motion, a sequel to the wildly popular Wii controller/minigame compilation bundle. To date, the Wii has sold over 85 million units worldwide.

 

[ShylockHolmes]

Nintendo has so few games that appeal to adults that I don't think it will matter. I never compare wii sales to xbox 360 because that would be like comparing calculator sales to laptops.

 

[Alex p.]

I'm skeptical for one reason and one reason only: the hardware.

Have to agree there but I am very sure the games will look A LOT better than on ps3, 360.

Look, even if Nintendo has similar powerful processors like in the ps3, 360, they only habe to increase the main and v-ram and the games can look already much much better.

It would be far too stupid of them not to do that, ram is so damned cheap nowadays, and will get cheaper.

 

[adam46]

When is E3?

 

[icelt]

When is E3?

June 7-9.
http://www.e3expo.com/

 

[Terronium-12]

Nintendo has so few games that appeal to adults that I don't think it will matter. I never compare wii sales to xbox 360 because that would be like comparing calculator sales to laptops.

The Wii is what you make of it. I can name at least 25 'adult' titles off the top of my head. And by your logic of comparing the sales of a calculator to a laptop, I could say the same of the 360 and PS3; it would be like comparing their sales numbers to those of DELL computers.

See the irrelevance that has?

Have to agree there but I am very sure the games will look A LOT better than on ps3, 360.

Look, even if Nintendo has similar powerful processors like in the ps3, 360, they only habe to increase the main and v-ram and the games can look already much much better.

It would be far too stupid of them not to do that, ram is so damned cheap nowadays, and will get cheaper.

Architecture-specific hardware isn't as cheap as it would be for consumer parts. And how well the visuals look heavily depend on the API and rendering methods; considering I highly doubt Nintendo licensed DirectX, they're likely using OpenGL or some variation thereof. Also, you have to take into consideration that just increasing what's already there introduces the possibility of a bottleneck, which would be even more worse than what's available now - at least to those who look at visuals first and everything else afterwards.

 

[Alex p.]

How can more ram develop into a bottle-neck?

 

[Terronium-12]

How can more ram develop into a bottle-neck?

Depends on the application. But let's say for example Nintendo did increase the allocated RAM and left everything the same, the greatest benefit would be the system RAM (for obvious reasons), but the worse benefit would be the increased RAM available to rendering. Yes, developers could use more textures and more advanced rendering techniques but what would the outcome be? Hiccups and lag because the GPU doesn't have enough of it's own horsepower to keep everything at a 1:1 ratio.

It's the same thing with practically any piece of hardware, you introduce a possible saturation and overall performance will decline.

 

[Alex p.]

Depends on the application. But let's say for example Nintendo did increase the allocated RAM and left everything the same, the greatest benefit would be the system RAM (for obvious reasons), but the worse benefit would be the increased RAM available to rendering. Yes, developers could use more textures and more advanced rendering techniques but what would the outcome be? Hiccups and lag because the GPU doesn't have enough of it's own horsepower to keep everything at a 1:1 ratio.

It's the same thing with practically any piece of hardware, you introduce a possible saturation and overall performance will decline.

I see.

But there's no doubt 512MB total of ram with ps3 specs is simply far too little, 2-4 GB would be the right amount, all developpers said the biggest weakness of this gen was the limited ram, when the consoles launched 5 years ago, the ram amount was already too limited actually.

 

[ShylockHolmes]

The Wii is what you make of it. I can name at least 25 'adult' titles off the top of my head. And by your logic of comparing the sales of a calculator to a laptop, I could say the same of the 360 and PS3; it would be like comparing their sales numbers to those of DELL computers.

See the irrelevance that has?


Nintendo has so few games that appeal to adults that I don't think it will matter. I never compare wii sales to xbox 360 because that would be like comparing calculator sales to laptops.

 

[Terronium-12]

Nintendo has so few games that appeal to adults that I don't think it will matter. I never compare wii sales to xbox 360 because that would be like comparing calculator sales to laptops.

Do you enjoy coming off as an idiot?

Whoops. Hadn't noticed he was banned...

 

[icelt]

Report: More Details on Nintendo's Project Cafe Revealed

By Mike Sharkey | Apr 21, 2011
www.gamespy.com
IGN reports on the possible launch date, pricing, hardware specs, and more.

The Wii 2, codenamed Project Cafe, could actually be named Stream, will retail for between $350 and $400, and could ship as early as October. Our friends at IGN have gathered these details and more on Nintendo's anticipated new console, including what it will be packing on the inside.

Citing unnamed sources with knowledge of the project, IGN reports that Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn, makers of the iPhone and iPad, will be ready to ship Project Cafe as early as October. However, IGN notes that Nintendo will likely opt to build up a sizable supply of the system and allow for time for game development and launch in early 2012, as was previously reported.

As for Project Cafe's innards, IGN reports the system will feature a revamped version of AMD's R700 GPU capable of outperforming the PlayStation 3's Nvidia 7800GTX graphics processor. The CPU will be a custom-built triple-core IBM PowerPC, similar to that in the Xbox 360, but with faster clocking speeds.

