I could care less about a DVD player, I have somewhere near 8 as it is.

But this is a really stupid move by Nintendo. They're sending mixed messages here. They set out to create a "game machine" and are now adding other media devices to it? I'm confused, and so will consumers.

Not to mention the war cry of people who buy a Wii and are not aware of future DVD capabiliteis. They will be ticked, no doubt about it.

So what's next? MP3?

Maybe I'm stupid, but where does it sound like we'll need to buy a new Wii?

"CinePlayer CE DVD Navigator is a robust, software-based DVD playback engine"

That statement makes it sound like it could be a software upgrade.

I don't see how it wouldn't be simply a software update. If the disc drive is capable of reading a DVD, new firmware for the DVD player would simply need to be installed. Nintendo has told us over and over that the Wii OS is upgradable, so it would seem to me that whenever they finish the firmware upgrade, all us original Wii owners will just need to download the patch.

not so sure, as the DVD players require a DD decoder, and apparently the Wii doesn't have one.....

unless they plan to do a software decoder, which would be a pretty bad idea.....

Even though I don't care about the Wii being able to play video DVDs, it's kind of a bad move by Big N.
It really sounds like a software and/or firmware update to me though.
Eh, I just wanna play Zelda, that's all I'm asking for! :-P

I personally don't care, but they should've announced this AFTER the Wii launches. Now people on the fence about the Wii might wait until next year.

It's kind of like when Capcom announced that RE4 was also coming to the PS2 shortly before the formerly-exclusive GCN version was released.

Probably not on the same scale, but it's still not a smart move.

But I believe most people already have a DVD player, or, you know, six. So it probably won't affect sales too too much.

EDIT: Yeah, it should be a new Wii Channel if possible. 48 available channels is too few if VC games are their own channel each, but 48 channels is too many otherwise, as we've only seen, what, half a dozen channels so far? A "DVD/movie channel" would be cool, or it'd be one more channel, anyway.

This should not have been announced now. DVD playback should never have been cut to begin with, but to backtrack days before launch? I hope this won't be widely reported...or Nintendo should make clear that this will be available as an update to current Wii owners. I doubt this'll have that much impact in the long run, but it may affect the launch somewhat.

This isn't NEARLY as bad as showing the WW trailer at SW2K1 after showing the ultra-realistic trailer at SW2K, but it's still pretty bad.

Could this be the result of them rushing the Wii launch in order to beat the Christmas season?

I find it weird that Nintendo decided to add in DVD playback all of a sudden, especially when they made it clear the feature was axed.

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Originally posted by: Athrun Zala
not so sure, as the DVD players require a DD decoder, and apparently the Wii doesn't have one.....

unless they plan to do a software decoder, which would be a pretty bad idea.....

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I don't think anyone buying a Wii really cares about DVD playback, so why is everyone freaking out? This isn't like the days when the GameCube didn't have DVD playback when it had to compete with the PS2, because DVD players were not as common and buying a ps2 and instead of a GameCube and a dvd player was actually a good deal.

I say don't even include a DVD player. Doesn't really matter to me either way though.

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Originally posted by: obscureownership
I don't think anyone buying a Wii really cares about DVD playback, so why is everyone freaking out? This isn't like the days when the GameCube didn't have DVD playback when it had to compete with the PS2, because DVD players were not as common and buying a ps2 and instead of a GameCube and a dvd player was actually a good deal.

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I was just wondering, despite knowing very little about this Wii with DVD playback, do you think it will have an optical digital output? Did the Panasonic Q have one? If it did, would there be a chance of developers programming Wii games with true 5.1 or would they likely just stick with pro logic because of the installed base?

The Panasonic Q has one that only outputs dvd sound, not game sound. The current Wii does not have one.

I see, so the Q's digital audio out only worked for the DVD sound. I wonder if this will be different. I've personally been pretty bugged that Nintendo hasn't done digital audio from the get-go with Wii. Still, I wonder if any developers would program for it if they added this functionality with the updated "WiiVD"

I think it's really funny that Microsoft is adding HD-DVD playback this fall and Nintendo's answer is to add DVD playback next fall.

Isn't the better question "if this is software upgrading, why don't they release it now?"

That makes me think it is so totally not software oriented.

But I could be wrong.

I guess contracts and things could keep it from being released now....plus, I imagine you'd have to install it to the HD, which would sorta be dumb because you'd have to occupy part of the internal memory...

This is confusin'. If it comes to pass, then I raelly hope those hackers who are trying to get Linux to run on the Wii can get it to work, because the Wii would make one beautiful media center PC.

