Rumor or Nonsense: Nintendo's next generation console and handheld: Fusion Terminal and Fusion DS

[Bojay1997]

I don't think the games are Nintendo's problem, the timing is. If anything, their current entries are better than the ones we were getting on the Gamecube but they aren't coming out when they need to. Skyward Sword should have been a Wii U launch title. What good did it do Nintendo as the Wii's last hurrah? For all the praise Nintendo gets for its innovation, that was a very shortsighted move.

I don't think anyone would claim that Nintendo doesn't make incredible games. I believe the issue is that there are just too few of them on the WiiU and too few in the pipeline to really ever place the WiiU in a situation where it's the only console someone would own. Even when Nintendo slowed development on new Gamecube games, it seemed like there was always some unique third party title coming out to fill the gap. That just doesn't exist on the WiiU as Ubisoft and Activision have now shifted into multi-platform port mode and sadly the only unique third party content is coming from Majesco. As I think I've shared here before, as someone with kids in exactly Nintendo's prime demographic, I'm amazed at how little play the WiiU gets in our house when compared to the iPad and all of the other electronic devices the kids have access to and frankly, we own every first party Nintendo game and most of the rest of the library.

[Greg2600]

Gamecube is a bit of a different story, because Nintendo screwed up when they contracted Retro studios to do many games, and the owner was a con-artist and nothing got done. They can continue to make 1st party games from their well known IP's, but that cannot be the ONLY 1st party games they release. That's the point I think.

However, are Activision/Ubisoft bailing a massive problem? I'd say yes, if Nintendo were attempting to be the inexpensive alternative to the other guys. However, the problem they face there is that 360/PS3 games are still coming out, and both of those systems are cheaper than the Wii U.

[TonyTheTiger]

Unfortunately, that's true. Nintendo is trying to sell a console that is not well suited for multiplatform development in an environment in which going multiplatform is the only viable solution for most third parties. This leaves Nintendo in the cold for the most part. The Wii had the same problem but that was tempered by it's runaway success thanks to some other factors. But this has been going on since the N64. Nintendo has consistently managed to maintain success through people buying its consoles for the 10 to 20 must have exclusives with anything beyond that just gravy. I'm not sure what's changed this time to suddenly make it a problem other than maybe people are just getting wise to the routine and decided "nope, not this time." I want to attribute it to both the console's name and appearance (it looking and sounding too much like a Wii update possibly muddied it's purpose as a next gen console) as well as the terribly uninteresting first 8 months or so of software.

I don't think the Wii U is a lost cause yet but I've never seen Nintendo so unfocused. It was pretty terribly marketed, all things considered, only vaguely trying to ride the coattails of the Wii and iPad's success without a cohesive spirit of its own. In what universe is it a good idea to use ports of last gen games as your highlight? Who's supposed to be amazed that the Wii U has Tekken Tag 2 and Mass Effect 3? Isn't that like if Sega tried to sell the merits of the Genesis by demonstrating an exact replica of Castlevania II? For all the weird decisions of Nintendo past (N64 cartridges, Gamecube discs, controller) they always built a console identity around the machine. I still have no idea what the Wii U's identity is.

They also need to pick their battles. They certainly don't have to match the system specs of the Xbox and Playstation but they do need to stop adamantly rebelling against just about every single advancement that's happened in the last ten years. Basic multimedia functionality, competent online, an indie-friendly publishing environment, etc.

[Tanooki]

DRCLAW: Now as far as Nintendo ignoring standards it was my understanding they're using a standard disc format finally, but as true to stock they refuse to pay any licenses to have that marked on the system let alone such video playing movie discs run on the system either to cut more corners as it's all just added expenses. The WiiU storage isn't lacking for space as it's basically a tweaked standard blu-ray drive they built with Panasonic to avoid the expenses as the thing holds 25GB per layer which is no slouch.

Tony: It's not the first party or second party games that are the problem, as you noted they're better than what the Wii delivered so far. It's the timing and the failing of third party to bother to put more bulk on the shelf to make the system more appealing to various gamers. I agree that Skyward Sword would have benefited from being an HD-release as Twilight Princess pulled it off racking up some incredible sales on Wii despite it being the crap version of the game with the visuals and controls reversed. They could have at least doubled down like the GC-Wii TP did.

I don't think Ubisoft, Activision or the remaining others are bailing yet at this point, but they'll be slowing operations on what they put out to much the level of what the Wii had downscaled and shoveled to it for at least this year if not going forward. If the Wii U has a nice hardware sales turn around and bulks up the ownership I'd see an increase but nothing on the level that should have been there from the start but that's Nintendo's fault entirely between their piss poor treatment of third parties requests for new hardware to their shitty naming and shittier idea of advertising and awareness. I think the Wii U isn't screwed yet, but they're walking a tightrope without a safety net at the bottom really as the 3DS as runaway as its sales in 2013 were still couldn't prop it up.

[Trebuken]

These specs, if true, seem to make this console Wii-U compatible, but with the addition of the FUSION features. Also the CableCard slot suggests it's going to be integrated with your TV and cable services.

Nothing here seem impossible, it just all seems too soon; unless this is just a console revision. They could market an upgrade for Wii-U owners. Remember the 32X or the 64DD?