IGN also reports the console itself will look like a modernized SNES and be roughly the size of an original Xbox 360. And in regard to the much talked about new controllers for Project Cafe -- which Nintendo is considering naming Stream -- IGN writes:

It will indeed utilize controllers with integrated touchscreens and be capable of streaming games to each controller, though given the power of the system, could also feasibly provide a virtualized console for each individual unit.

Nintendo declined to comment on the report, but various sources indicate the company still intends an E3 unveiling of the console, if not sooner.

W/O software info, still meh for me. Price is fine, also will force the PS3 to roll out a price drop of $50-$100 by this holiday season but that probably would have occurred anyway. Hopefully this "Stream" price point means prospective PS3 buyers will most likely see the greater price drop. Personally I don't see a integral hard drive 360 version going for a full $100 cut, but who knows given the manner in which MS likes to repackage systems to meet price points.

 

[Terronium-12]

This is just me being a geek, but why compare Stream's GPU to the PS3's? The 360's GPU already outperforms that in any and almost every standalone application. So, it's not really setting any standards on IGN's behalf.

As for everything else I am definitely interested. But I just brought a Wii last year. WTF, Nintendo?

On a technical note, it sounds very promising. Sounds more than capable of stomping all over the 360 in terms of raw horsepower but at the end that depends on how well everything communicates with the architecture itself. Wonder what API they'll use...

 

[Moglet]

Does this mean we can now play 200 Mario titles but in HD?

ohmygosh.

 

[Robin]

They could actually go and call it the Wii Stream....


....Priceless

I'm liking the fact that it might be made in Taiwan, gosh I miss the days when mainstream (not high end) electronic stuff was made in places like Japan, South Korea and Taiwan because their build quality is impeccable.

 

[Stephen220378]

Got to laugh at these folks at IGN and CVG stating that the Wii 2 will be more powerful than the PS3 and Xbox 360, I mean it's hardly surprising that it will be more powerful than consoles that were released 5 and 6 years ago.

As for Nintendo, why don't they just leave the console market to the companies who know what they're doing i.e Sony and Microsoft, the last time they released a decent console was back in the early 90's with the SNES/Super Famicom, take a lead from SEGA and just give up and quit bringing out crap like the Wii, yeah it sold in it's millions but the bottom like is that it was a joke, no serious gamer ever took it seriously.

 

[icelt]

... but the bottom like is that it was a joke, no serious gamer ever took it seriously.

That is a rather over reaching statement considering it has sold somewhere near/around 85 million consoles worldwide and it defies basic logic to seriously conclude that 0% of those buyers were "serious gamers." Clearly you don't take the Wii seriously, clearly you know some other people who don't take it seriously and clearly the sum total of those 2 groups does not equal the 80 million-ish people who bought a Wii .

 

[Stephen220378]

That is a rather over reaching statement considering it has sold somewhere near/around 85 million consoles worldwide and it defies basic logic to seriously conclude that 0% of those buyers were "serious gamers." Clearly you don't take the Wii seriously, clearly you know some other people who don't take it seriously and clearly the sum total of those 2 groups does not equal the 80 million-ish people who bought a Wii .

Most gamers who have a Wii also have a proper console i.e a PS3 or an Xbox 360, I bought one out of curiosity, it got played until the novelty wore off, around a week of two before it went back in it's box only to be brought back out for two reasons; 1. I had visitors who have young children and I put it on for them to play and 2. for post-pub drunken gaming sessions with my mates. I have never known or even heard of anyone who would be considered a gamer that only has a Wii or has various consoles but uses the Wii as their primary source of gaming. Therefore the Wii can't be taken seriously and certainly can't be seen as a competitor to the PS3 or Xbox.

 

[Spacegoat]

They could actually go and call it the Wii Stream....

I was thinking the exact same thing. 👍

 

[Terronium-12]

Let's all play "Guess who dat fool is!", shall we?

Got to laugh at these folks at IGN and CVG stating that the Wii 2 will be more powerful than the PS3 and Xbox 360

At no point, anywhere in that article, does is state the Stream would be more powerful than either the PS3 or 360. What it does state is that the R700-based GPU would be more powerful than the PS3's NV47, which would be true. Which would in turn mean that said GPU would also outclass the 360's R500-based GPU, which again, would be true. I've got to laugh at you for not reading properly.

I mean it's hardly surprising that it will be more powerful than consoles that were released 5 and 6 years ago.

There was this console released 5, going on 6 years ago; what was the name of it? Oh that's right, the Xbox 360. Look up the word 'contradiction' and then get back to me.

As for Nintendo, why don't they just leave the console market to the companies who know what they're doing i.e Sony and Microsoft

You mean like those incredibly innovative motion controllers both consoles now have? I bet you think Sony and Microsoft pulled that straight out of rear ends, don't you? Oh, and for the record, Nintendo has more experience in the market than both Sony and Microsoft, combined.

the last time they released a decent console was back in the early 90's with the SNES/Super Famicom, take a lead from SEGA and just give up and quit bringing out crap like the Wii, yeah it sold in it's millions but the bottom like is that it was a joke, no serious gamer ever took it seriously.

I suppose the financial issues Sega went through had nothing to do with their retirement from the active console market? And tell me, what's a serious gamer? I hope to God it isn't you...because everything you've just said is full of crap I'm surprised you were even able to get this far without saying something even more ignorant and devoid of any truth than what you've already said.

 

[Villain]

All of the above?