So lame.

Well, I suppose next time NOA grants an interview, this'll be one of the questions they'll immediately get bombarded by, at least in the gaming media. It'll be interesting to see how they spin this one, too. It's not like Zelda, when we weren't really promised anything in SW2K. With DVD playback first it's in, then out, now back in in a year, in a totally new version of the console. Might as well announce the DS Lite before the DS.

Why the crap didn't they stick with the dongle idea? Or maybe, a USB dongle will be made available (it would handle DD decoding) for the old Wiis for cheap (not more than $20) and built-in for the new ones - that's probably the best way to handle it)

So... does this somehow effect the Wii's ability to play Twilight Princess in 5 days, 6 hours, and 28 minutes? No?

Don't care.

Providing DVD playback months from now is just another point people can use to make the Wii look inferior.

PS3 - BluRay (new)
Xbox 360 - HD-DVD (new)
Wii - DVD (old)

The extra functionality will not only be unecessary, but it will make Nintendo look bad (especially if the implementation is poor).

Well it's a DVD softare players that enables the unit to act like a STRIPPED DOWN DVD PLAYER. Much like a portable DVD player without the screen, or a media laptop without usefulness. Wii lacks industry standard digital surround sound output, so it's obviously not a home theater device. Which brings me to demand someone ask Nintendo in a new interview, "WHY THE FAHK BOTHER?"

Which brings me to a new idea that'll require some generalizations: the DVD player isn't there to make Wii a center-piece media box, it's there for the convenience of having a movie player on the spot? Who would it matter to? I don't know, let's say.... THE PEOPLE OF JAPAN. I really don't know if your average household is crazy about surround sound and has the SPACE for a complete HT setup, but i'll just guess the majority DOES NOT, making HD and HT just luxuries the masses don't depend on. But looking at the PS2, it may matter not whether families have the equipment for the HT experience, but HAVING DVD PLAYBACK was simply a convenient thing to have. Does gamerX and his 20" bedroom TV have a HT system to go along with it? MAYBE THE FAHK NOT. So all the Dolby Surround gobbledy-gook doesn't make a difference. BUT HEY, gamerX can still watch his POKEMON DVDs and other naughty discs in private anyway.

This is a strange flip-side to the Digital Out removal on GameCube. Here, (half-ass) DVD is being added while the component hookup was taken away. The difference here is: DVD playback is ultimately more useful/valuable in the long run.

Better late than never?

I don't think joe consumer will even realize that this is going on when he goes to buy a Wii.

A few hardcore gamers who want to have a DVD player in their bedroom or whatever will be bummed and/or wait.

Ultimately, Wii's success will depend on the innovative new features and gameplay, not DVD playback.

I wish Nintendo would have left the DVD playback either buried or included it with the launch hardware. Personally I don't care either way, because I never have used any of my systems to watch movies on, but I can see how some would be impacted. If this turns out to be more than a firmware update, and is in fact built into the hardware, it could really divide the Wii userbase. I'm all for a standard console, and really do not like the crap Sony or MS pulled with the "loser" and "cool" system packs. Then again this is my exact feeling on Twilight Princess, I think they should have had only one true version and axed the GC one.

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Originally posted by: MarioAllStar

PS3 - BluRay (competing with HD-DVD to be the next-gen format, not many movies available as companies are skeptical that a new format is needed)
Xbox 360 - HD-DVD (competing with BluRay to be the next-gen format, not many movies available as companies are skeptical that a new format is needed)
Wii - DVD (the current standard, all new movies are released in this format)

And one of BluRay or HD-DVD will become the new Beta.

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Originally posted by: TrueNerd
So... does this somehow effect the Wii's ability to play Twilight Princess in 5 days, 6 hours, and 28 minutes? No?

Don't care.

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I liked how early on when the "Revolution" was first revealed it had DVD playback. Sure it was Nintendo playing catch-up (as usual) but it was nice to have an extra feature thrown in. It also showed that maybe Nintendo had learned something. "Hey people seem to like having a little extra functionality thrown in so let's do it with something minor so that we don't look like clueless idiots."

I think that now, with the Wii having last gen graphics and no HD that it really doesn't matter. DVD support is a minor feature that isn't as needed now as it was five years ago. HD is the "expected" feature and with that gone Nintendo already looks out-of-touch, at least from the perspective of the home theatre types. I think having DVD support is better than not having it but the section of the market that cares about features like that already has a reason to be turned off. DVD support made sense way back when it was assumed the Rev would be a little more conventional and wouldn't look dated a year after release. The Wii's success is based on the acceptance of the controller, which is really the only reason it even exists.

