Topic: Revolution "Easy to Port" to, Claims Nintendo

[WindyMan]

Revolution controller shouldn't be that much of a problem for multi-platform publishing, says Reggie.

Investment firm UBS is holding its 33rd Annual Global Media Conference this week in New York City.  Representatives from just about every major news, information, and entertainment media company got together to talk about industry trends and their visions for the future.  The game industry was well-represented with Activision, Atari, Take-Two and Microsoft in attendance, along with Nintendo of America.    


Nintendo VP of sales and marketing Reggie Fils-Aime was on hand to explain Nintendo's current situation in the market and plans for the future.  The presentation given at the event was virtually a carbon copy of the one given to the gaming media at Nintendo Gamers' Summit a month ago, aside from some updated sales numbers.  Nintendogs, for example, has now surpassed 950,000 units sold worldwide, and is sure to hit a million by the end of the year.    


Fils-Aime also touched base on Revolution, giving out the same information that we've known since Tokyo Game Show in September.  However, Nintendo is now making a new claim about the Revolution.  According to the presentation slides shown during his speech, game makers will find that the system will be “easy to port” games to, despite the unique controller interface that Revolution will bring to the table.    


When elaborating on that point, Reggie didn't make it sound quite that easy.  â€śPorting games... that's as easy or as complex as any team wants it to be.”  He elaborated on the traditional controller shell, stating that developers could simply use that if they wanted to port over a game to Revolution with little effort.  â€śBut the most ambitious of the developers,” said Reggie, “will write new code, different code, to allow the controller to be taken into brand new directions.”    


Only time will tell exactly how many ports the Nintendo Revolution will get, and whether or not the freestyle pointer or nunchaku controller will work for or against Nintendo in that regard.  Add this one onto the list of questions that will finally be answered at E3 2006, when Nintendo will reveal everything there is to know about Revolution.

[Ian Sane]

Well done.  About a week ago 1UP had a developer roundtable and the concept of porting came up.  And after IGN opened their Revolution section this issue came up again, not just relating to the controller but the hardware itself and how being the "weakest" might make ports harder.  So Nintendo addresses this and assures that it's not an issue.  Now maybe they were planning on saying this anyway since this was obviously a planning presentation but either way the timing is perfect.  If only Nintendo did this sort of thing more often.

Plus this is almost a comfirmation that the shell will be a standard part of the controller.  It's not quite one because, well, "third parties can just use the shell" has been a common defense for this issue from fans for a while now and it doesn't actually provide proof that it will be widely supported.  But with Nintendo actually saying it it's easier to feel comfortable about.  They at least are aware of the issue and plan on using the shell to solve it.  It's very encouraging.

[WindyMan]

Oops, forgot to mention that this speech occured on Monday.  So the specs speculation hadn't blown up by then.

Remember that Nintendo doesn't feel that the graphics difference between what they've got and what the competition's got isn't going to be that big of the deal.  Out of everyone in the world, they're the only ones in the position to make that call, because they're the only ones that can make the comparison.  Everyone should remember that.

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
Plus this is almost a comfirmation that the shell will be a standard part of the controller.  It's not quite one because, well, "third parties can just use the shell" has been a common defense for this issue from fans for a while now and it doesn't actually provide proof that it will be widely supported.  But with Nintendo actually saying it it's easier to feel comfortable about.  They at least are aware of the issue and plan on using the shell to solve it.  It's very encouraging.

Well, I don't know about that.  I think Nintendo may be shooting themselves in the foot with this whole controller shell nonsense.  I may elaborate on that a bit later.

[Nephilim]

they keep talking about the shell but they havnt confirmed it comes with the console
it makes me worry

[Bill Aurion]

Considering that the shell is just that, a shell, I don't assume it'll be very expensive...Remember that the GC controller is also usable...Either way, it's NOT a big deal...

[King of Twitch]

Well, I don't know about that. I think Nintendo may be shooting themselves in the foot with this whole controller shell nonsense. I may elaborate on that a bit later.