[parallaxscroll]

Nintendo just posted this a few days ago on its Japanese site:

Corporate Management Policy Briefing / Third Quarter Financial Results Briefing for the 74th Fiscal Term Ending March 2014

Q&A

You have explained your concern about users being divided by hardware. Currently, you have both a handheld device business and a home console business. I would like to know whether the organizational changes that took place last year are going to lead to, for example, the integration of handheld devices and home consoles into one system over the medium term, or a focus on cost saving and the improvement of resource efficiency in the medium run. Please also explain if you still have room to reduce research and development expenses.

Iwata:

Last year Nintendo reorganized its R&D divisions and integrated the handheld device and home console development teams into one division under Mr. Takeda. Previously, our handheld video game devices and home video game consoles had to be developed separately as the technological requirements of each system, whether it was battery-powered or connected to a power supply, differed greatly, leading to completely different architectures and, hence, divergent methods of software development. However, because of vast technological advances, it became possible to achieve a fair degree of architectural integration. We discussed this point, and we ultimately concluded that it was the right time to integrate the two teams.

For example, currently it requires a huge amount of effort to port Wii software to Nintendo 3DS because not only their resolutions but also the methods of software development are entirely different. The same thing happens when we try to port Nintendo 3DS software to Wii U. If the transition of software from platform to platform can be made simpler, this will help solve the problem of game shortages in the launch periods of new platforms. Also, as technological advances took place at such a dramatic rate, and we were forced to choose the best technologies for video games under cost restrictions, each time we developed a new platform, we always ended up developing a system that was completely different from its predecessor. The only exception was when we went from Nintendo GameCube to Wii. Though the controller changed completely, the actual computer and graphics chips were developed very smoothly as they were very similar to those of Nintendo GameCube, but all the other systems required ground-up effort. However, I think that we no longer need this kind of effort under the current circumstances. In this perspective, while we are only going to be able to start this with the next system, it will become important for us to accurately take advantage of what we have done with the Wii U architecture. It of course does not mean that we are going to use exactly the same architecture as Wii U, but we are going to create a system that can absorb the Wii U architecture adequately. When this happens, home consoles and handheld devices will no longer be completely different, and they will become like brothers in a family of systems.

Still, I am not sure if the form factor (the size and configuration of the hardware) will be integrated. In contrast, the number of form factors might increase. Currently, we can only provide two form factors because if we had three or four different architectures, we would face serious shortages of software on every platform. To cite a specific case, Apple is able to release smart devices with various form factors one after another because there is one way of programming adopted by all platforms. Apple has a common platform called iOS. Another example is Android. Though there are various models, Android does not face software shortages because there is one common way of programming on the Android platform that works with various models. The point is, Nintendo platforms should be like those two examples. Whether we will ultimately need just one device will be determined by what consumers demand in the future, and that is not something we know at the moment. However, we are hoping to change and correct the situation in which we develop games for different platforms individually and sometimes disappoint consumers with game shortages as we attempt to move from one platform to another, and we believe that we will be able to deliver tangible results in the future.

http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/libr...0130qa/02.html

Here's the start of the Q&A session: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/libr...0qa/index.html


Iwata also gave a presentation about their plans for the future, titled Presentation by the President.

This was one of the slides shown:



http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/libr...140130/03.html

Starts here: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/libr...130/index.html

[Leo_A]

It of course does not mean that we are going to use exactly the same architecture as Wii U, but we are going to create a system that can absorb the Wii U architecture adequately.

I wonder if he's talking about the Wii U gamepad more than the Wii U itself.

Going with a ARM based setup for their next generation hardware makes more sense for commonality than the Power PC based processor of the GCN/Wii/Wii U. It's more suitable for handhelds, it's getting pretty powerful in its own right, and it provides for backwards compatibility with their successful handheld line rather than their current console failure.

The Wii U gamepad, even if just an option, could enable off-screen play for their next generation console and also stream the lower touch screen of the handheld when desired by the customer if they want to enhance their experience beyond the standard and cheaper gamepad. Essentially just what it does now for those that desire to take that functionality forward, just without being mandatory and bundled with every system sold.

[parallaxscroll]

Iwata has been saying quite a lot lately, regarding Nintendo's future plans.

However, there is no doubt a lot of this is being mis-communicated by the media in translations, as already happened in the past. So not only has there already been confusion regarding the next hardware platforms from Nintendo, there's bound to be even more.


I also doubt that Nintendo themselves know *exactly* what forms its next generation platforms will take, at this moment in time.

Add to that, the mistranslations of what Iwata is saying (and will say) and you have the recipe for all sorts of confusion, and genuine rumor, yet also, pure bullshit stuff that gets made up, as we've already seen.

[Niku-Sama]

I think one of the first responses had it right, now that there is a game pad with a screen in it, DS and 3DS games on the wii-u preferable ala an adaptor like super game boy or the game cube game boy player for advance games, as well as digital download which they plan on starting with regular DS games soon from what I was understanding.

a small hardware add-on wouldn't piss people off that already have games they like plus it could be cheap, it would only be a means of getting the info from the DS cart to the system for the system to run, it in it self shouldn't do any processing.
another thing that would be interesting and I think both systems have the ability to do it is being able to use a ds/3ds as a controller for the wii u. or maybe that's how they could communicate in order to get ds/3ds games on the big screen...