The only reason I sorta care is that Wii would be, by far, the coolest looking DVD player in my apartment.

I hope there's some way to make a Wii DVD ready sometime in late 2007 through firmware or some sort of add-on, but if the original Wiis are not upgradable to the DVD-ready version, perhaps they can offer a trade-in service where people can give their used Wiis + $50 to get a Wii with DVD capability. I don't know how to make the economics work for that, but right now I think that'd be the best way to please the early adopters who want the DVD functionality with their Wii when the new model comes out.

Gee, Nintendo announces this early and everyone's all "They should have waited!".

Had Nintendo waited to announce this later, it would have been just like when the GBASP came out and everyone was accusing Nintendo of double dipping and purposly getting everyone to buy original GameBoy Advance units just to stick 'em again with the GBASP...

Can't win for losing, eh?

Thinking about this a little more, my opinion still stands. However, I do think it would be neat to use the Wii-mote for DVD menu navigation (much like a mouse in DVD playing software for computers). That would make the Wii one of the coolest DVD players yet. Probably not the best quality, but fun to use. Still, it is nothing I would spend money on.

They can add what they want, I suppose, but how would they market it?

A big ol' sticker on the Wii box that says "now plays DVDs"? When the PS2 could do it seven years earlier?

It's certainly not a bad addition, and I might use it if it didn't cost me any more, but it seems like it's not really something you can market easily without pointing out that there was a lack to begin with.

Also, someone should explain the Xbox 360 external HD-DVD drive to me. Maybe I'm stupid but I don't get it. How does it make use of the Xbox 360 if it's external? Couldn't I hook up a DVD player, somehow routing it through my Wii, and say my Wii is equipped with DVD playback? Huh?

GBASP case is different because they never specifically said "the GBA is gonna have a sick backlight and be really small" before the original GBA even launched." Here they said right from the beginning "the Wii will play DVDs, with an addon." Then it was suddenly removed for a while and wholly disowned with the usual "we're about games" excuse (especially hypocritical when at the same time, Webbrowsing is included), and now it's back in...but not for another friggin' year.

To clarify - I don't care that much, but it would be one less component/remote lying around and, like Jonny said, a really cool looking DVD player...

Maybe the next Nintendo will have an abacus

I imagine they'll market this the same way they marketed the GBASP with new backlight, aka they won't.

I don't see why people are worried about "this makes the Wii look last gen."

The people saying that weren't going to get one anyway.

And to get the higher benefits of the other machines requires 3x the cost and re-buying all their DVDs again. Not to mention having an HDTV. And that's for a marginal increase in quality at best.

People need to stop acting like the next optical format war is akin to black and white versus color televisions, or VHS versus DVD. It's not even close to that.

^What Strell said.

I still predict online downloads connected to a set-top box will supersede optical media formats entirely. Last I checked, Apple has added HD movie downloads via their iTunes store, and they're ALSO working on a "media box" which will connect to your HDTV (or regular TV) and play high-def movies. No optical media necessary, and these are the same people who brought mp3 players from a geek toy to a mainstream device. Hmm...

Also, I already do what Apple aims to do, just with a hacked Xbox: we download whatever we want to watch, upload it to the Xbox and I haven't touched a DVD in months and I don't have cable.

I think the optical media wars are going to be too little, too late.

Hopefully they'll launch the DVD player version in black. That would give me two reasons to buy Wii again. =P

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Originally posted by: Pale
Hopefully they'll launch the DVD player version in black. That would give me two reasons to buy Wii again. =P

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And miss out on such an awesome whiteboard?

The black Wii will look insanely cooler with the pulsing blue light around the disc slot.

This entire announcement is kind of interesting.
Sonic is the one doing the talking, not Nintendo.

I wonder if this new version of the Wii will have a TOSLINK connector on it.
I suppose a customized version of component cable hookup might have a digital coaxial out on it.

Time will tell...

Yes, that's a bloody good idea.

Well, in all honesty, I was thinking about selling my white Wii, and buying a black one when they came out... So maybe I'll wait for the DVD functionality, if it isn't a software upgrade you can download.

On that note... What if you sell your Wii? What happens with the games and stuff you downloaded?

Hmmm... it is possible that the current Wii simply won't read DVDs because the media is slightly different (like the GCN's was not quite a mini-DVD), and the DVD-playing version would have an optical drive with firmware allowing it to read either. Otherwise, software-only would be possible. If it is, someone will make Wii Linux to do it.