-- That would make an interesting editorial, since I and many others feel the exact opposite.

[Artimus]

The shell basically says the new controller is as good as the old, but not a replacement.

People aren't going to buy the Rev to get a game they can get with better graphics on the XBOX or PS3. If third party games largely use the shell, the system will be a major flop.

[King of Twitch]

Why? Because it has more buttons than the remote?

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

Cuz there'll be an influx of 3rd party games that offer absolutely nothing new, nor better compared to their originally intended platforms.

[BuzzyBeetle333]

Mmm.... Ports!

[Sarail]

Considering how much crap comes out of 3rd parties these days, I think I'll be a-ok if none of that junk ends up on my Revolution.  EA can kiss my Nintendo-loving arse for all I care.

[Flames_of_chaos]

I still think its a neat idea that the rev remote is still active while its in the shell so maybe some 3rd party may comeup that uses a standard control scheme but with the rev wand mechanics or in some sence a enhanced port with the unique mechanics.

[couchmonkey]

I'd be more comfortable if he were saying that there's a quick and easy way to convert traditional controls to the new system.  That's wishful thinking, to a degree, but it would be nice if Nintendo offered some recipes for developers wanting to port, say, an FPS to the Rev.

Instead he's saying use the shell, which comforts me because some clownboat in that roundtable implied that Nintendo is forcing devs to map the controls to the non-traditional controller, but makes me anxious because it means Rev third party support may be limited mainly to graphically inferior ports of 360 and PS3 games.  To be honest, I do want some of those - I'd love to have a new Street Fighter with traditional controls, for instance - but I don't want dumbed-down ports to be 90% of the third party support.  I think that's the reason some people are annoyed about the controller shell: it allows developers to stick to old control schemes and sends mixed messages to consumers about the new controller's importance.

[Bill Aurion]

"I'd be more comfortable if he were saying that there's a quick and easy way to convert traditional controls to the new system."

Retro took TWO weeks to implement Rev controls to a traditional game...Sounds rather quick to me...

[Jonnyboy117]

I'll probably say this many times in the next few months, but on the power issue, remember that the GameCube was considered vastly underpowered before we first saw games for it.  We interviewed Denis Dyack that year and he said that were worried at first, but they kept pushing the system harder and harder, and it kept performing better and better.  I expect that Revolution, even if it is the weakest system overall, will be much more powerful than the specs would lead you to believe, and that may be exactly why Nintendo does not plan to release the specs at all.

[Ian Sane]

"Oops, forgot to mention that this speech occured on Monday. So the specs speculation hadn't blown up by then."

Ah dang.  You're ruining this feeling I got.

"People aren't going to buy the Rev to get a game they can get with better graphics on the XBOX or PS3."

You're assuming that any Rev game that uses the shell is a port.  Why can't someone make an exclusive game for the Rev that uses traditional controls? For all we know Nintendo themselves will release some games like that.  In fact I'd prefer it.  I don't want to adapt to an unfamiliar control scheme for SSB when the existing one works perfectly fine the way it is.

There are two problems with the shell.  The first is just the very fact that they even need one.  If your controller is so different and weird that you're not confident that all games will work on it then you designed a pretty lousy controller.  You don't just toss standard functionality off willy-nilly unless you're absolutely sure it is being replaced.  The remote isn't the future of gaming if they need the shell.  It's just a nifty novelty controller like a dance pad or a lightgun.  Now I'm not saying they should ditch the shell because I think they need it.  I'm saying the remote shouldn't be so restrictive that they need one in the first place.

Second they absolutely HAVE to include the shell with every controller.  The shell and the remote together should be the standard: one controller with two pieces.  And Nintendo should have shown both at the same time.  If the shell doesn't come with each controller no third party will support it because the entire userbase won't have it and no one is going to make a game that uses standard controller design that can only be used by a portion of the userbase.  Not when the Rev is by default the last place console and the competition ensures that 100% of their userbases uses the standard design.  Cube controllers don't work either for the same reason.  Sure we have them but no one who buys a Rev but didn't own a Cube will.  Calling it the "shell" is a mistake in itself just because it suggests that it's an accessory.  Both parts should be the standard.  The remote just provides something different but the shell and the remote provides everything the competition has plus MORE.

I think Nintendo has become so focused on being different from the competition that they've completely missed the fact that they have the opportunity to both match the competition and offer something different at the same time.  That could give them a huge advantage and they're totally ignoring it.  Instead they're just the oddball.

[NWR_Lindy]

"You don't just toss standard functionality off willy-nilly unless you're absolutely sure it is being replaced. The remote isn't the future of gaming if they need the shell."

I look at the shell like a security blanket.  It's Nintendo's way of easing people into using the new controller that have been raised on the XBox/PS2 standard.

[PaLaDiN]

Ian, the two parts of your argument conflict. If they include the shell with every controller, people will think the same thing you are, that they need the old controller design because the new one isn't good enough.

There's a reason everyone is assuming that the shell will only be used by ports, and the reason is that some developers are lazy and will not exert the effort of trying to make their games more intuitive for simple ports. Any other reason for using the old controller would mean the death of the new one.

[Ian Sane]

"It's Nintendo's way of easing people into using the new controller that have been raised on the XBox/PS2 standard."

Ironically it's actually Nintendo's standard we've been raised on.

"If they include the shell with every controller, people will think the same thing you are, that they need the old controller design because the new one isn't good enough."

I felt that way before I even heard of the shell.  The second I saw the remote I thought it wasn't good enough.

[PaLaDiN]

"I felt that way before I even heard of the shell. The second I saw the remote I thought it wasn't good enough."

Okay, fair enough. I think most everybody who's seen the controller and hasn't played it yet had that impression at first.

There are people who do think it's good enough though. Nintendo using/relying extensively on the shell would tell them "sorry, we led you on, this new controller thing isn't working out." What's the point of trusting in the new controller if even Nintendo itself doesn't?

[Ian Sane]

"What's the point of trusting in the new controller if even Nintendo itself doesn't?"

Well that's the point.  Nintendo doesn't trust in the new controller.  Therefore it's a lousy design that they never should have gone with in the first place.  They can't suddenly get confident in their design and it will all be cool.  There's a reason they aren't and that can't go away if they get rid of the shell.  I'm not confident in it, I already know they're not confident in it either, and that means it's not a new standard and it should be and it won't become one just because Nintendo forces it to be.

[PaLaDiN]

Wait, what?

Nintendo seems plenty trusting in their new controller... what are you talking about?

[BlackNMild2k1]

The point of the new controller is not to be able to play traditional (read: standard) games in a tradional way, thats the point of the shell. The point of the new controller is to play new and very untraditional games in new and very untradional ways, and with a little creativity it can be adapted to play some existing franchises in new and intuitive ways.

If nintendo wasn't confident in their remote controller then why would they make it the center piece of the Rev so far? If they weren't 100% confident in anything, I would guess that it is the specs(in comparison to the competition), not the controller, which is the talk of all the developers that mention the Rev.

[Ian Sane]

"Nintendo seems plenty trusting in their new controller... what are you talking about?"

They have a shell available to play traditional games.  If they were confident that this remote design they wouldn't bother with one because there's no need.  A real standard should be able to adapt to all previous games that used the standard controllers of the past.  You said that the problem with the shell is that if Nintendo pushes it too hard then people are going to assume they don't trust it.  I'm going a step further and saying that they very fact that they even made one shows they don't trust it.

Or I guess it's possible that NCL trusts it (actually that's very likely) but some third parties and likely some NOA execs don't and thus they came up with the shell to please them.  But even then, the very fact that they have to make a shell to appease these people should be a big alarm going off in NCL's heads.  

[KnowsNothing]

I don't think Nintendo should even make a controller for the Revolution, then no one will complain about it.